Stepping outside his identity as one third of Argentine free riffers Los Natas, guitarist/vocalist Sergio Chotsourian formed the solo outing Ararat as a means for expressing experimental tendencies that did not otherwise fit into his main outfit. Ararat‘s debut, Musica de la Resistencia, crosses cultures and sonic norms en route to bleeding ambience and sometimes dark psychedelia. Based as much around acoustic guitar as noisescaping, the outing defies expectation in almost every way and produces an unsettling, challenging atmosphere.

Chotsourian, joined in his endeavor by his brother Santiago, El Topo (Dragonauta) and others, has shown there’s more to his musical personality than riffs, solos and singing about revolution. With Musica de la Resistencia, a new sonic direction is established and the boundaries seem limitless for what Ararat can accomplish. Sergio was kind enough to once again answer some email questions, and the resulting interview is after the jump. Enjoy.

How did the idea for Ararat came about? Was there something specific about the music or the writing process that you knew separated it from Los Natas?

I started recoding home shit since 10 years ago,?many things on vacation time, tour days offs and time wasted with my older brother Santiago. He plays piano classical-style and we used to share music and melodies since we were kids. Also been doing the very first versions for the Los Natas songs, I mean demos or the very first ideas I do at home and enjoy mixing in different ways to see what?s up with the song.

One day fixing my home studio I realized I got all this music non-released, so I started working on a long process of listening all my recorded shit, then choosing and then a very different map of composition than Los Natas, more like a movie edit. Many times in the studio recording over and over new things, editing and bringing concepts to it. And that was it, man; the spirit was just there, waiting for me to name it and work it hard.

Is there something you feel you can express in Ararat and not in Los Natas?

Ararat is a part of Los Natas and both ways around. Los Natas? Nuevo Orden de la Libertad shares some moment with Ararat?s debut album, as it was kinda made up at the same time, and Ararat was kind of the experiment room for some Los Natas ideas. So it could have been also featured as a DCD album.

Ararat is more about my blood and spirit, Los Natas is the three-piece of los tres hombres: Sergio, Gonzalo and Walter.

There?s an intimate vibe on a lot of the songs, sometimes darker and what Los Natas does. How much of ?Gitanoss? came from experimenting in the studio, and did you have a specific sound in mind for the album going into it?

Um, yes ?Gitanoss? is a deep thing. I remember sitting in the studio with my friend El Topo, I just dropped a deep bass drum Indian local shit, then El Topo had these words in mind about the gypsies and shit, we developed some keyboard passage huge, and then on easily acoustic guitars broke through to a final speedup all together.
Ararat?s music, yes, is more intimate and more spacey, it?s got more room in between melodies and songs, it takes all the time music needs and asks for developing the idea.

Between Mt. Ararat and the South American elements in the music (and obviously the lyrics), you?ve got a lot of blending cultures going on with Musica de la Resistencia. How much did your personal heritage and experience play into the concept of the band and the duality of the music?

Ararat is most of all about my personal heritage I cannot runaway from. Part of my family is Armenian, the other part German, the other part local Argentine Indian. I feel the need to be in equilibrium with all these three spirits inside of me. Ararat and the pianos got more about to the Armenian army, my father my brother and these little sad melodies, at the same time intricate and repetitive, like a mantra but from Armenian folk. It?s also a duel of time and history, the elements sometimes so raw and ancient, and sometimes these future sounds or organs undefined in time …

How was it working with your brother on piano? What made you decide to include ?Dos Horses?? Is it a way of tying this record and the last Los Natas together?

“Dos Horses” was basically done for the Ararat album. It is the battle horse of this album. Then, when editing El Nuevo Orden, I wanted to share this song as a connection between both albums, like a sequel unnamed but meant. The Ararat side of the Los Natas album grew immediately and we suddenly ended up editing it like we did on Ararat, like a movie.

You?ve handled plenty of artwork before, but with the cover of Musica de la Resistencia there?s a lot of national-style symbolism, with the colored bars and the crest. Where did the concept for the visual side of the record come from?

I wanted to give the idea and feeling of a nation called ?Ararat.? A nation with its anthems, people, wars, fights, wins and losses. It?s not a defined country I got all stuff from, it?s a banner I did in particular by myself, also about the shield that?s taken from Armenian military forces from the past. So it?s the idea of a whole force of power blending into music as its folklore.

How did working with MeteorCity come about?

Lately we got a very good relationship mostly with my man El Danno, he?s been working great with Los Natas since 10 years, sold and distributed tons of Los Natas shit and he was the only one I thought about when finding the ways out for the Ararat release, along with Stefan [Koglek, Colour Haze guitarist/vocalist and head of Elektrohasch Shallplatten, which might release the Ararat vinyl]. Also as a matter of trust, I think MeteorCity folks are gentlemen and really like what they release. We are family.

Is the process any different for you writing acoustically as opposed to plugged in and fuzzed out? Does it affect your style at all?

Lately and most in Ararat I tried not to play many guitars, as I enjoy also diving into new instruments such as organs, piano, percussion and sequencers. But mostly I listen to the music and let “her” tell me what to do, if need heavy riffing I will notice, if needs acoustics you can hear them there, just before you even record them.
So gladly this album is not about me and my relationship with the guitar, it?s me as a composer and music man.

Will Ararat play shows? Any other plans for the band?

Yes, I have the future plan of joining an Ararat force live band, it will be mostly a drone doomy heavy version of the album.

But on the other side I have also been talking to my brother to bring out a cleaner Ararat set, only him and me, piano vs. guitar, more experimental and non-rock and roll! So let?s see what?s up. Most of all we need some time, ha ha.

Last time, you mentioned Los Natas was going to record Toba Trance III. Any more details about that you?d like to spill, and any idea when it might be out?

Uhh, lately we had a very bad health situation with bassist Gonzalo, so let?s see how this develops. Right now we are more focused on touring the new Natas album, Nuevo Orden de la Libertad, we have been invited for the Roadburn fest 2010 along with European touring, so there?s not much time left and Gonzalo [has to take] care of his health.

For the moment I am slowly working on Ararat volume II with my brother here, on our very little free time. So that?s the more Toba situation I am bringing right now.

Tags: Ararat, Argentina, Los Natas, MeteorCity

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009 at 1:26 pm and is filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.