Leafblade started out as one of Daniel Cavanagh’s (Anathema) solo projects. Nowadays he plays behind the scenes with Sean Jude (guitars/vocals) and Kevin Murphy (bass) taking centre stage. Ghost Cult caught up with the ever eloquent Sean Jude to quiz him about The Kiss Of Spirit And Flesh, the latest Leafblade album.
Tell us about your latest release, The Kiss of Spirit And Flesh.
The Kiss of Spirit And Flesh from the outset, was my chance to step things up from Beyond, Beyond. We wanted to produce something with the same lyrical core, the same nylon-like troubadour moments and vocals, but bring the whole thing up dynamically with more ‘rocked out’ refrains, anthems and shifting orchestration.We still experience the Poet stood atop the hill, within the labyrinth of the self, in reflection, in question, in sensory celebration; feeling an elemental oneness, except that I feel there is more of a widespread reaching out with some of the sheer catchiness of the songs. It has arrived as a great birth for us! The rapture, the energy, the excitement of the material has really shifted its gears. It’s certainly put a bag of stars in my fruit tea, more glimmering moons in my strings! Conceptually, the subject material enhances and augments what we experienced on Beyond, Beyond – a deepening of elemental oneness, perhaps, a greater sense of mysticism, as we, in those words of Paracelsus, “Beget the Imagination from the Firmament”. As with a lot of my work, my poetry celebrates the power of the Imagination, that ‘extra sense of being’, if you will. We can focus, look beyond the everyday life with its conscious ramblings and musings, and find the space / time continuum within to explore Sacred Geometry, Nature Mysticism, fundamental points as to what exactly we are, our place in the universe, our sensory capacities as living, breathing, loving, feeling human beings.
You’ve been working with Danny Cavanagh since 2003, how has he in a musical and production capacity helped shape Leafblade?
From the early days, Dan had loved my acoustic stuff, and simply wanted to play it, to be part of a gold and green tapestry that for him was always close to his own musical home. He had no real wish to interfere with it, merely augment those early songs with subtle textures and colour. And he did an admirable job. Dan loves being part of the Leafblade thing because he isn’t writing the stuff; he has faith in the quality of the work and finds some solace in the lyrical content. I think he finds it healing, on some levels. No pretensions here. We’ve sat off in the woods, in firelight, with friends, on many occasions, and I think much of the content lyrically evokes this association for him. Dan has augmented the sense of ambience in Leafblade with his additions to the acoustic stuff: subtle electric guitar effects and keyboards when we have played it live, and brought the material, over ten years and twenty-five countries, to a much broader, discerning audience. I recall shows in Tilburg and Delft with Dan and Anneke, or the Boerderij, then new shows with bass player Kev in Terneuzen, for example, shows that met with superb receptions and pertinent questions from spirits who would become fans as well as friends.
Your lyrics touch on religion and the environment, amongst other things, what do you wish your music to convey?
My views are certainly more spiritual than religious. In religion, we offload our ‘sins’ onto some exalted master; in philosophy we steer our vessels of reason through the precarious waters of intuition; in mysticism we pursue our own path, our own take upon existence, sensory evaluation. I’m very much, philosophically and spiritually speaking, a creature of comparative religion. You’ve as much chance of finding me at Evensong, in a corner of the vaulted chambers of Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral as you have of finding me sat meditating near a stream or walking through a thoughtful wood! I try to see the light in it all religion, if only from a theoretical point of view. It’s caused the odd war or two, which I won’t go into right now, but if there’s some communion in ideas it would be firstly: there is something inherently powerful and beautiful about the human spirit, and secondly: I sense there is more to our existence than merely this encasing in the flesh for however long. There is a mystical, occult side to our being, and it is this path that I have pursued, the path of Inner Journeying, through all of my creative life. In that journey comes an honesty, an outpouring, an unfolding. I would hope this comes across in the music. There is no affectation. I am not singing of the romantic sentimentality in nature (although that is ecstatic and uplifting enough, especially if you are a Wordsworth or a Keats!) but with an honesty, an openness that is acutely aware of the brutality, the striving for the light, the attempts at environmental and social establishment, which is the perfect metaphor for the human condition. It is a struggle, a battleground, in which we must find our own space, both inside and outside, for want of better terms; for indeed, everything ‘outside’ the self is really going on inside. I’d like my stuff to convey energy, positivism, light; evoke a bit of wonder and slam out a few healthy, catchy tunes. There is still a reasonable spectra of emotion contained within ‘The Kiss of Spirit and Flesh’; there to be caught and reflected upon, to be read into according to one’s individual will and perspective.
With Danny Cavanagh and Daniel Cordoso helping Leafblade do you consider yourself being a part of a sort of greater Anathema family? Can you relate to the aformentioned band goes as far as music and emotions go?
Being part of a larger Anathema family is something I seek to avoid. I’m a scribbling musician and actor in my own right. When I’ve toured with them in the past, there have been times when it looks like ‘Sean Jude sings with Anathema’, as Dan plays guitar, Jay prangs the bass and Vin has even jumped in on the kit! Certainly, my musical life has been interwoven with them these past years: my own private recording projects with smaller record deals over the years have always had one or more of the gents involved in it. Jay or Vin would usually be at the desk, producing and mixing, Dan would throw in a solo; always they gave it 100% and more. For many years, our close friendship behind the scenes in discussion, in woodland laughter, in watching the football together, made me feel like the extra brother. We grew together, experimented musically. When I hook up with them (as I will again in London in July for the Kscope 5-year anniversary show) it is always a pleasure. I don’t see them as often as I used: individual paths pursuit have taken us to different places, busy with our own lives and adventures.
The Kiss Of Spirit And Flesh is released via Kscope, a label that stand almost synonymous for quality in forward thinking music. How does that make you feel and how has working with them benefited Leafblade to so far?
Kscope have been very amenable, friendly and courteous right from the start. The exposure Leafblade should receive through Kscope will be pretty widespread, I’m hoping. They have taken Leafblade on in a time of increasing financial difficulty, a time when very few new acts are signed. I receive a few requests each week for interviews, keeping the media machine moving, and worked in close conflation with them regarding the artwork for the album The front cover was an image that myself and bassing Kev discovered; it was immediately met with unanimous approval, and once I’d grilled everyone with a few written-out art suggestions, everyone jumped on the case. At this point we contacted Caroline Traitler, who has worked with Kscope before. I’m new to the Kscope stable, yes, but I’m hoping they’ll be open to business suggestions and ideas as I develop a rapport with them over the coming months. They produce fine, unique work, and it is a pleasure to be at that vanguard. And I’ll be fine with a cup of de-caff tea at the office next time I call in! A follow-on album would be a bonus on the label, but, for the time being, I will attend to my interviews, play the odd show or two, but sit back and see if the Kscope media machine can do its bit and hit a few good sales figures. I will be evaluating their work-ethic, their capacities as much as they will be looking at me.
Sarah Worsley