One of the year's most rewarding departures was the project which saw The National's Matt Berninger and Brent Knopf (of Ramona Falls and Menomena) come together for a long overdue collaboration.
Trading as El Vy, their outstanding Return To The Moon LP drew on certain trademarks from their day jobs, though it's markedly different in other ways. Talking to Colm O'Regan in the Hot Press Annual, Matt says it reflects the approach the pair took from the start.
"I don't think of them in different ways," he says, in reference to his day-job with The National and this collaboration. "I mean, they obviously end up that way, because you chang depending on who you're working with, and the chemistry and DNA of this thing is going to be different. But it doesn't come from an agenda, or some premeditated thing. I don't have a switch in my head that's like 'OK, am I doing The National or El Vy today?'"
He also insists that, despite the relative superstardom he's achieved over the last decade or so, neither project brings a sense of pressure.
"In a funny way, I've tricked myself into not feeling pressurised by anything," he confides. "I used to feel all sorts of stress about songwriting and releasing records; all of these things that don't help you write music, or come up with creative ideas. I really don't feel that way anymore."
For the remarkable full interview - including discussions on the collaborative process, what he'll be taking back to The National, and why tying kites to his penis hasn't happened (yet) - pick up the new Hot Press Annual 2016, on sale now.
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