Recently, Australian-duo Flight Facilities released a new record with RnB group DRAMA titled 'Move'. Comprised of producer Na’el Shehade’s (Chance The Rapper, Kanye West) and vocalist Via Rosa tastefully straddle the line of RnB producers and dance music aficionados. As journalists, when we decide to interview someone, it's our duty to sit with artists and pick their brains to piece together a coherent conversation for you all to read. But what if we sat both artists down and instead had them speak to each other? That's exactly what we've done for the the first installment of Artists Asking Artists.
Flights Facilities to DRAMA (answered by vocalist Via Rosa)
FF: 2019 in LA. You walked into the studio, there we were, two lost Aussies… What was your immediate impression?
V: Super chill, I got the feeling right away that we were going to get along just fine! I loved that we went on a walk and got coffee, I think it’s really important to have that courting section of the session where you get to know each other, crack some jokes, get the creative juices flowing. I mean, we’re essentially about to make a baby.
FF: 'Move' has formed to be somewhat of an ode to the '80s and '90s Chicago House music era. Tell us about your own upbringing in music and what still inspires your writing today?
V: The guys said “Madonna” and we said, “I gotchu.” My mom loved Madonna, and I did my best to really bring that attitude. Right now I’ve been listening to a lot of everything, pulling little pieces from all around me. I’ve really been trying to focus on being present and looking forward as opposed to pulling from the past and feeding off trauma and sadness.
FF: Tell us about two up & coming artists from your hometown that you're loving and we should be listening to?
V: SoloSam. He’s great, he’s a rapper and he produces a lot of his own music as well. It’s very rare that people are talented and actually good human beings. [IG: @solosam ]
DJ Iggy. He's my favorite DJ from Chicago; very very versatile. I love how he's able to mix it up, you know? Classics with songs from all over the world that you've never heard before. I think as a DJ it's really important to introduce new music as opposed to just playing Top 40's. [IG: @djiggy]
FF: Lollapalooza last weekend. Hometown show. How did it feel to be performing live again?
V: It felt absolutely amazing, Lollapalooza is massive, and it was such an honor to be a part of it. We had been preparing for that moment for so long. It was really cool to just watch it all unfold. Afterward, it just felt like a major release.
FF: What's coming up next for DRAMA?
V: We’re just going to continue working hard, put out new music and keep touring. We’re hoping the next year is going to be huge for us.
FF: When are you coming to Australia? there's plenty of fans out here!
V: ASAP. Seriously! We had plans to go last year but COVID dashed those! So as soon as we can, we’ll be out there. We can’t wait!
DRAMA to Flight Facilities (answered by Hugo + Jimmy)
Drama cc Eric Maldin
D: What are you currently listening to?
FF: The new Jungle Giants album is great. The title track, Love Signs, reminds us of some classic Hot Chip mixed with Metronomy. It's an awesome record.
D: What inspired this track for you?
FF: Two of the biggest inspirations were:
David Penn's 'Big Love'. We've always loved an infectious piano house track. It was something we did more of years ago, so it was fun to lean back into that.
The other big inspiration was Show Me Love, by Robin S. One of the 90s house classics. Via's vocals sounded so perfect for a track like that, so we tried leaning into the '80s/'90s drum machine sounds.
D: You two are aging like fine wine, what’s it been like making music together for over 10 yrs?
FF: The wrinkles and grey hairs have definitely taken up more real estate on our heads over the years. No doubt you guys would know it's a challenge to work together consistently for years, but it's about finding the balance of respect and conviction for each other's ideas. We're so glad we get to keep doing it. Hopefully, the world doesn't end before our careers do.
D: Favorite venue in the world and why?
FF: That's a tough one. Because there's plenty of amazing venues we've been to, but the experience is often more important than the surroundings. There's a club in Sydney called 77. It was hugely influential in our musical journey. The place itself was nothing special. Dark, dingy, and pretty disgusting. But the parties that occurred there created some dance floor and career-defining magic for us. If time travel were possible, it's the first party we'd go back to.
D: If you could invite two musicians to a dinner party what would you serve them? Who would they be? (besides DRAMA 🙂 )
FF: I think we'd have to invite Mozart, and Boys Noize. We'd feed Mozart a hamburger because it didn't exist until the last century, and we'd feed Boys Noize something basic from the 1700s like corn, some bread, and a piece of meat. Then listen to them to talk about the differences in modern life, music composition, production, and how technology has changed how music sounds. With any luck, see Mozart get his mind blown not just by electricity, but by electronic music. Helps that they're both German, too.
D: What’s it like in Australia right now and how has the past year been for you guys?
FF: Australia is pretty grim at the moment. We were having a great time until covid showed up again and everything got throttled. We haven't done a live show since 2019, which is insanely frustrating. But there's not a whole lot we can do about that for now, unfortunately. Our careers are in the hands of people who haven't had fun in 40 years. And so we wait…
