Being a proud Leeds lad and an unashamedly sample, scratching and beats addict it was always going to be inevitable that the Leeds band FOLD would line up in my sights.In a recent Bandcamp listening party for their new single “Dark Matters” I was finally able to pull the proverbial trigger and arrange for them to do this interview.
Incorporating a wide range of voices including MCs, poets, historical speakers and singers into their music, Leeds based collective Fold aim to amplify humanitarian perspectives and critical reflections on today’s world. Their sound is similarly wide-ranging, from jazz-funk through Brazilian, psyche, hip-hop and downtempo.
Fold’s music is played on BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music, Amazing Radio and many other independent stations across the world. Their tracks have been featured on numerous Spotify editorial playlists, Indie Shuffle are big fans and they’ve been featured in The Times, The Guardian and The NME.
Something you are proud of….
My kids. I know that sounds cheesy and cliché but I believe that a big part of making the world a better place is by breaking the cycles of negative behaviour, rooted largely in trauma, that are passed down from generation to generation. As a parent, one of my main duties is to make sure whatever crap I was landed with doesn’t get re-enacted by me and passed down to my kids. By me doing the work on myself I help break the cycle; I model that and teach it to them. I’m particularly proud of this because it has taken a monumental effort—from both me and their mum—and my kids are growing up to be beautiful human beings. I can’t think of anything else I’ve done that’ll have a more positive impact on the world.
Something you live by….
I was taught ‘the golden rule’ early in my school days, one of the rare successes of that system. The version I remember is “do unto others as you would have done unto you.” I had no idea that it was rooted in the bible but I do absolutely live by it. Also, Vonnegut’s “If you can do no good at least do no harm” is another solid principle. Oh and Yoda’s ”Do or do not, there is no try.”
Something you’re good at….
Diplomacy. In my case that entails seeing and bringing out the good in people and not being judgemental. Also, ‘big picture thinking’ — seeing through the façades of manipulation to the grand designs behind them. I’ve always related more to characters like Gandalf (Lord of the Rings) or Toranaga (Shogun) who work behind the scenes on the grand scheme of things using diplomacy and subtle wisdom. Not that I’ve made a comparable impact or anything.
Something that helps…
Flow, especially creative flow. Nothing helps me more than that, it is the space my brain needs to be in as often as possible in order to maintain sanity. It happens for me when making music (#1), certain non-screen-based games, cooking and gardening. The game I’m into at the moment is an out-of-print collectible card game called Middle Earth (you can see a theme developing there) which can be played solo or in groups of 2+. I first tried it while living in Amsterdam back in 1997 and then stopped for about 25 years as I couldn’t find anyone to play it with when I moved back to the States.
Something that makes you laugh…
My partner’s 18 year old grey cat Mano is probably my best friend. She’s amazing, she actually knocks on the door to be let in. I do this thing where I involuntarily speak in what my brain perceives to be her voice. Hilarity usually ensues. ‘The voice’ has spread to my kids, everyone who lives at my partner’s house and slowly beyond. It may be my most enduring legacy in the end.
Something you’ve recently discovered….
The Blindboy Podcast. Best podcast I’ve ever listened to, many thanks to my partner Nic for introducing me.
Something you’ll never understand…
The philosophy of aesthetics and the mathematics of topology.
Something you would change….
Instead of a system that values profit over life I would simply flip that around and I believe much would be solved.
Something you regret…
Not buying a Magic the Gathering Black Lotus back in 1994 when I had the chance.
Something with sharing….
My time.
Something worth keeping….
Things that grow.
Something that would make the world a better place….
Community. Which is of course rooted in our innate desire to love and be loved. I think we need to focus more effort into building and maintaining healthy communities wherever we may be in order to break away from the loneliness and isolation of late-stage capitalism.
Something they’ll say when your gone…
“Are we really going to honour his will by rolling his ashes up into a massive joint and smoking him? Is that legally binding?” I’m only half-joking. You know, in the end it’ll most likely be that voice of Mano the cat that I do.
Massive thanks to FOLD for agreeing to be interviewed. Show you care by picking up their latest music, here.
Michael Conboy
meansmagazine.com 