In this interview, Indie Boulevard converses with Painted Friends, delving deeper into the details of their upcoming single with the intriguing title “Cain Complex.” During the discussion, they explore the inspiration behind the song, the creative process involved in its production, and the thematic elements that make “Cain Complex” a unique and compelling addition to Painted Friends’ discography.
At the heart of Detroit, Michigan, pulses a rhythmic explosion – Painted Friends, an alternative band charged with a mission to ignite the fire within, inspire love, and spark creativity. In an exclusive interview, we unravel the mysterious inception of their upcoming single “Cain Complex,” which already resonates as an established classic, hinting at the multifaceted journey awaiting its audience. The imminent single not only serves as an intriguing prologue but also acts as a gateway into the vast universe of Painted Friends’ forthcoming album, “Gomnia: Volume 2”. We’ve scored an exclusive chat with the innovative minds behind the Painted Friends. In a candid tête-à-tête, they peel back the layers of inspiration, delving into the enigmatic genesis of this track. Brand new single serves as a prologue to Painted Friends’ upcoming album, ‘Gomnia: Volume 2.’ As they hint, this album peels back layers, confronting the human condition with unflinching honesty.
Hi guys, thanks for taking the time to chat with us. Your new single ‘Cain Complex’ is coming out very soon. It clearly heralds something special. Could you share what emotions, ideas, or experiences laid the foundation for this song?
Cain Complex comes from the biblical story of Cain and Abel. It is one of the deepest stories in all of literature no matter what belief system you hold. I am not sure how good of an idea it is to try and put yourself in the mindset of a jealous murderer, but I wrote Cain Complex to allow myself to think from the perspective of Cain. I wanted to attempt to understand what Cain went through, perhaps to understand how to prevent that sort of “complex” from happening.
An intriguing title for the new single – ‘Cain Complex’. Could you tell us about the idea or concept behind this name?
It’s basically a similar phrase to “Napolean Complex”, where someone small in stature tries to compensate for their size by being an aggressive, raving lunatic. “Cain Complex” is a phrase used to describe the behavior of someone who commits evil out of jealousy. I don’t know if it has been used before, though I am sure it has.
Does ‘Cain Complex’ represent a new era for Painted Friends or is it a continuation of your debut album “Gomnia”?
I wouldn’t say it uniquely represents a new era of Gomnia more than the other songs off of volume 2 . But It introduces part of the narrative of Volume 2, which is about admitting humanity has a problem of jealousy, hatred, lack of self-control, etc. I want to emphasize that the album as a whole isn’t dark like Cain Complex is. Eventually, it resolves to finding joy.
How do you perceive the evolution of your sound through this new single compared to your previous works?
I was listening to a ton of Marty Robbins and Johnny Cash while writing this song. It is, admittedly, a little different than those artists but I feel like the 50s/60s country inspiration behind it is pretty obvious. I have always loved that era of country music and never really showed it too much in our previous songs. Also, Cain Complex is the first Painted Friends song that doesn’t have any synthesizers or artificial sounds. Everything that you hear was performed using real instruments. We have always utilized synthesizers in the past and wanted to simplify things a little bit on this song.
Your music videos are amazing. Are you preparing a music video for ‘Cain Complex’?
As of right now, we don’t have any music video plans for Cain Complex. It is a difficult thing to pull off when you are on a budget. We would love to make a video for it eventually. Similar to one of our previous songs “The Dust is Rising”, we may end up doing a video for it well after its release.
‘Cain Complex’ marks the first release in this year. What emotions do you feel presenting it to the public?
Excitement. We have been in writing mode for over 2 years now and we are finally ready to show everyone what we have been doing.
New year, new music. What plans does the band have for 2024 besides this single?
We are planning to release Gomnia: Volume 2 on February 29th, as well as the full Gomnia collection with alternative versions of some songs in April. Like a deluxe version or whatever. After that, who knows.
It seems you always play with interesting musical ideas. Do you feel drawn to maintaining your unique style, or do you enjoy dabbling in different genres and sounds?
We are never thinking of “dabbling in different genres and sounds” just for the sake of saying we did. That isn’t what we want out of creating, though it definitely works for other artists and good for them, honestly. We dabble with other genres if we feel that the song is telling us to. We try and let the songs write themselves as much as possible.
Can you hint at anything about Gomnia Vol 2, share some details or the general vibe you aim to infuse into this project?
Volume 2 is full of ups and downs. Just like our individual lives. I would say that volume 2 is less cryptic than volume 1, with a few exceptions. I went through a decent amount of growth as a songwriter over the last few years, and one of the conclusions that I have made in regard to songwriting is that sometimes being cryptic, at least for me, was/is almost like a crutch. For Volume 2, I wanted to take time to make my points more obvious to everyone who listens.
There’s a notion that the indie music industry sometimes becomes too commercialized and loses its individuality. Do you believe the indie scene nowadays retains its freedom and independence, or is it subjected to commercial trends?
I honestly don’t know what the indie scene even is. We are all dependent on each other. Music only becomes subjected to commercial trends when the artist is willing to make it that way. Sometimes commercial trends are good though, maybe?
‘Cain Complex’ by Painted Friends
is out on JANUARY 12th
Indie Boulevard Magazine 