Flaccid Mojo is a new project from Bjorn Copeland and Aaron Warren of Black Dice. Copeland and Warren both live in L.A. and started playing some shows together a few years ago. Those performances evolved into the songs they recorded for their debut album, which is out on Friday, October 28, from Castle Face Records. Copeland kindly agreed to an interview and answered some questions via email.
How did you two decide to start performing together as Flaccid Mojo? And how has the music evolved in the time that you've been playing together? Does playing songs live help you figure out how to develop them or take them in different directions?
Aaron and I both had relocated to LA seven years ago (?), at which point Eric [Copeland] was living in Spain, so bd [Black Dice] was on a bit of a hold. I was asked if I had a solo project that could open up for Martin Rev. It didn’t sound like fun playing by myself, so Aaron and I cooked up a loose set, and ended up having a blast, so we kept doing gigs. We never talked about making a record, but [John] Dwyer [of Castle Face Records] kept offering, so it seemed like we might as well. For the most part all of the tunes on the album were “honed” through playing live. I think there’s two jams we cooked up in the studio during the recording process.
What's the writing process like for you two, and how does that differ from the way you write for Black Dice?
FM feels incredibly loose compared to bd. The songs are written the same way, but I’d say we keep them a lot more open. One of us brings in a beat, some samples, and we just play with it until it feels satisfying.
What was the timeline like for recording the Flaccid Mojo album in comparison to Mod Prog Sic? Mod Prog Sic (to my ears) is really catchy and outgoing and the Flaccid Mojo album seems even more extroverted and relaxed and like a good-vibes record. How do you all think about the two albums in comparison–is there a particular vibe that comes to mind when you think about each album?
Mod Prog Sic took forever to make. As I mentioned we were geographically separated. Sending ideas back in forth was a new way of working for us. Amongst the three of us, we were referring to it as a cursed album, though in the end everything worked out great.
The FM record was recorded live in one day, with a few things being written during the mixing process. It was probably four days total? It was incredibly fun, and stress free. Our old old friend Chris Cody was an absolute pleasure to work with. Seemed like we just laughed the whole time.
I’m not sure what the vibe is of either record, to be honest. It’s all rock and roll in our minds, though after 25 years of doing this, we are well aware that the way we view what we play, and how the public interprets it are often miles apart.
Some artists talk about feeling trapped in some ways by the work they've done before, but you all seem very free in the way you explore different sounds and methods. Has that contributed to the longevity of the band? With both Black Dice and Flaccid Mojo, how do you decide to do something different or incorporate new sounds or textures into your work?
I remember feeling a little trapped when we were playing hardcore shows, but that was a lifetime ago. Doing a band like ours never seemed like it was going to become a full time thing, or a money maker, so that gave us a lot of freedom to do whatever we wanted. We rarely talk about changing our sound, or anything like that. Someone just brings in some ideas, and we go from there. None us really listen to way out or abstract music that much. Most of our music is informed by rock/pop.
What have you been listening to recently that’s really stuck with you? Is there any music or art that’s been a particular inspiration for Flaccid Mojo?
We all listen to different stuff these days. I listen to a lot of Curtis Mayfield, Doors, Big Stick, Daniel Dax. I’d say Chrome’s Alien Soundtracks was a big inspiration on both the bd and fm record.
When you two think about your work are there specific eras or times when you felt like you were able to achieve exactly what you had in mind or envisioned? Or is it less a matter of hitting a specific vibe or sound and more a matter of writing or playing in a way that you find satisfying?
I’d say it’s both of the things you’ve suggested. When I look back, there are certainly eras that felt like we were really hitting the mark, though we never really set out to “do” anything in particular. I guess we’ve always enjoyed making music that on some level was aggressively disorientating, but still retained some of the catchiness of rock music. Just being in bands with my favorite people for as long as I’ve been, is the best part, and most satisfying. We fucking lucked out.