MUC Interview: Native American rocker Mozart Gabriel releases new song "Leach" (feat. Liam Cloud)
Native American indie artist Mozart Gabriel releases new single “Leach” (featuring Liam Cloud). The song is now available on all digital streaming platforms. You can listen to it here.
What is the inspiration behind the new single?
The song was completely inspired by David Lynch. The second film I ever saw as a child was Blue Velvet. Both of my parents being very artistic didn’t have a problem showing me rated R films. I grew a deep fascination for the TV series Twin Peaks. The song is a little bit of Beast in the Black Lodge Hotel and Laura Palmer in a Fire Walk with Me. I’m also a big fan of the band Kiss, one of my favorite songs “Dr. Love” was a big inspiration within the epic guitar sounds and sexy tones.
Who are your biggest idols in life and in music?
I give a lot of my musical inspirational journey to Joan Jett. I saw her live for the first time at the age of 24, never having heard her music before. It changed my life to pursue punk rock music. I also owe a lot of my creative filmmaking inspiration to Gumby, the little green boy of clay. Watching his adventures as a kid is what got me into stop motion animation at the age of seven and into discovering it on my own.
What is your favorite thing about your Native American culture, and how has it inspired your music?
This is a fantastic question. What inspired me a lot was our Taos Pueblo mountain. Growing up there as a kid, I got to hear the trees sing to each other and have great conversations. I got to listen to the thundering percussions of the river flowing. Being able to tell the time without a watch by looking at the sun and its position. The biggest form of inspiration always comes from Mother Earth. When you take the time to really spend time with the Earth, you start to understand where music was originally generated from.
What is your favorite place that you've traveled to?
The first place I got to go when we left the reservation was Venice, Italy. Venice was a huge culture shock. From the desert mountains to the swampy Sealands. Driving up there for the next three years from the age of 9 till 12 gave me inspiration in so many other ways. I also learned that a lot of our cultures were very similar. Taos is a village, and Venice, Italy is a small village itself. When you hear Taos natives talk they have a sing-song kind of voice, and when you listen to Venetian Italians speak, they also have a sing-song tone to them.
What is your favorite song right now?
I’ve been getting back into a lot of pop-punk, especially the recent stuff that’s been coming out. I’ve been listening to a band called Hot Mulligan and I really enjoyed the song “Equipped Sunglasses.” It’s got such an aggressive tone that I really appreciate within the lead vocals and a very catchy guitar riff. The tones on the drums are fat and loud and feel like a good punch.