It’s been just over 15 years since I last interviewed musical pioneer Banco de Gaia on HarderFaster and in that time the world has changed considerably. What has remained constant however is his consistently brilliant musical productions, illustrated by last year’s fantastic album Trauma, as well as his high-energy live sets.
After warming up for Toby at last September’s Trauma album launch party in London and being blown away by his set, I knew it was definitely time to find what else has been going on in his world. With gigs coming up in Exeter (Friday 25 April), Leicester (Friday 9 May), Birmingham (Saturday 10 May) and Manchester (Friday 16 May) and bookings confirmed for this summer's Sacred Earth Gathering, Glastonbury Festival, Free-Earth Festival (Greece) and the mighty Ozora Festival (Hungary), he’s certainly not showing any signs of slowing down yet!
Hey Toby! I hope it’s not too late to say Happy New Year! How’s your 2025 going so far?
This year has mostly been grey and cold so far here in the UK, but things are ok and gigs are piling up in my diary so I’m looking forward to a busy year ahead.
Last year (2024) was a great year for you, with the release of your fantastic album Trauma and some awesome gigs around the UK. What are your plans for the coming year?
More gigs and more new music hopefully. I’m planning a new collaboration plus I have ideas for new Banco tracks although in the short term I’m doing some mastering work for other artists.
Trauma is a wonderful piece of sonic beauty. Did it take you long to write and produce?
It actually took four years on and off as I was side-tracked by both covid and my parents both getting old and frail. I worked on music when I could but it was really just grabbing the occasional day when I wasn’t needed for other things. I got there in the end though, and I think the other challenges added to my creativity.
We first interviewed you an epic 15 years ago in 2010 and then most recently in 2013 after the release of Apollo. What's been happening in the world of Banco de Gaia since then?
Well, it’s been a busy time. In 2014 I released a 20th anniversary edition of my first CD Maya, the first of a series of 20th anniversary editions, and put together a 3-piece live band to celebrate. Over the next two years we did loads of gigs and had a great time, it was the best band I’ve ever been in! And in 2016 I released a new album The 9th of Nine Hearts and toured that with the band too. After that family needs got in the way, and then covid, so my Banco work slowed down, although I kept gigging when I could and managed to release a five track EP in late 2020.
In 2010 you were celebrating 20 years of Banco de Gaia by releasing Memories Dreams Reflections. What are some of your favourite memories and reflections from 35 years of making and playing music as Banco de Gaia?
There are so many it’s hard to pick favourites, but getting to tour all over the world has been a dream come true and I’ve worked with some fantastic musicians and crew over that time. Working with Pink Floyd’s Dick Parry just after he’d finished their massive world tour was pretty special, he was such a down to earth and lovely guy, and my first gig at Glastonbury in 1994 was amazing (as was the fact that we were able to camp at the back of the Pyramid Stage!).
Do you have any dreams or goals still to reach for the future?
I never got to go on Top of the Pops, but I guess that chance has gone now! Apart from that, I just want to keep making the music I want to make, when I want to make it. And if people want to keep coming to see me perform it then great.
In 2013 you were about to start a PhD in electro-acoustic composition at Birmingham University. Did this ever get completed? If so, was it more difficult than finishing an album? Are you now working as an academic?
No, I had to drop that quite quickly as I just had too much to do with Banco and the label to fit it in. It’s a shame but you can’t do everything, and to be honest I don’t think a life of academia would have appealed for very long.
I've always found your multi-genre approach to music incredibly inspiring. How has your sound changed and evolved over the years?
Technology has moved on massively which allows me to do things I could only dream of in the early days, but in the end I’m probably still doing much the same thing I always was. In fact, quite a few people have said how much the new album reminds them of the early ones so I guess not much has changed! It’s much easier to access music from all over the world now than it was in the early ’90s though, so I have a much wider range of sources and genres to choose from.
Over the last 35 years music production has completely changed, as has music promotion and distribution. As someone who has always been known for combining the organic with the electronic to create unique sounds, what are your views on the recent developments in AI in sound and art?
I think from a creative point of view there may be some interesting things AI can add, but sadly I suspect the biggest impact will be people churning out garbage at the press of a button trying to get rich quick and drowning out a lot of the really interesting and original stuff that’s going on. Time will tell but I’m not expecting any really great art to be generated solely by AI.
Your label, Disco Gecko Recordings, is still going strong despite the many challenges faced by the digital world. Do you have many releases on the cards for this year?
I’m actually not sure what’s planned for this year as my label manager deals with scheduling but I know we have several exciting releases in the pipeline which you’ll be hearing about soon. You just might be getting more from me, too.
If you could organise a gig anywhere in the world with an unlimited budget, where would it be and who would you book to support you?
I was asked to play at The Great Pyramid in Egypt once, that would be pretty amazing! (That gig sadly fell through because of poor communication!). Ideally, I would have Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Buckley forming a supergroup to support alongside James Brown, but that could be tricky.
What music have you been listening to at home recently?
I tend to listen to a lot of old stuff these days, not so many new artists grab me, although I really like Fontaines DC and the new Cure album is amazing. The David Gilmour album got a good listen for a while too, although I don’t think it’s his best.
Finally, what's the one thing you wish someone had told you when you were first starting out?
Success is relative. If you’re doing your best and maintaining your integrity then you’re succeeding.
Thanks for your time, Toby! Let's not leave it another 15 years!
Links Check out Banco de Gaia's website Follow Banco de Gaia on Facebook Listen to Banco de Gaia on Soundcloud Follow Banco de Gaia on Instagram See Banco de Gaia on YouTube Follow FlibbertiGibbet on FaceBook Listen to FlibbertiGibbet's warm-up set for Banco de Gaia at Soundcloud.
Photos courtesy of Banco de Gaia. Not to be reproduced without permission.
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