I’m so sorry if you were already amongst the legion of The Clappers’ fans, but we had to disband, since it was a short-lived April Fools moment.
BUT! Who knows… You guys were so amazingly supportive, The Clappers might come back in the future, bringing their inner culinary revolution to the world, one avocado at the time 😉
I told you, life creates life! And it’s good to be alive!!!
More REAL news coming up soon 😉
Love you all!
PS: Yes, The Clappers will have their Spotify page soon 😉
“I WAS TIRED OF CREATIVE POST-EVERYTHING, I WANTED PRE-ENTERTAINMENT GIMMICK AFFIRMING .”
The artist and free electron aficionado Alex Henry Foster stripped his usual complex multi-layer musical endeavors and overtly spiritually driven lyrical signature to form a bare-bones 70s rock garage-inspired 4-piece imprint called The Clappers.
By Salomon Carp
April 1st at 0:00 AM
In the midst of the promotion for his new album, A Nightfall Ritual, I had the opportunity to talk with Canadian artist, poet, and noise sculptor Alex Henry Foster, who ended up spending most of our hour-long phone call talking about his new band, The Clappers.
I got so intrigued that I had to call him back. Here’s my conversation with the always-fascinating man behind a multitude of uncanny endeavors.
Rolling Stone: I must admit, Alex, knowing you for years now, I’m not surprised that, calling you to write a feature on your upcoming album, A Nightfall Ritual, you would be mostly talking about something entirely unrelated to the object of my call. I would honestly be a little disappointed if it had not been the case.
Alex Henry Foster: Really? So I’m that predictable now? That’s not too good for my reputation!
RS: No worries, your secret is safe with me, but you got me hooked on that new Clappers project of yours. What is it all about?
AHF: It was nothing planned, really. Rather, it’s something that happened naturally one night after I had a conversation with Jeff, Ben, and Stephanie regarding the pompous gimmick and soulless nature that is the music business now. It was an instinctive response to that feeling.
RS: I heard that! (Alex sent me 2 tracks before I called him back.) It’s a very direct approach. It’s a magistral departure from your artistic signature; it’s drastic. Was it on purpose?
AHF: I think music became too dramatically plastic and over produced these days. I needed something that would be the anti-theses of what I can’t relate to anymore. The Clappers emerged from that sentiment.
RS: You often mention how much you like 70’s garage/surf/punk music a la The Cramps in your interviews over the years, but I never expected you would ever peel off your songs like you did on “Cosmic Patrol” and “Mexican Walls”. How did those songs come about?
AHF: Well, if there’s something you should know about me now, it’s the fact that I don’t operate under rigid corporate rules. I do what’s real and honest for me. I’m not in the pleasing the masses business. And those songs are the perfect embodiment of the freedom I’m cultivating creatively.
RS: Speaking of reflection, “Cosmic Patrol” reflects on the entire humanity becoming galactic migrants looking for a new place to stay after the destruction of the planet. Are “The Clappers” a socially charged vehicle for you?
AHF: Everything is socially charged now, wouldn’t you say? “Cosmic Patrol” is not a raging, politics-infused type of stand; it is a reflection on just how self-destructive we are and how we are letting history repeat itself…
RS: I understand. You do mention that the richest will have interstellar cities when the poorest will either die on the planet or be servants for those rich people. That sounds politically charged to me, something we never heard you so clearly about before.
AHF: I have always been vocal about inequalities and unfairness by standing for social justice and human rights dignity. But I have always refused to become an activist or to weaponize my work. Everything I do is designed to commune and gather, no matter the differences.
RS: On “Mexican Walls” you wrote: “banned the guac, drop your empty glass, raise your burritos, stand up with the mariachi, there’s no wall in Mexico, free the people, lift an avocado”. I humbly never thought I would hear Alex Henry Foster refer to guacamole. No offense, I know it’s an analogy to poverty, but you can admit that it is surprising coming from you.
AHF: Probably, but that’s the power of words. You see “avocado,” you think about everything you might do with one, right? The meaning is as simple as the world carries sensations of its own. A party, a nice meal, comfort, and simplicity, right? I wanted to use that as an image to reflect the evolution of who we are in our widespread community. It’s “us”; it’s who we are. It’s pure and without fears. The rest is what we want to make out of it.
RS: At first, I thought it sounded like a direct reference to the Mexican revolution period. Was I right?
AHF: It’s about the necessity for everyone to look into their own ongoing personal revolution.
RS: Less guns, more avocados.
AHF: Less of everything for more in-depth introspections and transformation. That’s what the song is truly about. I used Mexico’s wide and colorful art from a culture they have built in order to get their communities together as the underpainting element holding the human values of openness and welcoming heritage we have to cultivate globally.
RS: Short songs. 2:35, 2:02. Another departure from your usual signature.
AHF: A direct approach requires clarity and a succinct, direct-to-the-point message…
RS: It’s massively short for you, even in regard to your previous band, Your Favorite Enemies.
AHF: I wrote it all thinking about DSPs and playlist formats. It’s like diet soda; it’s available in every half-decent place where dreams float in too much fake sugary flavors.
RS: You’re becoming socially charged again, my friend.
AHF: Maybe. But I’m not part of nowadays’ “burn the witches” vigilantes. I won’t vandalize a Coca-Cola truck or shame soft drink sippers. That’s where I draw the line. Education, if there is still such a thing going on, doesn’t require violence to make a difference. That’s the whole idea of The Clappers.
RS: Clap your hands, not other people!
AHF: Yes, absolutely! You finally get it! You’re a consciously awake clapper! Awesome! Show me your clapping skills; don’t be scared, we all like to clap, even privately. Free the clapping hands!!!!!
RS: I’m a clapper, and proud of it.
AHF: Ain’t it liberating?
RS: Speaking of which, is it the reason you have your own label? So you don’t have to answer to anyone creatively? You are free.
AHF: Freedom doesn’t have anything to do with the notion of answering to anyone. On the contrary, it’s about personal integrity and honoring others, may it be the people who appreciate what I do, my bandmates, or my management family. It’s not a one-man-do-what-you-want type of show. It’s a communal journey, like everything I do.
RS: Your management must have a lot of fun trying to follow your creative arc. You’re about to release “A Nightfall Ritual” and we’ve been talking about avocados, clapping hands, and out-of-space cities for 45 minutes already. Did they get it, that new Clappers project?
AHF: I’m surrounded by the most amazing people. I don’t think it’s about “getting it” but about curating our unique relationship through my different projects. I’ve never been shy to express how much I love them all and how much respect I have for them. Their motto is, “It’s the music, stupid.” Is Rolling Stone still aligned with that?
RS: I’ve been interviewing you for almost a decade now, so I bet they’re still, deep down inside. I recognize 2 out of 3 Clappers in your band. Do they always follow you as you follow your muse?
AHF: Yes. Jeff is on drums for that project. Ben is playing guitar, and Stephanie, who’s usually a photographer and incredible artist in her own right, is on bass. As for following me, there’s no “me” in “us”.
RS: Great. That’s what I’ve been trying to explain to my editor for years now. I should ask him to freely clap.
AHF: It’s on you now; you can’t go back to not knowing the power of clapping. You have a personal and social responsibility.
RS: Any release date for the first Clappers’ album?
AHF: Some time soon.
RS: Knowing you, you must already have the title for me…
AHF: Of course I do, it’s called: “You’re not the dead one laying down in a fish market, stand up and clap”
RS: Short one. Sounds longer than the whole album. Any more thoughts to share?
AHF: Clap responsibly, but clap intentionally.
RS: Thank you, Alex. Alright folks, go have a listen to Alex Henry Foster’s new single, I’m Afraid, from his upcoming album “A Nightfall Ritual”, to be released on May 16th.