Interview with Dannielle PEMBERTON - Vocals R.S. : Dannielle, to start with, would you mind giving us a short bio of yourself ? My first real introduction to the world of entertainment, was in 1989, when I was in third grade and decided to audition for the third grade choir. I ended up blitzing the field to become one of the lead sopranos. Then, at high school I continued my interest in singing, branching out to theatre, and got involved in musicals. After high school, I decided to do a B.A. in Applied Theatre at the local university but after a year and a half of fun and vetoing lectures for visits to the bar, I decided that acting wasn’t for me. I needed and wanted to do what I had dreamed of since grade 3. I wanted to be a singer. R.S. : How did you and Jean-Luc get together to form SANTOSHA ? Believe it or not but it was through a friend of a friend. We spoke on the phone about what he wanted in a singer. I knew I could do it. So, I went for an audition. After singing a couple of tunes and listening to his material, it was decided that I had what was needed and things just progressed from that moment. R.S. : What did really attract you in Jean-Luc’s songs ? These songs are great ! The thing that first attracted me to them is their originality, and not just in comparison to each other, but in comparison to the rest of the music industry. To have such poetic and political words, put to such exciting and expansive music is what makes these songs interesting and unique. R.S. : Dannielle, what kind of music do you like ? I am a very versatile music lover. I like all things from pop, alternative, funk, disco, techno, jazz, blues, R&B and even hard rock, country and opera from time to time. Most of all, I am interested in alternative and pop rock. Some of my favourite bands are Powder finger, George, Suze Demarchi, Cake, Cold Play (the list goes on). R.S. : I understand that we may have a song or two of yours with the next album. Can you tell us more about it ? Yes, it is a possibility. I am talking about it with Jean-Luc. We may write a couple of songs together.

Interview with Paul WARDINGHAM – Bass, guitars, keyboard, producer R.S. : Paul, you have played some great guitar with SANTOSHA. How did you get involved with SANTOSHA ?    Jean-Luc approached me about playing lead guitar and to explore some music genres he had yet to try like Progressive Rock and Blues. He played some demos of his current material, noticeably without lead guitar and asked me if I’d record with him. The music was a refreshing change to the styles I was accustomed to play. So, I knew that I’d enjoy working on the songs. R.S. : Please tell us a bit about your musical journey and experience. I grew up listening to Larry Carlton and George Benson. So, the guitar was the obvious choice for me to express myself musically. I studied classical for a short time before picking up the electric guitar and having lessons with a brilliant teacher who got me listening to fantastic players like Scott Henderson, Satriani, Allan Holdsworth and Greg Howe. I started teaching at 15 and played at least six hours a day. I did sessions for well- known artists (in the UK) and toured with blues band “Two Way Track”. More recently, I produced two EP’s : one with alternative Metal band “Disciples of the Watch” and the other with Folk Rock Band “King Monkey”. I’m currently writing and recording material for my own commercial rock band. R.S. : You have produced and arranged the songs on SANTOSHA debut album. How would you rate their songs ? They are great. Each one is different in its own way. There are a lot of different moods and textures in the music and some very inspiring lyrics. R.S. : During the latest recording session, Jean-Luc played you some of his new songs with pretty amazing lyrics apparently ! Can you tell us more about it ! In this day and age, it’s hard to come up with something original lyrically and musically. Jean-Luc is doing something lyrically that no one else is doing. His lyrics tell a story and at the same time deliver a message on some unique topics that could interest anyone. But even musically, the new songs are very innovative and definitely mark a progression from the debut album. I think that the song about Atlantis is my favourite. R.S. : We believe you got on very well with Jean-Luc during the recording ? With all those numerous songs SANTOSHA plan to record for the next album, will you be part of it again as a guest musician and producer ? Absolutely. I enjoyed working with Jean-Luc and would like to do it again. I believe that SANTOSHA has the potential to be very successful. Working with Jean-Luc has opened up some new doors for me.

 

Music and images Copyright JLR Music, 2007