Principe Valiente Talk New Album, Songwriting And More

Who is in Principe Valiente, what do they play and how did you meet?

Jimmy: It is me and Fernando, we are a gang of two. We met in the small but vibrant music scene in Stockholm way back in 2012, and we have been making music together ever since.

Fernando: I started the band back in 2005 with totally different members back then. And yeah, Jimmy and me has enlightened each others lives since 2012.

Your new album ‘In This Light’ is released on 3rd May 2024 . How did you want to approach the making of the record?

Jimmy: We live on the opposite coasts of the country, so the approach is very much based on us being quite far apart geographically. We do not have a rehearsal space where we meet to write and practice songs before going to a studio to record them, like most bands do I guess. We share ideas through various digital services where we iterate through them until they feel like proper songs to be recorded.

Where did you record the album and who produced it?

Jimmy: The album is consequently self-produced. Fernando tracked his vocals, keyboards and bass in his apartment. Guitars, drums, percussion and some of the analog hardware synths was tracked at my house studio, where the record ended up also being mixed.

One of the tracks is your new single ‘Inspired By Me’ which is out now. What was the story/inspiration behind the song?

Fernando: The inspiration regarding the lyrics anyway, I guess it was some kind of an inside monologue were I speak to my more sensitive self/the side that is more uncertain about how to act, how to reason etc. And inspire that side to dare a bit more in general. Specially in terms of life choices and love. Like the more confident side is singing to the other. Another aspect is of course, parallel to this, is singing about an old crush, to her, about those things. That I’m proud that she listened to herself and finally got more confident in some decisions etc after I did inspire her to that. Well simply, to inspire someone. How the music video got edited btw, was more of a coincidence without thinking too much on the lyrics. But it went that way too, I realize now. Regarding the music, I wanted to keep it simple. And focus more on the sound with Jimmy. Even thought those chords are very familiar for most people, many songs has been written with those, but the interesting thing here is to still find something original with those chords. Which I believe, we succeeded with.

In addition, the single is accompanied by an official music video. What was the thought process behind the video and who directed it?

Fernando: As mentioned above, the idea of the lyrics went by coincidence edited to the video. In general the idea was to have something slower than the actual tempo of the song, to just chill it down a bit. I got the ideas from other bands videos and I thought I had something going on there. Same as for the video to ”Something New”.

Both videos were directed by Damón Zurawski for Futurue Legends Films here in Stockholm. A very talented guy.

Do you have any favored stage instruments, effects, pedals etc?

Jimmy: Pedals for sure. Chorus, distortion and delays are the baseline sound for both the guitar and bass, then a lot of reverb on drums and vocals. Width and space is something we cherish dearly when it comes to the sound of things.

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?

Jimmy: My hometown Trollhättan in five words? Ok, then i would say: rich in Nature, Water, Air, Innovation and Mediocre in all other aspects.

Fernando: Stockholm (after Santiago de Chile actually, since I got here when I was 12 years old). But hm.. Not far from Jimmy’s answer actually – Nature, water, quite alright music scene (was better 10 years ago though – too many words?), crowded, stressful.

Did you use any particular instrument, effects, recording equipment for the album recording sessions?

Jimmy: Getting nerdy here, love it! Yes, I have been collecting music and studio gear for 20 years or so. When you nerd out on gear you end up with some usable stuff for sure. The secret sauce on this record was my Universal Audio 610 preamps and 1176 compressors. Love ’em, and I would say they are on everything basically. A Valley People Dyna-mite compressor from the seventies was carefully used on some drum buses. The best “crush”-compressor ever. It is kind of like a wild horse, it can wreck havoc, but once you break it in it can be very useful. Also some heavy usage of my old stubborn yet magical Roland RE-301 Space Echo. A Rickenbacker 12-string guitar that I had for years and years but never used in the context of this band was finally thrown into the mix. I could go on for ever, so let’s end with that.

Fernando: For me – mostly just some software keyboards sounds from the demos which we later replaced with some vintage synths, Solinas and a Roland Juno-106 among others. On the bass I used my Hagström Viking bass and the old Fender Jazz Bass which I’ve had now since the end of the 90’s. For the vocal recordings I used a Neumann TLM 103 microphone, the same one we used on ”Barricades”.

Do you have any interesting, memorable or funny stories from the album recording sessions?

Jimmy: I played the drums on a record for the first time in many years. It used to be my main instrument before this band, so that was a fun revisit.

Fernando: As we had a similar recording process as for ”Barricades”, I was even more comfortable now recording my vocals from home with the equipment I have. And it went even more smooth this time. So we had a very good flow both of us through the whole process. And no complaints from the neighbours.

Do you have any plans for live shows in Europe/UK in 2024?

Fernando: We have a few summer festivals and for the fall in Germany and Spain, but hopefully some more independent shows as well. Let’s see soon.

You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?

Jimmy: “The Hill of Dreams” by Arthur Machen. It was a very long time since I read that book, but I remember it had a decadent, romantic, mysterious vibe and a mood that would be interesting to translate into sound. Only music has that spiritual quality to head directly to the core of your soul, and at the same time be a mystery as to why that is the case. Books can do that too, this book did it for me, but they also demand an intellectual dimension to get you there. Music is a true spiritual experience, there is no need to understand it, and all you have to do is to just listen.

Which of your new album tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?

Fernando: a) Your Only Enemy b) Facing The Truth c) Silent Dreamer / Abandoned Car

Who are some of your musical influences? Do you have any recommendations?

Jimmy: There are a lot of great bands that came out of the 80’s, and that early transition from punk into new wave, with the integration of synthesizers and drum machines and a more playful and avant-garde approach to music is probably the most influential era of music to me. Check out The Sound and Comsat Angels, two of the best and most underrated bands of that era. I also have a soft spot for the Paisley Underground scene and some 60’s psychedelic music, like the late Beatles stuff, and the whole Laurel Canyon thing. Of course there are a lot of great “new” bands out there today. The Black Angels, Drab Majesty and Wild Nothing are a couple of great examples of that. They are like a perfect revival of everything mentioned above.

Fernando: Influences – Bowie, Cure, early Suede. I’ve been into pretty much one hit wonders from the 80’s as well the past years. Kim Carnes and stuff like that.

Recommendations: Morphine, such a great but underrated band from the 90’s.

Was it a difficult album to write?

Jimmy: No not really, at least music-wise it mostly wrote itself. Fernando might be able to fill in regarding the lyrics.

Fernando: Yeah musically wise it all went pretty smooth, I think the only struggle was Silent Dreamer for me witch had two different choruses that just didn’t felt all the way, but on the third try we got it! Regarding the lyrics I just was aware of not repeating myself, since it can be a struggle after four albums. Then to really feel what I write and to be honest. Even to be honest through the confusion that writing is sometimes. If it makes sense.

Who designed/created the album artwork?

Jimmy: We came up with the fundamental theme together, then I made the actual graphic design for the album. I think I recall Fernando saying that “the album feels blue, we should translate that to the artwork”. And there is a greater focus of light overall on this record, hence the title of the album and the theme of the sun.

How do you look after your voices?

Fernando: Not that much actually, a little warm up singing before every show plus a little scotch does the thing. And some raw ginger every morning. Although it makes me hiccup if I eat it too fast.

What makes Principe Valiente happy and what makes you unhappy?

Fernando: When people come up after shows saying what a specific song means to them. For instance one time in Hamburg, a guy came up with his wife and told us that the first date they had was at one of our shows, them both loved our track ”The Night”, and he wanted to tell us that they are married now. I was really touched by that. Also of course, specially on festivals, when people sing along during a song. When the track it’s not even a single. Unhappy well, it would be great to tour a little bit more. Been quite difficult to make that happen after the pandemic since we are not a big band in that sense. But let’s hope for some changes soon!