Interwiew to Scott Mosher from Oceans Of Night

Interwiew by Luis Landeo
Is good to have you Scott can you tell us how the band started?
I began my musical/recording career in earnest, in 1996 and released 4 CDs operating under the auspices of my name. In all honesty, it was a mistake - recording under my name I mean (laught). In hindsight, it would've been wiser to operate under the Oceans of Night moniker from the beginning. In this style of music, generally speaking, employing a band name definitely works to your advantage, and not just from a marketing standpoint. Anyhow, Oceans of Night currently consists of myself, vocalist Scott Oliva and mysterious enigmatic drummer, Alan Smithee. Scott and I have worked together since my 4th CD, DEEP HORIZON, in 2006.Oceans Of Night have two albums: The Shadowheart Mirror and DOMAIN. how was the recording session for this new album: domain?
Surprisingly painless and surprisingly (and relatively) effortless. Around September of 2010 through the waning days of September of 2011, I went through an incredibly inspired and productive period of time - musically. I literally wrote, arranged, performed and recorded about 2 1/2 hours of music... enough for 2 1/2 CDs. DOMAIN is the finished result of some of those sessions, and contains the songs that Scott and I finished first. We are currently working on the vocals and lyrics for the follow-up to DOMAIN, perhaps sometime in 2012 - if I may make a generous prediction. The next one should be a bit more progressive yet retain the trademark style of the Oceans of Night sound - atmospheric heavy metal synthesized with melodic progressive rock. I "stumbled" upon this musical concoction back in the mid-90's, and have been building upon it since then.What was the reason for this name for the album?
In something of a serendipitous moment, I conjured up the name in a discussion with a friend sometime in 2009, right after the release of the first Oceans of Night CD, THE SHADOWHEART MIRROR. For some reason, the name had a particularly symbolic meaning to me - and it has nothing to do with the internet - and after taking a long hard listen to the music I was writing, it stuck. There's a certain duality in the meaning of the term "Domain" as the title of the CD, and the lyrical content. Domain can represent sanctuary - a place where one feels safe and retreat to or it can be the region of thought in our subconscious. The CD itself, while not a concept album per se, certainly is a thematic album, and the title track represents the emotions, the lyrical themes and concepts of the music rather well.You had the chance to work with a record producer?
I always self-produce - I guess it comes with the territory of being the composer/arranger/performer and musical mastermind. I also handle home studio security, public relations, grocery store trips and reptile removal - humanely, of course. The more-than-capable hands of Mr. Joey Vera (Fates Warning, Armored Saint, Seven Witches) handled the controls as far as the mixing and music engineering was concerned, as well as mastering the CD. Thankfully, Mr. Oliva conjures up these amazing vocal melodies and we then work on the lyrical structures along with the vocal lines.Can you tell us about the meaning of the lyrics of your songs?
I prefer not to elaborate on the lyrics of my songs or explain the specifics behind them as people tend to make their own connections or assumptions based upon their own experiences or interpretations. This isn't necessarily a bad thing and I think from my own experience, when you explore the lyrical content without preconceived notions, you maintain a stronger connection to the song, both musically and lyrically. Also, I'm lazy. But let's go with the first (and longer) answer. Suffice to say, they are all wrapped around common themes of personal connections and how we relate (or not) to each other.How goes the progressive metal scene in your city: Los Angeles-USA? and how do you see the evolution of progressive metal in all this time?
The music scene in LA seems to be as strong as any other big city music scene in the country. I wouldn't say it's thriving, but there's generally always a nice cross-section of bands in a wide variety of genre's plying their trade around town at any given moment. I can't speak from experience as I'm not as socially embedded in the scene out there I was in the 90's in NY (my home state), but LA is the second biggest market in the country, and the diversity of bands out here bears that out. Insofar as the evolution of progressive metal over the years, I'm all for the hybrids and crossover bands - that's what progressive, to me, at least as a figurative term, is all about - exploration and re-invention of music. Progressive metal, as a genre, isn't necessarily dependent upon the evolution of music as much as it encompasses specific musical elements such as odd meter, epic song topics and song lengths, orchestral and expansive instrumentation, etc. Technology makes the merging of what would seem to be mutually exclusive genres of music, very possible in the modern age. That's basically the approach I take to our music - it's more progressive in the figurative state, than it is to the genre... combining traditional forms of music such as hard rock and progressive music with lush keyboards and techno-influenced synth sounds. I often tell people it sounds better in practice than it does on paper. I can only hope they agree. If they don't, well... Burger King is hiring.Do you think is possible to see your band in a south american tour and do you have any message for your fans in South America?
Well, Oceans of Night isn't a touring band. It's purely a studio/recording musical beast. With my profession (graphic design) and personal responsibilities, it's probably not feasible for us to take the band on the road for an extensive tour. Scott Oliva plays in NY in an Iron Maiden tribute band, as well as performs a few sporadic gigs with his other metal band, The Nightmare Stage, and he's taken an Ocean of Night song for a test drive here or there, but really, Oceans of Night isn't a touring band. If it was, you can rest assured we'd hit South America, as I've read enough over the years to know there's a hotbed of loco metal fans down south of the US of A, and yes, all good metal fans are loco. I'm just gratified I have the opportunity to get our music out there - just let it be heard, man. To the people who enjoy our music and support us in South America (or anywhere else, for that matter... except Antarctica, they've been known to give us the cold shoulder) I can say this - tell your family, tell your friends, tell your friends friends and spread the word - Oceans of Night can fit very nicely in your music collection... and it fits all head sizes.

To know more about:
http://www.myspace.com/scottmosher