Behind the scenes with Athens’ Immaterial Possession band

Shooting hoops in avant-garde theatrical costumes at a neighborhood basket court is none other than Athens’ own Immaterial Possession.

The Athens-based band combines the musical talents of Madeline Polites on guitar and vocals, Cooper Holmes on bass and vocals, Kiran Fernandes on keyboards and woodwinds and John Spiegel on percussion. Manifested by Polites and Holmes, the group connected through Atlanta’s underground artist community and officially formed four years ago.

The members are not only attracted to playing music for enjoyment, but also for music’s ability to communicate and transport. Holmes values the “therapeutic cathartic element” music has on top of it being a means of communication other than speaking. Polites considers music to be “the healing arts of the Earth.”

“It can guide you into other realms,” Polites said. “That is a part of the healing process to stepping outside of your usual perceptions, and traveling into other worlds to see what else is going on.”

Described as “Black Sabbath on lean” and “Beach Goth,” the band’s musical sound reflects their shared influences of psychedelic rock as well as their appreciation for Turkish and Greek music. Individually, each member brings their own diverse musical background and influences to Immaterial Possession, which allows them to create the unique style heard on their self-titled debut album released last July.

When creating the 11-track album, the group approached it with various creative processes. According to the band, some songs originated from ideas a member might have previously laid out in their head, and other tracks were products of pure collaboration through the layering of multiple instrumental ideas.

“There’s that approach to making music where it’s an active, living, breathing thing,” Spiegel, who also records and mixes some of their music, said. “It’s not like you’re just re-hashing a rehearsal … every time you do it it is its own experience.”

In multiple instrumental tracks off their debut album, the band explored a different approach. “We aspire to have more songs that are naturally organically introduced through improvisation,” Polites said.

Their improvisation style can be heard in “Phase 1,” “Phase 2” and “Circle of Bells.” With the use of a Super 8 film camera, the three songs from the album were depicted in a music video entitled “Phases,” which was uploaded to YouTube earlier this year.

Article by The Red and Black