Getting to Know… pMad | Interview 🎤

On our 229^th interview in our Getting to Know… series, we get the inside scoop on the ‘visionless,’ pandemic-born music project, pMad.

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o goals no visions, to start with. Probably still is none but to keep releasing music.” Sometimes, no goals, no plan, and no vision can lead to something.  Perhaps it seems and sounds disjointed, unlikely, and unorganized, but that is not the case with 🎙 pMad (🎙 Paul Dillon).  Time (that global pandemic, sigh) and creativity serve as the genesis of pMad, who, “made the songs for me,’ with the hope “that, if I love it, a few others might too.” Right on and rock on! Our 229^th Getting to Know… interview is compelling, featuring the background of the musical project, as well as current and future endeavors. So, without further ado, here is, 🎤 Getting to Know… pMad: Interview No. 229!

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Starting things off, for those who may not be familiar with you, what makes pMad distinct or unique? How do you rock the audience’s socks off?

🎤 Paul Dillon: People will hear different influences in the music, they will hear what they are familiar with. But it has been described as ‘The child of The Cult and The Mission’ or a modern mix of Matt Johnson (The The) and Cathal Coughlan (Microdisney and The Fatima Mansions). I will happily take those comparisons.

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Okay, let’s explore some juicy backstories. How was pMad born and what were some of the goals or the visions you had early on?  

🎤 Paul Dillon: No goals no visions, to start with. Probably still is none but to keep releasing music. Global pandemic arrives, I get time to finally de-clutter and decide to piece together the jigsaw of tunes I have made over the years. So, I started a band ‘The Greeting’ with a good friend and we record 8/10 fantastic tracks and are still working on them… still, so while we were at that, I created pMad with a batch of other tunes of I have and now have 8 full tunes, a couple of extended versions, and remixes completed and for releasing as singles and an album in 2022. So, from no plan to where we are now… sort of a good-for-it person!

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Let’s talk more about goals.  Have your goals or your perspectives changed since first starting out? What do your aspirations or goals look like now?

🎤 Again, no goals or aspirations to start with, and am still not goal-orientated now. I made the songs for me, I love putting the cd on and loving what I hear and what I made. Fantastic. The hope is that, if I love it, a few others might too. But there is a competitive streak in me, so I will push it out there and see how far it goes, not as a goal but as a test!

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Everybody is influenced by somebody else. Who would you consider some of your biggest musical influences and how are they influential?

🎤 Paul Dillon: My musical influences are so broad, and I think it will come across in the singles and album. Dark goth, new wave/80’s, metal, indie, and alt-rock. A sucker for a bass line. Big Cure-head in the day and still Goth (The Cure, The Sisters of Mercy, etc), that looked out of place at Indie ‘A House’, Fugazi / Sonic Youth/ Dinosaur Jr, loving Tom Waits to Suicidal Tendencies. Varied inspiration coming out in what I create.

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Ah, the fun stuff.  What’s your craziest tour story or the wackiest thing that’s happened during a performance?  Feel free to be creative.

🎤 Paul Dillon: With a Global pandemic and pMad & The Greeting being only created recently, stories are thin on the ground with these projects. But 🎙 The Suicidal Dufflecoats, 🎙 Starve the Barber, and 🎙 The Return of the Suicidal Dufflecoats, stories, nothing but stories. Names would have to be changed to protect the not-so-innocent. Nearly every practice session, say 99% of them ended in fistfights (between us of course)!!  One night we went to play one of the few gigs we ever did as The Suicidal Dufflecoats, the lead guitarist had a poor night, to say the least, drunk as a fool. So when heading home in the van and gear, we stopped about 50 miles from home for a toilet break (or so he thought), he got out and started his business and we just drove off. He got home about 2 days later and needless to say, we needed a new lead guitarist and worse again, a load of amps!! That is one of the cleaner ones, mad times!!

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Up until this point in your career, what would you describe as your favorite song you’ve recorded or performed live? What makes that song special?  

🎤 Paul Dillon: Recording is all that we have been able to manage at this point, every day I have a new favourite. Yes, I know…blah blah, but I genuinely love all the stuff, it will go from 🎵 “Broken” to 🎵 “Medicine” to 🎵 “Sisters to 🎵“Who I Am”… Looking forward to actually performing them live and seeing what the audience find as the ones, that will be the thrill!!

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Is there anything else awesome, cool, or left of center the world should know about you? Secret talents or surprising tidbits?

🎤 Paul Dillon: I wish I was awesome, cool, left of centre… I am delighted to be able to say, most of the stuff in the world just flies over my head. That is a skill in itself and try to keep improving on it. If I have nothing good to say, I will 99% of the time say nothing. Just delighted to be able to be what I am at with wonderful family and friends that encourage me all the time. What could be more awesome and cooler than that!!

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Closing things out, what is pMad currently working on, promoting that you can share with us or want us to know about? We love secrets, but there’s no pressure. 

🎤 Paul Dillon: Currently finalising the video of the pMad follow single to 🎵 “Who Am I,” which will be released on cd along with the streaming services, etc on 1^st February 2022. The cd single will also include “Who Am I” on it. 🎵 “Medicine”  is a cool song that builds and builds, with pulsating drums, introspective vocals, guitars & synths and a bassline line to die for!! Medicine, Hope is the Medicine.

Thank you so much for sharing taking the time to answer these questions, and best of luck moving forward. 

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🎤 Getting to Know… pMad: Interview No. 229 [📷: pMad, Paul Dillon, Brent Faulkner, The Musical Hype, Zedakube]

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