Interview: Philly Based Artist/Producer Omari Vel Discusses His Debut Mixtape "Crimson"
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“As an artist, my day to day interactions influence my work. Everything comes down to representing my life and 2020 felt so devoid of that. It felt so empty and confusing. I think that’s why “Crimson” came out so big.”
Congratulations on the release of your debut mixtape "Crimson"; tell us about your creative process for the seven songs, and your overall inspiration for the project.
My general creative process is I make the beats custom to my vocals. I start with a demo beat that I then write to. I record vocals over it and arrange the song around those pre-recorded vocals. This results in very detailed beats that have a dynamic feel. My end goal is to make rap songs that follow more rock or funk like song structures. In saying this, I mean songs where the choruses have distinct chord changes and more interesting layering. I want to move away from the beat switch trap of rap production and focus on song writing that centers around repeating motifs.
Inspiration wise, my music is heavily influenced by a wide range of genres and artists. In the rap world, I draw most of my inspiration from Kendrick's "Good Kid Maad City", Travis Scott's "Rodeo" and Kanye's "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy". All three of these albums pushed the bounds of hip-hop from a lyrical and production standpoint.
Funk is another major influence on my music. Eddie Hazel of Funkadelic is my favorite guitarist and I consider Rick James the greatest performer of all time. The flashy style and eccentric outfits of the 70s & 80s are something I look to recreate in my live shows. Artists used to look like superheros and I just love that.
Prince's force and energy is also one I draw a lot of inspiration from. The genius of his songwriting doesn't lie in massive song structures but in minor changes throughout the song to keep the listener engaged. David Bowie also falls into this category of genius. I legitimately study the song "Life On Mars". The flowliness of the orchestration is masterful. For such a maximalist song, it never feels like too much and the parts are never clashing. I guess fundamentally, I appreciate tight arrangements. I strive to make music that is dense, over layered but absolutely does not come off that way.
Lady Gaga is another major inspiration. She follows the same songwriting pattern with the added benefit of fantastically dark visuals. "The Fame" and "The Fame Monster" are fundamental to my understanding of what makes great pop music.
Shifting gears slightly, Shoegaze is another major inspiration. The guitar work on "Long Way" is directly inspired by the band Slowdive, particularly their project "Souvlaki".
Switching gears even more, Modest Mussorgsky is my favorite composer. I strive to one day make a project that mirrors "Pictures at an Exhibition". Outside of the dense arrangements, that symphony is the first example I can think of that mixes visual and musical arts.
Were there songs that you recorded that you decided not to place on the mixtape? If so, why did they not make it?
There are plenty of songs that were left off “Crimson”. I think it was Prince who said you have to make five albums to make one. Regardless, because of the way I compose, any half-done songs would have stuck out very obviously. "Running Man" set a standard for the album that I was in no way willing to go below.
What are some things/people/places that influence the music that you create?
Interesting question, because of the pandemic I couldn't really go anywhere, so it was definitely difficult to find external inspiration. As an artist, my day to day interactions influence my work. Everything comes down to representing my life and 2020 felt so devoid of that. It felt so empty and confusing. I think that's why "Crimson" came out so big. I ended up creating a fantasy world for myself; a world very distant from the nothingness I felt surrounded by.
Tell us about your involvement with the psych/prog rock band called Chewy. Also, how do you decide which songs to give to the band and keep for your solo work?
In Chewy, I am the producer not the songwriter. Connor La Rocca wrote all of the songs, I just helped bring them to life. Using a similar process to "Crimson", we recorded the bare bones of each song and then sound designed each while mixing. I think this process helps create a much more engaging final project. There truly isn't a second that wasn't considered on "HOUSE OF CHEWY!" or "Crimson".
With "Crimson" now released, what is next for you musically?
I'm currently taking a mini hiatus from making music just to recharge. BUT I do know my next project is called "Don't Look Down You Might Crash".