GANYMEDE
Synthpop in Reverse?

Named after Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymede is a California-based synthpop band whose sound is often referred and compared to the early 80's retro/new wave generation. Highly influenced by Kraftwerk, Jean-Michel Jarre, Giorgio Moroder, Vangelis and Patrick Cowley to name a few, David Friede and Patrick Runkle came together out of their desire to write original music that's more inclined to their musical tastes and interests.

by Myles Leonard

With their debut album, After the Fall, released in the US by Ninthwave Records, David and Patrick recovered the retro sound that was about to be considered indigenous in today's growing electronic genre. A known music enthusiast accurately described Ganymede's work as "nearly perfect ... it will make you think you've gone back in time 20 year, when synthpop was just getting started." But how did Ganymede start, and why the attempt to attain a sound reminiscent of the retro days, when in today's technological breakthrough, anyone can experiment with entirely new, complex and diverse sounds?

Shared interest in film scores...

David explains how it all began. "I've always been musically inclined, and I composed the scores to lots of films I made throughout high school. The big turning point in my musical life was in the early '90s when I discovered the early 80's synthpop/new romantic scene. I was so inspired by that music that I wanted to write original songs that recaptured that sound and aesthetic. Of course, this was in direct rebellion to the grunge scene that was so popular in the US at that time, which I didn't identify with at all. I got my first real synthesizer thereafter and soon recorded my first synthpop album under the name Euromantique."

Patrick similarly possesses the musical creativity that inspired Dave all throughout high school. "I used to write lots of film-inspired instrumentals in middle school and high school. I would pound on the piano in my living room for hours until I had something that sounded cool, or until my mother told me to stop. I wrote the processional for my honor society induction but it was sabotaged by my own bad trombone playing."

Although both originated from Pennsylvania, it wasn't until 1995 during the first week of college that David and Patrick met. Both agree it was their mutual love of film music that brought them together. It was David who introduced Patrick to the world of synthpop and soon after, Patrick started writing synthpop songs of his own. By 1997, they instinctively felt that the right thing to do was to make music together.

Many have described Ganymede's style as "classic synthpop" and "analogue synthpop." In their own words, Patrick describes their music as "a conscious attempt to bring some analogue minimalism back to electronic pop music. It's all analogues and beat boxes. There's something about the brilliant, sometimes jagged warmth and depth of a true analogue synth that will always sound good. Ganymede music is always active, always dynamic. Too much electronica is programmed and obvious. Structurally, it's absolutely beyond redemption. We try to be a little more subtle both musically and lyrically, and we structure our songs to draw listeners in, not to pound them over the head."

Writing lyrics in a positive force

Lyrically, Ganymede's songs do not necessarily contain any other meaning beyond what's expressed. But like many other musicians who've fallen captive to the pit of music writing, often times the songs would result in an ambiguous and vague lyrical arrangement. David defines their lyrics as "fairly eclectic. Some of the meanings of the songs are quite apparent, whereas the other leave more to the listener's imagination. The only consistency is that we strive for lyrics that are intelligent and interesting." Patrick further adds, "Ganymede to me is mostly about unrequited love, about not quite fitting in and about urban longing. We take these things and make them into a positive force. There's lots of ambiguity and ambivalence in the lyrics, even the ones that may seem obvious."

Asked about how they find inspiration to their lyrics, Patrick describes an important and "fruitful" moment in his life when he was "teaching high school in rural Louisiana, just outside New Orleans. The people I met there and the situations I faced gave me quite a bit to think about."

Ganymede's current taste are not exclusive of the retro/new romantic genre. At present, David's interests in music vary from ElectroSquad and Neuropa to Apoptygma Berserk and VNV Nation, the latter of which are quite incomparable to the Ganymede sound. Although not quite enthusiastic over bands that create cover tunes, Ganymede is currently working on a song for an upcoming OMD cover album. The primary reason for getting involved on a "tribute" album lies in David's interest on how "different bands approach the material written by another artist."

David's opinion on how to succeed in this industry is quite compelling. "Unfortunately, it seems that mass promotion and hype is the best way to achieve success in today's mainstrem music industry, which is way outside the budget of most synthpop aritsts. To succeed in this synthpop scene, it really just comes down to making good records that people like, which is the way it should be." As poignant as this may be, Patrick concludes that in order to succeed in this industry, "one should get an operation and become a gorgeous, 17-year-old blonde."