Genghis Tron are one of those bands who are very unusual with a hard to categorize sound. The trio utilizes lots of keyboards and no drummer or bassist. Their latest release is Board Up The House, which was once again produced by Converge’s Kurt Ballou. Guitarist Hamilton Jordan gives us the lowdown on the new CD, Genghis Tron’s tour plans, his favorite artists and much more.
Chad Bowar: How did the band's sound evolve from Dead Mountain Mouth to Board Up The House?
Hamilton Jordan: I think we've become much better songwriters.

We've learned to focus less on the shock of contrast and mood shifts and to concern ourselves more with song structure, creation of powerful melodies, and obsession with constructing a good sense of flow without allowing things to get predictable. It became too easy for us to write songs which sounded like material on Dead Mountain Mouth or Cloak of Love, and when it gets easy it gets boring. So we pushed ourselves to come up with something new and something better.

When someone asks you what Genghis Tron sounds like, what do you tell them?
It depends on who's asking! Usually, I just keep it simple and say that it's abrasive rock music with a lot of electronic and progressive elements.

How did the recording experience with Kurt Ballou compare with your last album with him?
It was fantastic. The Dead Mountain Mouth sessions were great as well, but we hardly had enough time to complete an album. This time around, we had much more time in the studio, so we were able to try out lots of different ideas during tracking and tweak the mixes many times over.

Furthermore, we'd gotten to know Kurt well, so there was an immediate feeling of comfort and understanding which we didn't have the first time around. It took us a few days to get a feel for each other the first time around.

Is he a hands-on producer who changes a lot of things, or is he more laid back?
He's as involved as any band wants him to be. When he works shorter sessions, he doesn't have as much time to interject his opinion, so he's more laissez-faire about things. Such was the case with our first album, which we recorded over 10 days. But on longer projects like Board Up the House (which was a 25 day recording experience), I think he felt much more invested in the project, so he was more willing to give his input when he had a particular idea, or if he thought we were doing something really stupid. We value his opinion, so we encouraged him to make creative suggestions. All of the songs were written before the recordings began, but with his guidance we changed some drum beats, altered some harmonies, changed some bass lines, and similar details. More than anything else, he's great at helping everything come together. Our songs have so many elements and it can be very overwhelming to make sense out of all of the tracks we've recorded.

How did you decide to sign with Relapse for this album?
Of all of the labels we were talking to, we just felt the strongest connection with Relapse. We talked to them for over a year before signing. As cheesy as this may sound, we felt like they understood where we were coming from, and what we wanted to achieve. They also have a killer roster, which speaks highly of their taste. Not many labels can say that.

What are your expectations for the CD?
I have none, really. I am very proud of it, and I think it's better than anything we've done previously. Only time will tell if anyone else agrees!

With your album artwork, is that something Jon Beasley does with your input and suggestions, or does he bring you a finished product for approval?
We like working with Jon because he always comes up with stuff which we could never have imagined otherwise. We give him some very very minor suggestions each time, but for the most part he just comes up with something amazing out of nowhere.

What are your upcoming tour plans?
We've got a busy spring. We're doing a week of headlining record release shows in late February, a 2-week trip to Austin and back for SXSW in March, a full US tour with Converge, Red Chord, Baroness and Coliseum in April, and a 2-week UK/European tour with Nachtmystium and Zoroaster in May.

You're playing SXSW again this year. What's that experience like, especially playing in front of an industry-heavy crowd?
It doesn't really feel any different. If anything, it's just a really fun place to be because there is always so much going on and so many bands to see. It's flattering to have people watching at all considering how many other bands are performing at any given point.

Do you find your unique style allows you to tour with a wider variety of bands than a lot of groups might be able to?
Absolutely. We love playing with all varieties of bands; it gets too boring otherwise. We're doing a few "metal" tours over the next several months, but after that we're definitely going to be doing some different stuff to keep things interesting.

What are your van essentials for a tour?
Lots of albums! Between CDs and iPods, we always make sure to have tons of music choices. Although we're considering getting an XM radio as well so that we can stay up-to-date on world news. A cache of black licorice is also a necessity for me.

Who usually drives the van, and does the driver control the tunes?
Michael and I do all of the driving, me more so than Michael. We have a democracy when it comes to choosing tunes, although the driver has some degree of veto power. Especially late at night when it's harder to stay awake. The driver always makes the choices then.