By Nicholas Jason Lopez
Dequincey is more than just a name for Marco Tommaseo.
The Italian songwriter, producer and musician started his career in Italy as he was involved with several bands.
Tommaseo temporarily left Bristol in late 2017 to write a debut solo album in Turin, Italy. He moved back to England last year to self-produce it.
On Oct. 25, 2019, ‘…And So The Gates Unlocked’ was released to the world and since then, the Alt-Dream-Pop/Psych/Space-Rock artist has rolled on with momentum.
Music Bugle – How would you describe the creative process of ‘…And So The Gates Unlocked’?
Dequincey – It all happened in 2017. I was accumulating loads of ideas and inspiration and was “receiving” music from somewhere straight into my head, without the possibility to create music at that time. I eventually melted down and locked myself in a studio far away from everything and everyone where I finally released all my creative energy and wrote the album in less than a month. The actual production itself took a lot longer, having to spread the studio sessions to dissipate the costs.
Music Bugle – Are you proud of the end result of your latest album?
Dequincey – Yes, it’s my proudest work I’ve achieved so far. One part of me still tries to find aspects that could have been accomplished differently, but that’s normal, I guess. I can say I’m satisfied as much as a perfectionist artist can be.
Music Bugle – How did the new album get its name?
Dequincey – The idea partly came from “The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn,” although it’s not a clear reference to that. The image of the gates unlocking reveals the parallel world of the subconscious. I also like the idea of a title sounding like the last line of a tale, because that’s how I feel about my album – a spiritual tale.
Music Bugle – Who are some of your musical influences?
Dequincey – This is hard to answer as they are various and not always recognizable, but definitely, I can point out some of them like The Flaming Lips, Spaceman 3, Mercury Rev, Animal Collective, Youth Lagoon, Tame Impala, Broadcast, My Bloody Valentine, but also a bunch of older stuff like The Byrds, Syd Barrett, The Electric Prunes, The Velvet Underground and many others.
Music Bugle – What’s your biggest frustration with the music industry and can it be fixed?
Dequincey – It’s always really hard for a musician or a band to get noticed by the music industry, especially in this era where everything spins at such a speed. The music industry changed so drastically since the internet happened and personally, I feel overwhelmed. Lately, I’m trying to fix this by keeping up friendships and human relationships, because despite all this is how real connections keep happening.
Music Bugle – What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned as a musician so far?
Dequincey – To always do whatever you want in the way you want it without coming down to compromises for any reason. Music means, to me, complete freedom of expression and shouldn’t be done to accommodate any audience or industry.
Music Bugle – What are your future plans?
Dequincey – Playing as many live shows as possible and sell out the record. I’d like to arrange a tour around the UK and Europe with my band and possibly record a second album with a completely different approach.
Music Bugle – What’s your most meaningful song or set of lyrics?
Dequincey – I feel that “Sea Change” is the most meaningful song. The whole idea of the album started from there. It has a very spiritual meaning to me as it’s about accepting death. In terms of lyrics, I think “Dartington” has this very visionary and mystical power that still throws me in that dreamy scenario each time I hear it.
Music Bugle – What’s something you think people should know about you as a musician?
Dequincey – I’m affected by synesthetic disorder. I hear sounds inside my head, often linked to images that don’t belong to any real life experience, but come from somewhere else. As a musician, I try to transfer these visions to an audience, but there’s a lot more in Dequincey than just music. There’s a parallel world that can be explored through different forms of art.
Music Bugle – What’s the hardest part of sticking out as an artist nowadays?
Dequincey – The struggle of juggling the “real life.” By that, I mean paying a rent and having a job while focusing on an artistic career. Music doesn’t really pay the bills, so quite often I end up exhausting myself from taking too much on board.