Words by Amy Wagner
Photos by Abbey Braden

Pete “Sonic Boom” Kember burst out of the town of Rugby in the U.K. in the 1980s as part of the psychedelic, distortion-loving band Spacemen 3. The band went the way of the dodo by the time the 1990s hit, but Sonic Boom stuck with us giving us not only one, but two music projects to feed our heads with – EAR (a.k.a. Experimental Audio Research – you get what it sounds like right?) and the psychedelic pop outfit Spectrum. It’s Spectrum that has Sonic Boom, once again, knocking at our door. Kember has a new album ready for release later this year and will also start criss-crossing the U.S., leaving lots of pop-pogoing and jam-spent kids in his wake. ‘Sup fired off some questions to the legendary rocker a few days before he kick started his tour at Brooklyn’s After the Jump Fest. Read on for the scoop on the new disc and how an ’80s guy is adjusting to life in an mp3 world.

You’re getting ready to hit the road. Does it still surprise you how excited people get about seeing you play?
Yes. It’s very nice that people feel that way. Music is a strange ethereal way to make your living and being able to potentially encapsulate, share and transmit the emotions and sentiments to people is quite a privilege.

Is it true that we’re going to be treated so some Spacemen 3 tunes on your latest tour?
I’ve never stopped playing Spacemen 3 songs and this tour will be no exception.

After Spacemen 3 fell apart, did you ever consider quitting music? What kept you going?
No. It never occurred to me I could do much else that would feel as rewarding.

Would you say your upcoming album On the Wings of Mercury is going to be more of a step forward or a look back? What sort of emotional palette can we expect?
That’s only its working title. It’ll be a step forward and progression in the way I think all my records are, but I’ve never wanted to cut the umbilicals that tie each of the records together and to me.

Have you been working on material for the album for a while or did a rush of songs just hit you?
It’s been something I’ve been slowly assembling on and off for some years.

You really took a creative approach to the cover art and packaging for your albums. Give us a couple of reasons why you think this art form should be saved from the onslaught of the mp3 army?
I think that recordings should always be available in a solid form as well as downloads. I feel a little sorry for anyone who thinks its better to download an LP than to buy it and put it on their iPod, etc. Actually, my plan is for all future records to have a free download as part of the purchase price. Of course, the idea of freeloading on downloads is repellant to me and leaves me wondering why people seem to think it’s a viable way to support a media they like.

You make music on a less is more basis often saying “one chord is best.” Do you think using only one or two has pushed you to be more creative than using every chord under the sun?
Yes, I’m sure it does.

What interests you more – a single sound or putting sounds together to form something bigger?
It varies. On the whole though, I like simply elegant compositions of carefully thought out sounds. Kraftwerk would be a good example – rarely more than four elements, each out-standing and self-aware of its role in the whole. It’s pretty succinct.

Since you’re participating in the blogger-run After the Jump Fest is it safe to say that you fully support the online music community?
Fully support them? I’m certainly not against them – though whether I could put my neck on the line to “support” any idiot that thinks the Internet is some place to sound off without thinking, I’d say “no”.

You always seemed to have a mission to keep the sounds of bands like The Stooges and Velvet Underground alive. Are there any young bands out there that you would hand-pick to carry on the legacy of Spacemen 3, Spectrum or EAR?
There are a lot of good bands around now and I’d hate to omit anyone by making lists. They know who they are. I do think the Internet has short-circuited the routes to the great bands of the past and present and that, in itself, has and will continue to improve and inspire.