Lando Chill
Introducing Lando Chill; photographed by Jeff Weber.
Please say hello to Lando Chill, the latest addition to Mello Music Group readies his debut album for release late this summer presenting the heartbreak in hyperbole in the Malcolm Critcher video for “Coroner”. Born Lance Alan in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois; Lando’s mom encouraged him to perform in choir ensembles and theatre production in his youth, until a shint being cast in a film short for University Arizona Film School would change the Chi-town raised rising artist to creatively pursue hip hop & songwriting. Chill’s work seeks to find those new facets and outlets of artistic-emotive-expressions that have yet to be created, or discovered.
Lando Chill examines the time spent with a former love, measuring the meaning and moments from time spent to the magnitude of hurt felt afterward. We see the former couple’s first meeting in a bus, record store shopping, to moments spent lounging and laughing, to Lando’s solitary scenes driving or walking. The motif of the “Coroner” depicts Chill experiencing a rapid physical decline (losing fingernails, teeth, blood, to going the full Kano / Temple of Doom by ripping out his own heart and leaving it on his ex’s apartment doormat that reads welcome home), where the emotions felt inside are worn like the effects of a medieval plague. The entire arc of the relationship is observed, from cuddling to fights where string of being replaced by a new suitor is expressed in terms like a Shakespearean romantic-tragedy. Chill sums up the entire fallout of the heart in the following lyrics:”I’m not the man you believe in, you see I’m just the man you were leaving, I guess we move along like the seasons, I’m reeling, baby what the reason?” Lando joins us now for an insightful interview.
Welcome to the Mello Music Group family! We’re very moved by the video for “coroner” from Malcolm Critcher, and wanted to hear about the sorts of fatalistic feelings that inspired the song, to the making of the video that plays upon a kind of ‘rip your heart out’ play of heartbreak and hyperbole.
Thank you so much! It’s an honor and privilege to be apart of such a insanely talented musical family. [laughs] I’m glad you felt something when you watched Coroner, that was what we were going for! I think one person who commented on the video pretty much surmised it to a tee, getting back to what or who you need before you fall apart, but in this instance, it was too late. She had moved on, and I was at the end of the proverbial nine lives. There have been a few times in my existence in which I’ve felt such despair and unwant, and I drew upon those to convey what you see before you today. With Malcolm’s help that is!
How have your Chicago by Tucson, Arizona travels and environmental influences impacted your own creative vision?
Oh, I’d say most definitely. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without having left my hometown and gone somewhere I’d never truly been. I cant honestly say I liked Tucson my first three years here, and it was only until I opened to the city that it started to give back. That meant breaking past those socially constructed barriers and stereotypes, as well as moving out of my own comfort zone when it came to my own craft. I’m a poet by trade, so beginning to hone that skill was paramount, and having lived what it seems like to be two and a half lives, I had a lot to share through my art.
Describe for us what it has been like writing and recording your forthcoming MMG album debut.
Oh it’s been so much fun. Experimenting with different sounds & song structures has been the most exciting. Writing has been equally as fun, but twice as frustrating. There’s so much I want to share, so many ranges of emotions I want the audience and listeners to feel, that sometimes I feel as though it’s overwhelming. But then its not far to doubt anyone, or their capabilities & musical taste, so here I am. Trying to genre break this musical game we play.
Describe your creative approach, working with your bandmates Chris “Deep Greasy” Pierce, Andy “Lasso” C, Jimmy “Jimbo” Borquez, & Isaiah “Zayah” Briggs.
It’s like cooking. You have four or five people at a time in a kitchen, all with different backgrounds & styles of cooking. Each with the same ingredient, just different tools. Throwing it all together to make something taste good is what we want the outcome to be each time, but of course, sometimes you make shit food, ya know? It’s about trusting that one another can add something to the whole, whether it be a riff here or a chord change there. It awesome, because I’m not necessarily tied to making music with just them, but I feel extremely comfortable with these guys.
Chilling with Lando Chill; photo courtesy of the artist.
What is exciting and awesome right n ow in Tucson, by the way?
The music scene is what is exciting. The arts scene is awesome. there are so many people here who are artin’ around and putting on amazing shows & events, and the support here varies. From The Scratch Shack, to the Think Tank, to Gary’s Place, to what, Congress, The Rock, and Flycatcher do…there is a lot of talent & potential. It’s the tapping into the UA [University of Arizona, located in Tucson] market without selling out or attracting people who just want to party, that the local scene here has yet to master, nor do I think really wants to. Yet I feel as though it is needed and necessary for the continued growth of the scene it’s self.
What are you and the band really stoked on right now?
Touring & working on new music. Plain & simple. I want to go out and show people want I can do; what we can do. Signing with Mello Music Group is a big step toward where I want to be, but there’s a long road toward real success & I sure as hell ain’t there yet. But you’ll see! :]
Parting words, insights, hopes, and dreams for spring/summer?
“The greatest lie man believes is that he is not in control of his own fate”. Remember that, because we’re all in control of where we’re going. I dream about my album being a success in the eyes of the people who helped me get here. I hope I get to hit a music festival or two. And I wish the best for you and yours.
