July 1, 2025 • 29 mins
Pieter Van Dessel takes us on an unexpected journey from law student to the creative force behind Marble Sounds, revealing how serendipity and persistence shaped his musical evolution. When his wife received a grant to work in Montreal in 2005, Pieter's planned sabbatical transformed into musical opportunity after landing a position at a recording studio. This fortuitous circumstance provided both equipment access and creative community, allowing the first Marble Sounds EP to take shape with help from Canadian musicians.
His evolution as a performer stands as perhaps the most compelling aspect of Pieter's story. With disarming candor, he admits never aspiring to sing or front a band, making his growth all the more remarkable. "I wasn't a born entertainer," he shares. "I really had to learn it." Through countless live shows and persistence, he gradually developed the confidence that studio work alone couldn't provide. The key lesson? Rehearsals only help so much—real growth comes from repeatedly facing audiences.
For Pieter, songwriting remains his natural strength, with musical composition flowing more easily than lyrics. He chases that elusive creative spark—"the best feeling in the world"—that signals something special is emerging. Recent albums showcase distinct artistic approaches: the self-titled 2022 release employed self-playing pianos in deliberately limited arrangements, while 2025's "Core Memory" embraces 80s influences and childhood musical touchpoints like Phil Collins. Looking ahead, fans can anticipate "More Memory" featuring outtakes from recent sessions, while Peter already contemplates his next full album for 2028. Subscribe to hear our conversations with other fascinating musicians whose unexpected paths led to creative breakthroughs.
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Episode Transcript
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Marble Sounds (00:01):
I saw your mind was reeling.
It was slightly bizarre.
I thought you were a littlegreedy and too eager to start
the moments you've been learningfrom moments when we were young
.
They confuse you at first, butmake sense later on.
(00:25):
Don't be shy to confess you'renot feeling it yet.
I know you at first, but makesounds later on.
Don't be shy to confess you'renot feeling the chaos, because I
know you will rise to anemotional high.
colleyc (00:35):
Another episode of ifitbeyourwill Podcast.
I'm reaching pretty far but hassome really cool roots that
we're going to talk about.
In Montreal, where I'm from,where I do the show from, I have
Peter van Diesel from Belgiumcoming in to talk about his
music called Marble Sounds.
Now Marble Sounds has beenaround for a long time.
It's not a beginning project,but there's been some cool
(00:59):
transformations and that's why Ireached out to Peter, because I
really appreciated his latestrecord, core Memory.
That just came out in March ofthis year.
So check it out.
March 7th it dropped Excellentrecord.
We're going to talk about alittle bit of that.
But, peter, before we getstarted, I always kind of like
digging a little bit back intoyour background, a little bit of
(01:20):
music.
What were some moments in yourcareer that really started to
solidify that you were gonna domusic, that that was something
that you really like to do
Marble Sounds (01:30):
hey, chris, um well, um well, at an early age I
started to do like um, studypiano, uh, I was like nine years
old and then, uh, it's likemusic academy, you know, as a
kid played some flutes, learnedthe guitar, but I never thought
of becoming a professionalmusician.
Actually, it's like around meand the family there were no
(01:53):
musicians at all.
So it's like I liked also, likeI liked writing songs.
You know, I wasn't like a greatpianist or a great guitar
player, I was.
I liked playing, making songs,um, and you know, if you make a
song, it's not, you know, youcan't invoke.
You can't invoice anyone if youmake a good song, you know it's
like what they're gonna do.
So I was kind of lost and youknow, I I studied law when I was
(02:19):
18, so I was not ambitious atall, but I I loved music.
I loved playing music for fun, Ithink.
Well, I did study afterstudying law.
I did audio production like oneyear, like a sort of master, in
London, which was a veryimportant moment because I
(02:39):
learned to record, I learned ProTools.
You know, it was 2000,.
2000, yeah, 2001.
Um, that was like my firstexperience with digital
recording.
So that was quite a big moment.
But I think montreal played abig part in my evolution because
(03:00):
in 2005, my wife had a grant towork abroad and we chose
Montreal.
Yay, we moved to Montreal in2005.
colleyc (03:11):
Wow, that's cool.
Marble Sounds (03:13):
And I thought I'm going to take a sabbatical and
start writing songs for my own,which became the first songs of
Marble Sounds, basically like in2005, 2006.
Of marble sounds basically likein 2005, 2006, um, but my
sabbatical uh stopped when Istarted working in a studio in
montreal, um, and the studiomade music like for, for
(03:34):
commercials and and, uh, movies.
Okay, uh, as a composer, I couldwork there.
So suddenly, like I, I arrivedin Montreal with just two
suitcases, suddenly had, likeyou know, I had a studio, you
know, to my disposal.
I could write songs, I couldrecord the first Marble Sounds
(03:54):
EP.
I made friends, you know, inthe studio and actually the
first, yeah, the first formationof Marble Sounds was with, you
know, canadian friends inMontreal and we played a few.
We played a few shows there,like in Divan Orange, right,
right, yeah, yeah, the Café desBrumes, I don't know.
(04:19):
Café des Brumes
colleyc (04:20):
yeah
Marble Sounds (04:20):
, oh yeah.
Well, I played there.
colleyc (04:25):
That's so cool.
I just saw a band there not toolong ago and great sound, great
place.
I mean, montreal has somereally great music, has a great
music scene in general.
Yeah, really cool places to umto perform as well, yeah, so,
peter, that that montrealconnection was marble sound.
Were you already writing songsunder that name?
(04:48):
Yeah, and what inspired you towant to like, bring other people
in and turn it into more of aband style rather than just your
personal project?
Marble Sounds (04:59):
Well, it started.
I recorded the first EP on myown.
I recorded the first EP on myown.
The fun thing is, when you'reabroad, you always Not always,
but you often have friendscoming over To visit you, and
one of them was a friend fromBelgium.
He was a drummer, and then Ilet him play on three songs,
(05:19):
which became the first EP.
But it was like I played, Isang everything.
I played the guitars, the bass,and then I had my friends doing
the drums, so, but then, um, Iwanted to play live.
You know.
So, like in montreal I, Ilooked for some people to play
those songs live.
(05:39):
And also like when, in, aftertwo years of montreal I, I moved
back to bel Belgium and yeah, Ilook for people there as well,
right
colleyc (05:48):
, right, and were they able to transfer your songs from
the recording to a liveperformance?
Marble Sounds (05:55):
I've talked to some artists where that
transition is.
They got to think about a lotbecause there's so much that
happens on the recording.
To reproduce that in a livesetting is is a feat.
colleyc (06:06):
Was there?
Was there, um?
Was that a tricky transitionfrom having this stuff down on
tape to actually performing itlive in front of people?
Did the sound in the, the, theidea behind the song come across
?
Marble Sounds (06:19):
Yeah, I think it's, it's, uh, it wasn't an
easy process.
Uh, uh, you know, we signed toa Belgian label and I remember
our label manager said like yeah, Marble Sounds, they're great,
but on record it was kind ofpretty harsh, Right Ouch.
But it's also yeah.
But it's, I think it's also.
(06:40):
I wasn't like a bornentertainer, you know, performer
, I really had to learn it.
You also have to, in a way, youhave to let go a little bit as
well.
You know you want to keep, ofcourse, you want to keep the
vibe of the record a bit, or youknow the vibe, or whatever that
means.
You know that you want to beMarble Sounds, you know, sure,
(07:00):
sure so, but it's, you know, ittook a few.
It took a few shows, um, andalso I had to grow a bit as a,
as a performer, um and uh, causeI, I'm, you know, my ambition
was never to sing, you know, letalone be on a stage, uh, being
(07:21):
in front of a band.
So, um, I had to learn it,learn it.
But I started to love it, youknow, like, I think, by the
second album, we played more andmore shows and now it's like, I
don't know, I love playing live.
Now, it's really easy Like yeahyeah.
It's fun.
colleyc (07:39):
Can you, peter, tell us a little bit about that process
?
How do you become a showman?
You know, like, how do you?
How do you become a showman?
You know, like, how do you?
You know like, that's what youlike.
People are all on you, yourattention's all there.
They'll listen to your music,to the words that accompany it.
I mean I, I look at that and Iget anxiety right away.
I'm like, oh my God, how am Igoing to remember the?
(08:01):
words?
What if they make a mistake?
What of all this stuff Like howdo you?
What was your process tobecoming comfortable with
performing live in front ofpeople?
Marble Sounds (08:11):
I think it's playing live.
I think doing it and alsoplaying rehearsing doesn't
really help.
You have to do it, you have tobe in front of people.
You can rehearse a song and,you know, be very good at it,
but in the end you really haveto play a lot of, make some
(08:34):
miles and play live, and I thinkthat's the only.
I think we got better when, bythe second album, we had one
song that became a hit inFlanders.
We played a lot of shows inthat season.
I think that's the only way.
(08:59):
But I'm still not a showman.
I'll never be a David Bowie,I'll do it my way of, but but uh
, at least I enjoy it.
You know, yeah, and I I know,to my surprise, there are some
other people that that you knowthat also love it.
So I don't know, I guess it'sokay now.
colleyc (09:17):
Well, you put out really great music, peter.
I mean marble sounds a greatlisten.
Um, what do you find the mostbiggest?
Your biggest inspiration wasfor Marble Sound at the
beginning stages.
What were you listening to thatwere like, hey, I think I'm
going to try doing this style.
How did you kind of build theMarble Sound sound?
Marble Sounds (09:40):
Yeah, I think the very first song I wrote was a
song called Redesign, which isvery indie pop.
I really wanted to sound like aband with two guitars and a
keyboard player and playing somelo-fi indie rock or something
Like a pavement or something.
colleyc (10:01):
Yeah, yeah, In those lines yeah, I don't know.
Marble Sounds (10:03):
Do you know Pinback, for example?
Yeah, totally Beautiful thoselines yeah, I don't know do you
know, pinback, for example, yeah, totally Beautiful band, love
them, yeah.
And you know that's like,because I'm not like, as I told
you, I'm not like a bornperformer or singer.
But then you know, I listenedto Pinback and I think like dude
, those guys they're, you knowthey're not like amazing singers
, why.
But they do, it works, but thatkind of that was like a, an
(10:26):
inspiration for me, like, like,uh, you know, I'm just gonna
double track my vocals and itsounds better than I feel my own
, you know, right, and uh, andsparkle horse, for example, you
know, this kind of lo-fi indiepop.
Um, that was my inspiration,basically, basically Nice.
colleyc (10:45):
And was it hard for you ?
Is it a hard writing songs?
Is that a hard process for you?
Have you found tricks andtechniques throughout the years
where writing songs becomeseasier or more natural for you?
Marble Sounds (11:05):
I think, in the whole scheme of of music, things
like like playing music,performing, playing guitar,
piano, I think, um, I think I'mthe best at writing songs.
I think that's the most, themost um comes, comes out the
easiest for me.
You know, like, um, I'm notreally talking about music, not
(11:26):
lyrics, because the lyricsthat's another skill, that's
another how do you say it?
Craft.
Yep, you play music and youwrite lyrics.
You know it's kind of music isplaying for me and I think, yeah
, yeah, songs, and they still.
You know I still have ideas forthe next album.
(11:46):
So it's, yeah, I'm not yeah, howdoes your song start, peter?
Like how, like you said, youalways start with the music
before the lyrics come into play.
When does when does a song cometo you that you're like, where
you feel there's something,there's some magic, or there's
something to it that you want tokeep going with it.
Like what, what is that feelingfor you when a song starts to
(12:08):
blossom in front of your eyes?
colleyc (12:10):
yeah, that's um, that's , that's the feeling you're
looking for.
That's like the best feeling inthe world.
You know, that's why I thinkmost songwriters keep on writing
, just to have that one spark.
You know that's the bestmoments when, once you have that
, the annoying parts part startsand then you polish and fine
fine tune and um, but you knowthe spark it's, it's, it's like,
(12:30):
it's like a drug.
You know it doesn't happenoften, you know it doesn't
happen every day.
So that's why it's so valuable.
You know, like, like thatmoment when you yeah, it's
nothing more than and nothingless than than you have a small
ID.
Sometimes it can be like, butsometimes it's like a backing
vocal in a chorus.
You know you can have a lamechorus and add a higher backing
(12:55):
vocal on top of it or have astring line, because you know
there's like a sort of myth thatsays, like a song is good if
you can play it on guitar, right, but I don't believe in that.
Sometimes, you know, it's likea backing vocal or a string that
makes a song brilliant and youknow, that little that can give
(13:15):
it a spark and that's a nicefeeling, of course
Marble Sounds (13:17):
totally and like from the self title to the one
that you just put out, coreMemory.
It feels like it feelsdifferent in texture and style,
style and I mean, obviously it'ssound, but there's a transition
that's going on.
Was the self-titled um createdwith other musicians and core
(13:41):
memory was more of you like.
Could you kind of like describethe differences between?
And?
The self-titled came out in2022, people october 2022, so
it's only three years removedfrom one another, but can you
talk about the differencesbetween the process, how you
came to the songs that that thatthere's a difference between
those two records?
colleyc (14:02):
yeah sure, um, I think it's funny.
You know it was the other wayaround.
Like the, the soft title wasmore me, okay, and then the last
one, the more electronic one,was more the band.
So I think that the soft titleswas I think it's still my
(14:23):
favorite right.
It's gonna be always be my mostpersonal and it's gonna have a
special place for me.
I know if you do a promotionyou always have to tell
journalists that your last albumis the best, but I can tell you
the self-titled one for me.
I don't think I can do betterthan that one.
(14:44):
I'm not saying it's a greatalbum, but I don't think I can
do much better.
I don't know, it doesn't reallymatter, but it's still.
Marble Sounds (14:53):
Can I ask you, Peter, just on that, what is it
with the self-titled thatconnects so readily to you?
Why is it?
How does it make you feeldifferent than all the other
stuff?
What was it about that song,that that record, that that
connected you so closely to it?
colleyc (15:13):
I think because I don't know, and that's that's kind of
um, I don't know why itconnects and that's you know.
I connect also with I mean I, I, you know, I mean I'm proud of
every album.
But if I connect with an albumI can say yeah, because I like
that chorus is catchy or that Ilove that song and whatever.
(15:35):
But with the Soft Idols albumit's more like, yeah, I don't
know, it's really an album.
The album is more than the sumof the songs.
You know what I mean.
Marble Sounds (15:50):
It's like it's a whole concept album.
colleyc (15:53):
Yeah, it's a concept more like the individual songs
yeah, yeah and also it was funmaking it.
It was with the subtitle thatwas really isolating a little
bit.
Like my bandmates didn't hearmuch of the album.
Okay, like there are no guitarson it, no bass guitar.
That was kind of my with thatalbum.
(16:17):
I really tried to limit myself.
You know, like with I reallywanted to stick to the piano,
yeah.
Marble Sounds (16:26):
On your band camp page it's three pianos on stage
A grand piano, self-playinggrand piano, a self-playing
upright piano, and then youcontrolling or nipping through a
laptop.
colleyc (16:36):
Yeah, amazing, wow yeah yeah, I had like, and also I
only had 10 demos and it's likethe 10 demos, for you know I
didn't have more songs.
It was really it had to bethose 10 songs and I wasn't like
.
Sometimes you'd think, like youhave I don't know 13, 14 songs
and you're wondering what'sgonna be the album.
But with that album I knew,like you know that's, that's the
(16:59):
10 demos I have now and youknow that's gonna be the album.
And also the working processwas really nice the, the idea of
using USB driven pianos youknow playing pianos was an idea
of David Paltrock and he's apianist in Belgium.
And because I had all the demos, you know, with programmed
(17:23):
pianos.
But you know just plugins, youknow like, like and it sounded
good.
You know plugins, you know like, like and it sounded good.
You know plugins, these days,they sound, they sound amazing.
Yeah, yeah, he told me like.
Yeah, you have to.
Um, you know we're gonna askyamaha for for some pianos and
oh, we got them for for free,nice, nice but I was thinking
like you know that's a lot ofeffort.
(17:44):
You to have real pianos insteadof plugins and they sound nice.
But we had a blast five days.
We were manipulating the pianosand it made the album 5% better
, but it was an important 5% or10%.
And just the experience ofdoing it was fun.
Marble Sounds (18:05):
Peter, I have another question.
I just find it so fascinatingthat when you were creating that
record and we're going to getto the new record, but I find
this record so fascinating howdid you do you set a melody with
one piano and then the othertwo are just adding flourishes
here and there, or are theytotally intermingled that
(18:28):
somebody that wouldn't be awareof would just think it's all
like?
One, yeah, yeah is that theobjective when you're trying to
do something like this?
colleyc (18:37):
it was more like intermingling, uh, I didn't know
the word, but I just repeat itbecause it's.
I mean, it's like yeah, it'slike um, it's uh, sometimes it's
just, you know, we separate theleft hand from the right hand.
You know, I had like a pianopart and I played it like um,
yeah, with two hands, yeah, butthen we, you know, then we could
send, you know, the left handto what?
(18:57):
To the, the grand piano, andthe right hand to the wow, wow
that is cool yeah to the otherpiano, right, and manipulate
them differently, then you'vegot more spacious effects.
So it's kind of it's.
And then we put it's like, yeah, we did it that way in the song
Axolotl.
And then we put you know,punazis, you know this when you
(19:19):
hang posters on the wall, right,right, right.
And we put those in the hammersof the piano and then it gives
a metallic vibe.
Oh, wow so you in the hammersof the piano, and then it gives
a metallic, metallic vibe, oh soyou can.
That's amazing as a listener.
You know, as a tool it's maybelike five percent difference for
for the listener, right, butit's, it makes a unique sound.
You know it's, it's like, youknow it's, it's um, but it's the
(19:43):
sound not of a plugin, but you,but of those pianos on that
moment, on that stage, withthose microphones, it was magic.
Marble Sounds (19:50):
Yeah, it was fun.
So there's that production,self-titled yeah.
What was your vision with thenext one?
So, core Memory, what was yourkind of plan at the start of it
when this record was you weregoing to put a record together.
It was going to come out March7th 2025?
What was your big plan for itwhen you were first kind of
(20:13):
figuring out how?
colleyc (20:13):
you're going to do it.
Um, I wanted to do somethingelse.
You know, like, like the, thesoft title was the fifth album
and before that, you know, whenyou make a first album, a second
album, it's like, I wouldn'tsay on automatic pilot, but you,
you make.
You know it's like, yeah,you've done it before.
Yeah, it's default marblesounds a bit, and then after a
while you start to look for, youknow, I want to make like every
(20:38):
album has to tell something.
I'm not saying it's going to bea concept concept album, but it
has to be musically like auniverse, more or less.
And um, after the orchestralpiano album, I really wanted to
do something, you know, withoutwhatever, not without piano, if
(20:59):
possible, uh, without strings,um, and also like, because on on
the soft titles I worked withsome other people, the orchestra
with David Boltrock, as Imentioned, with this album you
only hear the five of us or thesix of us.
So I really wanted to keep itin the band.
(21:20):
No extra clarinet player orextra whatever bagpipes.
I wanted to keep it in thefamily Right Totally, or extra
whatever backpipes.
That I really, you know, Iwanted to keep it in the family.
Marble Sounds (21:31):
Right, totally.
colleyc (21:32):
Totally Love it.
And yeah, I wanted to make morelike, introduce more 80s sounds
as well.
We never did that with marblesounds, which is a bit weird,
maybe you know I started, as Itold you, as a spin back Sparkle
Horse, totally.
It's not really Phil Collins.
You know, I started, as I toldyou, as spin back part sparkly
horse, totally it's not reallyphil collins, you know it's not.
Um so, and I love phil collins,for example.
(21:55):
So I thought let's do a bitmore phil collins, or or right,
I love jean-jacques goldman, youknow, I don't know if you know
him.
He wrote for still indian.
I'm a huge fan of jean JGoldman and he's still an
influence, right.
So that's why I also had thetitle Core Memory, because it
(22:15):
brought back my childhood.
But also I'm singing about AThousand Miles by Vanessa
Carlton.
You know that's like a song Ilove and Give or Take a Few is a
song on that album.
That's a reply to her song.
So, core Memory, it's reallyabout, you know, music from my
(22:38):
childhood and teenage years,amazing.
Marble Sounds (22:42):
And it's been out for a while now, and like
you've had a bit of distance, Iguess, from like you're so
inundated when you're gettingready for the launch and the
records coming and this and that, how have you felt?
Um, it was received, did, didit?
Did it do what you hoped itwould do to people?
colleyc (23:00):
I was, uh, for the first time I was.
I wasn't scared, but I wasreally wondering, like, will
people still be, you know, arethey going to appreciate it?
Because it's different, youknow.
Also, because the self-titledalbum really worked.
(23:22):
Yeah, it was really wellreceived.
And when you come with a poprecords after that, yeah, I
wasn't really sure.
But then I was really, you know, yeah, yeah, I was, yeah, I was
, it was.
I was really surprised in a way, you know, yeah yeah, and it
was really nice yeah, yeah.
Marble Sounds (23:44):
And what does the rest of 2025 look like for you
with Marble Sounds?
Do you have the record?
Do you have any up-and-comingperformances or new music coming
or collaborations, anythingthat you can share that 2025
will be like for Marble Sounds?
colleyc (24:03):
Well, we're going to release a few more songs from
some outtakes from Core Memory,and I can tell you that it's
going to be called More Memory.
Marble Sounds (24:16):
Nice Great.
colleyc (24:19):
So I think it's going to be like I'm working on, of
course they were written duringthe same period, right on, you
know, of course they werewritten during the same period,
right and uh, but I have to, youknow, they're gonna fine-tune,
you know, you know, make themready for the release.
Uh, that's gonna be probablyprobably later this year.
Um, and then I have, uh, some,yeah, I'm, I'm thinking about
(24:45):
the next album, but that's gonnabe maybe, like I don't know,
2028 or something, but right,that's how it goes, you know?
yeah, that's how everybody doesit.
Marble Sounds (24:54):
You know, you're always three years ahead of
that's it's a cycle, right, it'sa real cycle that happens and
um and thinking about this, youknow the new direction a little
bit.
colleyc (25:04):
So it's gonna be no, no , no, self-playing pianos.
No, uh, pop hooks, but morelike I don't know it'll be
something new, fresh yeah, yeah,yeah yeah, love it, love it,
love it.
Marble Sounds (25:20):
Well, peter, thank you so much.
This has been a real treat.
I've loved having this chatwith you.
Um, I'm really enjoying themusic.
Like, like I said at the startof this, that I came a bit late
in discovering core memory, buthas it been in my speakers a lot
these days, so I reallyappreciate that you put that out
in the world and and all thebest in 2025.
(25:41):
And I look forward to the nextcycle.
Please come back and share yournext record with us.
I will do.
Thank you, chris.
(26:13):
I am going back and forth againto reach you and I feel like I'm
another kid who's wastingprecious time.
But you probably know that I'msomeone who's really bad at
(26:34):
breaking the ice.
There's distortion in thesignals that I'm picking up
around you.
The assumption might be betterthan what's written black and
white.
If you want to go looking forlightning, you're never gonna
(26:59):
know when it strikes.
When we were hoping for ourlives to be turned around, we
didn't even know what it's allabout Wishing for a dream to be
passing by To catch it alive Inthe morning.
(27:21):
I'm going through your lettersto reply you, but I've never had
the skills to read between thelines.
Have you ever been looking forlightning and do you think it
(27:43):
never strikes twice?
When we were hoping for ourlives to be turned around, we
didn't even know what it's allabout Wishing for a dream to be
passing by To catch it alive.
There was little left to loseand a lot to gain.
(28:07):
At least we knew that.
No one remained the sameWishing for a dream to keep
passing by To catch it alive.
We'll see you next time Tocatch it alive.
Well, we were hoping for oureyes to be turned around you.
I saw your mind was reeling.
It was slightly bizarre.
I thought you were a littlegreedy and too eager to start
the moments you've been learningfrom moments when we were young
.
They confuse you at first, butmake sense later on.
(00:25):
Don't be shy to confess you'renot feeling it yet.
I know you at first, but makesounds later on.
Don't be shy to confess you'renot feeling the chaos, because I
know you will rise to anemotional high.
colleyc (00:35):
Another episode of ifitbeyourwill Podcast.
I'm reaching pretty far but hassome really cool roots that
we're going to talk about.
In Montreal, where I'm from,where I do the show from, I have
Peter van Diesel from Belgiumcoming in to talk about his
music called Marble Sounds.
Now Marble Sounds has beenaround for a long time.
It's not a beginning project,but there's been some cool
(00:59):
transformations and that's why Ireached out to Peter, because I
really appreciated his latestrecord, core Memory.
That just came out in March ofthis year.
So check it out.
March 7th it dropped Excellentrecord.
We're going to talk about alittle bit of that.
But, peter, before we getstarted, I always kind of like
digging a little bit back intoyour background, a little bit of
(01:20):
music.
What were some moments in yourcareer that really started to
solidify that you were gonna domusic, that that was something
that you really like to do
Marble Sounds (01:30):
hey, chris, um well, um well, at an early age I
started to do like um, studypiano, uh, I was like nine years
old and then, uh, it's likemusic academy, you know, as a
kid played some flutes, learnedthe guitar, but I never thought
of becoming a professionalmusician.
Actually, it's like around meand the family there were no
(01:53):
musicians at all.
So it's like I liked also, likeI liked writing songs.
You know, I wasn't like a greatpianist or a great guitar
player, I was.
I liked playing, making songs,um, and you know, if you make a
song, it's not, you know, youcan't invoke.
You can't invoice anyone if youmake a good song, you know it's
like what they're gonna do.
So I was kind of lost and youknow, I I studied law when I was
(02:19):
18, so I was not ambitious atall, but I I loved music.
I loved playing music for fun, Ithink.
Well, I did study afterstudying law.
I did audio production like oneyear, like a sort of master, in
London, which was a veryimportant moment because I
(02:39):
learned to record, I learned ProTools.
You know, it was 2000,.
2000, yeah, 2001.
Um, that was like my firstexperience with digital
recording.
So that was quite a big moment.
But I think montreal played abig part in my evolution because
(03:00):
in 2005, my wife had a grant towork abroad and we chose
Montreal.
Yay, we moved to Montreal in2005.
colleyc (03:11):
Wow, that's cool.
Marble Sounds (03:13):
And I thought I'm going to take a sabbatical and
start writing songs for my own,which became the first songs of
Marble Sounds, basically like in2005, 2006.
Of marble sounds basically likein 2005, 2006, um, but my
sabbatical uh stopped when Istarted working in a studio in
montreal, um, and the studiomade music like for, for
(03:34):
commercials and and, uh, movies.
Okay, uh, as a composer, I couldwork there.
So suddenly, like I, I arrivedin Montreal with just two
suitcases, suddenly had, likeyou know, I had a studio, you
know, to my disposal.
I could write songs, I couldrecord the first Marble Sounds
(03:54):
EP.
I made friends, you know, inthe studio and actually the
first, yeah, the first formationof Marble Sounds was with, you
know, canadian friends inMontreal and we played a few.
We played a few shows there,like in Divan Orange, right,
right, yeah, yeah, the Café desBrumes, I don't know.
(04:19):
Café des Brumes
colleyc (04:20):
yeah
Marble Sounds (04:20):
, oh yeah.
Well, I played there.
colleyc (04:25):
That's so cool.
I just saw a band there not toolong ago and great sound, great
place.
I mean, montreal has somereally great music, has a great
music scene in general.
Yeah, really cool places to umto perform as well, yeah, so,
peter, that that montrealconnection was marble sound.
Were you already writing songsunder that name?
(04:48):
Yeah, and what inspired you towant to like, bring other people
in and turn it into more of aband style rather than just your
personal project?
Marble Sounds (04:59):
Well, it started.
I recorded the first EP on myown.
I recorded the first EP on myown.
The fun thing is, when you'reabroad, you always Not always,
but you often have friendscoming over To visit you, and
one of them was a friend fromBelgium.
He was a drummer, and then Ilet him play on three songs,
(05:19):
which became the first EP.
But it was like I played, Isang everything.
I played the guitars, the bass,and then I had my friends doing
the drums, so, but then, um, Iwanted to play live.
You know.
So, like in montreal I, Ilooked for some people to play
those songs live.
(05:39):
And also like when, in, aftertwo years of montreal I, I moved
back to bel Belgium and yeah, Ilook for people there as well,
right
colleyc (05:48):
, right, and were they able to transfer your songs from
the recording to a liveperformance?
Marble Sounds (05:55):
I've talked to some artists where that
transition is.
They got to think about a lotbecause there's so much that
happens on the recording.
To reproduce that in a livesetting is is a feat.
colleyc (06:06):
Was there?
Was there, um?
Was that a tricky transitionfrom having this stuff down on
tape to actually performing itlive in front of people?
Did the sound in the, the, theidea behind the song come across
?
Marble Sounds (06:19):
Yeah, I think it's, it's, uh, it wasn't an
easy process.
Uh, uh, you know, we signed toa Belgian label and I remember
our label manager said like yeah, Marble Sounds, they're great,
but on record it was kind ofpretty harsh, Right Ouch.
But it's also yeah.
But it's, I think it's also.
(06:40):
I wasn't like a bornentertainer, you know, performer
, I really had to learn it.
You also have to, in a way, youhave to let go a little bit as
well.
You know you want to keep, ofcourse, you want to keep the
vibe of the record a bit, or youknow the vibe, or whatever that
means.
You know that you want to beMarble Sounds, you know, sure,
(07:00):
sure so, but it's, you know, ittook a few.
It took a few shows, um, andalso I had to grow a bit as a,
as a performer, um and uh, causeI, I'm, you know, my ambition
was never to sing, you know, letalone be on a stage, uh, being
(07:21):
in front of a band.
So, um, I had to learn it,learn it.
But I started to love it, youknow, like, I think, by the
second album, we played more andmore shows and now it's like, I
don't know, I love playing live.
Now, it's really easy Like yeahyeah.
It's fun.
colleyc (07:39):
Can you, peter, tell us a little bit about that process
?
How do you become a showman?
You know, like, how do you?
How do you become a showman?
You know, like, how do you?
You know like, that's what youlike.
People are all on you, yourattention's all there.
They'll listen to your music,to the words that accompany it.
I mean I, I look at that and Iget anxiety right away.
I'm like, oh my God, how am Igoing to remember the?
(08:01):
words?
What if they make a mistake?
What of all this stuff Like howdo you?
What was your process tobecoming comfortable with
performing live in front ofpeople?
Marble Sounds (08:11):
I think it's playing live.
I think doing it and alsoplaying rehearsing doesn't
really help.
You have to do it, you have tobe in front of people.
You can rehearse a song and,you know, be very good at it,
but in the end you really haveto play a lot of, make some
(08:34):
miles and play live, and I thinkthat's the only.
I think we got better when, bythe second album, we had one
song that became a hit inFlanders.
We played a lot of shows inthat season.
I think that's the only way.
(08:59):
But I'm still not a showman.
I'll never be a David Bowie,I'll do it my way of, but but uh
, at least I enjoy it.
You know, yeah, and I I know,to my surprise, there are some
other people that that you knowthat also love it.
So I don't know, I guess it'sokay now.
colleyc (09:17):
Well, you put out really great music, peter.
I mean marble sounds a greatlisten.
Um, what do you find the mostbiggest?
Your biggest inspiration wasfor Marble Sound at the
beginning stages.
What were you listening to thatwere like, hey, I think I'm
going to try doing this style.
How did you kind of build theMarble Sound sound?
Marble Sounds (09:40):
Yeah, I think the very first song I wrote was a
song called Redesign, which isvery indie pop.
I really wanted to sound like aband with two guitars and a
keyboard player and playing somelo-fi indie rock or something
Like a pavement or something.
colleyc (10:01):
Yeah, yeah, In those lines yeah, I don't know.
Marble Sounds (10:03):
Do you know Pinback, for example?
Yeah, totally Beautiful thoselines yeah, I don't know do you
know, pinback, for example, yeah, totally Beautiful band, love
them, yeah.
And you know that's like,because I'm not like, as I told
you, I'm not like a bornperformer or singer.
But then you know, I listenedto Pinback and I think like dude
, those guys they're, you knowthey're not like amazing singers
, why.
But they do, it works, but thatkind of that was like a, an
(10:26):
inspiration for me, like, like,uh, you know, I'm just gonna
double track my vocals and itsounds better than I feel my own
, you know, right, and uh, andsparkle horse, for example, you
know, this kind of lo-fi indiepop.
Um, that was my inspiration,basically, basically Nice.
colleyc (10:45):
And was it hard for you ?
Is it a hard writing songs?
Is that a hard process for you?
Have you found tricks andtechniques throughout the years
where writing songs becomeseasier or more natural for you?
Marble Sounds (11:05):
I think, in the whole scheme of of music, things
like like playing music,performing, playing guitar,
piano, I think, um, I think I'mthe best at writing songs.
I think that's the most, themost um comes, comes out the
easiest for me.
You know, like, um, I'm notreally talking about music, not
(11:26):
lyrics, because the lyricsthat's another skill, that's
another how do you say it?
Craft.
Yep, you play music and youwrite lyrics.
You know it's kind of music isplaying for me and I think, yeah
, yeah, songs, and they still.
You know I still have ideas forthe next album.
(11:46):
So it's, yeah, I'm not yeah, howdoes your song start, peter?
Like how, like you said, youalways start with the music
before the lyrics come into play.
When does when does a song cometo you that you're like, where
you feel there's something,there's some magic, or there's
something to it that you want tokeep going with it.
Like what, what is that feelingfor you when a song starts to
(12:08):
blossom in front of your eyes?
colleyc (12:10):
yeah, that's um, that's , that's the feeling you're
looking for.
That's like the best feeling inthe world.
You know, that's why I thinkmost songwriters keep on writing
, just to have that one spark.
You know that's the bestmoments when, once you have that
, the annoying parts part startsand then you polish and fine
fine tune and um, but you knowthe spark it's, it's, it's like,
(12:30):
it's like a drug.
You know it doesn't happenoften, you know it doesn't
happen every day.
So that's why it's so valuable.
You know, like, like thatmoment when you yeah, it's
nothing more than and nothingless than than you have a small
ID.
Sometimes it can be like, butsometimes it's like a backing
vocal in a chorus.
You know you can have a lamechorus and add a higher backing
(12:55):
vocal on top of it or have astring line, because you know
there's like a sort of myth thatsays, like a song is good if
you can play it on guitar, right, but I don't believe in that.
Sometimes, you know, it's likea backing vocal or a string that
makes a song brilliant and youknow, that little that can give
(13:15):
it a spark and that's a nicefeeling, of course
Marble Sounds (13:17):
totally and like from the self title to the one
that you just put out, coreMemory.
It feels like it feelsdifferent in texture and style,
style and I mean, obviously it'ssound, but there's a transition
that's going on.
Was the self-titled um createdwith other musicians and core
(13:41):
memory was more of you like.
Could you kind of like describethe differences between?
And?
The self-titled came out in2022, people october 2022, so
it's only three years removedfrom one another, but can you
talk about the differencesbetween the process, how you
came to the songs that that thatthere's a difference between
those two records?
colleyc (14:02):
yeah sure, um, I think it's funny.
You know it was the other wayaround.
Like the, the soft title wasmore me, okay, and then the last
one, the more electronic one,was more the band.
So I think that the soft titleswas I think it's still my
(14:23):
favorite right.
It's gonna be always be my mostpersonal and it's gonna have a
special place for me.
I know if you do a promotionyou always have to tell
journalists that your last albumis the best, but I can tell you
the self-titled one for me.
I don't think I can do betterthan that one.
(14:44):
I'm not saying it's a greatalbum, but I don't think I can
do much better.
I don't know, it doesn't reallymatter, but it's still.
Marble Sounds (14:53):
Can I ask you, Peter, just on that, what is it
with the self-titled thatconnects so readily to you?
Why is it?
How does it make you feeldifferent than all the other
stuff?
What was it about that song,that that record, that that
connected you so closely to it?
colleyc (15:13):
I think because I don't know, and that's that's kind of
um, I don't know why itconnects and that's you know.
I connect also with I mean I, I, you know, I mean I'm proud of
every album.
But if I connect with an albumI can say yeah, because I like
that chorus is catchy or that Ilove that song and whatever.
(15:35):
But with the Soft Idols albumit's more like, yeah, I don't
know, it's really an album.
The album is more than the sumof the songs.
You know what I mean.
Marble Sounds (15:50):
It's like it's a whole concept album.
colleyc (15:53):
Yeah, it's a concept more like the individual songs
yeah, yeah and also it was funmaking it.
It was with the subtitle thatwas really isolating a little
bit.
Like my bandmates didn't hearmuch of the album.
Okay, like there are no guitarson it, no bass guitar.
That was kind of my with thatalbum.
(16:17):
I really tried to limit myself.
You know, like with I reallywanted to stick to the piano,
yeah.
Marble Sounds (16:26):
On your band camp page it's three pianos on stage
A grand piano, self-playinggrand piano, a self-playing
upright piano, and then youcontrolling or nipping through a
laptop.
colleyc (16:36):
Yeah, amazing, wow yeah yeah, I had like, and also I
only had 10 demos and it's likethe 10 demos, for you know I
didn't have more songs.
It was really it had to bethose 10 songs and I wasn't like
.
Sometimes you'd think, like youhave I don't know 13, 14 songs
and you're wondering what'sgonna be the album.
But with that album I knew,like you know that's, that's the
(16:59):
10 demos I have now and youknow that's gonna be the album.
And also the working processwas really nice the, the idea of
using USB driven pianos youknow playing pianos was an idea
of David Paltrock and he's apianist in Belgium.
And because I had all the demos, you know, with programmed
(17:23):
pianos.
But you know just plugins, youknow like, like and it sounded
good.
You know plugins, you know like, like and it sounded good.
You know plugins, these days,they sound, they sound amazing.
Yeah, yeah, he told me like.
Yeah, you have to.
Um, you know we're gonna askyamaha for for some pianos and
oh, we got them for for free,nice, nice but I was thinking
like you know that's a lot ofeffort.
(17:44):
You to have real pianos insteadof plugins and they sound nice.
But we had a blast five days.
We were manipulating the pianosand it made the album 5% better
, but it was an important 5% or10%.
And just the experience ofdoing it was fun.
Marble Sounds (18:05):
Peter, I have another question.
I just find it so fascinatingthat when you were creating that
record and we're going to getto the new record, but I find
this record so fascinating howdid you do you set a melody with
one piano and then the othertwo are just adding flourishes
here and there, or are theytotally intermingled that
(18:28):
somebody that wouldn't be awareof would just think it's all
like?
One, yeah, yeah is that theobjective when you're trying to
do something like this?
colleyc (18:37):
it was more like intermingling, uh, I didn't know
the word, but I just repeat itbecause it's.
I mean, it's like yeah, it'slike um, it's uh, sometimes it's
just, you know, we separate theleft hand from the right hand.
You know, I had like a pianopart and I played it like um,
yeah, with two hands, yeah, butthen we, you know, then we could
send, you know, the left handto what?
(18:57):
To the, the grand piano, andthe right hand to the wow, wow
that is cool yeah to the otherpiano, right, and manipulate
them differently, then you'vegot more spacious effects.
So it's kind of it's.
And then we put it's like, yeah, we did it that way in the song
Axolotl.
And then we put you know,punazis, you know this when you
(19:19):
hang posters on the wall, right,right, right.
And we put those in the hammersof the piano and then it gives
a metallic vibe.
Oh, wow so you in the hammersof the piano, and then it gives
a metallic, metallic vibe, oh soyou can.
That's amazing as a listener.
You know, as a tool it's maybelike five percent difference for
for the listener, right, butit's, it makes a unique sound.
You know it's, it's like, youknow it's, it's um, but it's the
(19:43):
sound not of a plugin, but you,but of those pianos on that
moment, on that stage, withthose microphones, it was magic.
Marble Sounds (19:50):
Yeah, it was fun.
So there's that production,self-titled yeah.
What was your vision with thenext one?
So, core Memory, what was yourkind of plan at the start of it
when this record was you weregoing to put a record together.
It was going to come out March7th 2025?
What was your big plan for itwhen you were first kind of
(20:13):
figuring out how?
colleyc (20:13):
you're going to do it.
Um, I wanted to do somethingelse.
You know, like, like the, thesoft title was the fifth album
and before that, you know, whenyou make a first album, a second
album, it's like, I wouldn'tsay on automatic pilot, but you,
you make.
You know it's like, yeah,you've done it before.
Yeah, it's default marblesounds a bit, and then after a
while you start to look for, youknow, I want to make like every
(20:38):
album has to tell something.
I'm not saying it's going to bea concept concept album, but it
has to be musically like auniverse, more or less.
And um, after the orchestralpiano album, I really wanted to
do something, you know, withoutwhatever, not without piano, if
(20:59):
possible, uh, without strings,um, and also like, because on on
the soft titles I worked withsome other people, the orchestra
with David Boltrock, as Imentioned, with this album you
only hear the five of us or thesix of us.
So I really wanted to keep itin the band.
(21:20):
No extra clarinet player orextra whatever bagpipes.
I wanted to keep it in thefamily Right Totally, or extra
whatever backpipes.
That I really, you know, Iwanted to keep it in the family.
Marble Sounds (21:31):
Right, totally.
colleyc (21:32):
Totally Love it.
And yeah, I wanted to make morelike, introduce more 80s sounds
as well.
We never did that with marblesounds, which is a bit weird,
maybe you know I started, as Itold you, as a spin back Sparkle
Horse, totally.
It's not really Phil Collins.
You know, I started, as I toldyou, as spin back part sparkly
horse, totally it's not reallyphil collins, you know it's not.
Um so, and I love phil collins,for example.
(21:55):
So I thought let's do a bitmore phil collins, or or right,
I love jean-jacques goldman, youknow, I don't know if you know
him.
He wrote for still indian.
I'm a huge fan of jean JGoldman and he's still an
influence, right.
So that's why I also had thetitle Core Memory, because it
(22:15):
brought back my childhood.
But also I'm singing about AThousand Miles by Vanessa
Carlton.
You know that's like a song Ilove and Give or Take a Few is a
song on that album.
That's a reply to her song.
So, core Memory, it's reallyabout, you know, music from my
(22:38):
childhood and teenage years,amazing.
Marble Sounds (22:42):
And it's been out for a while now, and like
you've had a bit of distance, Iguess, from like you're so
inundated when you're gettingready for the launch and the
records coming and this and that, how have you felt?
Um, it was received, did, didit?
Did it do what you hoped itwould do to people?
colleyc (23:00):
I was, uh, for the first time I was.
I wasn't scared, but I wasreally wondering, like, will
people still be, you know, arethey going to appreciate it?
Because it's different, youknow.
Also, because the self-titledalbum really worked.
(23:22):
Yeah, it was really wellreceived.
And when you come with a poprecords after that, yeah, I
wasn't really sure.
But then I was really, you know, yeah, yeah, I was, yeah, I was
, it was.
I was really surprised in a way, you know, yeah yeah, and it
was really nice yeah, yeah.
Marble Sounds (23:44):
And what does the rest of 2025 look like for you
with Marble Sounds?
Do you have the record?
Do you have any up-and-comingperformances or new music coming
or collaborations, anythingthat you can share that 2025
will be like for Marble Sounds?
colleyc (24:03):
Well, we're going to release a few more songs from
some outtakes from Core Memory,and I can tell you that it's
going to be called More Memory.
Marble Sounds (24:16):
Nice Great.
colleyc (24:19):
So I think it's going to be like I'm working on, of
course they were written duringthe same period, right on, you
know, of course they werewritten during the same period,
right and uh, but I have to, youknow, they're gonna fine-tune,
you know, you know, make themready for the release.
Uh, that's gonna be probablyprobably later this year.
Um, and then I have, uh, some,yeah, I'm, I'm thinking about
(24:45):
the next album, but that's gonnabe maybe, like I don't know,
2028 or something, but right,that's how it goes, you know?
yeah, that's how everybody doesit.
Marble Sounds (24:54):
You know, you're always three years ahead of
that's it's a cycle, right, it'sa real cycle that happens and
um and thinking about this, youknow the new direction a little
bit.
colleyc (25:04):
So it's gonna be no, no , no, self-playing pianos.
No, uh, pop hooks, but morelike I don't know it'll be
something new, fresh yeah, yeah,yeah yeah, love it, love it,
love it.
Marble Sounds (25:20):
Well, peter, thank you so much.
This has been a real treat.
I've loved having this chatwith you.
Um, I'm really enjoying themusic.
Like, like I said at the startof this, that I came a bit late
in discovering core memory, buthas it been in my speakers a lot
these days, so I reallyappreciate that you put that out
in the world and and all thebest in 2025.
(25:41):
And I look forward to the nextcycle.
Please come back and share yournext record with us.
I will do.
Thank you, chris.
(26:13):
I am going back and forth againto reach you and I feel like I'm
another kid who's wastingprecious time.
But you probably know that I'msomeone who's really bad at
(26:34):
breaking the ice.
There's distortion in thesignals that I'm picking up
around you.
The assumption might be betterthan what's written black and
white.
If you want to go looking forlightning, you're never gonna
(26:59):
know when it strikes.
When we were hoping for ourlives to be turned around, we
didn't even know what it's allabout Wishing for a dream to be
passing by To catch it alive Inthe morning.
(27:21):
I'm going through your lettersto reply you, but I've never had
the skills to read between thelines.
Have you ever been looking forlightning and do you think it
(27:43):
never strikes twice?
When we were hoping for ourlives to be turned around, we
didn't even know what it's allabout Wishing for a dream to be
passing by To catch it alive.
There was little left to loseand a lot to gain.
(28:07):
At least we knew that.
No one remained the sameWishing for a dream to keep
passing by To catch it alive.
We'll see you next time Tocatch it alive.
Well, we were hoping for oureyes to be turned around you.
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