Issue 83 / November 2017

SPOTLIGHT
DIALECT
“A loose constellation of musical and non-musical sounds.” Andrew PM
Hunt, the mind behind DIALECT, muses on latest release Loose Blooms.
“The dream is
to have creative
unity across
your life”
“A
sense of place has been very important to all the
music I’ve been involved in no matter where I’ve
been living, from the Outfit records to DIALECT,
I’m very influenced by my surroundings.” The
third and latest full-length release from Andrew PM Hunt under
his Dialect moniker, Loose Blooms, continues in this vein of
dealing with place and the environment: “I suppose the main
thing [this record] says about me is that I’m obsessed with rocks!
Specifically, it’s inspired by landscapes and how we as people
shape them and how they in turn shape us. It’s my attempt to
make a kind of musical monument to the power of nature and
the interconnectedness of it all.” Available on a limited edition
cassette, Loose Blooms was inspired by trips to contrasting
environments; the desert border states of the American south
and the remote Scottish Highlands.
Though Hunt was inspired by different natural extremes on
Loose Blooms, the urban environment has weaved its way into
his past release with 2015’s Gowanus Drifts inspired by his time
living in New York: “When I was living in NYC, I made a record
all about the area I lived in, which had a lot of similarities to
Liverpool actually. It was like a love letter to the neighbourhood.”
Based in Liverpool again, the city has become an ideal backdrop
for continuing his work: “Liverpool is great because it’s cheap
enough to have free time to make music and the city is small
enough to feel like a community but has enough going on not to
feel like you’re out of the loop in some backwater town.”
Though Liverpool is often referred to as a city of songwriters,
songwriting is the tip of the iceberg of what Hunt does as a
musician. “When I was doing Outfit, I would write songs in
a relatively traditional manner but with Dialect it’s a much
broader thing. It doesn’t have to be a particular shape or even
‘do anything’ necessarily.” Taking on a more holistic approach to
his work, Hunt elaborates: “There’s more of a collage approach
going on that allows me to bring together a lot of different
sounds and influences which is really satisfying.” Working with
other mediums and on other projects also helps to diversify his
creative outputs: “I work in radio too and when I’m putting a
show together or just listening to music, it all feels part of the
same project, like research or something. I also work as a session
musician which keeps me on my toes. I’m not a specialist in any
one thing, which is a blessing and a curse.”
As for the future, Hunt endeavours to “just keep on listening,
playing, refining and staying open to new ideas… The dream
is to have creative unity across your life.” With a spoken word
collaboration with MC Farhood in the pipeline, as well as further
work with the Dunes label he set up with his wife earlier this
year, it seems that vision isn’t too far off being realised.
Photography: Dan Croll
dialect-trax.bandcamp.com
Loose Blooms is out now. Bido Lito! Members can hear an
exclusive track from Dialect in this month’s digital bundle. Head
to bidolito.co.uk to find out more.
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