Multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Rui Pedro started in the industry as a percussionist expressing his love for music as part of cover bands at 22. Through the trials and tribulations that a cancer diagnosis would bring him, his time in chemotherapy and radiology brought him to the self-education of songwriting.
Rui Pedro grasped onto the power of growth as a musician, and all of a sudden was invited to present his solo project live in his hometown of Caldas da Rainha, where Mute Sounds were born, in 2018. The five-piece band is inserted in the Post-Alternative Rock Genre as they offer listeners a lifetime story through pure sounds.
As we eagerly amp ourselves up for the mesmerizing tunes off of Mute Sounds' album, 'Roads,' we know to expect an intensified fusion that will bring us to pure mental bliss with "Remembering The Old Days." Commencing with an energy that has us transitioning through moods almost immediately, Mute Sounds kicks this record off with an immersive experience that sits colossal in the percussion department.
Bringing the sporadic amalgamation of the bright cymbal crashes with the precise snare hits, there's a lively vigor that takes over your speakers with the way this record progresses. Chugging guitar riffs and an electric tempo that surges through the sound waves tends to be the recipe for success brought by Mute Sounds.
Pushing the envelope of Rock through a purely instrumental concept is an area of expertise that Mute Sounds does rather well. It's refreshing to hear how a significant amount of energy is conveyed through a lack of words, but at the same time, it opens your imagination to what lives beneath the surface within your mind.
Lifting our souls with the shredded essence that propels us even further to breakthrough moments of our own, Mute Sounds manages to whisk us into the whirlwind that is an impeccable balance of chaos and flourishing growth.
Congratulations on the release of "Remembering The Old Days." We love the breath of fresh air that's sonically inhaled when listening to this record. Could you please take us into the song's meaning?
Thank you so much, BuzzMusic, for this fantastic opportunity of being interviewed by you guys. It's a pleasure. This song is co-written with my wife, who is also a musician. Every musician has their musical influences, and this song reflects that perfectly…that late 90'salternative rock vibe with all that strong attitude. I think it's the kind of song which reflects our a lot our type of sound.
Without any words performed in this song, what do you hope that the listener can resonate with in terms of the emotions it makes them feel?
All of my songs were and still are written based on my feelings at the time of the writing, and one of my goals as an instrumental band is to tell a story in chords, so everyone who listens to it can have their own story in their heads while listening to my songs. If I had to guess what kind of feeling people have while listening to this song, I would go with "Rebellion."
What musical and non-musical influences do you allow to inspire the creations you make? How does this play into your role as the sole creator of Mute Sounds?
Pretty much every single thing can work as an inspiration to me. Of course, I do listen to a lot of music and many different genres, and that's the main part of my creations. However, sometimes a book reading can work as an inspiration or even an easy-going jam session with friends, and suddenly, a song comes out without thinking… I'm going to tell you a funny story. I was doing this interview for a local TV Channel, and they were doing some footage for content, and they asked me to pretend that I was writing a song…guess what!? I was missing a piece to finish our album "Roads," and I ended up writing the song on the spot. Sometimes inspiration comes in awkward situations, haha.
What has been the best piece of advice that you've learned through your artistic journey this far?
I've been playing for quite a while, through different music styles, different concepts, with other people, and this fantastic drummer, Vitor Copa, who I worked with back in Portugal, always said: "less is more." Those words are always present in all of my creations. You can do an incredible masterpiece song with tons of chords and tempo changes, but at the end of the day, if it's too complicated to listen, no one will hear it, and no musician/band wants that. So, yeah, "less is more."
What's next for Mute Sounds?
Our third album, that's next! We will get back to recordings next month, and hopefully, in the first trimester of 2022, the album will be available in stores. We already have a name for it, and we are very excited about the release. There's lots of diversity in it.
