In Conversation With NDX

Is love worth the emotional torture? That’s the question to ask yourself as you encounter the latest Near Death Experience (NDX) release ‘Thousands’. The collection of three versions of the song – Part 1, Parts 1&2 and ‘Lost in the Mix’ –

expose the raw nerve of relationships so deep you share each others agony, ecstasy and longing to the point where it becomes too intense to bear.

‘Thousands’ opens with singer and guitarist Ian Whiteling’s plaintive acoustic strumming and the deep, brooding bass guitar of Amar Grover, ushering in the warm, rich verse vocal telling of emotional pain and sleepless nights. Drummer Josh Van Ness’ percussion raises the temperature and the groove, then his drumming kicks in, opening up the song before the chorus catches fire with deliciously funky wah wah guitar where the agony is forgotten as the craving for the sheer, dark ecstasy of all-consuming passion takes over. We spoke to NDX singer, songwriter and guitarist Ian Whiteling, here's how it went down.

1. ‘Thousands’ captures the raw emotional turbulence of love. What personal experiences or inspirations shaped the creation of this track?

Simply being in love. Not just with my partner, but with my kids and with my family. The deeper the emotional connection you have with someone, the more empathy you have and the more you feel what they are feeling. Love is a wonderful thing, but it’s also an incredible burden. You experience the most amazing highs, but also acutely feel the pain of those close to you. You worry about them, you miss them so much when they are not there, sometimes excruciatingly. That’s what ’Thousands’ is all about. 

2. With three different versions of ‘Thousands’ – Part 1, Parts 1&2, and ‘Lost in the Mix’ – how do each of these interpretations offer a unique take on the story you’re telling?

The song really evolved from my initial version played to electronic beats, which is how I write a lot of my songs. We’d gigged the song a couple of times with our live drummer Isi, but before I sent a version over to Joshua Van Ness, our studio drummer based in New York, I added the vocal layerings that you can hear towards the end of Part 1. I live in London, and Josh records entire drum parts to my songs and sends them back to me to drop into my music production software, and then I add everything else on top. 

As usual, I sent him a version with my vocal (this time including the layers), acoustic guitar and electronic beat, plus a version without the beat, which he uses as his drumming guide. Anyway, I envisaged having drumming right from the start of the track, but Josh didn’t play anything over the first verse, leaving just my acoustic guitar, he then added percussion for the second verse before bringing in the drums. I thought this worked really well. 

Then where the drop occurs towards the end of Part 1, Josh again cut out completely, so this time I dropped everything else out too, and brought the instruments and layered vocal back in to let the song build towards the finale. I also added two tracks of soft funky wah wah guitar, one a little more prominent than the other, to drive the song subtly along. Once I’d completed the mix with Amar Grover’s bass guitar and Jack Dawkin’s saxophone parts, I listened back to it and the opening vocal of Part 2 just came to me. So, I started experimenting…

Essentially, I created a remix of the instrumentation from Part 1 to make Part 2, kicking off with my vocal part, then dropping into a dubby instrumental section which again builds, this time towards the heartfelt lead guitar solo at the end of Part 2. For me, because the Part 2 vocal is positive and life affirming, it meant the song told the whole story of love, and added balance to the pain and suffering of Part 1. Part 1 was the original song, and so it made sense to make this the single, but suddenly I had a longer version as well, so it made sense to release an EP painting the whole picture. 

By the final mix, there was so much going on instrumentally in ’Thousands’. We’d created this highly emotive, slow funk groove that sounded like the sound track to a 1970s movie. So I thought an instrumental version might work, and it certainly does, becoming even more cinematic. Plus, you hear so much more of the incredible instrumentation that I laid down with the guys, hence the title ‘Lost in the Mix’. 

3. Your sound blends psychedelic rock, soul, and funk with a rich variety of instruments like Jack Dawkins' saxophone. How do you approach incorporating these diverse influences into your music?

Me and Amar are the core of NDX, and we’re both obsessed with 60s and 70s music – and everything from the psychedelic period to funk and soul. This means that there'll always be a blend of these vibes in everything we do. Luckily my voice is rich and soulful, so that adds to the sound. 

Josh has similar influences and completely gets where we’re coming from, so his drumming fits in perfectly – I mean he could have been the drummer for Curtis Mayfield, for God’s sake! He’s sooooo good! Then Jack’s just a dude! He simply drops by my loft studio and immediately gets into the groove, laying down beautiful sax parts, from his long gorgeous warm lines, that almost act like string parts, to his hook-laden motifs and cool soloing. 

So, essentially, I write the song, kick off proceedings with my basic acoustic and beats version for Josh, and then let the guys get on with it! 

4. The lyrical theme of emotional pain and sleepless nights runs through ‘Thousands.’ How do you balance these intense emotions with the groove and rhythm that drive the track?

I think the two go together perfectly. The slow funky groove in ’Thousands’ created by the rhythm section, my funky chops and Jacks jazzy sax creates a steamy backdrop to the sound. Particularly Jack’s sax parts. It creates a kind of brooding feel that rslowly builds the tension across the song. This is no light funk workout, but a slow funk groove that helps emotionally charge the track. ’Thousands’ wouldn’t have the emotional impact it does without this swampy groove. 

5. As a band known for your soulful, cinematic sound, how do you translate the emotional depth of a song like ‘Thousands’ into your live performances?

We play all our songs in various forms depending on who’s around. So, from an acoustic duo of me and Amar, to the two of us with cool electronic beats, to adding in Jack and then also the drums. But no matter what the NDX  incarnation, we always pack an emotional punch, essentially because vocally I always give it everything. The cinematic quality grows with the size of the live band, but the soul remains the same throughout. In fact, you could say the intimate duo performances in small venues are actually the most intense and powerful.