Io Echo

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LA based Leopold Ross and Ioanna Gika, better known as Io Echo, are gearing up to release their highly-anticipated debut record. By day, Leo plays bass for The Big Pink, but by night, he and kimono fanatic Ioanna are weaving neo-oriental ‘goth-grunge’, a potent concoction comprising macabre shadows, grinding synths and gossamer vocals.

They’re ushering in a mystical new style, splicing the Far East and the nostalgic West, to create something exotic; something that is being heralded as the dawn of a new genre in itself. Maybe they aren’t reinventing the wheel, but they’re definitely redesigning it – it’s fantastically exciting music. They’ve wowed crowds supporting major acts like Nine Inch Nails, Florence + The Machine and Hot Chip with their early ’90s industrial influences and sublime visual aesthetic, all without releasing a proper album. Now, with the debut looming, this twosome are on track for a bumper year.

Tell us a bit about Io Echo. How did the band first start, and who takes care of what with regards to the music?

Leopold: We were introduced by a friend. We bonded over a mutual love for the Velvet Underground, in particular the song ‘Venus in Furs’. I was named after Leopold Von Sacher Masoch, who wrote the book on which the song is based. Both Ioanna and I write the songs. Ioanna sings, plays guitar, piano, and Koto Harp. I play guitar, bass, and do programming. Live I play guitar, she sings, and our friends hop on bass, drums, and keyboards.

Where does the name come from?

Leo: Io is short for Ioanna, and Echo we chose for its sonic compatibility.

You’re based in LA, how would you say that setting has affected the group and the music that you make?

Ioanna: We recorded our album in Laurel Canyon, which as an area has a rich musical history. Every evening while we worked, the fog would roll in over the hill and completely envelope the studio. That definitely contributed to the mood.

How do you think things would be different if you were from somewhere else?

Io: I’m from the east coast in the US and Leopold is from London, but we live in LA. We write from personal experiences and if we were in a different landscape it could give it a different texture.

How would you sum up the last 12 months for Io Echo?

Io: Super exciting! We curated a music festival for the Museum of Contemporary Art, recorded our first full length album, and contributed music to some great films.

What are you looking forward to for 2013?

Leo: Releasing our album, touring in support of it, and playing our first festivals.

Leo: I thought the world was going to end in 2012, so I’m just going to focus on enjoying this extended lease on life.

Io: I didn’t think the world would physically end, but it ended for me in some personal ways so I am exploring the new space with a fresh lens.

What’s the news on your first full-length record?

Leo: It’s called Ministry of Love and its coming out later this year. We wrote and recorded it at home in LA.

Do you have any surprises in store that you can tell us about?

Leo: We have a great video for the song ‘Ministry of Love’ coming out soon. I can’t ruin the surprise but I think it will be something everybody can get their teeth into.

How would you describe an Io Echo show to someone who’s yet to see you play live?

Io: We like to examine visual details that can translate our sonic landscape as clearly as possible. It’s our chance to connect with the fans that own the music, so we want to make it an encompassing experience, one different to listening to the songs on a stereo. Lights, projections, the song we walk on to, are some of things we pay attention to for the live production.

How did your first show go? What’s your resounding memory of it?

Leo: It was a Halloween party in a warehouse in downtown LA, so I remember a lot of weird costumes, but that’s about it.
Io: I had stage fright and puked. But the show went great.

Can you try to describe your sound in three words?
Io: Future Space Forest.

What’s the plan for 2013?
Leo: We are currently on tour with Bloc Party, and we will be continuing to tour and make new videos in support of the album.

Io Echo will release a self-titled EP through Luv Luv Luv on 25 February.