Interview with Temple Solaire
I caught Temple Solaire at the Kombinat Festival in 2024 at Hafenkneipe and I enjoyed the band’s performance. Although they are influenced by one of my favourite bands: a similar style of neo-psychedelica, six members including a tambourine player and named after a cult, Temple Solaire unfortunately slipped off my radar. Having only recorded a handful of singles over the past decade, I didn’t have too much to go back to listen to.
Earlier in the year, I however had the occasion to check out their upcoming debut album, Past Due, which will be released on Taxi Gauche Records on 3rd March, and it grew on me quite quickly. I am a big fan of the arrangements and the dreamy soundscapes. Celeste is my stand-out track, with Excitation>Expectation as a close second, especially with the interplay between the guitar and the bass. There are other noticeable influences from Spacemen 3 and Rolling Stones but the Zurich-based band have forged their own sound across the eight tracks. The debut album was definitely worth the wait!
In this interview, the band leader, Giovanni Fortunato, tells me more about the band’s history, Past Due and what Temple Solaire have planned for the future (as well as other topics including their collaboration with Taxi Gauche Records and the logistics of being a six-piece band). I would like to thank him for his replies!
History
Who is in the band? On which instruments? Are/were you in other projects/bands?
Thierry Sandmeier plays guitar and synths. He’s got a solo project as well.
Ben Geiser plays drums, he used to be our bass player. In fact, he started playing bass because of Temple Solaire! He plays bass in Tal Rasha and Waverer. Waverer’s singer and songwriter, Lorenzo Contin, was previously our founding member and drummer. He steps up quite regularly when we are in need of someone and even played drums on the opening track 'Excitation>Expectation'.
Raffael Burri, founding member, plays the tambourines and maracas and is the spirit animal of us all. He briefly played organ with us, as he did with his now defunct second band ‘The Psycho Daisies’.
Vincenzo Restuccio, long time member of the band who left us some years ago, is back helping out on guitar and organ. He’s currently with The Gardener & The Tree.
I’m Giovanni Fortunato, bandleader and songwriter. You can find me chanting behind a guitar on stage.
As for a bass player - we’re open for business!
How did the project start?/Where did the idea come from?
Raffael and I met during the 10. Schuljahr (10th grade) and our friendship became essential for us and our growing. I had several bands before Temple Solaire, but they were all unambitious teenage projects that led to nowhere.
Raffael collected mopeds and didn’t really play an instrument, but after discovering the Brian Jonestown Massacre and seeing them live, it inspired us to have Raffael swing the tambourine.
Where did the band name come from?
We changed the name quite often, but the current name has several links.
There was this Swiss cult The Order of the Solar Temple (Ordre du temple solaire) which had a brutal ending, similar to the Manson Family, Heaven’s Gate, The Branch Davidians, and etc. Since we’re a Swiss band with six people, following one sound and vision, we found it fit to recycle and reuse the name of the cult. We used to call ourselves 'The Solar Temple', but got fed up with the 'The' before a band name. It sounds quite old.
The People’s Temple was our first choice as a band name, but that name is already taken by a band we love dearly. Jonestown, where the People’s Temple lived, is in the name of a band we also love dearly, ‘The Brian Jonestown Massacre’.
There’s also the Stevenson Branch Davidians, another psych band called after a cult.
There is something about Psychedelia and cults….
Which other cults do you like?
We don’t like any cults as we think they’re very dangerous and they discourage the individuum. It’s just highly fascinating how people can give themselves up, thinking they’ve found a higher purpose, only to trust some maniac speaking about some judgement day and convince (or force) them to commit suicide.
Tell us about the band's history
I’ll start after Covid-19, since the change of line-up and vision differs from the previous formation(s). I wanted to get the band back together after a period of down time thanks to mental and emotional instability, so we called everyone up. Most of the guys from the previous line-up were keen on helping out starting the band back up, but only for a short period of time. Ben was on bass, Lorenzo helped on drums for some gigs, then left, so Ben stepped up on Drums.
Raphael Schmid, for us known as Epa, previously our guitar player and co-writer on ‘Bad Weed (Will Kill Your High)’ changed for the bass but left soon after. That was very unexpected and the hardest blow for me, since he was one of my closest friends and probably the only songwriter buddy.
We got two new guitar players - Hans Kaufmann, who normally plays for himself, since he's quite committed to his job as movie director and Elia, long time friend swell and occasional photographer.
Thierry came into the picture helping us out occassionally with merchandising sales, roadie jobs, screen printing shirts and other works and after Elia's demise, he stepped up on guitars.
You’ve also released a few singles with Taxi Gauche, how did that come about?
Piet has always been a very lovely and flamboyant guy that we noticed at gigs we also went to and at some point we got in touch, as he was starting this new label and we were an emerging band that happens to be in his liking.
Our 7” single ‘Mind’s Garden / Flowing Free’ was the very first single released on Taxi Gauche Records and has the catalogue number TGR001!
Past Due
How was the writing process for the album? Were they songs that have been floating around for a while or new songs specifically for the album? How much of the songs were ready before starting?
Most the songs have been written several years ago, but rearranged since we weren't fully satisfied with them. Only a few songs remained close to the original version, like 'Excitation>Expectation'.
'Supernova' was written for the album. All the other songs were ready before recording.
Had you already tested the songs in a live environment to help in the creation?
Most songs were works in progress, where the foundations have been tried and arranged by the rhythm section and myself. We did many rehearsals as 'the recording trio' to solidify the songs and arrangements before we headed to the studio.
How did it feel to be going into the studio to work on your debut album? What were your thoughts as you began the recording process?
It was unique and for me a first! We felt confident in the beginning, since Gabriele de Mario's studio is basically a cozy rehearsal room, like ours, but with legendary recording gear.
We had a small breakdown after the first recording evening, since we didn't nail 'Starstreamer' after several takes.
The breakdown went on recording 'Ket Faker', as we felt that the drums were too busy, taking up too much space in the mix. Therapy sessions followed, haha.
Where and with whom did you record the album?
Zürich Langstrasse! At the Gasometerstrasse at M.I.R. Tape Rec. Studios. Gabriele de Mario was our beloved engineer and mentor.
The band is mainly credited as a trio for the recording (with the exception of a few guest musicians?) - how did that happen? Did it make the recording easier to do?
We wanted the record to feel both live and tight, but also rich in details - hence why we recorded the foundation of the songs with one guitar, one bass and the drums. Only 'Celeste' was recorded with two guitars right from the start.
Gabri jumped in there on the second guitar and gave the song some flair.
On most songs I handled the overdubs, since I had the urge to have them put down as intended when I wrote the songs.
What are your memories of the recording sessions?
It was an eye-opening, transitional phase for the band. We started to restructure ourselves as musicians and put down something memorable that will outlive all of us.
It certainly is a weird and unique feeling. I like to think that's how it feels to have a child.
Where did the album's name come from?
It's been long overdue. Some songs have their roots in 2015, 2017, 2019 and it was about time. 'Past Due' is NYC street slang from the 70s for heroin, which I heard somewhere and it just sounded right.
The music on 'Past Due' shall trigger a dark, yet mesmerizing effect, where one wanders in a surreal, yet dangerous and anxious world - which is how I imagine heroin addiction to be.
It was recurring work for us, revisiting these songs over several years, which felt like a draining addiction, too.
How does it feel to release Past Due? And on vinyl?
A dream come true. The artwork itself pleases us a lot and we're happy to see how everybody will feel about it. However, we're working on new stuff and can't wait to release that as well!
What's it like working with Taxi Gauche again with the record?
We've known Piet for quite a long time and we like him dearly. He's been very busy with private stuff, so there wasn't much work done together.
He ordered the records for us at the record plant.
(Photo copyright: Quim Vilar)
Future/live/general
What do you have planned to celebrate the release of Past Due?
We're doing a record release show at Photobastei in Zürich on 10th April. We are also currently planning two tours - one in May/June and one in September.
What else can we expect in the near future?
We're already working on new singles and trying to spur everything up a bit. We're also thinking of doing a music video sometime in the near future.
How was your first tour in 2025? What are your memories of it?
It was another dream come true. To be able to play one's music to people you've never seen nor met and see them enjoying a good time is true love.
We made great friends, saw great bands and had a great time sweating it all off on stage.
How would you describe a Temple Solaire live show?
It's an experience, for sure. You just have to let it all go and to let the music and the moment take you. We like to imagine it as an emotional rollercoaster, as that's what we're experience when we perform.
How does it work out logistically with six people in the band?
We have an evening per week, usually Thursday, that's fixed for band rehearsals. Otherwise we use a WhatsApp chat for replying quickly, for example when there's a booker asking us for a gig, or whatever.
Luckily everyone is quite involved, so there's not much of a hassle there.
What have your highlights been so far?
Recording the album and going on tour definitely. Questioning our work and our place in the scene also brought us a step further, I suppose.
(Photo copyright: Quim Vilar)
Anything else you would like to add?
To support a band, an artist, someone starting out doesn't cost anything. Anything helps and it means more to the artist than one can imagine.
Also people, be aware that AI is the worst enemy to any creative worker!
Links:
Related articles:
Taxi Gauche
Zurich
Neo-psychedelica, shoegaze, dream pop