Ryan Lum and Suzanne Perry started imposing their own style of ethereal music back in the early nineties. Refusing to see his music getting static, Ryan has always opted for innovation, sharpening his melodies and every time enriching the mood and atmosphere of his compositions that were better and better fitting Suzanne’s lilting voice. Today, Love Spiral Downwards release a retrospective collection of rare and unreleased material on Projekt Records, the perfect occasion for Sideline to look back with Ryan on one decade of melodic sumptuousness. 

By Julie Johnson

Sideline: How was Temporal a good way to start 2000 with a collection of past to present songs with never heard songs?

LSD: It was kind of nice to step back and survey the whole history of the band before beginning the new millennium— to take stock of all the work and realize that I  really like a lot of what we’ve done. And there were some tracks I had done recently for things that didn’t pan out, so this was a great way to get them out on CD where people can hear them.

Sideline: How does Temporal illustrate growth and maturity in the band?

LSD: Temporal shows the progress of the music over time; the similarities as well as the differences. I notice the differences in my recording set up and gear, but that’s just my focus. People like to talk about the sound change for the band, but really, it’s been a gradual process. The music reflects the changes in our lives and interests over time, and this album kinda sums that up. We aren’t static people, and Love Spirals Downwards is not a static band; everything is merely temporal.

David Thompson posted a feature on Love Spirals Downwards in support of the release of Temporal on the Altar Native site. 

From the humble beginnings of Love Spirals Downwards in the late 80s, Ryan Lum has continually forged new territory with an imaginative vision and profound musicality. But none of it was deliberate. “I didn’t necessarily start out with a plan to make a band or get signed to Projekt [Records] or whatever,” says Lum, songwriter of the Los Angeles duo, which includes vocalist Suzanne Perry. “I loved music, so I learned to play it and the rest just fell into place.”

Their position among their small but mighty following may be more solidified with their latest release Temporal, an atonal wonderland of sounds and textures that introduce a new musical direction for Love Spirals Downwards, a move away from the ambient waters and toward more bass-and-drum grooves. Songs like “Misunderstood,” “Asleep,” and “Mediterrenea” are a complete change from the airy ambiance of early offerings from previous albums such as 1996’s Ever and 1998’s Flux. New tracks like “Alicia (Remix)” are indicative of Lum’s love of dance beats and ambient/ethereal electronics.”

Each album has a unique flavor to it,” Lum says. “Idylls was born of my love for 60s folk rock and Middle Eastern music; Ardor was embellished by the invent of the Shoegazer sound; Ever was my first experiment with electronica, and Flux was shaped by my discovery of drum and bass.” And new toys never hurt: “My biggest inspiration when composing music is getting new musical equipment.” Lum began with basic eight-track recording gear and a batch of songs, albeit with no lyrics. Enter Perry, Lum’s musical equal. Perry laid down lyrics to some of Lum’s compositions, and Love Spirals Downwards was born.

Love Spirals Downwards’ first live outing was in Seattle with darkwave group Faith and Disease. But ever since, the band has shied away from shows, let alone national outings.”Love Spirals is really a studio project, not a performing band,” Lum says. “With all the music being done by one person, it’s pretty hard to bring that to the stage.” Instead, Lum DJs throughout the Los Angeles area, an interest he picked up in the late 80s when he started hanging out in underground clubs with area DJs. Lum continues to spin records to this date. “I’ve always been interested in learning to DJ. It’s fun to DJ, more so than playing live.” In the rare outings of the band, Lum programs the drum grooves he writes his songs over on a Macintosh computer, taking short sound loops (“break beats”) and slicing them, sequencing them and assembling basic drum pattern, later adding drums, cymbals or other sounds. 

Lum and Perry utilized outside vocalists on some material, including Suzanne’s sister, Kristen Perry, whose sweet soprano graces “Psyche” and “Ring” on Temporal and whose voice also appears in Flux. “There were a few songs [for Flux] that Suzanne couldn’t think of vocals for, so I invited Kristen into the studio to give it a try,” Lum says. “She had some poetry written which seemed to flow right into the song structures.”

Lum feels the band’s biggest misconception is the perception that Love Spirals Downwards is a gothic band. “I really don’t know why people think [we’re gothic],” he says. “Other than the fact that we happen to be on Projekt [Records].”

Perry, who serves as the band’s lyricist, prefers to keep her lyrics a mystery, letting the listener decide for him or herself the meaning behind the music. “Suzanne’s become sort of infamous for not wanting to discuss her lyrics,” Lum said. “She likes to sing in various languages or hybrids of languages, which helps keep them secret.” Lum’s plans, on the other hand, are more open for Y2K, foreseeing a busy year with the possible release of a live album at some point and becoming more involved with the Internet and online music formats. “I honestly couldn’t say that there’s been any ‘ups and downs’ for LSD,” Lum says. “Our career has glided along at a fairly even pace, maybe picking up a little speed with Flux. But we don’t have peaks and valleys like a big commercial band. We have our fan base, and it increases a little at a time.”