Photo by Bruce Richards
Interview: Neon Rayon shoots musical sparks into the cosmos
The band is not of this world.
Neon Rayon carves their name on the walls of cosmic pop-psychedelia. The three-piece – comprised of Bob Paulos, J Nixon, and Sean Pryor – produce a universe-busting sojourn through the heavens. Stars flicker past their widows, staging a revelation in both their music and themselves. “We do intend to inculcate the masses with our message, but they must want to accept its meaning of their own free will and accord,” writes the band over email.
Across a six-song EP, out everywhere now, the trio becomes untethered to time and space. It’s all a circle, mutating every turn of the dial. “Statecraft” and “Same Old Madness” inject otherworldly goo into the vein in the hope that it’ll disrupt everyday life and reconfigure what it means to be alive and free. Blistered fingertips and an eye for necessary destruction, Neon Rayon are not of this world, simply visitors looking to course correct planet Earth before it’s too late.
Neon Rayon’s Transmutation EP keeps electricity throbbing between the speakers and eardrums. There’s no denying or escaping their call to action. The music certainly speaks for itself, but let me hand the microphone to the band and let them weave their words together to make sense for us mere mortals.
In a press release, it states you were “dispatched” to “quietly observe,” and “they quickly realized the planet was off-balance.” What does that mean for you?
You have the capability to end world hunger, yet a small percentage horde most of the world’s resources. Your technological growth extends exponentially, yet you use it to either kill people or reduce the artistic process to prompts. We do not consider this “progress,” therefore we wish to help turn the tide of your downward spiral. With music.
What changes do you see coming from music and art?
Good ones. We are music for the people. Hopefully, we will empower them to make the right decisions for themselves in this precarious time on your planet.
What does Transmutation mean for the band?
Transmutation is a process of change that can occur materially and spiritually. We have to transmute ourselves in order to maintain physical form on this planet. We intend to have our music transmute the listener into a better form of themselves. Revelation through Transmutation.
What is your purpose in music?
Our purpose is to wake people up from the nightmare this current iteration of civilization is experiencing. Humanity could be so much more if it did not worship at the altar of materialism.
For the “MHD” music video, did you have any influential touchpoints?
It is very difficult for us or any other alien entity to be filmed by your cameras in regular Earth settings, as many of your UFO videos have proved. Filming at Otherworld in Philadelphia felt a little closer to home. Our human liaison, Biff Swenson, did a stellar job with the production of the video.
How did this trio form?
We originate from an orb of living light at the center of our base of operations, Rayon HQ. Around the orb rotates the Rayon Belts. Within these belts are eyes which a beam of light emanating from the orb can receive an individual consciousness and be sent towards its destination. We three were created in that same process and beamed to Earth, using the raw materials of your planet to assemble human bodies to encase our true form.
In two years, have you seen your music change all that much?
Yes. We have gotten louder, faster, and perhaps a bit angrier. We are, in part, a product of our surroundings. As we take in what Earth psychically has to offer at this particular time, we transmute it back into music that can be used as a revelatory tool.
Where do you see this new EP leading to next?
Exploring new sounds and synthesizers and writing more as a unit. We have a couple of new songs written and are in the process of writing more.
