Guitarist Hugo Flores and singer Jessica Lehto take some time to talk about Factory Of Dreams' upcoming second album (A Strange Utopia) and a few other things.  Hamsters, bunnies and music, oh my!

By N. Lynn

USA Progressive Music: First off, I want to thank both of you for taking the time to answer some questions for USA Progressive Music and putting up with me.

Hugo Flores: Thanks, it's my pleasure, and probably Jessica's too I guess, we never know…hehe.  I’ve been following USA Prog reviews for quite some time now.

Jessica Lehto: It definitely is my pleasure, too!

USAProgMusic: So, to start off, could you introduce yourselves, tell us a bit about yourselves and Factory Of Dreams' origins?  Tell me some of your deepest darkest secrets.  Okay, you can ignore that last one, if you want.

Hugo: I'm Hugo Flores and I'm the caretaker for the Overlook Hotel, and my darkest secret and dream is to chase Jack Torrance in 'The Shining' while driving that tricycle..  OK, now back to reality, I'm the musician behind the creation of er... Project Creation and Factory of Dreams.  I'm just a nice guy that tries to convey ideas and emotions into music.  If I manage to do so or not, that is for others to judge.  But I hope so.

Project Creation has a very defined storyline spanning across three albums and it is very much prog rock and metal oriented.  I started Factory of Dreams mainly to see Jessica's pony collection and also to start something slightly different from my previous projects.

Jessica:  I’m Jessica Lehto and my deepest darkest secret is that I collect My Little Ponies, or no wait, that wasn’t a secret anymore, rahhh.  Silly Hugo telling all my stuff.  Well OK, I sing as often as I can, and have been a part of Factory of Dreams ever since Hugo was nice enough to get in touch with me over MySpace about 1½ years ago.  Well, I’ve been a member since the beginning of this project, I suppose.

USAProgMusic: You've been playing guitar since your early teens, right?  Who or what got you into guitar in the first place?  Did you take lessons or are you self taught?  On the same note, when and why did you branch out and start playing other instruments?

Hugo: Actually I started ‘scratching’ the acoustic guitar when I was like 6 years old or so, when rock music was being invaded by names such as Bryan Adams, Jon Bon Jovi and the likes.  I recall already trying to reproduce some of those songs and also doing my own melodies with the guitar.  I also listened a bit to Pink Floyd, Yes and the more classic names in progressive rock music.  But yea, I got my first electric guitar when I was 11 or 12, I guess.  It was only some years later that I began listening to great guitarists like Vai, Satriani, Petrucci, Randy Rhoads, and began to try and reproduce their riffs and solos.  Mostly I'm self-taught but I did get about a year of acoustic guitar training.  But it was pretty boring, and I believe that we have the knowledge and just need to be reminded of that, while feeling the music.

As for the other instruments, I simply adore synths.  It's a whole universe of endless possibilities, and it's the instrument that pleases me the most, even though the guitar is the one that I master mostly.  The bass guitar appeared much later, and I suffer from Steve Harris' influences.

USAProgMusic: With all that you play, what kind of musician would you consider yourself: guitarist, composer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, evil genius, etc.?

Hugo: Evil genius definitely, because I usually have burning candles around my studio, creating that dark spooky psychotic room, and dead hamsters around me to generate the power I need for the Creation of those evil evil madly pieces!  Jessica doesn't approve of that, I know, because I think she prefers rabbits instead of hamsters, so we're always fighting because of that!  Incorrigible really.  Now, to answer your question, I consider myself mostly a composer and someone that can construct a piece of music with great ease.  So, composer and songwriter definitely, that’s how I mostly see myself.  So, the serious answer is shorter than the fun one, cool.

USAProgMusic: Jessica, you've been playing keyboards since you were seven and started to sing about ten years later, adding a guitar to your arsenal more recently.  So, like I asked Hugo, what kind of background in music do you have and what kind of musician do you consider yourself, if anything specific?

Jessica: I suppose I consider myself a songwriter and a singer.  I don’t think I’m that great with the keys but maybe I could call myself a keyboardist as well.  And my guitar playing is something the world would not want to hear, I really am that bad, mainly because I don’t really practice.  Keyboards and vocals were just a bit more fun and something I’m not a total noob at.

USAProgMusic: Last year you were ill and lost some of your vocal range for a while.  I assume everything is back in order now, but have you taken any steps to make sure it doesn't happen again, either with your health or anything about how you sing?

Jessica: Everything is in order again yes, but it did take some time until I got better again.  The very frustrating thing is that I still don’t know what the matter was. I took all sorts of precautions back when it happened.  I went to see a doctor to get medicine for my acid indigestions which I’ve had for quite a long time due to stress, they helped the way they were supposed to but my throat still needed some more months to get well again.  I went to a physical therapist who guided me a bit concerning what to do with my high stress levels, since I suppose stress can show in all kind of weird ways and maybe also vocal cords can suffer.  I also went to see a doctor who specialized in throat issues.  He checked my vocal cords but found nothing wrong with them, no physical reason why my voice acted the way it did, but it felt good to check it up.  I went to a singing pedagogue who said my technique was healthy.  I would still like to get in touch with a singing pedagogue to see to it that my technique improves, cause you can always improve, even if what you are doing is not unhealthy.  I even went to see a speech therapist to find out if I was using a weird technique when speaking and in that case stop with it not to put unnecessary pressure on my voice, so I’ve taken very many steps to cover all bases I can think of, hoping this won’t happen again.  But when being a vocalist I suppose this kind of thing is bound to happen sooner or later, hopefully just once though.  I’ve heard of many vocalists having problems every now and then and then they are back to normal again, just like that.  It definitely was not a nice experience but it did teach me to be even more careful with and grateful for what I have, even if I feel I managed that pretty well before those problems occurred.

USAProgMusic: What kind of gear are you using these days and how much do you practice?

Hugo: I have all the basic gear to record every guitar I use, vocals if required and bass, plus a horde of killer samples, synths and the likes.  I use a Prestige edition of an Ibanez guitar that features piezo pickups so I can switch between my Dimarzio pickup distortion and piezo acoustics.  I also like Roland keyboards and you can hear that on several tracks.  I practice only before the recordings actually, even though I do play a lot when I’m in the mood for jamming.

USAProgMusic: Recording and/or performing is one thing, but hearing yourself can be another beast altogether for a musician.  What was it like for you hearing your finished music for the first time?  And what is it like now, if not the same kind of feeling?

Hugo: Well, I've progressed smoothly with my albums, so it's the same feeling, even though each album is a step further for me.  When I produce an album and release it, I kind of get away from it easily since I'm already composing new stuff.  And I'm constantly learning.  Floating World was good sounding, Pyther is much more mature in this particular area.

As for FoD, Poles is very well done in terms of mixes and the new one is gonna break some barriers for me.  So, I'm proud of what we do, and even more proud when I hear what Jessica does with the music.  Hearing a track without vocals, feels just OK, but it all gains a new dimension once the vocals interact with the music.  It's really mesmerizing.

Jessica: The first time I heard my own voice recorded I was terrified.  I was not familiar with voices that were a bit operatic, so I thought I sounded so odd and weird and that there was something wrong with my voice.  Seriously. 

Remember though, I was only fifteen then so I didn’t have that much sense in my little head (as if I ever gained that? Hehe). Then I heard of this band called Nightwish.  Great music, to my ears the voice was very strange, but I started listening because I fell for the music.  So my ears got more and more used to these operatic vocals and I started understanding and hearing my voice in sort of another level, and realized there was nothing wrong with me, apart from a not very well developed technique, hehe.  When I started writing my own music it gradually got quite natural for me to hear myself and by now I don’t have a problem with it, although I always hear things I want to improve, but that’s only a good thing.

Concerning Factory of Dreams it’s the same thing there, hearing things I can improve, but I’m fine with hearing my voice and I’m very glad that Hugo appreciates what I do that much.  He definitely kicks butt when it comes to writing and arranging tracks, without his lovely compositions I would not feel this inspired to do my best I suppose.

USAProgMusic: Forgive me if I ramble a bit with this one, but I want to get your thoughts on this.  Whenever I get a new CD, the first thing I do, even before listening, is to look at the artwork and go through the booklet.  I try to pay attention to what's in there, partly because I screw around with artwork, but more because of how I started making my own choices in music, thumbing through my mother's record collection and seeing if there was something beyond the cover.  The artwork and layout can complement and serve as an extension of the music and is really a part of the experience, including following along with the lyrics, and can even add to that "new album smell" (much more so with vinyl).  Unfortunately, most digital copies don't try to replicate this (and in some cases, it's hard to pull off, if not impossible), often settling for only a jpeg of the album cover - at least of the albums I've gotten from stores like iTunes or Amazon.  Of course, there are exceptions and some bands do try to include even more.  So, I guess what I'm trying to get at is - what are your thoughts about artwork and layout as part of an album?  Has their role changed in the wake of MP3s and iTunes?

Hugo: Mp3s and such don't really do it for me most of the time.  They're OK to carry with you and such, yea.  To me the role shouldn’t have changed, but it's true that kids today rely on mp3 downloads which in a way kind of treats music badly, plain and simple.  Music is treated as a file of a few megabytes not as a piece of art.  This is the problem, besides lower sales due to illegal downloads.  And then ISPs promise huge bandwidths and unlimited downloads, while at the same time, laws seem to try and protect copyrights...isn't this ambiguous. 

And speaking of downloads, today people tend to listen to a lot of music, and don't really take the time to appreciate what they’re listening to.  What I wanna say is that when you have something in your hands, the dimension is a whole lot different.  You've got the finished product that possibly took years to do. You have the sense of Whole.  That's why I place a great great importance in layouts and artwork and start thinking of that way before the actual recordings begin. You'll see that for the next album A Strange Utopia, the art is gonna be awesome.  The art complements the music.  And if well done, can capture the musician’s emotions and thoughts pretty well.

USAProgMusic: Before moving on to A Strange Utopia, I'd like to cover a bit on Project Creation and FoD's first album, if you don't mind.  You decided to start Factory Of Dreams to get a break from the complexities of Project Creation after finishing Dawn On Pyther.  Was there concern about taking your music in a new direction?  Did you think it was a risky move or were you sure it was going to work out?

Hugo: I was pretty sure it would work out and with ProgRock Records supporting, I knew it would work.  But it surely was a different step for me.  I also knew I wanted to explore another side of my music, and decided to take a break, sit for a week and just put all those simpler ideas on the synth.  11 tracks were born and I decided to make an album with those, just those tracks.  I didn't care if one track wasn’t as good as the others, Poles captures a moment, and I’d decided to go through with those initial melodies and sculpt songs from those.

My only concern was to make a very spontaneous album, simpler, and I wanted to deviate from pure prog metal but still be on that genre, because that's what I like.  I managed to repulse my urge to place more instruments here and there, and guitar solos all over.. very simple, it had to be (I sound like Yoda here).  After the album was almost recorded, I had to find someone that could understand the music while bringing new elements to it, take the music to a whole new level and have a unique vocal style.

USAProgMusic: You have collaborated with Jessica online, but how do you work with the others who have been (or will be) on your albums and how have you gone about finding them?

Hugo: I love working online.  Sometimes I also work in my studio mostly with Zara and Linx (ex-Forgotten Suns) on Project Creation, or any other vocalist that may be around and doesn't have the means to record at their own private studios.  As for the others it's a simple online collaboration that I enjoy so very much.  The positive thing is that the musicians themselves can surely bring their own ideas to the music without me interfering that much.  I try to stick with those musicians I trust, even though sometimes I do search for more great ones.  Zara and Linx, well, I knew them from their own bands over here so it was easy to find them, just like the others.  Jessica was difficult to find, because she was hidden behind that insane pony collection and also because there are very few like her.

USAProgMusic: How much material is written before you start looking for other musicians and/or begin working with them?

Hugo:  I must have a solid base to start doing that, like 50% of the compositions done so that I may, sometimes, send a few demos.  Same for lyrics.

USAProgMusic: How involved has Jessica been in the process, from the writing to the fine tuning of songs?  What about the others you've had on your albums, be they singers or musicians?

Hugo: Up to now all writing was accomplished by myself, except the vocals, for those I may determine a few guidelines but that’s it. I occasionally record a melody on synth or even with my voice to better show what I intend.  For Project Creation, Linx provides a few opinions and occasionally Zara did too on Pyther, and I welcome everyone else's opinions of course... even though they might suffer the consequences later if I disagree, kidding of course ;)  As for Factory of Dreams, Jessica is very much involved since it's a two person project/band, so Jessica provides opinions on how the process is going, about the art, music, etc.. it's really cool.

Jessica: I do feel I’m very much involved yes, Hugo is very open to my ideas and inputs and I’m free to change lyrics etc. a bit if I think it fits in better with the way I’ll do the vocals.  So it definitely feels like collaboration and not only me being a robot doing whatever Hugo tells me to do!

USAProgMusic: Poles has a distinct sound, but I do hear some of Project Creation creep into the music at times, while I can't help but be reminded of Once There was based on what I've heard (especially songs from Where Angels Grow), and it think it's something more than Jessica's voice.  Do you mind much if Factory Of Dreams gets compared to your other stuff?  Or what about other bands out there whose names get tossed around?

Hugo: Everyone gets to be compared.  It's easy to compare, and sometimes people do that immediately without really listening.  But I also hear many Project Creation elements and several of Jessica's elements, and I just love that.  It's a mark for the music.  If it's done honestly and if the reviews don't concentrate all their text on comparisons, no problem.

Jessica: I don’t have a problem with that, just like Hugo says, if reviews don’t concentrate on comparisons then it’s fine.  It’s something you just can’t avoid anyway, people like to find resemblances and compare new things to what they are already used to.

USAProgMusic: When it was all over, did Poles end up like you had initially thought it would?

Hugo: Absolutely, I can't find anything there I wanted differently.  Like I said, Poles captures a moment and it’ll always be a very unique album.  I think I’ll never be able to do something quite like it, just look to A Strange Utopia, it’s getting huge.  Maybe later I might try to come back to a simpler structure.

Jessica: Of course I keep hearing things I’d like to improve concerning my vocals… ;)  But that’s just something I always count on, in everything I do, having this will to make it better and stuff.  So yes, the album did end up like I thought it would.  Of course when I just started working with Hugo and had only heard one or two tracks I did still not know quite what to expect from the entire album, so the process was a bit different for me who got to hear the tracks one by one or two by two depending on when I recorded the vocals.  But I got an image of what the album was about pretty soon, and yes, it did really end up as expected.

USAProgMusic: Getting back to the artwork this time, but not as long-winded.  Maybe I missed it or I'm just not making the connection, but is there a reason for the Zodiac that's on the CD itself for Poles?

Hugo: One of the messages that I try to send on most of my albums is that we all have something to give to the world.  We all have our moments, we can make a difference, and the Zodiac represents that. Each sign has a special time.  On Poles, it’s the fight between Dark and Light, and it’s time for the main character to go through that voyage and travel from negative to positive.  I also mean that we may well be all connected, or I try to believe so, however we don’t know yet how; some call it God, but I prefer to believe that we are all creators and we have the power to do what we want.  Everyone can have their moments and their creations.  Also the Zodiac is very much associated with constellations and as you might have guessed, I love everything connected to space and universes and multiverses and multi dimensions layering …I’m deviating here!

USAProgMusic: For the most part, Poles seems to have been fairly well received since its release last year.  From the new album, "Weight Of The World" has managed to reach over 7,000 plays on MySpace in a month, and is now over 10,000 plays. Did you expect such a positive response to Factory Of Dreams?

Hugo: The number of plays is indeed a good indication and since the release of Poles I've noticed that people keep being interested in its music and we keep getting reviews on some magazines and e-zines, so, it’s an ongoing process.  The new track “The Weight of the World” represents to me the sound for the next album.  It's stronger, faster and conveys the sound approach for A Strange Utopia.  I’m really thrilled about this album, like I said, it’s huge.

Jessica: I have not really expected anything at all, to be honest.  I definitely thought from the very beginning that Hugo’s musicianship should not go unnoticed, but I’ve not really thought further than that so I find it very, very nice with the positive response.

USAProgMusic: How soon after Poles' release did you know that there would be another Factory Of Dreams album?  Did you guys think it was a possibility at first?

Hugo: Well, a second album had to come by. Working with Jessica has been nothing but rewarding and pleasing, so I guess that as soon as the Poles album was released I started designing new music and the process flowed naturally.

Jessica: I did not quite reflect about that, I was happy to work with Hugo for Poles and was hoping that he would be pleased enough with my job in there to want to work more with me.  I might sound like I’m not a very reflective person at all, not thinking either of how the stuff I’m working with will be received or if there will be more to come once the first steps have been made, but I just want to take things as they come when it comes to music.  Not have any high expectations, and have fun doing what I do.

USAProgMusic: Why "A Strange Utopia"?  Is there another world lurking beneath the waters under the bridge to explore?

Hugo: A Strange Utopia is a voyage through a universe called Utopia… is this in space, is it somewhere else?  Why the name ‘A Strange Utopia’, because I find myself thinking of Utopias that seem strange, even to me.  Who would think of a planet that grows its mass due to human generated pollution so that we get overweight and die?  That’s basically what we’re saying on that track.  Isn’t that fair, look at what we’re doing to Earth.  When I say 'we' I mean globally, some people do care and thanks to that it's not total chaos.  So, it's strange, but sometimes much more in touch with today's reality.  The album will visit several Worlds, some closer to us, some darker or brighter.

USAProgMusic: Aside from a couple songs, I found Poles a bit hard to get into at first.  There's a lot going on there beneath the surface and it wasn't until after several listens that the songs started to "click" and things came together.  Will A Strange Utopia have a similar "listening curve", for lack of a better term?

Hugo: The melodies on the new album seem to be easier to get into, the album might also be less dense.  However it's much more progressive, and two tracks are much longer than any song on Poles.  I like when albums don't stick immediately, it means it defies the normality and it'll last long in the listener’s ear!  The question was mostly directed to me, but I guess Jessica could also provide her views here.  Please be so kind.

Jessica: I will do my best!  I do find A Strange Utopia more direct somehow, there are definitely things going on under the surface in this album too but I feel there is somehow more variety which will help the listener out a bit.  Not that I think Poles was monotonous and repetitive, but there’s definitely an explosion of melodies – not to the extent that it gets chaotic though - at some points in this new album, and I find that utterly cool.

USAProgMusic: Poles' theme is that of a divided world, a kind of reflection on aspects of today's society.  Does A Strange Utopia continue with this idea, or did you take a different direction?

Hugo: Much different, it’s all about getting some crazy visions of Strange Worlds, Utopian worlds.  Most songs will work as unique tracks instead of a concept album.  But it’s also a concept album.  This is actually a difference from Project Creation where the storyline is very much developed deeply, on Factory of Dreams things are looser which also provides more freedom.

USAProgMusic: From what I've heard and read in your blog posts, there are some heavier moments on the album, and you also have a few more guest musicians and some other singers on the album - including Zara, who sang on Dawn On Pyther.  I have to say, the idea of Jessica and Zara together on an album makes my brain want to melt (that's a good thing, by the way), especially if they're on the same song(s).  Is it safe to say that A Strange Utopia isn't going to end up like Poles?  What can we expect?

Hugo: Ahah, that's good, don't let it melt too much or we won't have the pleasure of another interview one of these days ;)  Well, Zara will probably guest on a track, which is quite a heavy one.  There will be an interaction between Jessica and Zara there I guess, it's not done yet so.  Since the scope of the album and its length will be way longer than Poles, we decided to include a few guests here and there, and on those specific tracks Jessica will always interact with them.  Also, I had a few vocalists, namely Gaby Koss, that I promised to, and was anxious to, work with one of these days and that day wasn’t coming soon, so, the FoD album was a good excuse for that.

USAProgMusic: Any surprises in store with A Strange Utopia?  You don't have to say what they are - if there are any - because then they wouldn't be a surprise anymore.  But I'm curious, and my cat can't read, so I think she's safe.

Hugo:Your cat and mine can't read yes, plus Jessica's bunnies are also quite strange so...  A few surprises, actually maybe two surprises yes! In due time, in due time...in due... time. NO WAY! We’ll give away one of the surprises right away.  This is an exclusive thing for any interview, a première so:

From the depths of the Utopian Universe where Factory of Dreams' forthcoming album A Strange Utopia lurks, a new production is born."

First Edition Pictures, Hugo Flores, Jessica Lehto, Emil Jonsvik and Progrock Records are proud to present Factory of Dreams’ 'The Weight of The World - The Videoclip’. Directed by Emil Jonsvik, Produced by Hugo Flores.

See it in High Quality at Youtube or at http://strangeutopia.com

USAProgMusic: About how much is done at this point?  Can we expect A Strange Utopia anytime this year?