Kish Kollectiv…. Born of Italo-Celtic stock into a slowly rusting northern England in the throes of Thatcher-era de-industrialisation, the young Michele Sarto (“Mike” to those closest to him; other people just can’t pronounce the name properly) was bitten by the horror bug early. After having been “encouraged” to sit through an uncut version of Lucio Fulci’s surreal schlock masterpiece “City of the Living Dead” at the age of 6 by mischievous elder cousins, a lifelong fascination with the darker side of fiction was born. Equally haunted and excited by aftermath images of reanimated corpses, horrific “skull-crush” kills and a young woman literally vomiting out her innards, another element of that particular production was to make an indelible impression on the young Sarto; the maestro Fabio Frizzi’s masterful synthesizer-driven score.
Giving the listener an anthology of music that is a lyrical and visual journey check out his music videos on VEVO
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What made you want to become a musician?
It was developing a love of 1950s rock ‘n’ roll and rockabilly (several decades too late!) that led me to want to pick up a guitar as a child and learn to play it. So I suppose you could say the likes of Cliff Gallup, Scotty Moore, Eddie Cochran, Link Wray and Chuck Berry. I also admired the extraordinarily contemporaneous talented piano work of Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. Later, I fell in love with guitar gods like Satriani, Vai, di Meola and Holdsworth and became intrigued by the idea of fashioning my own instrumental guitar compositions.
Which instruments did you play in high school?
Guitar mostly, although I also played keys, xylophones and glockenspiels to a lesser extent and even dabbled with drums.
What accomplishments do you see yourself achieving in the next five to 10 years?
I suppose like any musical artist, I’d like to grow my audience beyond its current span. Admittedly, this is difficult in a very crowded market (the World Wide Web has been wonderful for opening up the world to DIY bands and artists, but there’s also the danger of becoming completely lost in numbers), particularly when you make music that could comfortably be described as “niche”! Specifically, I would very much like to have scored a film or documentary within the next few years.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of music?
I’m actually a frustrated author! I have written a novel sequel to the 1980s science fiction TV series “V”, which ended on a colossal cliffhanger that has never been resolved in any medium. The story picks up immediately after, beginning a new saga of the franchise which plunges the familiar main cast into an uncertain world of hidden cabals, occult forces and shifting allegiances where nothing is quite what any of the characters had assumed. Despite its 1980s setting, the story is informed by a certain post-9/11 sensitivity and a contemporary subculture rife with notions of invisible hands controlling all that unfolds on the world stage. However, until I can find a publisher to legitimise its existence, it’s just a big dollop of fan fiction.
What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
Uh, I’m terrible at “blowing my own trumpet” and I would dispute the extent to which I could describe myself as “great”…but, that said, I think my open mindedness and willingness to draw upon a wide range of influences (musical, cinematic and literary primarily) might be described as my greatest “strength”.
Do you have any weaknesses that you’re actively working to improve on?
I definitely need to practice more on my instruments between projects. Another problem I can have is wasting time waiting for inspiration, rather than firing up the equipment and getting down to the nitty gritty of doing the work; all my breakthroughs come from doing that, not staring out of the window. I always think of that wonderful quote from author Leigh Michaels, “Waiting for inspiration is like standing at the airport waiting for a train.”
What is it about music that makes you feel passionate?
I never cease to be amazed by the capacity of music – nothing more than a strategic arrangement of sounds when you think about it – to awaken extraordinarily powerful emotions. It can also act as a sort of “time capsule” in your memory; at the age of 35, you can rediscover an album you played to death at the age of 15, and suddenly you are back in that time again within moments of the first track starting; it’s like a sort of mental “time travel” back to an earlier version of yourself. You cannot place a value on something like this.Describe your favourite and least favourite part about being a musician.
I think the rewards of being a musician lie in being able to satisfy my creative muse and that unbeatable feeling when a kernel of an idea grows into a fully realised composition. My least favourite part of the whole thing is never being entirely happy with my own work to the point where sometimes I can’t listen to it I find so many faults. Thankfully I have my more lenient moments where I can temporarily forget it’s me and not only critique and assess the work but (almost!) enjoy it.
Which instrument is your favourite to play and why?
I will always be a guitarist first and foremost, I love the “visceral” quality of forcing notes and chords out of guitars, it’s such a physical instrument. I do value modern synthesisers, however, and the ludicrously wide-ranging “palette” they provide for adding aural “colour” to soundscapes.
