Ten questions with the always-interesting Benjó James about his project's latest EP.

Coyote Music: You played nearly every instrument on this EP yourself, but brought in Tyrion "Bigfoot" Jackson for some bass tracks. What did Tyrion's playing add to songs like "Dolphin Girl" and "Strippernaut" that you weren't able to dial in yourself?

Flowers for Juno: More dynamic. And whilst I have creative control over the project, I like to get others involved for a fresh perspective on the music. I feel it's just boring and self-indulgent if it's just me doing literally everything.

CM: The combination of witch house, industrial rock, darkwave, and funk is pretty unusual. Was there a particular artist, album, or scene that gave you inspo specfically as you created The Rite of Spring?

FFJ: Not particularly; I would write songs in my head and when I got them down it's like okay...this sounds like Skinny Puppy, this is a bit like Crim3s, I can hear the Glass Teeth influence here...this is clearly NIN inspired...this draws from Massive Attack. The funk element is my wanting to insert some groove into what is typically quite a static genre, at least rhythmically.

CM: Several tracks use provocative humor and...sort of "character voices." How much of this EP is satire or humor, versus how much it reflects real observations from your own life and surroundings?

FFJ: I think the most shocking thing about the opening track "Buckcherry Wrote a Song About Girls Like You" is the fact that it's directly based off real experiences I've had. "I go to strip clubs but just for the music" plays into the darker side of male fantasy. There's a healthy dose of humour and satire throughout, but it's all based on where I was at the time of writing them. "Crack Den Blues" has been my lifestyle for a while now.

CM: "Buckcherry Wrote a Song About Girls Like You" directly references the well-known rock hit. What inspired that title, and were you intentionally commenting on the way sexuality has traditionally been portrayed in hard rock music?

FFJ: I had a rather brief yet incredibly intense 'relationship', so to speak, with a rather unhinged young female and then I was like yeah, okay, that's what Josh Todd was on about. If anything, I think sexuality has been depicted too politely in a genre that claims to be pushing the boundaries, and I wanted to be brutally honest, however shocking.

CM: You recorded, mixed, mastered, and produced the EP at "The Crack Den." What's the story there--and how did The Crack Den shape the sound of the record?

FFJ: It's my home studio. My place is a tip and I don't even have a proper bed. It's the rock n' roll cliche of empty whiskey bottles and underwear women have discarded...but without the romance. It's complete squalor.

CM: "Crack Den Blues" feels more grounded and autobiographical than some of the other songs, especially with details like Novocastrian streets, Marduk shirts, cheap coffee, and sleepless nights. Were you trying to document a specific time and place in your life?

FFJ: That is my life half the time. And again, there's no glamour in it; it's profoundly unhealthy.

CM: The lyrics on "I Go to Strip Clubs but Just for the Music" are intentionally repetitive and blunt. What role does repetition play in your songwriting, and were you drawing inspiration from industrial, electronic, or hip-hop traditions when constructing that track?

FFJ: I don't like to agonise over lyrics so I tend to write them quickly and leave them as they are, hence the repitition. I wasn't intentionally drawing from any tradition, but I don't limit myself to any either. It materialised as witch house track, which is a genre that mixes industrial, electronic, and hip-hip anyway, albeit unintentionally.

CM: The EP closes with "louisekeeble.jpg / Scratch My Itch (intro)," which samples "G.W.B" by Playboi $alad. How did you discover that track, and what made it the right sample to bring The Rite of Spring to a close? What the process of clearing that track easy, difficult (or, did you get it cleared?)

FFJ: I have a knack for finding incredibly obscure samples. I ran the Playboi $alad track through some turntables and warped the heck out of it. As I was scratching it I heard the lyrics "come on now yeah scratch my itch" and thought it was too coincidental, hence the title. It works as an intro, but I thought it would be too jarring to open the release with, so I put it at the end of the EP.

CM: "Strippernaut" is the only instrumental on the release. What story or mood were you trying to convey without words, and did Tyrion's bass performance influence the direction of the arrangement?

FFJ: I had this funky riff lying around that sounded like the stoner metal band Sleep trying to do Stevie Wonder, so I whipped out the clavichord and jammed it out with Bigfoot. It sounds loose because it's literally jamming out on the first take.

CM: The title The Rite of Spring immediately evokes transformation, chaos, and kind of "sacrilege," especially for listeners familiar with the famous ballet. Why was that title the best representation of these six songs as a complete body of work?

FFJ: I just really liked the sound of it, and had the title before any of the music. It's my favourite piece of classical music, and I love the ballet and the story of the rioting it inspired when it was originally performed. Personally I see it as a cathartic process...it took being completely candid about my lifestyle in my lyrics to think about getting clean.