16 Horsepower has now parted company with their guitarist. Steven Taylor was a quiet opposite pole, just like drummer Jean-Yves Tola, vis-à-vis the effervescent feelings of David Eugene Edwards and the wild bass-player Pascal Humbert. At present the grandchild of a Quaker (sic) preacher is alone with two Frenchmen. That surely is the reason why the trio's current record sounds European. In some places it sounds Eastern European or French. Like in the closing song. For which David E. Edwards even engages the French language. Unfortunately the master himself was too occupied, so that a partly surprised Jean-Yves Tola met with questions, to which he simply did not have anything to say.

I: Steven Taylor has left the band and the new album has turned out much quieter than "Secret South". Is there some connection between Taylor's exit and the general tranquil sound of "Folklore"?
JYT: Not really. We wanted a gentler, softer album. We concentrated on space, stillness and naked music without too many arrangements.

I: Yet the previous year was everything but still: 2001 was very trying for 16 Horsepower. You did a lot of concerts, recorded "Secret South" naturally. Then there was a break and now it is full steam ahead again. What is your motivation for this?
JYT: We needed the 16 Horsepower break for several different reasons. It wasn't tantamount to all bandmembers making a pause. Music is our passion and our profession, so we had to continue working. We had a six-month-break from/for the band, but carried on writing and working back home. We simply had to stop touring and being away.

I: In an interview with Andrew Murphy from Skycraper (sic) magazine, David E. Edwards answered the question why your music is more successful here in Europe. He mentioned the European folk inheritance. But are there also not other grounds? Isn't it a fact that the competition for American bands in the US is bigger then in Europe?
JYT: The competition is harder and the music business is much more dollar-oriented and not as open as in Europe. People have fewer choices what they hear, and more difficulties finding non-mainstream music.

I: I saw you last year in Heidelberg during the "Secret South"-tour. I vividly remember the two microphones. David E. pushed them back and forth with his mouth. Does he want to express anything in particular that way (hindrance, apprehension, mourning...)?
JYT: No, that's purely technical. Each microphone has its own sound. One is clear, the other more damp and dirtier.

I: After many concerts and the six-month-break you were back in the studio again. What do you like better, performing or working on the songs in the studio?
JYT: Those are two incomparable worlds. I think we like both.

I: The soccer world cup has just ended. The US boys did well. Are you interested in soccer or is that an European folly?
JYT: Hey, some of us are Europeans and are more interested than others. But anyway, the achievement of the US team was remarkable.

I: 16 Horsepower deal a lot in old-worldly stories and looking back. If it were yours for the picking, which historical person would you like to be?
JYT: I have no idea, I don't even think about matters like that.