Joshua A. Pfeiffer is the one-man powerhorse behind the steampunk music project Vernian Process. Combining his love of visual, timeless themes and post-punk, he has put together a collection of hauntingly lush songs that appeals to listeners on many different level . Our corpse Reporter spoke to him about Vernian Process and his informative post-punk website.

G&C: Can you give us a bit of background and history of "steampunk" and how you got into it?

JP: Well, steampunk as a literal term was coined in the mid-80's by authors like K.W. Jeter, William Gibson, and Bruce Sterling. The Difference Engine (1992) is often viewed as the first official steampunk novel, though it was pre-dated by Jeter's Morlock Night (1979), The Anubis Gate (1983) and even Michael Moorcock's Warlord of the Air (1961). Although Moorcock's work was more a direct descendant of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells who are the fathers of steampunk (or as it was called in the 19th Century: Romantic Science Fiction) than the Cyberpunk offspring of the mid-80s (which is where the term "steampunk" comes from). As far as my involvement goes, my very first memory of steampunk is of the late 60's T.V. show The Wild Wild West , which I saw in syndication as a little kid during the early 80's. When I got older the two shows that really gelled my interests was Bruce Campbell's The Adventures of Brisco County Jr., and Disney's Tale Spin (which is more of a 30's Pulp setting, but a major influence nonetheless) After I saw those shows I started writing my own steampunk themed stories. With setting ranging from the wild west, to far off European castles, and undersea facilities. In recent years, I've seen a steady rise in the interest in steampunk amongst the media, which often times results in hackneyed work such as the film adaptations of the wonderful graphic novel The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen . Van Helsing , and Will Smith's disastrous foray into the genre with The Wild Wild West . Of course some directors get it right. Such as Katsuhiro Otomo's Steamboy , and the recent Japanese film Cashern .

JP: Well, it depends on the song, but often I will lay down a basic 8-bar drum arrangement, and a simple bassline, then build it from there. As all of my music is done on computer, it's fairly easy to just throw random bits in, until it sounds right. On the more orchestral work, I will usually do a basic string melody first, and then layer on other sections after. As of late however, I have been experimenting with finding thematic melodies that I will repeat throughout a release, much the way an actual film score will have certain melodies for particular characters or scenarios that are re-introduced throughout the score. The one thing I love about doing music on a computer is the ability to do anything I want. I can have a full orchestral arrangement at the tips of my fingers. It's a wonderful feeling. I have also been recently incorporating more brass, woodwinds, and various percussion into my work. As well as a number of ethnic world instruments. It adds such an extra dimension of depth to the typical guitar/bass/drums/keys setup of most traditional bands. I have also started incorporating vocals into my original pieces, something that I've shied away from for the most part in the past. I think once I did that "Atmosphere" cover, I realized I actually had the ability to sing!

G&C: Besides working on Vernian Process, you also DJ and have a fantastic post-punk website. Describe these and other things you might be working on.

JP: Well, honestly, the first few covers I did (Joy Division, The Cure, Gary Numan) were done by finding tablatures for the songs, and arranging them myself. But on my most recent cover versions, I found actual midi transcriptions, which I then simply load into my sequencer, and just add the various instrument samples myself. It's still a lot of work, because I have to treat each and every instrument, and add effects. I also record vocals on most of them. I recently released an E.P. of cover versions entitled Catalysts . These were all songs that were catalysts for me. Songs that inspired me to work on my own music. I plan on releasing a full L.P. of covers sometime this summer as well, in addition to another E.P. of original material. Covers are so fun to do for me, because once I'm done, I go back and dissect the songs, to see how they were written. I then use that knowledge to further my own original songwriting. I also really try to be respectful to my source material when doing cover versions. I don't want to just outright copy the songs, but I also don't want to make them sound cheesy.

G&C: You've talked about plans for elaborate Vernian Process live shows. What exactly do you have planned (or would like to plan) for future shows?

JP: I'd really like first and foremost to make some videos to play onstage to accompany the music. I'd also like to incorporate interpretive, and burlesque dancers. When I actually have a budget I'd love to build some working mock ups of steam engines and giant factory gears, etc. Lighting and atmosphere will also play a major part in the live experience. I also think it will help when I have more vocal songs to sing. It keeps the audience engaged, and I'm all about theatricality!

G&C: What are your upcoming plans and projects?

Well I'd like to get an actual fully official album release in '06. So far I have five self released CD's, but none of them are on real CD (just CDr burns) and there is no distribution for them. I think it will help to have an agent at some point as well. Although that requires money (of which I have very little). I suppose my biggest plans are to start attending school and learning music theory as I feel it will really help me to put all of these random chords, and other musical elements together more cohesively. Not to mention finally getting some scoring gigs. That's my biggest hope for 2006, to finally write some scores for other people's projects!

G&C: Thanks Joshua -- from the bottom of our graves.

More on Vernian Process at: www.post-punk.com

Interview by Ron Sawyer

Photos by Pasha Smith and Tristan Crane