If things continue, as they are one day soon she could well be the pride of New York, a tree from which many seeds have grown. Yet not too many sound as good as Nell Bryden.

One of the things that struck me when I first heard you was what a wonderful stylist and immediately thought, now there is someone I would like to talk to.

“Oh, it is great for you to say that. It is unusual when people seek you out. It tends to always happen the other way and is nice and refreshing.”

I understand before you became a performer you spent some time hiking around Australia?

“Yes, I did. It was there that I figured out that I wanted to write my own songs. That is why Australia is dear to my heart. I was right at that age where you know you are going to do something with your life, but there are too many people who know you. Like when you are in school the kids think they know who you are, but can be completely wrong. I wanted to go as far as I could from high school and that was Australia. I was by myself and did not have any itinery or anything, and started writing these little a cappella lyrically snippets. Singing them for people, and people were so encouraging that I bought myself a guitar as I figured out what I was going to do. I was always into music, I played cello for a long time when I was a kid, and my mom was singer. I knew I going to be music related but it was different to be a singer-songwriter.”

Mothlite's fantastic debut album 'The Flax of Reverie' is out now. The band recently played shows with Earth at The Scala and with Magik Markers and Howlin Rain at Corsica Studios. Robert Sanders talks to Mothlite's Daniel O'Sullivan...

Who are you and what do you do?

Daniel O’Sullivan. Mothlite is one of the things I do.

From what I’ve read Daniel composes and Antti produces. Is this how it worked? Was it a separate process or more of collaboration? How important is the studio to what you do, other than in a recording capacity?

It’s not quite as clear-cut as that. But it is generally how it works out. However we both impinge on each other’s territory quite frequently with little risk of being shot down. The “studio” is a tricky term for us, as it implies a specific place. We use a lot of field recordings and have worked with everything from 2” tape in high end London studios to Mbox and laptops in low-end London living rooms. Copycat, Space Echo, Analogue synths and various other antiquities are where our clouds live.

I hear (wrongly?) Arvo Part in your music, actually in lots of music these days, and you’ve namedropped Giacinto Scelsi elsewhere. Is classical music an influence? Or just a favoured listen? Or just an attempt to disguise your Motley Crue lifestyle? With shepherds pie instead of taco’s.

Part and Scelsi are in there for sure. In fact, Antti’s mother is kind of a mystic, so he grew up with Tabula Rasa swimming around his house quite frequently. It’s difficult for favoured listens to avoid being influences on some level.

Instead of asking the generics - influences, what are you listening to etc - I’ll go for some huge, probably unanswerable, question. What interests you in music? What draws you to an artist or band?

A love supreme.

The record sounds pretty layered and complex. How do you go about playing the songs live? Has it gone well so far? Do you prefer live to studio?

There’s a good number of us on stage and a few other versions of us hiding in our nightingale box. They are compositions after all and can be performed as such, even if they sound different. Mothlite has a lot of mercury in it.

Fairy wings and crop tops. Never say never, but I can’t see it happening, we’ll face our public adorned in our public wears.

There seems to be something English about the album - themes, look (I’m thinking of the Pete & Dud style photo), influences. Was this deliberate?

No. But I am English.

Is Mothlite an ongoing concern or a one-off project?

Absolutely ongoing. The new album is being assembled at the moment.

You appear to work constantly and collaborate frequently. Do you ever get sick of music and feel like drooling in front of the Big Brother highlights on E4 instead?

I don’t find it hard to avoid such poisons. Big Brother is the jewel in the crown of the conquering child. If there were an extra episode of Seinfeld for every season of Big Brother the world would be a much brighter place.

I saw you described once as “Daniel O’Sullivan, shadowy iconoclast”. It sounds to me like some 40’s pulp comicbook character. Apart from being something interesting to put on your business card, does this mean anything? And how does one respond to it?

I suppose it means someone is being kind about me and I respond with thanks.

Your name is Stan Brakhage? That’s very weird. Were your parents aware of the filmmaker? My professional involvement in film has only extended as far as writing soundtracks. I’m working on one for a BBC Storyville at the moment. Professional interests in literature and fascism? Honestly, poor old Henry, Tarka will be forever hunted by the hounds of Oswald Moseley. However I could definitely recommend the biography of Albert SpeerÖ But not professionally.

Should we all hate Talk Talk for ‘inventing’ post-rock?

No, we should love them for creating at least two of the most beautiful records out there. They completely transcend any such marginal terminology.

I tend not to read these kind of things usually because neither party has anything to say. Apart from getting your name and record out there is all this extraneous rubbish a general irritant to you? Or do you have a PA who does all this stuff for you?

How post-modern of you. I think your questions have been generally well thought out. I’m not in the least bit irritated and I’m very happy to be discussing my music.

Finally, my friend Marion insists Cilla Black is known to enjoy an orange sprinkled with beef Oxo cube. Have you ever heard any equally strange rumours about yourself? And would you consider indulging in a beefy orange?

I take back the sentiments expressed in my previous answer.