Şebnem Altunkaya is a Turkish PhD researcher with The Amplification Project at The University of Huddersfield (UK), funded by the Leverhulme Trust. Her work on Anatolian Psychedelic Rock explores the politics of amplification and the global revival of microtonal and psychedelic folk traditions — tracing how sound technologies and tuning systems become sites of resistance, belonging, and cultural memory.

Stu Mackenzie is the lead singer, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist for the innovative, genre-bending Australian band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. With a 2025 tour that spanned orchestral symphonies, rock n roll and rave, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard continue to defy and define what a modern rock band can be.

On microtonal exploration
SA: Your microtonal work seems to emerge from a curiosity about musical systems beyond the tempered Western scale. What were the most memorable moments, records, or encounters that first drew you into these tuning worlds and influenced you as a musician?

SM: Yes, I would say I’m a fairly curious guy ha ha. And why would you temper something when it comes to art…? Give it to me raw and wriggling!

The bağlama and microtonal guitars
SA: In one of your interviews, you’ve mentioned experimenting with the saz to access microtonal spaces on electric guitar. How did this engagement influence your compositional or textural choices? How did it shift the way you think about melody, harmony, or rhythm?

SM: The saz fully blew my mind when I first played it. I guess it was the first microtonal music  I had played (purposefully). It forced me to think about sound and harmony in a new way. A more fundamental way. I’ve come full circle and now appreciate what equal temperaments can do for us, but to open up that world felt like discovering a new palette of colours. Inspiring stuff.

Amplification as political force
SA: Amplification can shape how people experience sound collectively, creating spaces where social or political dynamics are felt as much as heard. How do you see amplification operating as a political or social force in your work — in performance, community, or sonic experimentation?

SM: I’m not sure I’ve ever thought of amplification as political, but I know that it works literally and metaphorically to make our voices louder. I know rock concerts can be a space for folks to exist in a parallel universe where what really matters is connection and love. That feels powerful and is a responsibility I take pretty seriously.

“Why would you temper something when it comes to art?”

STu Mackenzie

Amplification as creative force
SA: Beyond politics, I often think of amplification as world-building — shaping space, emotion, and shared experience. How do you approach it as part of your creative philosophy? Does it carry ritualistic or ecological significance?

SM: I think I’ve been doing this crazy shit for so long I don’t think of it like that too often. I tend to just “do” it, you know? I try hard to be honest, open-hearted and generous and hope that the rest follows from there. In saying that, its pretty exciting to see a stage come together and in that sense it certainly feels like world-building. Like I was saying earlier – parallel universes…

Identity and belonging
SA: Your shows often feel like temporary communities — chaotic but safe, transcendent yet grounded. How do you think about identity and belonging within these spaces, both for the band and your audience? Is creating that collective intensity intentional?

SM: Thank you! Creating a safe and inclusive space for folks to get freaky in is really important to me and the other gizzards and sometimes hard to pull off. We try really hard! Mostly I think it’s about validating and uplifting those folks who exist outside the sphere of “normal”. If you can make your space feel like home for minorities, women, LGBTQI+, folks with disabilities, first nations and more then the others people (like me!) should also feel at home. And I guess if cis white men don’t feel at home in a space like that it might be for the best that they stay at home and don’t crash the party ha ha

Revival, lineage, and contemporary world politics
SA: Across psychedelic and folk movements, revival can be both musical and political. How do you navigate these ideas — reviving or reimagining lineages — especially in a contemporary global context with pressing political and ecological crises?

SM: Generally we are following something more invisible and fleeting than that. I think its called muse… But we do try to handle the lineage that we are on with care and grace. It’s good to recognise and pay respects to those who came before you and support the younger folks too.

Field of Vision and current collaborations
SA: Your Field of Vision curation, including Gaye Su Akyol and upcoming shows with Kit Sebastian, suggests dialogue with global folk-psychedelic scenes. What draws you to these artists? How does collaborating with these artists enable shared experimentation or political imagination across these spaces?’

SM: Gaye and Kit make awesome and inspiring music – to be honest it’s mostly that! And we all listen to fairly broad music and would love our festival to reflect that. It feels important to platform folks from different backgrounds to your own. If you’ve got a mic you should pass it.

“If you’ve got a mic you should pass it”

stu mackenzie

Looking forward
SA: What kinds of sonic experiments — in tuning, instrument-building, or cross-cultural dialogue — are exciting you most at the moment?

SM: Making techno and bluegrass at the moment. Not at the same time. Well… not yet…

We’re delighted to share this interview, carried out by our PhD researcher Şebnem Altunkaya. Huge thanks to Şebnem and Stu for letting us share their conversation here.