Category: Interviews
On the Bus with Less Than Jake
Oh you know. Just hanging out on the tour bus with Roger Manganelli of Less Than Jake. I really don’t hate my job. Watch us talk about their new album See The Light, tour, and upcoming plans! Enjoy.
And don’t you dare forget to check out their new album See The Light, out now!
Catching up with Lydia
Leighton Antelman of Arizona-based band Lydia is arguably one the most talented (and ridiculously good looking) singer/songwriter/musicians in the indie scene right now. Lydia was formed in 2003, and has since created musical masterpieces like nobody’s business. Lydia released their latest album, Devil, back in March of 2013 with great fan response. Devil Deluxe (B-side edition) was released mid-October while the band was on tour with The Maine and Anberlin. We got to catch up with Leighton at their show in Jacksonville during their last week of the tour. If you’re now thinking to yourself, “I wonder if he’s just as friendly and amazing as I’d imagine him being”, quell your curiosity and take my word for it- he is. If, like us, you’re interested in what exactly Leighton had to say about the past, present, and future of Lydia, check the interview below to find out, and then head over to iTunes and download Devil Deluxe (neither of which will leave you disappointed).
VM: How is the tour going so far? Tonight marks a new ‘leg’ of the tour, correct?
LA: We just finished the last show with The Maine and Anberlin last night in Orlando, and now we’re just playing and headlining 5 more shows on our way back home. It’s not really a tour; it’s kind of just fall headlining shows.
VM: Is there anyone that makes this tour more special than the last (aside from a stop in Jacksonville this time)?
LA: Haha, yeah that’s true. I mean, this is the first show, so I can’t really say anything special about it…..so far. Maybe tonight it will be super special. We’ve been playing 30 minute sets for the past month and a few days, so we get to play new songs finally, which is cool. We usually play the same set, but we get to play 6 or 7 more songs now.
VM: Let’s take it back a bit- what happened in between the decision to do the Farewell Tour and the release of ‘Paint It Golden’?
LA: The guy who started the band and I had started parting ways, and that was the reason that we did the Farewell Tour. About a week before we left for the tour, he just…disappeared. We didn’t know what happened to him. Our relationship was the only reason I wanted to stop the band. We still did the Farewell Tour, and I had planned to hold to my word about stopping Lydia, but about 6-8 months after the Farewell tour, [the band] convinced me that we really should keep playing music. I really enjoy playing music with those guys and I didn’t really ever want to stop, it was kind of just a one-person thing. After all of that was gone, we all still wanted to play music together. It was kind of just a sketchy thing that happened, and I wish it had never had to happen, but it is what it is.
VM: Will any of the songs off of the very first demo ever surface again, or are those just dead songs?
LA: Wait, which songs?
VM: Oh you know, the ones literally titled “Demo One” and “Demo Two” that were really terrific…
LA: Haha, nah, those were just…demos. I don’t know how they made it on the internet.
VM: Well, they’re terrific and I’m glad they found their way on the internet.
LA: Come on, they weren’t terrific. Some of the parts were cool. They never were meant to make it on the internet, but they did and I guess they’re there forever.
VM: What’s currently on your personal playlist?
LA: Lately in the van we’ve been jamming a whole lot of country mixes.
VM: Like what?
LA: Like Zach Brown Band.
VM: Is it because you’re in the south and you feel like you should?
LA: No, no, the whole tour! It’s just been a thing that we’ve all been into on this tour; kind of along the lines of Top 40 country. I can’t really do the honky-tonk stuff, though.
VM: Is the band still in contact with Mindy White? Has the set list decision process seem to have been affected since her absence?
LA: I’m absolutely in contact with Mindy- we talk on the reg. And I guess it affects it a little bit; some of the songs she sang too much on, so it’d be weird to play those particular songs. At this point we have enough songs so it’s not hard to fill a set. We’re definitely still friends though- she’s a great gal.
VM: Have you ever felt intimidated by the pedestal that so many people seem have to put ‘Illuminate’ on when it comes to writing new music?
LA: Eh, I would say no just because I won’t let myself do that. It’s just a terrible thing to do if you’re trying to be creative and artistic. I feel like you should always be trying move forward and create new and exciting things. It just seems like a weird way to go about creating something- holding yourself to a thing you did in the past. I already did that, I don’t want to do that again. And then there are those people who are like “Oh, it’s not as good as Illuminate” or “It’s better than Illuminate”; I’ve learned to not let the affect how I want to write the next album. It’s not that I don’t care, it’s just…I guess I don’t care. And you shouldn’t care, really.
VM: With that said, have you been pleased with the fans response to ‘Devil’?
LA: Absolutely. I’ve been very impressed with the response. I’ve had so many people tell me that it’s their favorite record, which is cool because I don’t want to be that band that keeps putting out shittier and shittier records.
VM: Will there be another Holiday cover release this Christmas?
LA: I haven’t thought about it, to be honest. Did you really enjoy the last one?
VM: I did! I made this little video montage of my family at our Christmas festivities and I used that track as the background music.
LA: Yeah? Thank you! I just really have always loved that song. I love Holiday music; there’s some that is too much, but there so many good Holiday songs. I might need to do another one.
VM: Have your band members supported your endeavors in regards to The Cinema, and is there anything new coming from that in the near future?
LA: Yes, absolutely. They all love it, as well. We are about 90% done with a new album, and about a week and a half after we get back home I’m going to fly out to Atlanta to put the finishing touches on the record. It’s going to be out probably in January.
VM: My past experiences at your shows have proven to get rather intimate- would you consider doing a house show tour to keep the intimacy a real thing for Lydia shows?
LA: We’ve talked about doing a house tour before. To be perfectly honest, I’m not really sure why it hasn’t gone through. There’s definitely been talk about it because it’s a really cool concept. A lot of my close friends have done house tours, and it just sounds like a really good time. A lot of bands seem to be going that route, and I can understand- they don’t have to pay anybody, all of their fans can get in, they don’t have to deal with a venue. We’ve definitely talked about it, and we’ll probably do one, I just couldn’t tell you when.
VM: Right on! If you want to come to Georgia I’m sure we could make something available for you.
LA: Yeah, totally. If we do the house tour it’s going to be a nationwide thing, we just don’t have it in the works right now. I’m glad you brought that up, though, because I’m going to bring that up again.
VM: What’s your favorite venue that you’ve ever played?
LA: We played it on this tour, but in general it’s the House of Blues in Chicago. It’s just really cool. It’s like this three-tiered thing and its right on this river that goes right through downtown Chicago. It’s really old, but not in a bad way. It may not be my absolute favorite, but it’s definitely one of them.
VM: What’s the next plan of action for Lydia when tour wraps?
LA: We’re probably just going to take a month or so off, and then we’re doing another headlining tour in April.
VM: Will that be in the states or no?
LA: Yeah, in the states, and probably the UK, as well. It’s all still in the works, but we’ll definitely be back through the states in the spring.
Deadstring Brothers Back With Vinyl Mag
Look who we caught up with for a second interview! We got to follow up with these guys just a few months after our first interview to talk about what they’ve been up to, touring, recording a new album, and what’s next for the band. We love these guys. When effortless and interesting conversation is paired with an awesome show, it’s hard to get enough. Be sure to catch them on tour!
Catching Up with Kevin Devine
Recently got to chat with Kevin Devine for our SECOND interview (I LOVE this job). In addition to catching up about what he’s been up to since our last interview, we talked about his current tour, his new label Devinyl Records, and the release of his two new albums, Bubblegum and Bulldozer (if you haven’t listened yet…come on…get it together). Enjoy.
Vinyl Mag: How have you been the last year?
Kevin Devine: I’ve been good, making a record, tending to home life, and getting together for all the stuff this year.
VM: When did you start writing both records, Bubblegum and Bulldozer? Did you write them separately?
KD: I wrote most of both between December and March of this year – all of Bubblegum in that time – and there were a couple of songs off Bulldozer that were ideas. I finished them and wrote a bunch of other songs in that same time frame, though.
VM: Tell me about Devinyl Records.
KD: It’s really not much of an enterprise to talk about yet; we just really wanted to have something to put on the records and something that could be a name to put on any music from this point forward. We don’t know much beyond that. We’re going to put our name on things we like and help artists we like at least have access to our audience. Essentially all it means right now is running it through our social media and putting it out to press people that have a label association. It’s really me and three other guys that manage it, and we’re running it out of their garage. I don’t know what it will become or won’t become, but it is nice, for now, to let it be what it is.
VM: When did you decide to go that route?
KD: I was tired of trying, and I didn’t feel like the label was interested at all. I felt like if a disinterested label could help the record perform in the marketplace, then I could make it myself. At least I’m not putting the armor on getting ready to have a boxing match. We have enough of a fan base that we can go through the people and figure out how the get the records out in the world and somewhat heard. I knew it wasn’t an enormous risk. It wasn’t like starting up and trying to do it. I think the risk was more about whether or not we would be able to take operational steps forward. I kind of thought we weren’t; I thought we were going to have to put the record down. In a secular record label, there’s a bunch of people working there. When you just have three people, that’s not the case, but it was one of the best rolled out albums we’ve ever had. I don’t know if that speaks well of our efforts or poorly about the labels we’ve dealt with; it seems like so far, it’s the most visible we’ve ever been.
VM: How has the response been to the album?
KD: Gratefully, it seems like people have really liked the album. There is a level of excitement that was not present last time. It seems like we are getting some interest from people who were maybe not interested prior. It’s always nice when you’re this far into your career to have new people coming in; it’s not a given. I look at these records as an 18-24 month project, actually more like 30-36 month, from the writing and conceptualizing to where it actually ends. I’m really grateful for the response, but I’m also trying to conserve energy and just put one foot in front of the other. We need to try and sustain some kind of momentum for a while, and my effort needs to be as unflagging as possible. I’m really excited with how it’s come out of the gate, and now it is just trying to keep our blinders up and not worry too much.
VM: What made you decide to release them simultaneously? Did it just happen that way?
KD: No, it was planned from the beginning that way. They were written at the same time and recorded consecutively. To me, it represented a specific time in my songwriting and in our band’s song development. We needed to have them out at the same time to kind of act as counterpoints to one another. They’re very different albums, but you can tell they came from the same time. It’s kind of fun to do something there is not a precedence for. If I had gone into a record label and said I wanted $100,000 to make two records to come out at the same time, they would have scoffed and said no. I think it’s the fun thing about doing it this way – why not? Just do it.
VM: How do you choose which songs go on your solo, and which ones go with the band?
KD: It seems pretty obvious to me which ones went where. I don’t really know, except that there’s something about the chord and voice and the feeling of the songs. You know how there’s up tempo stuff on Bulldozer, and the ‘I-don’t-care-about-your-band’ stuff on Bubblegum? It just seemed like they fit. I think the Bulldozer songs is more about how they were written; with the power chords, it’s just a little more straight up. That stuff was apparent to me as it was getting worked out. The only song where I had two ideas was “She Can See Me”, and I thought Bulldozer was going to have more of a Belle and Sebastian sound, so I took it that way. It ended up going a different way, with the one on Bubblegum having a Nirvana cover sound. They both went different directions even though they’re both pretty up tempo.
VM: Jesse Lacey [Brand New] produced Bubblegum, and I saw in another interview that you said it would have been totally different without him. What inputs did he have on the record?
KD: I think anytime you make a record with anyone, the record would be very different without them. I think it is from collaborating with people. I think the record is very suited to Jesse’s tastes and strengths. We benefitted greatly from him being a “song doctor” who obviously has a lot of experience with the catchy, internalized rock music. He knows how to write rock pop songs that also have brains. There’s a critical difference between punk pop and pop punk. I think Jesse and I saw eye to eye on what I wanted, and I think we got there. It’s fun, bouncy, loose, and wild, but also feels smarter than it could have been.
VM: I saw the “Bubblegum” video – did you come up with the concept?
KD: The director who made the video, Daniel Ralston, came up with that concept. He’s a really funny dude, had this idea, and I thought he executed it really perfectly.
VM: For the lyric video for “Private First Class”, did you have involvement in that?
KD: I kind of think that lyric videos are kind of stupid, but I also thought initially that Kickstarter was stupid. I’m often wrong about things. Just because something is done wrong by a lot of people does not mean you can’t try to do it right. I thought it was an opportunity to use some footage and have it be something interesting. I’m really happy with how it came out.
VM: You’re going to be at The Stuffing this year [in Atlanta]…how did you get involved in it? I know Manchester Orchestra hosts it.
KD: Yeah Manchester Orchestra hosts it – it’s their festival. I’ve been friends with those guys for almost seven years. We obviously did Bad Books together, and we’ve done however many Bad Books tours together. It was basically them asking if I wanted to do it, and the next year, they said they were doing it again. I opted to not do the main day, and am doing the acoustic day. It’s kind of a pain in the ass to be there ’til one in the morning on Thanksgiving and then flying back to New York exhausted. I also usually spend half of those holidays in New York and half in Boston, so it’s a lot of exhaustion and travel. So I had to tell them I wasn’t doing the main day. I also have a show at Asbury Park in New Jersey the day before Thanksgiving, but since it’s more local I’ll be slightly less exhausted for Thanksgiving.
VM: Besides The Stuffing, what is next for the band?
KD: We have about three weeks left of this tour, all the way from California through the deserts through Texas up the eastern seaboard. Then, in January and February, we tour the UK and Europe. So that’s the plan.
Backstage with Blitzen Trapper
So I got to hang out backstage at the 40 Watt with Portland, OR-based band Blitzen Trapper, because my job is awesome. They are touring the US in support of their recent release, VII, which came out September 30, 2013. Go ahead and watch our interview (below) so you can feel like you were hanging out with us.
On the Line with Zach Lind of Jimmy Eat World
It finally happened. I got the chance to interview Zach Lind from Jimmy Eat World. There is really no way for me to write as anything but an obsessive fan on this one, so I’m going to make it short and sweet.
Those of you who have been long-time readers – or new readers who have traveled back to our very first post – know that Jimmy Eat World is one of my favorite bands of all time. So you know that I was having one of those #bucketlist #icandienow #thatjusthappened #isthisreallife moments during this entire interview.
Amidst my obvious gushing and fangirling during my phone chat with Zach Lind, I managed to get the deets (can’t believe I just said ‘the deets’) about JEW’s new album, Damage, as well as their current tour, Zach’s drum inspiration, and how they manage to keep things fresh after 20 years as a band. Enjoy. I’m going to go call everyone I know.
First, I just wanted to know – are you excited to be back on tour?
Yeah. We were home for a few days, and now we’re out again. We have a show tonight in California.
How has the audience response been to the new album?
I feel like it’s been really positive. The response seems like it’s been growing.
How do you choose the set list? I’ve noticed you’ve been adding older songs you haven’t played much before.
That was something we wanted to try for this album – throwing in older songs that we haven’t done. It’s sort of a tricky balance. You want a good mix of songs that people haven’t heard and also the songs that people want to hear. You also have to throw new songs in there as well, so it’s a tricky balance.
Do you have a favorite song to play?
Right now, I really enjoy playing “Appreciation”, with the ups and downs.
Is that your favorite song off Damage?
Not necessarily; it’s just a fun song to play. There’s just something about that song I like a lot. My favorite song would change depending on my mood.
What was the recording process like? Is it a piece of cake by now or do you still have difficulties getting it to sound like you want it to?
I think every album is a challenge. I think as we get older and more experienced, it makes certain aspects easier. But we also start discussing things we didn’t when we were younger. When we were younger, we just went to the recording studio and just kind of made a record and whatever. But now, we pay attention to the little details that go into it. We try to use our experience to make each song as good as it can be. Some songs are easy and some songs are really hard, it just kind of depends on the record. Every record is a challenge.
Do you guys do any recording yourselves when you make an album?
The last few albums we’ve done on our own. There are some good aspects to recording on your own. This record, though, we went to LA; we had a gut feeling that we wanted to get out of town and go somewhere else to have someone else man the reigns. We felt really great about the process and the experience.
What is the most satisfying aspect of being in a band?
I think primarily, for us, the most important element of what we do is making records. The most satisfying thing is seeing a record come together and feeling good about what you’ve done. There’s a certain amount of banging your head against the walls in order to get the record and get the songs to sound the way you want them to. Of course, touring is great and playing for our fans is fun. But at least for me personally I think making a record, and the feeling of being done with a record you’re really proud, of is probably most important.
Is there a certain tone or ambience you try and create on your records or in your live shows?
I think for us, it’s sort of a song-by-song basis. For each song, there is a tone you want to achieve and an overall vibe you want to create. I think for us, we approach it song by song. For live shows, we try to put together a set list our fans will like. We don’t talk too much during a set, we just keep it simple and that’s it.
Jim said he went back to Clarity for influence on the sound and structure of Damage. Did you do the same thing? Or did you look somewhere else for influence?
I can see that; Jim is sort of the grand catalyst in what we do. More times than not, when we start working on a song, it’s something Jim has sort of structuralized. I can see that, and that’s how we make some songs. The sort of logistics of it, how we tracked it, but this is definitely a different record. I think this is more stripped down and natural throughout.
I feel like a lot of Jimmy Eat World songs are drum-based or drum-driven. When do you bring the drums in?
It depends. Sometimes a song can start with drums, and sometimes it can start with acoustic guitar. Every song is a little different.
Do you have full creative control with drums?
Yeah, it’s a group effort when we make records. If someone thinks something doesn’t fit, I’m always up for trying different stuff and making sure what we’re playing makes sense with the song. For the most part, each of us is open to taking suggestions from the other guys. I think we have a really good working relationship in that way.
Does anyone ever come in with a Garage Band drum machine and say, ‘do that’ or do you just come up with everything?
No, no it’s not like that at all. There are some times where Jim will have a drum idea, and I think that’s kind of cool. I’m just trying to find the thing that works best for the song. If Jim just sort of conceptualizes the song in his head, and hears a certain kind of drum beat, that helps me. Even if I don’t end up playing that drum beat, it helps me to know where he’s coming from and know what his initial thought is. Sometimes I’ll just scratch the idea and not use it at all. There’s actually a song on Invented…the title track, “Invented” – Jim played drums for the first half of the song, and I played the second half. That was sort of my suggestion, and it worked out really cool.
I read that your label didn’t even hear Damage until you turned it into mix. Have you always had complete creative control?
Well, we didn’t have a label until we were done making the record. So Damage was already done and we tried to find a label. Yeah, we can do whatever we want, and there’s never really anyone telling us we can’t do that.
You’ve been doing this for 20 years now, and you’re still delivering really fresh, original material. You’re also staying true to the classic Jimmy Eat World sound. I feel like a lot of the bands that started when you did – and are still around – seem to have sacrificed their sound to cater to new audiences. Are you guys consciously avoiding that pitfall, or does it just naturally come out that way?
I think it’s sort of conscious. The way we work is, for the most part, not trying to attach ourselves to these outcomes that we can’t control. We just want to make it interesting to us. What interests us has changed a little over the course of 20 years. We don’t go into a record saying, ‘We’re gonna make an album that’s more electronic,’ or, ‘We’re gonna make an album that’s more hard rock.’ We sort of write a bunch of songs, then pick the best ones, and those go on the record. It’s pretty simple and we keep it like that. That’s how our process is.
So there’s no Jimmy Eat World dubstep album coming out?
[Laughs} No, I don’t think so…I feel like there’s a Jimmy Eat World song for everything that has happened to me in my life. I have had people ask me what band would be the soundtrack to my life, and I have always said Jimmy Eat World. Do you listen to your own music or feel that way about your own music?
I guess it’s a little different, but every album sort of represents an era of our band’s history. It’s not in a soundtrack to my life sort of way, but more of a, ‘if you could describe every three years of your life and what you were doing at that time and what your interests were’ way. Every album sort of represents a different period of time with the band. I honestly don’t listen to our music that much apart from playing shows.
Do you have any artists that you would consider the soundtrack to your life?
Oh yeah – U2 and REM are bands that I would see that way.
*Be sure to hit them up on their current tour, and don’t forget to grab your copy of Damage, out now!
Catching Up with Sirah
So you all remember the interview with our girl Sirah back at SXSW in March? Yeah, well…lucky us, we got to catch up with her AGAIN for a quick phone chat to see what she’s been up to since then. Turns out, it’s a lot. Read below to learn about her new EP, her current tour, and her fashion inspiration (she’s a goddess, as we all know).
Here we are just a couple of months later, and you have your EP release and your currently on tour, Let’s start off by talking about your very recently released EP Inhale… What do you hope listeners of the EP will take away in regards to you as an artist?
I think people shy away from touching on a lot of things [topics], but when it’s [the music] real and to be compelled towards different genres and different subjects, I hope people take away the fact that it is multi faceted. So whether it’s happy music or dark, they aren’t different it all comes from the same place. I think that a lot of the time people limit their selves and artists limit themselves.
I want people to get to know me with Inhale. I have moments where it’s really happy and light and fun, and talking about falling in love and the naivety of being a teenager. There are things like “First Impressions” and you know you want it where there’s true real life situations that are happening there. But basically, the light doesn’t diminish the dark side of a person, it can all come from the same place.
What was the creative process for the EP like, specifically with the writing of songs and recording it?
I think it really depends, I pretty much write everyday and sometimes, “Inhale”, the actual title track to the EP came to me and wrote it in just a few minutes. The same thing with “First Impressions,” there are some pieces where you can just hear what is going on. A lot of those songs come to me. And then there’s songs like “Icarus” that I sat down with this idea that I had and that I wanted to recreate and I try to make it real. If I get stuck somewhere I’ll generally just look at other people’s art or read a book or go out and run into actual human beings.
What are some of your favorite songs off of the EP?
I think it would have to be a toss up between “Inhale” and “Icarus” for me personally. It’s tough, it feels like having kids almost, even though I don’t have kids, I love them all, but you know what I mean. All the songs are pieces of me so it’s kind of hard to be like “This is my favorite and this is why I like it the best”.
Many people, before the release of Inhale, may only know you for your collaborations with Skrillex, can we expect some more collaborations with Sonny in the future or is there anyone else you would love to collaborate with?
I think me and Sonny will definitely work on something in the future. It’s kind of one of those things where when I didn’t expect things to come out it did. When we got into the studio to record things it never comes out the way we want, but when I send it to him from my bedroom or we do it on the USB mic in a hotel that’s something else. I don’t know what will happen with that, but right now we’re working on each others music, so I don’t really know what to expect. There’s definitely things in the works and in terms of collaborations beyond that…
I’m not really sure, I love making music so I get excited about people whether they are big or small, or sometimes I have beats sent my way and after I check them out I’ll end up working with the artist.
You’re currently on tour with Icona Pop & K. Flay- what has life on the road been like with 3 other strong female artists?
It’s awesome, girl power up in here! I love K. Flay and her camp, they are incredible. I think it’s one of those situations where you’re living on a bus together and you can’t really imagine it going that well because it sounds like some Real World type shit, but it’s been awesome and Icona Pop is just so sweet and it’s cool. We’ll all play and then we’ll all end up dancing together through their set, and I crowed surfed the other night in Atlanta- things like that. It’s a lot of fun and it’s a fierce line-up.
We only have a couple minutes left, but your fashion sense is incredible, can you talk about what inspires your outfits and how you go about choosing some of your clothes?
Growing up in poverty will make you mad crafty. I just wear what I like whether it’s high fashion stuff or even, I was getting down in Wal-Mart the other day – they have the whole line-up of Fubu Gear, so it’s real out there. I kind of just pull things I like, and I think that depending on how I’m feeling I wouldn’t wear anything that wouldn’t express what’s going on with me, just like music.
Thank you so much for your time and we all at Vinyl Mag wish nothing but the best and success for you!
Words with Andrew Cedermark
Andrew Cedermark has just released his sophomore album, Home Life, a follow-up to 2010’s major success Moon Deluxe. In celebration of his recent release (the album came out July 11), as well as his current tour, we decided to ask Andrew a couple of questions. Check out our conversation below!
Vinyl Mag: Why did you leave Titus Andronicus — when did you decide to do a solo project?
Andrew Cedermark: I left Titus more than four years ago for the same reason people leave a lot of touring bands: I wanted to try my luck living a life in one place, and not always in a car. We toured a lot, and it didn’t agree with me. It wasn’t my music. I was tired of my body smelling like yogurt and wanted to experiment with things like gardening and laundry. On this, my first tour supporting my own music, however, I find myself having a really good time
VM: Tell me about your new album, Home Life — there are some very personal, honest lyrics- what is your writing process? How long did it take you to write the LP?
AC: I suppose my process is to not simply go with the first, second or third idea that comes, but to compile all ideas that I perceive to be good into songs in whatever way seems most compelling. That obviously happens with varying degrees of success. Writing the lyrics, I spent a lot of time at the library trying to come up with things that I hoped would not be meaningless or pointless.
VM: What was the inspiration behind “Canis Minor” and “Canis Major”?
AC: Directly, these songs are named after a pair of constellations, and I suppose that’s a kind of inspiration. When writing lyrics, all you have to do is write down what you think or feel, make it more vague, then make it more grand, research when people have said something similar to what you are trying to say, incorporate that, and hope that that process offers each listener her own way into the life of that song. Given that, anyone’s guess is as good as mine.
VM: You got a solid review in Pitchfork for Moon Deluxe — they compared you to Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel – high praise! How do you feel about that comparison?
AC: The truth is that when I see a good review I tend to think about the better reviews some of my friends have received. As for Jeff Mangum, it is a far-too-generous comparison, probably one that the writer came up with when struggling against a deadline. That is the reality: you can say anything on the Internet. Overblown sentiments flourish where content is king. If I really had anything in common with Jeff Mangum, I’d likely be a beloved and famous rock-and-roller, but as things go we made $50 last night in Baltimore. To answer your question directly, of course it feels great to be compared to one of the indie rock’s genuine marquee talents. But is the indie-rock pantheon holding a place for me? No! As for reviews, all are welcome.
VM: I’m noticing a lot of bands releasing songs on cassette tapes now — what inspired you to release your split on cassette?
AC: Over the course of several years during which I was recording an enormous amount of music, it just happened that not having released any of it began to make me sad. So I wanted to handmake a product that reflected the care I believed I had put into the music. By this time in history it was coming to be widely agreed upon that CDs were just MP3s plus waste, and I couldn’t afford to press my own record, so … tapes. And I made a box to go with them and sold them over the Internet with color-printed booklets of photographs I had taken, with lyrics handwritten all around. That was really my first release, “Two EPs.” I realize now that this isn’t the tape release you asked about though. A label in Charlottesville run by some friends asked about the possibility of releasing a split tape with a band featuring some friends in the almighty Charlottesville revue Drunk Tigers, and I said yes. The same logic was at work here as above.
VM: What is next for you?
AC: Cleveland!
Q&A with District Attorneys
The District Attorneys, a band comprised of Atlanta and Athens natives, have quickly established themselves in the Athens music scene and is undeniably a musical force to be reckoned with. Formed in 2009, these guys have made continuous strides in the right direction not only in making music that people want to hear, but also in being easily accessible at the click of a mouse. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed, and just months after releasing their first full length album in April of 2012, the band went on to win Best Album Artwork, Best Album, and Artist of the Year for the Flagpole Music Awards of Athens, GA. We recently spoke with Drew Beskin of the District Attorneys just days before the band was gearing up to play Athfest ’13, and this is what we found out….
Vinyl Mag: How did the bond with This Is American Music form?
Drew Beskin: Ah, Payton Bradford of the Futurebirds is a good friend of mine and he is friends with Cory, who is one of the founders of This Is American Music. After I moved to Atlanta and started working on our first full-length album, he suggested I reach out to him.
VM: Your music has frequented XM’s station “The Loft”; do you personally feel that is a fitting station for your sound?
DB: Well, I don’t really much listen to XM- not that I have anything against it- I just have my iPod, CD’s, and podcast’s that I listen to. I’ve heard The Loft tends to play a lot of really random stuff sometimes, but I’m friends with Mike Marrone [programming director for The Loft] on Facebook, and I see what he recommends all the time, and like his taste. I’m no authority on XM or anything, but it’s cool enough for me!
VM: How do you feel that your experience at SXSW this year differed from your last, and do you feel that it has been beneficial for the band?
DB: We’ve only gone two years; we toured up there last year which was a lot of fun. We really didn’t know what we were doing, and we kind of just said yes to anything we were offered. For a lot of the shows, they had paired us up with emo-punk bands, so some of them weren’t that great. One of the best parts of going two years in a row was that the first year we learned a lot about the area, but also just that we had been a band another year longer this time, so we had more fans to come out to the shows. This year we played a show every day, and each show was a really good time with some really cool guys.
VM: Who does the primary song writing?
DB: I do, for the most part. I write about 80 percent of the songs, and our keyboardist – and sometimes guitarist – write the remainder of the songs.
VM: Who runs your social media sources? Do you keep up with them yourselves?
DB: We are all owners of our Facebook page, but I would say that I maintain Facebook for the most part, and Frank [bassist] maintains Twitter, for the most part. We all have access whenever we want. We’re definitely in charge of it.
VM: Why was the decision made to release your first two EP’s for free via Bandcamp?
DB: We knew what we were doing when we released them for free on Bandcamp; we wanted to go ahead and have it out there. Now, all of our stuff is on iTunes and whatnot, but we put our first out for free just to get it out there for anyone to hear. We just generally wanted people to listen to it. We released our second EP on there, because we were working on our album and it was taking us a little longer than planned, so we decided to record a few songs on our own just to have something out to hold us over. You never want too much time to go by between releases.
VM: I noticed that the Gillian Welch cover of Wrecking Ball has a ton of plays; whose idea was it to cover that song?
DB: Well, it was my idea, because I love her; I take full credit for that. I’ve always loved her, so I was very excited to convince the band to do that, and I’m glad everyone took to it well.
VM: In a previous interview you did, you mentioned that “Cherry Glow” was your favorite off of the new album- what was it about that song that struck resonating chords with you?
DB: I think at the time what I loved about it was that the whole song was recorded live. Everything that you hear on that song was done live. Not necessarily in one take, but it was very natural and raw. Next time around, we want to leave space to do something cool like that again and make it more organic, I guess.
VM: What are your expectations for the upcoming Athfest?
DB: It’s going to be our fourth Athfest in a row, and I think the first year we were just this new band, and we played on like, the very last stage. Each year since we’ve played a different stage, and this year we will be playing the Pulaski stage which is really exciting. As far as expectations go, we’re just happy to continue being a band that’s invited to play. There are always a lot of fun things to do and a lot of cool shows so I know it’s going to be a good time.
Phone Chat with Lemuria
After catching their set at SXSW, Lemuria stuck in my head and grew as an unshakable interest in my mind. Lemuria was formed in Buffalo, NY and have since spread themselves around the country. With the release of their newest album The Distance Is So Big, we figured now we would be a good time chat about the past, the present, and the personal in regards to Lemuria. A big thank you is in order for Sheena Ozzella and Alex Kerns for being so gracious and forth-coming and making this happen. After checking out this super rad interview, head on over and have a listen to Lemuria’s “Oahu, Hawaii”, which can be streamed here.
Vinyl Mag: Whose idea was it to name the band Lemuria, and is it directly related to the lost land theory?
Alex Kerns: It was my idea. At the time I was reading a lot of mythical books about lost continents like Atlantis and Lemuria. I kind of just picked the name, and Sheena liked it so it stuck.
Sheena Ozzella: We knew we wanted it to be a one-word band name.
AK: We were kind of hoping it would be a name that no other band had, but we later found out that there was a band from Belgium that had the same name and the same kind of idea that we had. We actually got to meet a couple of guys from the band, and they were wearing their Lemuria shirt for their band; they came up and talked to us and were super nice. We’ve kept in touch with them over the years.
VM: How was the connection made with Kind of Like Spitting for the split you did “Your Living Rooms All Over Me”?
AK: I just kind of randomly met Ben, and we became friends. When we put out our first demo, he got a hold of it and liked it a lot. We just stayed good friends ever since we first met, so we decided to do a split LP and a full U.S. Tour together. Still today we’re friends. We’ve been talking about doing some UK shows together and stuff like that.
SO: Kind Of Like Spitting was one of my favorite bands for a really long time before he met them, so when he met them, and I found out that he had met Ben I was really excited. One thing led to another, and when we decided to do the split together it was definitely one of the coolest things to make something with a band that was actually one of your favorite bands.
VM: As far as the lyrics go, is it a group effort? Who does the primary lyrical writing?
SO: I would say Alex writes most of the material for Lemuria. Alex is a man of many words; he’s really good at summing up what he’s trying to say. His lyrics are very straightforward and very simplistic, but they tell stories, and they do a lot more than you would think in just a small amount of words. Alex also tends to write a lot faster than I do. But yeah, I write maybe one third of the lyrics, but I don’t say sh*t as good as Alex.
AK: For the record, I love Sheena’s lyrics, and I wish she would write more, but I just write faster, I guess.
VM: [To Sheena] How does it feel to not only be in a band with such talented musicians, but to also be dating one [guitarist Chris Moore]?
SO: Ooooh, a question about my boyfriend! It’s awesome. I’ve known Chris for a very long time- maybe close to 10 years now? We started dating four years ago, and since then we’ve both been in full-time touring bands, him in four bands. It’s awesome because in so many ways understand each other, but in other ways it’s kind of sad, because we don’t get to see each other very often when we are actively touring. But, I love him and I support him, and he does the same for me, so it’s working. We’re about to embark on three months without seeing each other, and that’s about the longest we’ve ever gone. But its good, and we’re both good and doing really exciting things. I’m very happy.
VM: Is the title of the new album The Distance Is So Big symbolic to the geographic location of the band members, or is it something bigger than that?
AK: Kind of. It’s actually a lyric from one of our songs on the album called “Oahu, Hawaii”, and in that song it doesn’t really have to do anything with the band, but it’s more so something to do with a relationship. But overall, that line kind of sums up a lot for the band. Internally with the band, we’re all in different places. But also, we all – in the past – and even in the present have been in long distance relationships. It just seems like it’s always been a big factor for our band.
VM: Leading into my next question- being that everyone in the band does live in different states, how do you feel that affects the writing and recording process?
SO: I think we’ve been more productive than we’ve ever been; it’s made the time we are around each other ‘go time.’ Whenever we would get together, we would have 8-hour long practices and were very much structured around writing an album. It feels a lot more focused now that we all live in separate places.
VM: How did you find your home at Bridge 9 records?
AK: We just heard that they were listening to our first album, Get Better, at their offices through mutual friends. So when we were recording Pebble we figured we should send them an e-mail and see if they were interested. It was an oddball signing, but I think that it really made sense mutually.
SO: I think it also opened up Bridge 9 to signing other bands that were like us. I know that from talking to Chris [Wrenn, starter of Bridge 9] that is has been a really positive thing for them in regards to him putting out things that he really enjoys, and that’s the point of a record label.
VM: Would you say that your first released track off of the new album, “Brilliant Dancer”, is a good depiction of the sound you’re going for with this record?
AK: Yeah. The album is pretty upbeat and optimistic. It’s a long album and little more epic of an album for us.
VM: How was your experience at SXSW this year?
AK: I thought it was a lot of fun. It was exhausting, because it’s one of those things where you can’t just drive your car up to the venue, unload, and play – you have to find parking and walk a mile and all of that. But overall, it was great and a fun festival, and we had a really great time. We played four shows altogether, and all four were worth the trip.
SO: We played for a lot of new people, which is always really exciting. I think we were one of the smaller bands who played SXSW, and I felt like at every show I really appreciated the amount of people who came out to see us. We felt welcomed, and it meant a lot.
VM: Last question- you’re noted for playing “The Fest” in Gainesville, FL every year; will you be playing again this year?
AK: Yeah, we’ll be there. If we didn’t play The Fest it would be a really bad year for us. It’s kind of the weekend we look forward to the most.