Firstly, we have winners for our Wye Oak CD Release Giveaway! Julia Oat-Judge (Bmore) won the big score, nabbing tix to Thursday night's show at the G-Spot and a signed copy of If Children. Laura Steiner (Takoma Park) is the runner-up. She will be getting a signed CD care package in the mail real soon. Thanks to Jenn and Andy for the swag! And don't forget, CD release show tonight @ the G-Spot, 8PM doors! Now, onto the interview!
On a truly lovely Saturday morning, I trekked over to the Evergreen off Cold Spring Lane for some coffee, a stellar bagel-wich and continued to the second part of our interview (postponed due to the chaos preceding their SXSW trip) with Andy and Jenn of Wye Oak.
We chatted about their virgin SXSW experiences (and Jenn's other career considerations), the importance of family and Baltimore.
Read it all after the jump. You can also catch up on part 1 and listen to their Creative Alliance live set here.
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Aural States- First I wanted to go through the entire SXSW experience, start from the beginning but I definitely saw that Yaris video and we will be touching upon that later.
JW- It was fun and...I'm glad we did it. but as far as the expectations living up to the actual event, it was pretty much over from the beginning. It was a lot of work. We flew down, had all our stuff with us, we didn't have a car and our hotel was ~10 minutes from downtown center. We had to take a cabs everywhere and it was really hot outside, so we basically had a lot of walking around in the heat with our stuff.
AS- Merge didn't have like a party bus waiting for you?
JW- They had a van. They were helpful, but they also had 8 bands to deal with the same way...
ASt- Yeah they were just running around even more crazy than we were. It's a lot like being a little kid and going to Disneyworld and...
JW- Except you get there and Disneyworld SUCKS!
ASt- Yeah some dude throws up on your feet on a ride or something like that.
JW- Haha, no I mean there's a lot of cool stuff going on there. But there's also a lot of awful shit going on and you have to kinda dig through the awful shit to get to the good stuff. And even then you might not get to get into the cool stuff because the line is too long.
The street, 6th street and the adjacent streets for like 6 blocks are shut down entirely. So it's just throngs of people walking down the street in the middle of the day. The earliest we got there was 11 because we had a show. But 11AM, people walking around, they're drunk and shit, wearing booty shorts and bikini tops, lookin nasty and like they haven't slept in 3 days (because they probably haven't). Every 10 feet some dude comes up to you and says "Wanna hear my great band!!" and tries to give you a flyer and shove earphones on you.
They had women in bikinis and high hells walking down the street with signs for bands and their shows...
ASt- It was like Mardi Gras.
JW- It was insane. There was a certain point, in the middle of our showcase after we played, we were super hungry. So we went out to get some food and come back. We were out on 6th for 2 minutes before we thought "We have to get out of here, this is a living hell."
But at the same time, the good stuff was awesome.
AS- How did the showcase go off?
JW- It went great, was really really fun. Probably the biggest crowd we've ever played for. They seemed to like it.
AS- How were you received? Did you get a lot of feedback?
JW- Oh this is great. We ran into the alley behind the club and these two girls were comin in and they were like "Hey it's them! You guys were really good!" So I said "Thank you!" Then she said "During one of your songs, there was this big guy standing next to me and he was like bawling...so I asked what's wrong and he said I don't know it's just so beautiful!" So that was the coolest thing. We made a biker dude cry, apparently. So that's a life goal I can check off the list.
It was different from what I thought it would be just by how crowded and hot and dark it was. We didn't talk to a whole lot of people because honestly there was nowhere to go that was quiet. It was like being bounced around with strangers in a hot sweaty loud dark room for four hours.
ASt- Actually I think the most comfortable place to be I think is on the stage. Because you had a couple feet on either side of you to stretch your arms and breathe.
JW- Yeah, even backstage was hot, windowless and full of people.
ASt- It was fun overall though. The whole thing was very successful I think. We understand now when friends of ours who've been there say it's not all good stuff. When friends say they don't wanna go back for a second time.
JW- I'm sure we'll go again, we'll just have a better idea of what to expect. This time we thought "Oh great! A non-stop party, all kinds of music and happy people everywhere!" And it just wasn't.
ASt- Next time I go, I'll take a can of mace.
AS- What was the most positive thing to come out of it?
JW- The shows we played were great. A lot of people heard us who wouldn't normally have. We played everyday somewhere, but not all shows. Some appearances...like the Yaris thing which was...weird. I explained it to a roommate who was like "Why did you do that!?" We were out on the street and we were going to play a song for them (Stereogum) but it was so loud they couldn't hear us and it was hot and we were like "Why don't we get into the car?" It's quiet, and it's got air conditioning!
AS- It's pretty genius and fun concept. There's another site called the Black Cab Sessions that does a similar thing with artists in London.
ASt- There's actually one also in Paris, I don't remember what it's called (The Big Purple Van Club) that the Dirty Projectors did.
JW- Yeah it's just the two girls and a guitar, playing some tunes. They sound really awesome.
For me, the best thing other than the exposure, is that I have a better grasp on what I am willing and not willing to do with my music.
ASt- And your body.
JW- And my body. So I'm quitting music and becoming a prostitute. No, just kidding. Before I went it was a big question, as far as licensing and advertising. It's been going through my head a lot lately. We haven't gotten any offers yet, but when the album comes out we'll probably be getting offers to do commercials and stuff like that.
Obviously that will be handled on a case-by-case basis, but going to SXSW and seeing the obvious, corporate sheen over everything...
ASt- The whole event is sponsored by Coors Lite.
JW- Yeah, SXSW as presented by Coors. I don't have a moral problem with that. But the trick is that I feel more capable of saying no to things that make me uncomfortable. Before we were so new to this we would do whatever and go wherever you say. I realized that you can say no to these things, that it's up to you. You shouldn't feel bad about it.
I feel more confident about that control now. It (SXSW) was a real wake-up call for me in that regard.
AS- What about performances?
JW- SPOON!! It was AMAZING!
AS- You guys are out of town this weekend when they are playing huh?
JW- Don't remind me! I am heartbroken. Truly. Truly. Heartbroken. Walkmen are great, it's a great line-up. Let me just say, they were my favorite band when I was in 10th grade. I had a t-shirt, went to see them and I just fucking loved them. But you know how you just kind of move on after a while, and you don't listen to their music for a while...when we got signed to Merge I just thought "Oh sweet, Spoon" but I wasn't by any means rocking their album every day. So I kind of moved on.
We went to the show, it was a huge auditorium, festival stage on the river in Austin. Seeing that show...it was so fucking well done that it brought all of these old feelings rushing back. I guess they had won all these awards at the Austin awards night the night before, they cleaned up or something, so they were just so confident and just...kick-ass on stage.
It was really inspiring to see. It's the kind of stage show I can only aspire to be at this point, because we're the opposite of confident. It was just phenomenal, really great.
AS- Did you get to meet them at all?
JW- No it was just way too big. It was a Merriweather style venue.
AS- They weren't at the showcase or anything? Or like the "Merge mixer"?
JW- Haha the mixer, no I don't think so but it was so packed at the showcase I have no idea if they were or not. My new goal is to open for Spoon. I'm pushing that to the top of the goal list.
ASt- Yeah, I was pretty entranced. We also saw Deertick and he was great. He has a really commanding moustache, which was surprising and very entertaining. Destroyer, also really good.
JW- They played our guitar!
ASt-We also saw She & Him, the M Ward/Zooey Deschanel thing. They were actually very good. I wasn't sure what to expect. There are some pretty poorly done actress-turned-musicians...
JW- But she's very talented and her songs are beautiful.
AS- Worst band? Want to call anybody out?
ASt- There were a lot of bands that we heard out on the street...
JW- Generic cock-rock bands...
AS- Local Austin detritus...
JW- Exactly. You hear them when the doors open.
ASt- It's so warm out there that there are a lot of patio venues. When you walk down 6th, it's like a barrage of noise and you hear a lot of terrible music, pop-punk, heavy modern rock.
JW- Cock-rock Staind "alternative" soundalikes. It's coming from all directions.
ASt- We had some really great BBQ! We went to Stubb's though, which I think is pretty famous local establishment. Also, it's a very different climate down there. All the bars had patios...that was some of the best times, just hanging out with people from the label, some of the other bands, just getting out of the Baltimore winter. Being able to escape the crazy street-scenes and the noise and just relax.
JW- I'm looking forward to going next year with car, so we'll have a little bit more control over our own destinies. And we'll have a better idea of what to expect.
AS- Good deal. OK, the other big topic I wanted to broach was Baltimore, your feelings on it, how it has affected you. Let's go deep. Philosophize on the whole scene and situation here. This is especially apropos today since Wham City is opening its new space today.
JW- Yeah!
ASt- Really?
JW- I know for a fact, my friend Rose is a Wham City...er, and she told me last night after work. This might be top secret, I dunno. You might think this is funny. But at the new Wham City they have this small closet-sized room padded with foam. And in it, is a cactus in a pot. And it's going to be the cummed-on cactus.
ASt- The cummed-on cactus?
AS- Wow.
JW- Yeah. And all the bands that come through will get to cum on the cactus. Rose Chase is going to be the first to cum on the cactus, today. Probably doing it as we speak. In case you wanted to know, I just heard this last night.
It's disgusting but it's hilarious. SO. They have that.
I love all the people I know associated with that scene.
AS- How do you feel about Wham City being what many people see as the face of Baltimore music and art? It has definitely taken the lead and spotlight in press coverage until recently.
ASt- I think it's fair. Even if you're not in it, that scene...
JW- Which we definitely are not.
ASt- It's a pretty ubiquitous presence.
JW- I mean, I know a lot of people who are, but I'm definitely not in any way affiliated with it. But a lot of bands that are making it in Baltimore are not. Beach House, Arboretum...there are a lot of bands around that have nothing to do with it. But I think it's well-deserved.
And I think the thing to remember is that they're known not just for the music aspect but an overall art aesthetic.
I don't think of anyone in Baltimore as competition. They're just doing a different thing and I don't think they're infringing on anyone's territory. I think it's great. It's not really our style, but I have a lot of respect for them. I love to see anyone in Baltimore getting attention.
There are a lot of different kinds of sounds and different sounding bands, and there's room for all that stuff. I don't feel like, I've never talked to anyone who has any sort of problem with there being the variety of music there is here. But it's also good to remember it's an art world thing too, not just a collection of bands.
AS- I think they're a good collective to spotlight and represent Baltimore mainly because of their ethos and approach. I think it's emblematic of the city. If not, they're music or art necessarily.
JW- That's totally true. I don't think that people who read about Wham City think that's the only thing going on in Baltimore, but it shows that there is a huge variety of stuff going on here. And a lot of it's weird. They're just kind of at the head of that which is great.
AS- So you said you think there's plenty of room for the many different sounds of Baltimore. Do you think there's an issue with show density at all here? It's been commented to me before that if there are one or two big-draw shows, everything else gets swept under the rug.
ASt- I don't think that's exclusive to this city though. We played in NYC at the Cake Shop a month ago against some big show at the Mercury Lounge...
JW- It was Evangelicals!
ASt- Yeah, Evangelicals and Headlights. There were like 20 people at our show. It was obvious that we were playing against heavy competition. I think it's just a general thing. People will see the bands in-demand.
The one thing is that when we started playing around Baltimore, maybe 2 years ago, there was a serious lack of venues. But lately it has really flowered in that way. Lo-Fi, the Metro Gallery, Joe Squared...all these sort of DIY places have opened up. I couldn't possibly complain about it because it's so much of an improvement over where it started a few years ago. And the Talking Head is back...it's great.
JW- And I think it's a great place to be a band because even if there are fewer people and a lot of competition, people actually care about going out to shows and supporting bands. So you can carve out your little niche.
AS- I've seen some disputes over DC being better than Baltimore for show-going and overall attendance being stronger in DC. But what do you really call filling or supporting a show? A capacity-packed venue with half the crowd talking throughout the set? At the Beach House show this past Friday, Victoria called those set-talkers out. "This is for the music listeners; those of you who used this as a bad excuse for a date, you can go upstairs now."
JW- That's awesome, did Victoria say that?
AS- Yeah, definitely.
ASt- Victoria's bad-ass. People here actually care about the music here.
JW- Some of the best shows I've ever played have been to small crowds. Some of the worst have been to huge crowds. I'd rather have 20 people who really give a shit than a roomful of people who could care less. But rather have a roomful of people who give a shit. So there.
AS- How do you feel the city and the environment here has influenced you as an artist? Has it impacted how you develop?
JW- I don't think I would be...I would probably still be an English major in college, if I didn't live in Baltimore. I don't think I'd be playing in bands at all.
When I went away to school and I hated it so much, part of it wasn't that it was all that terrible it was just that Baltimore was so much better. I'm pretty indebted to the whole atmosphere, the people, everything. I don't think I'd be the person I am without it. But who can really know, you know?
ASt- I think of it on more of a micro level. Obviously there's really great music around. The city has been getting all this attention. The development of our band and sound coming from the people we spend more time with. It's not like we grew up cutting our teeth playing music with Dan Deacon or Alex and Victoria (Beach House). We love their music, but we have a close-knit group of friends, and some are musicians. Some play completely different styles than we do and it's great.
JW- They definitely introduce us to new music.
ASt- Right. Baltimore is home and it's great, but ultimately it's the smaller niche you create that influences you the most.
AS- Have you thought about relocation at all with the Merge deal?
JW- I don't think anytime soon. I don't think either of us wants to just call it quits. Changing up our lifestyles. It all depends on how much we end up traveling. If things go as they have been, we'll probably be traveling a lot. Which is great. If we weren't getting those opportunities, it probably would be a different story. But since we are, I don't feel the urge to go anywhere else.
Even if we did, I think I'd have a really hard time leaving here.
AS- Listening to your music and some of the comments and shout-outs at your Creative Alliance show, family is definitely a huge influence on you. And family is here. Could you talk a little about that connection to you and what it means for your music?
JW- I feel stodgy and traditional when I say this, but most people kind of move away from their families. And I really don't think I could do that. I don't know why. It's such a touchstone for me, I can't imagine not having it with me, within driving distance.
Not to say I hang out with them everyday. I see them every few weeks, but just knowing they're close by is really important to me. Mostly because my family is ummm... a little bit non-traditional. And plagued by various issues. So sometimes I need to be around to help out. I can't just disappear and move faraway.
When I did, when I moved to New York, I was plagued by guilt about it the whole time. Not that they're the only reason why I'm here, but it's obviously part of the reason why this is home for me.
On the other side of the spectrum, Andy's family is hugely supportive. We practice in their basement, they help us out with money. A lot. They helped us buy our van, all of our gear...very supportive. I can't imagine being apart from them either. The fact that your family and my family live within a 20 mile radius, is kind of important to how we function on a daily basis.
AS- Could you say a little about some of the family-based themes in your music, obviously like "Family Glue"?
JW- It's funny, I wrote "Family Glue" while I was up at Skidmore in New York, and I was walking through the kindergarten/pre-first department, I guess the education department? Where they bring in children to play with the people learning to be teachers...
Hah, learning to be teachers. That's kind of funny.
So they had all these pictures on the wall of all the kids with the theme "I am..." and they drew a little picture and wrote the words. One of them was "I am family glue" while the rest of them were like "I am a kid" or "I like soccer," but that one was deep as shit. It stuck in my head and I wrote the whole song in class right after that, no guitar, just kind of bouncing around in my head. That was the only time that ever happened to me before.
I'm hesitant to go too deep into the actual, technical issues of everything that involve my family...but I will say that I get a lot of comments about my age. Most who I only tangentially know think I'm older than I am (I'll be 22 in a week!), but I think that has a lot to do with the fact that when you are put into these situations at a very young age, you grow up very fast.
And I wouldn't trade it for a second. It's made me the person I am and allowed me to write these songs and I'd say pretty much everything I write ties into that in some way. I came of age very young and became self-sufficient at an early age. This might seem braggy and it's not meant to be, it's just how things went down. But I owe a whole lot to those experiences and the kind of songs I write.
Sorry, I've been taking up most of the time yapping. Did you want to say anything about your fams Andy?
ASt- Umm, thanks mom and dad! I did not come of age early. I grew up the traditional suburban existence.
JW- Oh man, I'm not trying to seem like I'm the little orphan girl or something. It’s just that, for someone who thinks about these things and is getting asked about what goes into these things, you start getting all philosophical. I’m not trying to make it sound like there’s all this drama…but there is a LOT of drama, to this day. It’s a part of the game, part of that rap game.
AS- Good deal. How’s the new material coming along?
ASt- Oh we’re recording!
JW- Yes we did! We started and are very stoked. We actually went up to a friend of ours place, he goes to NYU. We’re not going to be able to use his studio anymore. He’s about to graduate and he’s in their recording program, so for his capstone project we were able to go into the studio to record some songs.
We got basic tracks for 6 songs. They’re not complete, but a lot of it is maybe a little more than half complete. The most important part about the basic tracks is getting good sounds from the drums and the guitars. And I’m really pleased with that so far.
AS- Any titles or themes developing yet?
JW- Oh man, titles are the last thing to come for me. I have a really hard time with it. So when we’re in the studio, we just title them with goofy names I come up with.
AS- I actually wanted to try and get a title for one of my favorite songs, an untitled one you played in your Creative Alliance set…I’m trying to think of how to describe it.
JW- Is it the kind of Neil Young feeling one with the kinda loud guitar break? So far, it doesn’t have a name…but in the studio, we’re calling it “Magic Johnson” but that is NOT the title of the song. If you want to call it that for the time being, so be it. But I’m gonna have to come up with a real one soon huh?
AS- Lastly, what about If Children, how did you decide on that title for your album?
JW- Um, do you remember?
ASt- It’s a lyric…
JW- Yeah, it’s taken from “If Children Were Wishes,” because we refer to that song in shorthand as “If Children.” But we kind of started just tossing around that phrase and it’s cool because it’s kind of got that question, like “if children?” But it also can be used like a noun, like the “If” children…so it has that kind of duality to it.
ASt- A desccriptor!
JW- You know what I mean! It had that double use. The list of songs on the album are big into uncertainty, youth and figuring shit out, so it seemed to fit well.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Wye Oak Interview Part 2
Monday, April 7, 2008
Wye Oak Giveaway / Photo Contest! (Updated 4-6)
It's simple and free. Just send an email to auralstates at gmail dot com with your name and location to enter for the following swag:
A random winner will be drawn on Wednesday and contacted via email (We'll even tell you where the G-Spot is, if you need to find out!). A runner-up will also be drawn to receive a signed CD. Only locals will be eligible to win the tickets though.
Feeling a little more ambitious? Then try this on for size:
One winner will be chosen for originality and possibly hilarity or maybe even artistic merit. For this mammoth effort, the winner will receive the tickets/CD prize package and ... *drum roll* a date with Andy! Yeah, that's right. We're putting him out to stud.
Stay tuned for part 2 of our interview with Andy and Jenn. In the meantime, check out part 1 and their live set from the Creative Alliance, courtesy of Jeff the B-more Taper.
My favorite tracks:
Wye Oak - Family Glue (live)
Wye Oak - Mary is Mary (live)
Wye Oak - "Magic Johnson" (live)
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Monday, March 17, 2008
Wye Oak in a Yaris at SXSW for Stereogum.
Our latest, Merge-signed hometown heroes Jenn and Andy of Wye Oak, get together with Stereogum and play "I Don't Feel Young" in the back of a Toyota Yaris tooling around Austin at SXSW. Check the video here.
Maybe I can get them to play "Family Glue" in my Scion tC.
Stay tuned for part 2 of our interview coming in the next few weeks.
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Monday, March 3, 2008
Wye Oak Interview (w/ Andy Stack, Jenn Wasner)
We here in Baltimore are fucking spoiled. I thought it couldn't get better than the Beach House release...but hell if Wye Oak didn't give an equally intense show for their final hometown show before SXSW and their return for If Children's Merge re-release party at the G-Spot.
Baltimore-based duo Wye Oak (formerly Monarch) played a spectacular live show at the Creative Alliance by Patterson Park this past Saturday. If you weren't there, fear not! Thanks to our newest friend the Baltimore Taper, we here at Aural States are hooking you up big time with an exclusive on a live recording of the show.
Stream Wye Oak's entire set below. Click song titles to download MP3s.
Wye Oak - Intro.mp3
Wye Oak - Please Concrete
Wye Oak - Warning
Wye Oak - Magic Johnson
Wye Oak - I Don't Feel Young
Wye Oak - Family Glue
Wye Oak - Mary Is Mary
Wye Oak - Half A Double Man
Wye Oak - Untitled
Wye Oak - I Want For Nothing
Wye Oak - Obituary
And to round things out, Andy and Jenn sat down, then moved around alot, with me before Lo Moda's set for part 1 of a 2-part interview. Read it after the jump. Read Part 2 here.
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Aural States- OK guys, let's start out with a little bio.
Jenn Wasner- We both grew up around Baltimore. Started playing music together in high school...just kind of in different bands. It wasn't until I guess a couple years ago...
Andy Stack- We went away for college, then came back.
JW- And then a couple years ago...we found ourselves both in Baltimore and decided to start a band. It started out two of us playing together, actively searching for other bandmates. But eventually realized it wasn't going to happen..but also we could do it our own way, just the two of us. With a little bit of work and effort. So, we've been playing as a 2-piece with drums, keyboard, bass, guitar. It seems to be going pretty well I guess. I dunno...what else as far as bio...We both live in Baltimore, Hampden now.
Aural States- Baltimore born-and-raised?
ASt/JW- Pretty much, in the suburbs earlier, but close enough.
AS- What's your musical background?
ASt- We both studied music at school. Like extracurricular kind of things, but nothing special.
JW- I took piano lessons for a long time.
ASt- I went to music college for a while...
AS- Where?
ASt- Berklee up in Boston. Lived there for a while, and now I'm finishing up at UMBC. Jenn was an English major.
JW- Yeah, I was kind of like...I took piano lessons but other than that I'm pretty much self-taught. I discovered myself.
AS- So you stated that you started as a duo, but were looking for others. Are you still looking to expand?
ASt- I don't think we're uniformly opposed to the idea. We work really well together (most of the time), we have a system in terms of the live sound now. In terms of recording the duo element isn't really limiting because we can track everything again.
JW- I think generally, for us right now, we really prefer to keep it small. As far as our schedules, it's already hard enough to find time to rehearse, practice, write and play when we're living in Hampden and there's just 2 people's schedules to coordinate. I can't imagine trying to incorporate a third person.
ASt- We've been in larger bands before, but it's just...pretty convenient at this point. We can tour on the cheap...
JW- and we both really know what kind of sound each other is going for, and how to ask for it. What each other is capable of. It works out being pretty easy to communicate where it's just the two of us.
AS- How much of that decision is connected to your romantic involvement?
JW- As far as playing together with others? I don't think it'd be really that hard...
ASt- We definitely play in groups with other people so it's not like that doesn't work. It's not like our personalities or personal lives clash with that...
JW- I think it's always gonna kinda be our songs. We have bands with other people, we play with them, but it's other people's songs. I think the only thing that qualifies this band as Wye Oak is that it's our music, our songs. I don't think if other people play with us that would really change that at all. But it was, from the get-go, just the two of us. And I think it will stay that way for a while.
AS- Is there any stylistic change for you when other people are added?
ASt- Definitely, but I think it depends more on the group. Our other main band we play in, Noble Lake, is a completely different sound. It's this psychedelic Americana stuff...pretty much all acoustic instrumentation.
JW- And it's great to have an opportunity to do something like that, to get time and have a hand in a lot of different sounds and styles. It really opens your perspective up to create things that, in your own music, you wouldn't necessarily do. And it's just fun! Like our set list tonight...some songs go one way stylistically, then there are others that go the opposite way.
AS- Tonight is mostly off If Children?
JW- Probably like half and half. If Children's been kicking around with us for a while so...
ASt- Even some of the new material doesn't feel new. We've been playing it for 5 or 6 months.
AS- So the Merge deal. Let's talk about how that happened. (Congrats by the way)
ASt- Thanks! It was a huge stroke of good luck. It was actually originally through the blogging community. We self-released some stuff and I did my best to sort of work some PR. Sent out a lot of emails that were extremely...
JW- You just did like a press machine gun...
ASt- Yeah, and I just tried to be as nice as I could, to try and make friends where it counted. We got written up by some really nice people and I guess Merge saw it and contacted us. They just kinda sat on it for a while and we never expected anything to happen. There were other possibilities were had planned out, other labels that were interested...
AS- But then...right after New Years...
JW- Pretty much out of nowhere, they sent us an email that was just like "We're still listening to the record an awful lot...how would you be interested in..."
AS- An email?!
JW- Yeah, just completely out of the blue. Literally that's how it happened.
ASt- And it's the kind of label that...it's the perfect place for us to be right now, obviously.
AS- They are based in NC right?
ASt- Yeah, in like Durham. But it seemed shocking to us...that a label...would just up and ask us over email. Without asking for like, nude pictures or something like that or wanting to know our police record.
AS- Or thinking..."oh man, someone's account got hacked."
JW- Yeah, like what is going on.
ASt- But they just did...
JW- It just goes to show how down to earth and cool they are.
ASt- Exactly, it's not a major label. Obviously they have financial interests and extremely successful bands, but they also are not running such an enormous corporate enterprise that they can't take chances on people like us. So we just got lucky with that.
JW- I feel like that's how it should be. If you like a band enough...but sometimes these days it doesn't really work that way. It's more about how many Myspace friends you have or how many hits your webpage gets. But they never really asked any of that stuff. They just said "We like your music." It's weird, it's fantastic, unexpected and really heartening. That alone made me feel very very comfortable with going into the agreement.
AS- How has it been? How has it influenced you? I read somewhere that you were nervous about them not having seen the live show, and it being too different from the record.
ASt- It scared the shit out of us. They hadn't seen the live show. We toured down through the South for the first time in January. We played for all them. They really liked it and now we're gonna do their SXSW show.
AS- Yeah, with Destroyer I saw that.
JW- It's...terrifying.
ASt- Yeah. So I mean, trepidation about the label has passed. Now it's just trepidation about being artists, continuing to make art that we can live with.
JW- I mean, I don't feel like they're putting us in directions that we don't want to go.
AS- The re-release of If Children, is that something you wanted?
ASt- That's what we wanted. They gave us that option...
JW- They asked us if we were even interested in doing that at all, and although its been around for a while and the songs are kind of old for us...we put so much time and so much of ourselves into making that record. And now, I want as many people to hear it as possible. I think it deserves to be heard and I couldn't turn that down. I couldn't say no to that. I'm thrilled that they were interested in it enough to put it out. It's great.
AS- Are you excited about SXSW?
JW/ASt- Yeah it's great!
JW- I've never really been to Austin, I've heard it's really cool. We were thinking about going last year, but...
ASt- It's expensive and if you don't have some name recognition...it's hard to get any shows.
JW- It's gonna be cool. They told us they are gonna take us to get really really good barbecue. It's absolutely mandatory. Looking forward to that.
AS- Great. So, let's talk a little bit about your process. "Where are the songs born?"
ASt- Very individually.
JW- Pretty isolated.
AS- For you, is it an actual process or is it something more spontaneous?
JW- The process is pretty separate. I've never really understood the idea of writing songs collectively. I've tried to do it before and it's never really worked.
ASt- It's too...I dunno...emotionally charged. It's like there's a vulnerability that goes along with writing...
JW- ...that you just don't feel comfortable exposing.
ASt- As close as you can be with somebody, I don't think either of us has ever felt that comfortable.
JW- We pretty much write em then bring em to...the group *laughs* and work out the arrangements together.
AS- Music or lyrics first?
JW- Depends. But I've found that since we started playing with this setup I've kind of started writing songs with the setup in mind. The idea of how we're gonna have to play it is always in the back of my mind. It changes the way the notes come out. If you try and do it one way, and you think that way works, then it's not gonna work. As soon as you start thinking too hard about it, the whole thing just goes completely out the window. You've got to be on the line of being serious about it but also somewhat relaxed, otherwise you can scare away the creative process if you're too uptight.
AS- How long did it take you to assemble the tracks for If Children?
JW- Maybe like a year.
ASt- Noooo. It took maybe 5 months.
JW- Felt like a year!
ASt- It was on and off. It was like October '05 to January '06.
AS- That's not bad at all.
ASt- Yeah, and that's with all the mixing. I did a little bit of remixing for the Merge release. Not every song, but a couple songs. Little sections of songs that we were so distraught about for the original release. Every last mistake...
JW- ...we hear a thousand times.
AS- What else is different on the Merge release?
ASt- "I don't feel young" is the biggest. But the average listener won't really hear any difference.
JW- It's pretty much the same. The art is the same, the name is different.
ASt- It's remastered but that's about it. And you know, they were into that.
JW- With the idea behind the re-release being to expand the audience.
AS- I think it's going to be received pretty well. For one, I feel like Pitchfork has almost adopted Baltimore as kind of this redheaded musical stepchild it wants to spotlight.
JW- I think you're right about that. A lot of sites have adopted Baltimore.
ASt- They definitely have, but there's just so many unknowables in a CD release you can't really be sure...
JW- I'm just thrilled to be associated with Merge so I'm not sweatin it. I'm excited and we haven't even started recording yet. Having this out gives us more time to work and record the new record.
ASt- I hope that it does well enough where the label feels justified in putting it out and...
AS- ...letting you guys do your stuff.
ASt- Yeah, we wanna keep it moving. We already have almost a record's worth of material.
AS- How is it stylistically compared to the old record?
JW- You'll hear some of it tonight! It's kind of all over the place. I feel like the last record was by no means every song that I've written in the last five years. For this new one, since we have more time to work with it, I feel like we can write songs, play them around, see how they fall. And if they're not up to snuff, we can pick and choose our favorite songs for the record. It takes a lot of pressure off. I don't have to be like "write an album...now!"
ASt- When we recorded If Children, a lot of the arrangements that ended up on the record came together through the recording process. We didn't go in with a final goal of where we wanted the song to go. I think we were expecting it to go the other direction for the new record. We've been playing with the duo setup for a while, we have a live show we are getting more comfortable with arrangements.
But as it turned out, we already did one recording session, and we ended up scrapping most of the material because we ended up coming back to the idea that even though we have the duo setup, we don't necessarily want that to transfer over to the record.
We want to rely on the studio for arranging and multitracking. To let different instruments come in. Instruments that you'd never see in the live show. Piano, upright bass. Instruments like that will definitely still come into the recordings but not the live show. It's just not practical.
AS- That actually hits on the last big thing I wanted to go through with you tonight. The difference between how you approach the live arrangements versus the recorded arrangements. Like you said, you have so many other voices/instruments in the studio...
ASt- In the studio we both play a bunch of instruments that don't work live. Like piano, upright, sax...maybe someday we'll have like 5 tour buses and we can fill up the music. I don't think we allow ourselves to think that way. It's so impractical to think of us...super huge band. We want to be able to be economical. We like having the smaller feel.
Maybe someday...but we don't feel like we're cutting ourselves short with just the two of us. If anything, it's a nice challenge to look at all the different ways you can expand the sound of the group without adding different members. It's also exhausting.
AS- Yeah, like when you are doing double duty on stage...
ASt- We played in some bigger groups with 5 or 6 different people at times. I loved it, I loved being able to focus on one thing. It lets you enjoy it more. When you both have a lot of variables to keep under control between songs, within songs, it's like a real mentally taxing thing to do.
AS- Do you think it brings you closer to the music in performance? It obviously changes your experience of playing the music.
ASt- Yeah. I mean, it's just different. The thing that probably brings us more into the music is that its our music, our songs. I mean mostly it's Jenn's songs, at least when we play live. We're both so connected to the songs we ultimately begin to be a mouthpiece for the music. All of the instrumentation, the way the million different amps and keyboards on-stage are all just to be able to get to the song. Which worries us. I think at first we thought there might be a little too much gimmick, like with what I do.
AS- Almost like people would shutdown and think "oh they're just showing off."
ASt- Yeah, and that's not the impression we want.
AS- How do you approach the live arrangements? How is the live experience different than the recorded?
ASt- Everything is more raw, everything is more immediate. You have the visual component of people playing it. It would take 10 people to re-create the album and we just don't have that. So we do double duty where we can, we try to do guitar stuff to make it sound fuller than it normally would be...
JW- You know, I've realized that it's important to remember that a song is a song. No matter how you play it, it should be able to be enjoyed. Whether its unplugged on an acoustic guitar or on stage with 10 people, it should still be the same song. We don't feel like we need to recreate the album live. We already captured that completely independent moment in time. And the live show is another thing in and of itself.
Continue to Part 2...
