Pencil Storm revisits a conversation between Shane Sweeney and Jeremy Porter from 2019.
Read MoreLydia Loveless: The Pencil Storm Interview - By Jeremy Porter
Jeremy Porter interviews Lydia Loveless about her new album “Daughter.”
Read MoreOn Elliott Murphy's Birthday: The Pencilstorm Interview - by Ricki C.
This blog originally ran on Pencil Storm March 16th, 2017, Elliott Murphy’s 68th birthday. Tonight Ricki C. is seeing Murphy in concert at The Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett, Long Island, NY. Saturday night Ricki will be catching the show in Roslyn, N.Y. Ricki will report on the shows sometime next week, but hopefully this blog will help explain why he would fly into Newark, New Jersey just to catch two rock & roll shows on Long Island. (Bear in mind that Mr. C. could not be convinced in any way, shape or form to travel to New York City to catch Bruce Springsteen - Ricki’s OTHER mainman rock & roll hero - when he appeared on Broadway for all those months back in 2017 & 2018.) As Cheap Trick is to Colin, Elliott Murphy is to Ricki C.
I bought Elliott Murphy’s debut album – Aquashow – at the Discount Records store across from the Ohio State University campus in late November or early December, 1973, the same week I quit college, moved out of my mother's house and got my first apartment. I didn’t know it when I bought it, but the first verse of the first song on Aquashow – “Last Of The Rock Stars” – contains the lines, “I got a feeling on my back like an old brown jacket / I’d like to stay in school, but I just can’t hack it.” It was a rock & roll match made in heaven.
I started buying records in 1964, I continue to buy them now in 2017, and Aquashow remains to this day my favorite album of all time. I bought Aquashow largely because of the blurb in this article about New York Rock, written by Dave Marsh in the December 1973 issue of Creem magazine, my Rock & Roll Bible of the time……
I conducted the following long-distance interview with Elliott Murphy via e-mail in February, 2017. We're running it today - March 16th, 2017 - Elliott's 68th birthday. He will be playing two birthday shows at The New Morning in his adopted home of Paris, France, this Friday & Saturday, March 17th & 18th. We encourage any of our Continental friends to attend. (I wish I was.) Details on those shows, pertinent info about ordering all things Elliott Murphy - CD's, books, etc. - and a host of Elliott's prose writings can be found at www.elliottmurphy.com. You should check it out at your earliest convenience.
THE PENCILSTORM ELLIOTT MURPHY INTERVIEW, WINTER 2017
1) You've recorded 35 albums since your debut, Aquashow, in 1973: do you know how many songs? Also, what are your five favorite songs you've written, and - in as many words as you want/need - why?
I don’t really know how many songs I’ve recorded and that’s a job better suited for a true archivist than myself (any volunteers?) but I suppose it’s around 300, and maybe I’ve written another 100 that I never recorded. And the saddest part is that I’ve probably started another 500 that I never finished. When asked about my favorite songs it always comes down to those I’ve written and those I’ve recorded. Songs that stand that test of time like LAST OF THE ROCK STARS are essential to me but there are a few songs from my upcoming album PRODIGAL SON that I’m particularly fond of, such as LET ME IN and ABSALOM, DAVY AND JACKIE O, which is an 11-minute opus of a dozen verses. I think my favorite recorded song is ANASTASIA, because for me the production is as close to perfection as I can imagine. But I’d have to throw COME ON LOUANN in there too, as well as YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU’RE IN FOR..… and on and on.
2) The first prose piece I ever read by you were the liner notes to the 1969: Velvet Underground Live album, released back in 1974, and still to this day in 2017 I consider it one of the five best essays I have ever read on the subject of rock & roll. How did your authorship of those notes come about? (And, while we're on the subject: tell us a Lou Reed story we've never heard before.)
I first met Lou Reed in 1971 at a Mitch Ryder show at the Café au Go Go in NYC. (Mitch had covered Lou’s "Rock and Roll" with his band Detroit.) The Velvet Underground had such an avant-garde reputation and a menacing ambiance of sadomasochism in songs such as "Venus in Furs" that introducing myself to Lou took all the courage this 22-year-old nascent rocker could draw up. But I had just returned from a European sojourn, so I had a certain hip bono fides under my belt, having busked in the Paris Metro and appearing in Fellini’s film Roma. But to see Lou standing there in that Mickey Mouse T-shirt, chatting amiably with music business heavyweights didn’t fit the picture of the legend I had heard about. Come on, this was the composer of "Heroin"! The only thing I remember saying to him was that I too was from Long Island. “Oh really?” was his dead-panned response.
A year later my great discoverer, the late Paul Nelson - legendary rock critic and friend of Bob Dylan - who was then an A&R executive at Mercury Records asked me to write liner notes for Live 1969, the posthumous live VU album. Remember that all of this was months before I even began recording my own first album Aquashow, and still to this day fans bring me that VU album with my “It's one hundred years from today …” notes to sign as if it was my very own record and indeed I’m honored.
I guess you could say that those liner notes contained hints of the suburban fear & loathing that was apparent all over the lyrics of Aquashow and befittingly, I wrote them on the Long Island Rail Road. Paul Nelson passed on my liner notes to Lou for his approval and - much to my delight - Lou liked them a lot, because shortly thereafter he actually called my mother and had a fairly long chat with her, as I wasn’t home at the time. At the end of the conversation my mom told him how excited I would be to hear from him and Lou asked her why.
“Because he’s a great admirer of yours,” said my mother.
“Isn’t everybody?” Lou responded.
My mother - who is in her nineties - still remembers that conversation and I still remember seeing Lou in the Mickey Mouse T-Shirt at Cafe au Go Go, so I guess you could say that Lou made a big impression on all those he came into contact with. When Aquashow came out critics imagined Dylan's Blonde on Blonde as my great inspiration but the truth was I listened to the Velvet Underground's Loaded over and over before daring to even put my toe in the rock 'n roll sacred waters.......
By the end of that tumultuous year 1974, My life had irrevocably changed; not only had my first album exploded on the scene garnering rave reviews from Rober Christgau (Village Voice) and Bob Hillburn (L.A. Times) and Paul Nelson himself (Rolling Stone) but there was my name for all to see on an actual Velvet Underground album. It was almost too much to handle! Or to quote the title of The New York Dolls’ second album – Too Much Too Soon!
The last time I really spoke to Lou was when he came to Paris in the early 90’s and called me out of the blue and we had a café and we were crossing one of the bridges of the Seine and it was windy and Lou had his collar up and a passing French woman thought he was a priest! Lou didn’t like that. Then we stood on the bridge and Lou asked me what had happened with my life and career and I told him how it got difficult for me in the US during the 80’s and I moved to France and got married to the love of my life and now we have a son together, Gaspard, and my career took off again in Europe and Lou put his hand on my shoulder and said “So it all worked out okay, eh?” like a benediction from a priest!
3) Who was the biggest influence on your prose writing? (And, I guess while we're on the subject: on your songwriting?)
When it comes to songwriting I’m just a product of my generation: step one was watching Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show; step two The Beatles conquered America; and, step three Bob Dylan changed the possibilities of lyrical content in a rock song forever and ever. In my case, my father brought me to a lot of Broadway shows when I was a kid so I was introduced to the story telling aspect of songwriting right away. When it came to prose the first “important” book I read was EAST OF EDEN by John Steinbeck when I was 12. I had seen the James Dean film on TV and then searched out the book and it was such a larger universe than the film. After that there was of course F. Scott Fitzgerald and I related to GATSBY especially because it took place on Long Island where I grew up and also because I shared some of his romanticism, or as Scott said, “Show me a hero and I’ll show you a tragedy.” But there were so many other writers I admire all the way from Graham Greene to Kerouac to Raymond Chandler to Joyce Carol Oates to Hemingway to Wallace Stevens to John Cheever….. the list could go on and on. But honestly, I can’t say that any of them ever consciously influenced my style, they just showed me what great writing could be and how important it was to get it right.
4) In your early career (circa 1973-1977) you made it a point to dress above/apart from your hippie rabble contemporaries (sharp white suits as opposed to patched bluejeans 'n' plaid flannel shirts): What was the worst fashion mistake you ever made onstage?
I think I avoided the worst mistake when Polydor Records hired an ad agency to promote Aquashow and they came up with the brilliant idea that I was the “prophet of my lost generation” and should wear long robes. I could live without seeing a few of my Miami Vice 1980’s shirts but aside from that I don't have many sartorial regrets. And my boots were always correct, which is the most important thing!
5) How hard was your decision in 1989 to leave New York for a new home and life in Paris?
It was more gradual then you would imagine. I first played in Paris in 1979 and by 1989 I’d say most of my career was Europe-based. I had a good record company in France -New Rose - and I was touring all over the continent and in Scandinavia. I didn’t know how long I would last here because there are legal matters like visas and working papers, but then when I married Françoise everything worked out. She has been my guide through the French bureaucracy so it’s been fairly smooth even if I get stressed out like any immigrant. But leaving New York was not so hard; I had a bad memory on every street corner and it was time for a second act.
6) Were you already playing guitar when The Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in February, 1964? And what was the very first rock & roll song you sang in front of an audience?
I started playing guitar when I was 12 (around 1961) and the folk boom was happening, so I think the first song I performed in front an audience was "This Little Light of Mine" by the Kingston Trio. When “Murphy went electric” in 1964 my father bought me a Kent guitar (same guitar as Bruce S. had!) and my band did mostly surf music instrumentals. So probably “Walk Don’t Run” or “Wipeout” was the first rock ‘n roll song I sang. For a guy best known for his lyrics it’s ironic wouldn’t you say?
7) Circa 1975, after the split of Boston bands The Modern Lovers and The Sidewinders, you hired Ernie Brooks, Jerry Harrison and Andy Paley as your backing band: What or who was your Boston connection?
Well, let me see..…when I came back from Europe in 1972 and was hanging around in Max’s Kansas City there was a lot of talk about The Modern Lovers although very few people had actually heard them play because they were really a Boston band. Then they opened for the NY Dolls on New Years Eve at the Mercer Arts Center (I played there a week later) and I think I said hello to Ernie Brooks and we became friends. The touring bands I had for Aquashow and Lost Generation never really worked out because they weren’t the same musicians who were playing on the albums and that was frustrating for everyone. So when I started to plan Night Lights I thought I’d get a band together, do some shows, and then go into the studio, which is kind of what happened. Ernie introduced me to Jerry Harrison (who 10 years later produced some cuts on my album Milwaukee) and also to Andy Paley because, I think, he had gone out with his sister. We opened for Sha Na Na in Canada, which had to be the worst pairing of acts in the history of the music business. But we did go into Electric Lady Studios and record quite a few songs, including "Diamonds By The Yard."
left to right: Elliott Murphy (guitar), Ernie Brooks (bass), Andy Paley (drums), Jerry Harrison (keyboards)
8) As with Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, your career is no exercise in nostalgia, you’re constantly recording new records and playing shows, what new releases do you have coming up?
I was actually writing a lot of songs and making demos and about ready to start a new album right before we decided to do AQUASHOW REVISITED (wherein I re-recorded the songs on my first album in a new way and through the ears of my son and producer Gaspard Murphy), so I gently put those songs aside and dug back into my past, like Proust searching for lost time. And then, when I revisited these new songs again after letting them lay dormant for about a year or more they had..… improved! Or at least that was the impression I had when I went back to the demos, and so I thought OK it’s time to put together that album again. I was haunted by this idea of working with a gospel choir and Gaspard found four great singers and a wonderful young piano player by the name of Leo Cotton who played like Leon Russell. We're looking toward a spring release. I don’t know how any artist can live in nostalgia-land.
9) Tell us about Jorge Arenillas documentary The Second Act of Elliott Murphy; any idea when we will see it in America?
I first met Jorge Arenillas when he was involved in some kind of futuristic horror film as a writer, I think, and the director wanted me to play a role in the film as a crazy rock star living like a hermit in a haunted house. That film never got made but when Jorge directed his next film - Another Summer – he asked me if he could use my song "Summer House" (from Just A Story From America, 1977) over the end credits, so I went into the studio with my son Gaspard and we made a new version of "Summer House" that went into the film. It’s a great film, by the way, about a haunted man who is trapped in his memory of a summer romance. Anyway, following that Jorge said he wanted to make a film about..…me! I was shocked and doubted that he could pull it off, but you know what? He did! Jorge started following Olivier Durand (my great French guitarist) and myself around on tour in Spain and soon we became used to his presence, almost like he was haunting us. He filmed a concert in Bilbao, where I’ve been playing for over twenty years, and it really was a magic night. So the film was finished and was even shown at one festival in Spain but Jorge said it needed something else. I asked what? He said … Bruce Springsteen. So I called Bruce and asked him if he would agree to be interviewed for the film and being the generous wonderful man that he is, he agreed. And then it just so happened that I was back in touch with Billy Joel around this same time because I came across a photo of Billy, Doctor John, and myself backstage somewhere and sent it to him. So I asked Billy if he would agree to be interviewed as well and being the generous wonderful man that he is too, he agreed. Jorge jumped on a plane and interviewed Bruce in New Jersey and Billy in Florida and voila!
The film is available on DVD but in PAL, and will have its U.S. premiere at the Stony Brook Film Festival on Long Island this summer. Hopefully a release on Netflix or Amazon will follow……
10) Tell us Ohio boys about a spring Parisian twilight………
The best part for me is always to be crossing one of the beautiful bridges that span the Seine on my Vespa scooter at twilight and to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance and all those gold-domed buildings and just the wonderful Parisians themselves all decked out, each in their own universe and to pass all those cafes and think of Hemingway and Fitzgerald and Picasso and even Jim Morrison and to know that you are really at home. At least that’s my story from America.….
Ricki C. formerly ran his own blog - Growing Old With Rock & Roll - from January 1st, 2012 until 11:59 pm December 31st, 2013, and now writes exclusively for Pencilstorm. He has been involved in rock & roll - as a musician or as a roadie - since he was 16 in 1968. When not penning prose he deploys a solo singer/songwriter act he dubs action-packed acoustic rock & roll. He has been employed as a guitar tech for the three W's of Columbus rock & roll - Willie Phoenix, Watershed and The Whiles - and believes he's a better man for having done so. Previous Elliott Murphy blogs by Ricki on Growing Old With Rock & Roll can be found by clicking on How I Spent My Summer Vacation and Elliott Murphy in Piermont, among others.)
Juliana Hatfield: The Pencilstorm Interview - by Jeremy Porter
SPOTIFY PLAYLIST FOR THIS ARTICLE - Listen while you read!
Juliana Hatfield has been on a roll. Her last three records have arguably been some of the best work of her 33-year music career. Pussycat (2017), was an unplanned rally-cry against the Trump regime, sometimes more subtle than others, but never without her signature pop overtones and cutting lyrics. Weird (2019), her most current release, leaves the political sentiments behind in favor of a modern indie-pop-rock sound. And the …Sings Olivia Newton-John (2018) covers collection, a nod to her musical hero, was nothing short of a masterpiece. And then there’s the back catalog. Her first band Blake Babies were a bit less refined and polished, but brought a real charm to the table with that innocence, and her early solo records – including her commercial high-water mark The Juliana Hatfield Three – Become What You Are (with her biggest hit single “My Sister”) were staples of early 90’s alternative rock and MTV’s 120 Minutes.
The 20 years between this recent renaissance and her early alt-rock success were a little quieter for Juliana, in the world spotlight at least. She delved into some side projects – Some Girls, Minor Alps (with Matthew Caws of Nada Surf), and The I Don’t Cares (with Paul Westerberg). There were Blake Babies and JH3 reunion albums and short tours, and a string of solo records and EPs that often cast-aside the ear-worm poppiness for a darker, more sparse and spacious sound. Her touring schedule slowed down considerably, and while she never disappeared from the public eye, sightings were certainly less frequent. In 2009 she published her auto-biography When I Grow Up: A Memoir, a revealing and compelling look into her career, anxieties, and personal life.
On Friday night, Juliana will return to the Detroit area for the first time in 18 years, by my calculations, for a show at The Magic Bag in Ferndale (Get your tickets HERE!). It’s a short, 10-city US tour on the heels of a UK tour in May, and we can’t wait!
We were lucky to catch up with Juliana recently to chat about her recent resurgence, her history in the Motor City, and if we might ever get that follow-up to the I Don’t Cares’ record.
Jeremy Porter: You seem to be on a great roll with the last couple records – Pussycat, Sings Olivia Newton John, and this year’s Weird. You’ve been consistently active and busy, but this recent string of releases seems exceptionally inspired, and now you’re playing out more than you have in quite a while. What brought on that change and do it see it carrying forward?
Juliana Hatfield: I just feel time moving faster than ever before. I feel an urgency to keep producing work and not stopping because the world is hurtling toward destruction, or something, and it will all be over soon so I may as well push really hard until we all hit the wall as a species. Plus, I have gotten to the point at which I have streamlined my life to accommodate work and not much else.
JP: Pussycat was a personal response to the political climate after the 2016 election. Looking at it a couple years later, where do think we’re at now? Are we still in the same boat or can you see any rays of light on the horizon?
JH: I don't even like to think about it. I don't think things look very good.
JP: JHSONJ was my favorite record of 2018 and the reaction seemed universally positive. We’re you surprised at the reaction to that record? Did anything unexpectedly special, personally or musically, come out of that experience?
JH: I was surprised at the love it got, yes. I was afraid that people were going to think I committed sacrilege on her catalog or that I tainted her legacy, because Olivia is so loved and such an icon. But I am really happy that people responded positively to what I did. They understood that I just wanted to show how much love I feel for her and her music, and to share that love. It was wonderful and unexpected to hear from Olivia, personally. A couple of times she tweeted to and about me and the album. That was pretty great, to get her public seal of approval.
JP: Weird feels like a natural transition from Pussycat and JHSONJ – not so much lyrically but musically. The guitar tones, arrangements and riffs have a nice growth but a consistent feel that sort of takes your natural pop vocals and vocal melodies and puts them above a musical bed that weaves somewhere between 70s classic rock and indie-pop-rock. Do you approach the writing process with a direction in mind? Or do you just sit down and whatever happens, happens? Can you expand on that a bit and how it might relate to the feel of this trilogy of records as compared to some of your previous releases?
JH: I never have a direction plan when I sit down to write. I have an open mind. But I do have habits and things that I tend to do over and over again. I can't change my instincts. I have a certain aesthetic preferences, and I have a certain natural, personal style that I have settled into and I produce all my own stuff which is why my stuff lately tends to have a sound and a feel. It's raw and unpolished but also really melodic. I am also in love with the mellotron flutes sound on my Microkorg keyboard that I acquired about five years ago so that sound ends up on everything I do these days. No matter how gnarly the guitars get, I always like to mix in some keyboard flutes. It sounds good with everything.
JP: The recent reissues of Hey Babe and Only Everything were really well done, as was the Blake Babies Innocence and Experience, from the remastering to the packaging. How closely were you involved in those projects? Any plans to follow up with the `93 JH3 album or The Blake Babies’ Sunburn record (hint hint)?
JH: I had nothing to do with the Only Everything re-release. The company doing it did not inform me that they were doing it, nor did they send me a copy. I don't own those masters ("OE") so that's how that was able to happen without my involvement. American Laundromat Records handled the other stuff, and they are great and I am personally in touch with them about all the other re-releases. I hope to do more re-issues with them. I want to do "Bed" on vinyl but I can't find the master tapes. I'll keep looking.
JP: The I Don’t Cares record really seemed to come out of nowhere to a lot of people, a wonderful surprise. Was that just a one-off or is there a possibility for further collaboration with Paul Westerberg? We heard from him a bit around that release, but not so much from you – care to talk about that project a little?
JH: It was a one-off but it could conceivably happen again in the future. It is up to Paul. I didn't talk much about the project in deference to Paul. It was mostly his songs and I thought I should step back and not be the mouthpiece.
JP: When you played in Detroit quite a few years back, at the Magic Stick, if I recall correctly, you mentioned during your set that your father was from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I am from Marquette, in the UP, so I have always wanted to follow up about this! Can you talk about that a little? Where in the UP? Have you spent time up there? .
JH: My dad was raised in Indiana but later in life ended up living in Houghton, Michigan. He got a job at a hospital up there. That's where he died, in Houghton. My mother was raised in Detroit. I used to visit my grandparents in Birmingham when I was a kid.
JP: The Magic Bag Theater is a really nice room in Ferndale, Mi. Great sound and an intimate vibe. What can we expect when you come to Detroit (Ferndale) in June? Who is in the band, and will the setlist be pulled from your entire catalog?
JH: I am not sure yet who all will be in the band. But I know we'll be playing songs from all over my vast catalog.
JP: Any special stories, recollections, or feelings about playing or visiting Detroit or Michigan over the years?
JH: I've had some good show experiences there. Lots of fun times. Playing with Jeff Buckley was fun.
JP: What's next for you after the tour? I think I saw some recent photos from a recording studio?
JH: I am in the studio now trying to finish up a new album before I go to Europe at the end of May.
JP: Thanks Juliana – we’ll see you in Ferndale!
Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos - www.thetucos.com
Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit -
www.facebook.com/jeremyportermusic
Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic | www.rockandrollrestrooms.com
The Pencilstorm Interview: Aaron Lee Tasjan - by Erica Blinn
Ohio's own Aaron Lee Tasjan, on tour with Social Distortion, will be in Columbus, OH: Wednesday, June 27 at Express Live!
When you experience a live performance by ALT and his incredible band, you will witness four dudes who have figured out how to build a rocket ship out of songs to transport themselves to a far better place, and they'll take you with them if you only believe. - Erica Blinn
EB - Your new album Karma for Cheap comes out this Fall; in a previous interview, you said that if this record doesn't find the commercial success you're hoping for that you'll probably quit and open a chain of Chinese buffets. Is that still your plan or has it changed?
ALT - That plan changes daily. I'm always planning for a forced retirement. My manager will likely release a statement to the press about all my "years of service" and how everyone is "sad to see me go" meanwhile I'll be reluctantly agreeing to go to hair cutting school after a long talk with my Dad.
EB - What is an experience you've been hoping for on the road but hasn't happened yet?
ALT - A gig where I don't worry about anything.
EB - What planet would you most like to visit and what is the main attraction that is drawing you there?
ALT - I know a girl who was in the running to go to Mars so I guess I'd visit there. At least there's a chance I might know somebody.
EB - Of the planets that you have visited, which has been your favorite?
ALT - There's this planet on my front porch...it has an inflatable pool and a bubble machine and a person who has stolen my heart. It's my favorite planet in the universe.
EB - Which pair of animals should've been left off "The Ark"?
ALT - Mean-spirited snakes.
EB - In your opinion, how many strings does the ideal guitar have?
ALT - Keith is king.
EB - Who would you say has had the least influence on you?
ALT - Ryan Adams's recent Instagram posts.
EB - When would you say would be the best time to exact revenge on someone and how would you do it?
ALT - When they're least expecting it. I would use a palm pilot. No one even knows the technology any more.
EB - What is your favorite thing to get from the ice cream truck?
ALT - Flintstones tangerine push pop.
EB - Shaken or stirred?
ALT - Shake, rattle and roll.
EB - Sunrise or sunset?
ALT - Sunrise in the evening, sunset at dawn.
EB - Would you say that you tend to: a) overreact b) under react c) react appropriately d) none of the above
ALT - I act like I don't know what I'm doing.
EB - You've competed in a lot of pageants over the years; what is one of your favorite memories from your time in the pageant industry?
ALT - I played the Mayor of the munchkins in the Delaware Children's Community Theater production of The Wizard of Oz. I got to wear a sash for the role. That was as close as I ever came to winning a pageant.
EB - If you could only wear one thing every day for the rest of your life what would it be?
ALT - Sparkle shoes and/or David Bowie's outfit in the Diamond Dogs photo by Terry O'Neill.
EB - What is your favorite Quentin Tarantino film?
ALT - Jackie Brown. I like the happy ending.
EB - Which of your prize winning show horses is your favorite?
ALT - Oprah Whinniefrey, Oats-Hay Simpson or Pony Bennett.
EB - What's the most money you've ever spent on Sparklers?
ALT - I've bought far more fireworks than I've ever set off.
EB - If you could be any dinosaur, which would you be?
ALT - Dinosaur Jr.
EB - If you were just starting on this record today, what would you do differently?
ALT - Record a cover of Party In The USA by Miley Cyrus.
EB - Was there any fun gear that you used on this record? What were some of the effects pedals you used/acquired specifically for this record?
ALT - We used a lot of tape varispeed to make the guitars sound like they're melting. I used a fair amount of Sheryl Crow's guitars on this album, too. Please don't tell her.
EB - If your band was more like the T.V. show Survivor how would touring be different (if at all)? Who would be voted out of the van first?
ALT - Me. I'm far and away the most annoying one of our whole band. Everyone knows it. No one is bigger or better at being annoying than me.
EB - No further questions, Your Honor.
Aaron Lee Tasjan's new record Karma For Cheap comes out this Fall on New West Records.
The Pencilstorm Interview: Erica Blinn - by Colin Gawel
It's no secret that we here at Pencilstorm are big fans of Erica Blinn. She is the real deal as a writer, person and player. Do yourself a favor and visit Ericablinn.com for info on her latest record, Better Than Gold. She was kind enough to answer a few of our questions while out on the road supporting the new release. - Colin G.
CG - The old saying is you have your whole life to write your first record and 12 months to write your second. Was it challenging to come up with the material to follow your debut record Lovers in the Dust?
EB - I was just thinking about that saying the other day! Luckily I had about 36 months to write the second record. I actually think in some ways it was easier this time for two reasons: songwriting does seem to get better/easier with practice, and the more life you’ve experienced/ things you’ve learned the more you have to write about.
CG - Who were some of the co-writers that helped out with this record? How does that process work for you?
Van Darien, Caitie Thompson, Will Newsome, K Phillips, and Delyn Christian all helped on some songs. Co-writing can be hard at first, especially when you don't really know the person you're writing with. For example, when Van Darien and I first met and started working together we would schedule write days and spend most of the time talking and drinking coffee or tea. Then one day we wrote "Better Than Gold".
CG - Along those lines, as opposed to Lovers, which was recorded over time in Columbus, Ohio, most of Better Than Gold was recorded in bulk in Nashville. How was the process different on this record than before?
EB - This time, the stuff we did in Nashville was all done live as a group with vocals and some percussion over-dubbed. That was very different, and very fun!
CG - Who are some of the players on this record?
The list is enormous. PJ Schreiner: drums, percussion, backing vocals - Michael Zimmerman: bass -Jerry Blinn: bass - Shane Sweeney: bass - Rick Kinsinger: bass - Steven Cooper: lead guitar - Wade Cofer: lead guitar, bass, backing vocals - Andrew Leahey: lead guitar, backing vocals - Will Newsome: lead guitar - Andy Harrison: lead guitar, backing vocals - Michael Talley: keys/organ/piano - Matty Monk: Wurlitzer - Bree Frick: backing vocals - Mark Nye: bass, backing vocals, hand claps - Colin Gawel: backing vocals - Kris Luis: handclaps - Erica Ott: handclaps - Jerry DePizzo: baritone saxophone - Soul Satyr Horns: John Bonham - trumpet, Ted Basinger - trombone, Joe Reasoner - saxophone
CG - You and PJ moved to Nashville a couple of years ago. How has that influenced you both as a person and a musician?
EB - It’s been really great. I think you learn so much when you’re constantly hanging out with people who are doing the same kinds of things as you. It’s maybe like working in an office building and all of these people are part of the team and you can ask them questions about how they are doing things, what seems to be working what doesn’t, only our office is the city of Nashville. All of our friends are musicians, songwriters, photographers, videographers, graphic designers, producers, engineers, managers, booking agents, etc. You call on each other to be involved with whatever you’re working on. Every day I get to spend time with people who just want to listen to records, play guitar, and talk about songs. Like when you’re learning a new language, if you want to become fluent quickly you should go somewhere where they speak the language and immerse yourself in it.
CG - How has your relationship with producer Mike Landolt evolved over the years?
EB - We’re friends and business partners and the business part includes all aspects of my career, not just as a producer of the music. I’ve learned a lot from him and we’ve learned some things together.
CG - Weren't you guys recently visiting him at his studio in Seattle? Did you work out there or just party?
EB - We did recently visit him and his wife Amy at their home/studio. It was my first time out there. It’s a very beautiful place. Any time we hang out with Mike, we are both working and partying. We all like to cook so we made some extraordinary meals together. We also did some work to finalize the release of the new album and we even demoed a new song!
CG - Your Dad, who is also a musician, has had a major influence on your life. Tell us a little about your relationship with him?
EB - He says I have to stop talking about him in interviews. Ha! He’s amazing. He’s everything. I wouldn’t be doing any of this if it weren’t for him.
CG - Where are some of your favorite places to hang out in Nashville?
EB - Our house (our yard/porch when the weather is nice). People are always coming around to jam, talk, or cook dinner. My roommate ALT and I have hosted four impromptu dance parties in our living room/kitchen just this week! The 5 Spot is another favorite place. Always some good music happening there. High Garden Tea is a cool, cozy spot with fermented teas on draft. I like to buy loose leaf tea and herbs there.
CG - You pretty much tour non-stop anyway, but any special plans to promote the new record? Are you making and videos?
EB - We released one video for “Softer Side” and we have a second one, “Suitcases and Truck Stops” being pitched by our amazing publicist Heather West currently and we have another one shot, for “When I’m With Suzie (I Do What I Want), that we will start editing soon.
CG - Who picks the tunes when you travel? What are you listening to now?
EB - We all kind of take turns picking the tunes but Michael Zimmerman is a pretty good DJ so sometimes we just let him run with it. I started a “Van Jams” playlist on Spotify because I thought it would be fun for us to all add songs to it like a jukebox. If you want to hear a song add it to the list and it will play eventually. Plus then we could share that on our social media and people could check out what we’re listening to in the van. It didn’t last too long. We also enjoy Marc Maron’s podcast and various stand up comedy. One time Wade Cofer bought some old timey radio show cassette tapes from a thrift store while we were on the road and those were super fun to listen to.
CG - What is your go to restaurant on the road?
EB - Ugh. This is the hardest part about being on the road. Usually no one gets mad about Chipotle. Breakfast is usually Waffle House. It’s best to ask locals at the show where to eat the next day though.
CG - Do you binge watch any TV shows?
EB - I recently watched GLOW on Netflix and I loved it.
CG - If you could go back in time and see any band, what would you choose?
EB - Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles
CG - What kind of show should folks expect at Natalie's and on this tour?
EB - We’ll be playing all the hits.