A Conversation with John Roderick

John Roderick is a man of many talents. You probably know him as the front man of the near-perfect Indie Rock band The Long Winters. However, you could also know him as your old History professor, that guy from the Decemberists video, CMJ’s hillarious Bonnaroo reporter, or the composer of one of Rolling Stone’s 100 best songs of last year (Pushover). Even furthermore you could know him as a contributor to my charity Holiday album Peace on Earth (Thanks John!) I’d strongly advise you to pick up some Long Winters records if you haven’t yet. Putting the Days to Bed is a great place to start. The following is a conversation with John Roderick which took place on December 4th 2007.

[mp3] The Long Winters – Pushover
[mp3] The Long Winters – Sound of Coming Down

Buy Long Winters records

Caleb (HTFAF): Hi John, how are you?

John Roderick: I’m doing good. My family’s all in town!

Caleb (HTFAF): How Many Rodericks are there in the house?

John Roderick: Oh, there’s a whole passel of us.

Caleb (HTFAF): What are your plans for Christmas?

John Roderick: Well, we don’t really celebrate the holidays all that much, so my plans are to lay low. In the words of Snoop Dogg, “just chill till the next episode”.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is Santa Claus isn’t bringing you anything this year?

John Roderick: No, I don’t believe in Santa Claus.

Caleb (HTFAF): The Long Winters have been hibernating since the release of Putting The Days to Bed and it’s subsequent touring. When will you emerge?

John Roderick: I mean, we only quit touring in July, so it hasn’t really felt like we went into hibernation exactly. The first couple of months we were just unwinding from being on the road so much. We’ve been working on songs for the new record for a couple of months now, and we’ve gone into the studio to mess around a couple of times, so it won’t be long before we’re recording another record.

Caleb (HTFAF): When should we expect a new Long Winters record?

John Roderick: Well as you may have noticed, we aren’t the kind of band that frantically records a record every year. We’ll do it when we’re ready, and we’ll probably take our time doing it. When we formed this band it was with the idea that we’d all try to maintain some semblance of a normal, interesting life outside of music, and that means we try to take time off when we can and enjoy ourselves doing other things.

Caleb (HTFAF): The band has always had a bit of a revolving line up with the exception of you and Eric [Corson, the band's long-time bassist] When we talk about the Long Winters who are we actually referring to these days?

John Roderick: Well, that revolving line-up thing is part of what makes the band fun for us. It’s a long time from now until we’ll actually make our record, let alone tour again, so it’s really impossible to say who’ll be involved. The band line-up hasn’t changed since you saw us last, but Eric might decide to become a ninja assassin in the next two months and then I’d have egg on my face.

Caleb (HTFAF): You were a history major if my research is indeed accurate. How does history apply to fronting an Indie Rock band?

John Roderick: Well, it doesn’t really, which is the nice thing about it. It’s good to diversify. I have a lot of friends who have never really heard my band, or who don’t like rock music. They sit around and do math problems and are crazier than David Lee Roth. Indie rock was sort of
an accident for me, but it’s been a great and rewarding accident.

Caleb (HTFAF): How was it an accident?

John Roderick: Well, I didn’t set out to be a “real” musician, I just wrote songs for my own pleasure. If it wasn’t for my friends helping me and pushing me I never would have made a record in the first place, and I was 32 before the first Long Winters record was released. That makes me feel pretty lucky.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you think some lucky fresh-faced punks in Washington will have a grizzly old Prof. Roderick teaching their History Lecture twenty years down the road?

John Roderick: That would be great! I actually got a letter today from a former student of mine who’s now a dentist, so there you go. But being a college professor involves a lot of corporate politicking that sucks, frankly. One of the great things about the music business is that, whatever other bullshit you have to deal with, at least people aren’t sanctimonious. If they expect you to kiss their ass, they’ll tell you upfront. At the universities there’s all this rank and class that really chafes if you’re at all non-conformist.

Caleb (HTFAF): Are you still teaching now?

John Roderick: No, I haven’t been doing any college-type stuff in several years now.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there life after Indie Rock or do you just go until everyone thinks you’re too old and then start producing records?

John Roderick: Well, that’s the standard model, but I’m already 39 and no one seems to care. Actually, there are many, many indie rockers in their forties who keep getting shag haircuts and pretending to be 26 with varying degrees of success, but pretending to be young has always struck me as the most boring lie a person can tell. I’ve always talked and acted like a 60 year old man, so I’ve got nowhere to go but up! There’s absolutely a life after indie rock. It’s even possible to have a life concurrent with indie rock, unlikely as it may sound.
Plus, I totally can’t wait to start producing records! [laughter]

Caleb (HTFAF): You look pretty good for 39, what’s the secret? Lots of groupies and heroin milkshakes?

John Roderick: There are 25 year-olds who are already middle-aged and bitter, and there are 50 year-olds who are exciting and vibrant. It’s all about positive mental attitude. Some of the “big names” in indie rock are a lot older than you think, and a lot older than me, but you’d never know because the creative lives they lead keep them young.

Caleb (HTFAF): Last year you announced the creation of a documentary about The Long Winters called Through With Love was being made by Dorsia Films. Is that ever going to come out?

John Roderick: I’m not making the documentary, so I can’t really say. If I was making the documentary it would be called, “The John Roderick Story: Elegance Personified” and it would focus on my clarinet playing and my art collection. The guys who are actually making the documentary seem to be focusing on my unpaid parking tickets and pending lawsuits, so who knows when they’ll ever finish?

Caleb (HTFAF): Well, for what it’s worth I would totally buy Elegance Personified if you wanted to move ahead with that.

John Roderick: That, or “Dance Party Weekend”.

Caleb (HTFAF): Pushover is clearly among the five best pop songs of the century. That’s not a question, it’s a statement.

John Roderick: That’s very nice of you, but it’s still only 2007. There’s 93 years left in the century, so I think it’s too early to tell. One thing we can be sure of is that indie rock will still be the dominant musical form a hundred years from now.

Caleb (HTFAF): Only they’ll be fresh-faced kids touring in 15 passenger hover crafts, right?

John Roderick: No! They’ll be 140 year-olds playing Indie Rock in hyperbolic chambers.

Caleb (HTFAF): What do you do between touring and recording cycles? Do you get a day job or just become a hermit and write mournful songs of woe all day?

John Roderick: Just the mournful songs of woe part. I just bought an old farm house, so I’ve been working on that quite a bit, and kittens keep showing up on my doorstep. I’ve got cats living under the house and in the barn. I’m a hermit by nature so it’s nice to have my own place.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you let the cats in or just emerge in a smoking jacket to throw them table scraps twice a day?

John Roderick: I don’t feed those mangy mongrels from my table! As if!

Caleb (HTFAF): What’s the nicest thing about living in Seattle?

John Roderick: Seattle’s one of the nicest small cities anywhere in the world, and I say that having been to many of the small cities of the world. It has a nice climate, it’s easy to negotiate, the people are a little stand-offish but friendly, and it’s close to the mountains and the ocean. It’s everything good about civilization.

Caleb (HTFAF): What is the most memorable thing that has ever happened to you on tour?

John Roderick: That’s almost an impossible question, since every tour has at least one moment a day that’s completely unbelievable. Touring is a bizarre life, and even a moderately successful rock band gets exposed to levels of weirdness and insanity that it’s impossible to
categorize.

Caleb (HTFAF): Any particular ones you’d like to recall?

John Roderick: I enjoy recalling them all the time, but there are none I choose to
RELATE.

Caleb (HTFAF): What are your favorite venues to play?

John Roderick: The Showbox in Seattle, Filmore in SF, Bowery in NYC, Paradiso in Amsterdam, Doug Fir in Portland, etc. There are lots of great venues in the world. We used to do tours where we were playing in some real dumps that smelled like bleach and vomit, but these days the worst we get is stale beer and toilet cakes.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is that on your tour rider? “Buyer must provide a performance space which does not smell of bleach and vomit. Stale beer & toilet cakes are an acceptable combination, however.”

John Roderick: If you put that on your rider you can almost guarantee they puke in
your dressing room just to spite you.

Caleb (HTFAF): Who is your favorite band to have toured with?

John Roderick: Another impossible question. We’ve been lucky to have done plenty of tours with our friends, and we’ve never had a tour where we didn’t like the other bands. How do compare opening for Keane in Paris in front of ten thousand screaming French girls to eating 4AM Chinese food in Montreal with Menomena? Or standing onstage watching Shellac in Barcelona with David Bazan and Will Johnson? All these guys are dear to my heart, and the experiences we’ve had together are unduplicatable.

Caleb (HTFAF): Time for fast money -

Who would you like to tour with?

John Roderick: Neil Young.

Caleb (HTFAF): What have you been listening to?

John Roderick: Oldies radio

Caleb (HTFAF): Last movie you saw?

John Roderick: No Country for Old Men

Caleb (HTFAF): Last book you read?

John Roderick: Flaubert in Egypt

Caleb (HTFAF): What are you doing Friday night?

John Roderick: Shagging.

+++++

[Links]
The Long Winters
Barsuk Records

A Conversation with John Vanderslice

John Vanderslice might very well be the nicest guy in Indie Rock. This interview will read a bit different than my usual “conversations,” because it took place twice and over four different sessions because of a slip-up (I deleted the thing) on my part. While I was freaking out and apologizing profusely for my goof, John was reassuring me and shrugging it off like some sort of really cool and talented little-league coach (Thanks John!).

Besides making amazing records of his own, JV owns Tiny Telephone Studios, where amazing records are constantly and consistently churned out by people like Beulah, Deerhoof, Death Cab, Get Him! Eat Him!, Mates of State, Jolie Holland, The Mountain Goats, Spoon, and many many more. John is on tour, and his shows are pretty spectacular events; you can find those dates and plan your trip accordingly here. You can buy his amazing and newly released record, Emerald City, here.

Caleb (HTFAF): Hey John!

JV: Hey Caleb!

Caleb (HTFAF): Emerald City has been out for a little bit now, and there seems to be a bit of a different sound from your lat few efforts, would you say that’s true?

JV: Well, Emerald City is very different because it’s the first true band record i’ve made. My band (Dave Douglas, Ian Bjornstad and
David Broecker) and Scott Solter [Who engineered] were the only people who played and gave me input, and my records have always been very open ended as far as who plays. They played almost everything actually: I tried to limit my tracking to vocals and acoustic guitar only, we recorded almost all the basic tracks live and that was very new for me! Also, this record was very quickly made for me.

Caleb (HTFAF): How quickly are we talking?

JV: This was the fastest record yet, maybe 20 days in the studio total.

Caleb (HTFAF): I noticed the acoustic guitar gets a weird treatment on a lot of the record, sort of distorted, and the album as a whole is a bit more percussive than previous efforts. Was that a conscious thing?

JV: Oh yeah! Chalk that up for a victory for tube distortion: most of that is from a 1940’s made Bogen PA head that was probably used in a roller rink.

Caleb (HTFAF): I understand the title of the record is a bit of a political one.

JV: Yeah, Emerald City’s title comes from the green zone in baghdad, it’s what I guess would be considered a slang term for such. We’re building a billion dollar embassy there, we will never leave.
Caleb (HTFAF): You seem to pay a lot of attention to the middle east, there were a few songs on Pixel Revolt that dealt directly with it, and this record has a few references to 9/11 along with the title. Has this always been the case?

JV: Yeah, even since my old band MK Ultra. I don’t believe the Bible, but I do believe the end of the world will start here.

Caleb (HTFAF): You gained some big love from bloggers a while back for speaking out on the power of blogs vs. print media, a subject that is on a lot of peoples brains and blogs lately. Following that path a bit: what are your feelings on the current state of major record labels?

JV: Well actually I used to be a scout for Columbia records, which was an amazing job: as you do almost nothing for $125 a week plus expenses. No one listens to what you send
in and that was even better. I had a fabulous boss, really sweet and cool. It was common that some of the high-level A&R people there would get print-outs of emails. When they got them, rather than writing a repsonse or just deleting them, they would dictate a response to someone who was getting paid to email the person back. When i saw that it thought: these guys are fucked! I wonder how much longer people will be able to put out cd’s. Will this be the last Christmas for cd’s? Who knows, but it’s certainly moving that direction and very fast.
Caleb (HTFAF): Do you think there is a future for the independent record store and label, or do you think it will ultimately all crumble?

JV: Oh no, anyone who’s providing an intellectual service (as tastemaker, editor, compiler, etc.) will thrive in the age of the internet. By thrive i mean, they’ll get a lot of attention, they won’t necessarily make a lot of money.
Caleb (HTFAF): You’re hitting the road again this fall, as a blogger I see a lot of tour dates and venue names. Do you have any favorite venues to play?

JV: Kraftbrau Brewery – Kalamazoo, MI. Modified – Phoenix. Kilby Court – Salt Lake City. Cafe 11 – St Augustine. Gosh, now that I think about it there are dozens.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there a specific show that sticks out in your mind as your best?

JV: Yes actually, and it happened somewhat recently. Modified in phoenix during the spring of this year. We played with st vincent and it was just a great show. We got our pizza delivery guy on stage, played in a dusty desert parking lot for the last song, it’s just great. It’s all on youtube, there are dozens of shows i could think of but why not list that one? it felt perfect.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there a show you witnessed as an audience member that sticks out?

JV: Oh yes. Radiohead on the OK Computer tour. It literally changed the way I saw music.

Caleb (HTFAF): I know you’re a bit of an analog junkie. Do you have a favorite piece of gear?

JV: Right now it’s my bogen tube mic pre, rebuilt by skip simmons.
Caleb (HTFAF): Do you think the advent of cheap digital recording is harmful for young bands?

JV: Not at all. Cheap audio gear is good for creative people no matter what, anyone can make good sounding records on shitty gear and anyone can make the opposite. That doesn’t mean i don’t have a taste for very expensive analog stuff, though.

Caleb (HTFAF): If you could give one piece of advice to the aspiring indie rock stars of the world what would it be?

JV: I would have to give them four, sorry.

1. Use a wheel and tire lock when you park your van on tour. if you get a trailer, get one for that too.
2. If you like your own work, you’re on the right path. Don’t worry how long it takes to get others behind you, that might happen at the last second, like on your death bed!
3. Google “ROTH IRA”
4. Collect tons of gear.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there a project that has come through Tiny Telephone that you would call your favorite?

JV: The Granfaloon Bus record, “good funeral weather”, that was done in 1999 by Greg Freeman. It was the first record that captured the potential of the studio, it’s a truly wonderful and under-appreciated record.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there anyone you would really love to work with that you have yet to work with?

JV: Oh God yes, hundreds of people. Silver jews, Destroyer, and Midlake are probably at the top of that list.

Caleb (HTFAF): In the same breath, have you written any songs that you’re particularly proud of?

JV: Yeah, a few. Up Above the Sea, The Mansion, Keep the Dream Alive, The Golden Gate, Grand Canyon (MK Ultra)

Caleb (HTFAF): A really cheesy and common interview question that s thrown around way too causally is “What records changed your life?” Are there any records that you would say actually changed the way you thought about, wrote, played, or listened to music?

JV: Definitely. In the Aeroplane over the sea [Neutral Milk Hotel], Doolittle [The Pixies], Takes a Nation…[Public Enemy], and Drums and Wires [XTC].
Caleb (HTFAF): How much longer do you think you’ll be making John Vanderslice records? Do you have a retirement goal, or would you eventually like to solely work with other people?

JV: Forever! I’d love to be touring until i’m 70. My retirement goal is to not be poor, and you KNOW the US government isn’t going to be helping anyone after a few more years.

Caleb (HTFAF): I hope you’re up on your daytime game shows, or this will be lost on you but it is now time for what I like to call the fast money round.

JV: Excellent.

Caleb (HTFAF): What is the last film you saw?

JV: 20,000 leagues under the sea, on Turner Classic Movies last night. It was amazing!

Caleb (HTFAF): What are you listening to?

JV: Lots of radio lately: Studio 360, Le Show, This American Life

Caleb (HTFAF): What was the last book you read?

JV: The Lonely Planet guide to Coastal California

Caleb (HTFAF): What are you excited about?

JV: The new PT Anderson film!

Caleb (HTFAF): I’m all done, thanks so much John.

JV: No problem, thank you!

+++

[mp3] John Vanderslice – White Dove
[mp3] John Vanderslice – Numbered Lithograph
[mp3] John Vanderslice – Trance Manual

See live performances of every song on Emerald City via John’s video blog tour.

Buy JV records at insound.

A Conversation with Will Johnson

photo by Matt Pence

Will Johnson is a prolific and unique songwriter, who (though he’s originally from Missouri) fits well in Austin, the cultural hearth of Texas, and Denton, where he studied literature and now puts down tracks for his numerous musical projects. Johnson has compiled an impressive body of work as the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for Centro-Matic (often referred to as one of the hardest working — and best — live bands in the US) and South San Gabriel, and has also found fit to put out a couple of excellent, melancholy solo records. Johnson took some time between touring with Centro-Matic in Europe and leaving for a vacation to sit down and talk to me about baseball, why being in a band for more than a decade is like marriage, and the correlation between Toby Keith and the devil. Below, following a few mp3’s from across his range of projects, is a conversation with Johnson from June 15, 2007.

[mp3] Centro-Matic – Biology Tricks
[mp3] Will Johnson – Your Bulldozer
[mp3] Centro-Matic – Huge in Every City
[mp3] South San Gabriel – New Brookland
[mp3] Will Johnson (with Undertow Orchestra) – Closing Down My House
[mp3] Centro-Matic – Take a Rake

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): How are things going? Enjoying being back from the stint in Spain?

Will Johnson: Things are pretty good. Did four shows there — long enough to shake off the jetlag, then turn around and come home. Very sweet crowds and encouraging folks. Great weather, too. Starting a short vacation tomorrow with my girlfriend.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): How did you end up in Spain? Have you guys toured there before?

Will Johnson: We’ve toured there several times over the last couple of years. We worked out a deal with Houston Party Records there, about two years ago. That’s resulted in a couple of Centro-Matic stops there, a South San Gabriel tour, and a couple of short solo tours. It’s been pretty good territory for us in a fairly short amount of time, so that’s had us over there pretty frequently. Our label’s done great work there.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Are there other bits of Europe you plan to hit up in the coming years?

Will Johnson: I said “there” too much.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): [laughter] I thought it was a good answer. I’ll just do a find and replace function search, and find “there” and replace it with “you asshole.”

Will Johnson: That was funny. “You asshole” is always a great replacement.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): “So that’s had us over, you asshole, pretty frequently”?

Will Johnson: At any rate, in answer to your question: We’ve toured Europe on and off for the last seven years or so. Started mostly in Holland, Belgium, Germany and the UK, and more recently has included visits to Switzerland, Austria, Spain and Portugal.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): This is along the lines of something I wanted to ask: You guys are getting close to the 1,000 show mark together, is that about accurate?

Will Johnson: I think so, though I haven’t counted that up recently.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): That’s Bob’s job.

Will Johnson: I hope we didn’t miss it.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Are there any that stand out, for any reason, as exceptionally good or exceptionally bad? Not your performance, per se, but circumstances or context combined to make a particularly memorable show?

Will Johnson: Well, there’s both. Some nights can really surprise you, y’know? In the best of ways. Then there’s that SSG [South San Gabriel] show in Paris a couple of years ago, which was just a phenomenal kick in the nuts. You can never get too full on the great shows, because there always seems to be that one show, or shows, that just brings everything right back down to Earth.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What brought the SSG rocket burning back into orbit in Paris?

Will Johnson: It was during all the riots and fires in October ‘05, so the city was already pretty volatile. Throw in an un-promoted weeknight show at a fairly large and inappropriate venue, then things get even weirder. I think there were about nine people there, three of which cared. Our load-out that night was just unstoppable. Completely efficient and fast.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): And I bet you did it all by yourselves, too.

Will Johnson: Yeah. No help needed.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): As a geographer, I have to ask, Are there any cities that you’re usually excited to play, or cities that you really look forward to visiting on tour? Or do you feel like you get much sense of a city just going in and playing, or do you get to spend time there and get to know it?

Will Johnson: It’s always nice when there’s a little extra time to explore and see the offerings of a city. Admittedly, after a lot of years of touring, a little of the romance wears off, especially here in the US. But you know, there’s always something new to check out. As for US cities, San Francisco, Seattle, and New York are always superb to hang in. For Europe, Barcelona, Brussels, Amsterdam and the north of Spain and Portugal are always stunning. I feel lucky to get to visit ‘em so much.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What bands have been really great to tour with in the past?

Will Johnson: We’ve made some good friends over the course of tours. Drive-By Truckers, My Morning Jacket, Long Winters and Bobby Bare Jr., to name a few. Dave Doughman, Scout Niblett and Great Lake Swimmers to name a couple more.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I’m kicking myself for missing a Bobby Bare show earlier this week.

Will Johnson: He’s a good egg. And somethin’ else to tour with. There’s only one Bobby.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Except there are two, in this case, because he’s a junior.

Will Johnson: Good point. But he’s cutting his own beautiful and unique path. A lot like his pop in many ways from what I can tell, though.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): That guy kicked my ass all over the venue when I saw him live.

Will Johnson: He has great hair and robust eyes.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): And gets on stage barefoot.

Will Johnson: He did half a tour in a neck brace two years ago. He’s a warrior. I was out opening solo for him.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So those are the bands you enjoyed touring with …

Will Johnson: Definitely. Also, John Vanderslice, American Music Club, the Sleepy Jackson. All really good peeps to tour with. We’ve been pretty lucky in that most everyone we’ve toured with, we’ve gotten along with. There’s been the occasional one-off with less savory people, though, but that’s bound to happen.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So you just recently toured with Undertow colleague, HTFAF namesake, and all around renaissance man David Bazan … in a Subaru Outback. How did that go, and do you have any good Will and Dave in a Subaru stories?

Will Johnson: Yeah. Was a really fun couple of weeks. Low maintenance and very enjoyable. We’ve had good tours together before, so there’s not really any guesswork, y’know? We got pretty into listening to This American Life episodes, the occasional theological discussion, and playing some CDs. Nothing too crazy. We saw the Girls Gone Wild bus in downtown Madison [Wisconsin].

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Did you guys decide definitively whether or not the devil exists?

Will Johnson: We agree on the idea that the devil does not exist … or maybe his name is Toby Keith?

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I would vote for Toby Keith being the devil … Madison is a fantastic town, and seems like a strange destination for Girls Gone Wild.

Will Johnson: No man. Upper-Midwestern girls gotta get their wild on sometime.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): [laughter] Going with the Bazan thing, I have to ask: Will there be another Undertow Orchestra?

Will Johnson: I really hope so. It may take shape in a different form, but I would love for the four of us [Johnson, Bazan, Mark Eitzel and Vic Chesnutt] to somehow play together again at some point. That first tour we did unquestionably holds some of the most fun memories I have of touring. And maybe it was just the honeymoon-like newness and uncertainty of it all. And the ease with which we all got along, just right outta the gates. I feel like it’s all too good to just let go and not revisit, in some form, again.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Can you narrow it down to a good Undertow Orchestra story out of many?

Will Johnson: Well, there’s the time that Vic told his story of taking 40 hits of acid all at once, then sitting in his house, mostly motionless for five days straight.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): HOLY SHIT.

Will Johnson: That story still really kills me. I laugh just at the thought of it. Apparently he could hear the phone ringing, and people knocking at his door, but he just couldn’t move to answer either one of ‘em.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Man. When did you hear that one? In Athens during the week of UO practice?

Will Johnson: He told us that story on the way into Chicago. I’m glad I wasn’t driving for all the tears streaming down my face.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Back to Centro-Matic and SSG, you guys have been together for about 12 years now … ?

Will Johnson: Centro-Matic’s been going for about twelve years now, and SSG for about six.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What’s it like working with the same guys for that length of time? Do you feel more like co-workers now, or still like good friends? Is there an easiness about what you do onstage or in the studio because you’re so familiar with each other’s abilities and talents?

Will Johnson: Both, in some ways. I think the fact that we’ve kept our friendships at the forefront, and that we were all friends before playing together, has made us pretty good co-workers. We read off of each other well, and keep simple communication very much at the forefront, which inevitably has added longevity to our bands. It’s also lead to a certain comfort level both onstage and in the studio.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So what prompted establishing SSG? First it was a Centro-Matic album [South San Gabriel Songs/Music], but were there already plans to take it in it’s own direction? What makes it unique, for you, compared to CM?

Will Johnson: There came a point in early 2001 where we occasionally found ourselves divided on what kind of show we wanted to play with Centro-Matic. Some wanted to make the whole presentation more rock, and sometimes there was a tendency to want to focus on a much more subdued and quiet set. There was one night in particular here in Austin, where Matt [Pence, Centro-Matic drummer and producer] and I differed on set-list choices, so we kinda figured instead of arguing about it, let’s just form a new band to focus on the quieter material. So that’s where and when SSG was formed. We decided to make it more of a collective, with no real set membership, and presentable in different forms. It created a whole new way for us to enjoy playing together, and sort of solidified Centro-Matic’s identity in the process.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): That’s incredibly diplomatic and progressive.

Will Johnson: I feel like it represents what our friendships have kinda been about all along.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Along with the subdued thing, there seems to be a more electronic component associated with SSG, too … I mean, Centro-Matic is, I think, pretty expansive in its sound while at the same time being pretty straightforward.

Will Johnson: Definitely. More strings, organs. More space, really [in SSG].

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Just out of curiosity, where’d the name Centro-Matic come from?

Will Johnson: It’s the model name of an accordion I own. Made by the Lira Company out of Italy.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Can you play it?

Will Johnson: I can play part of “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” on it.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I think that’s pretty much all you need.

Will Johnson: It has been so far.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I’d be satisfied if I could rock that.

Will Johnson: It’s a cool instrument, but it’s ornery.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Moving away from the more band-centric questions, what’s your creative process like? You’re known to be pretty prolific, so how do you know when a song is “finished,” or when it belongs on a record?

Will Johnson: Well, there are some ideas and songs that are just turds out of the gate. But even still, I think it’s good practice to constantly work with words and melody. I’ll write in batches typically, so there may not be anything written for a good while. But then maybe we’ll get home and get the chores done, then fire up the recording gear for three or four days in a row. That’s when most stuff gets written, and the worthy ideas start to surface amongst the heap. We’ll discuss ‘em, even vote on ‘em, as a band, and then explore recording them more formally from there.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So the recording process is pretty intertwined with the writing process?

Will Johnson: Not particularly. I’ll usually write here at home and record versions to the four track, then we’ll convene up in north Texas, pick songs and start recording. Only lately have I finished a few songs in the studio, and that may be because I’m lazy; I don’t know.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Can you name a few bands or artists that influence you musically, e.g., your guitar playing? And how about lyrically?

Will Johnson: It’s a pretty deep well, but going back to childhood the voices and visions that really caught me were people like Johnny Cash, Neil Young, Willie, Aretha, Bread … later on it was the Replacements, Hüsker Dü and some of the SST bands. A lot of blues players have influenced my guitar playing in recent years, even though we’re way removed from that genre. It’s just the approach of switching from pick to fingers that I really dig. As for lyrical influence, lots of writers have played into that. I studied lit so it was fairly inevitable. Faulkner, Pancake, Welty, Updike and Larry Brown are just a few.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I noticed the switching from pick to fingers thing; I like the dynamic and sound that that produces.

Will Johnson: I just started doing that five or six years ago, but it feels pretty natural.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Would you say your songs are a mix of the autobiographical and fictional? Your solo records seem to lean more towards the personal to me, while Centro-Matic records seem to encompass all sorts of surreal stories and characters.

Will Johnson: Yeah, I sort of see it as being that way. At least so far. The CM lyrics can be a little more angular and playful. And oftentimes a song will contain both autobiographical and fictional subject matter.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Are there any specific songs or records that you’re most proud of, or pleased with?

Will Johnson: I like the SSG [The] Carlton [Chronicles] record pretty well, and mostly because expectations were so cloudy going into that recording. The musicians had never heard any of the songs prior to getting together, so there were really no preconceptions. They knew it was a story about a cat and that’s all. We listened to the four-track version of it on the first day, and I sort of explained the story via a lyric sheet handout. Then we cooked up a bunch of chicken and just started recording. We recorded it in the order of the story, which I think helped it come to life. And everyone’s performances were pretty spontaneous, which is why I dig the fail/succeed nature of recording like that.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So it’s more rewarding because it was more risky.

Will Johnson: Definitely. I feel like everyone’s contributions on that record came out really well, and under uncertain circumstances. I feel like it bred a good deal of confidence in our recording process.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I think that’s a cool concept: That you’re able to take what you’ve learned, not just technically, but confidence-wise, into the next record, so every record sort of builds on the last one … it seems like a simple observation, but it also seems to really fit with the way you guys have decided to make music together.

Will Johnson: I think each experience can help make the next unique, even after making so many records together. It’s pretty simple: if the musicians aren’t interested, then you get an uninteresting result. It’s all a path of learning, sharing and enjoying a life together, really. Not much different than being married.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): This is totally off topic, but I’ve noticed that there seems to be a sort of snobbery in some music scenes towards sport … but you’re an unabashed Cardinals fan, and occasionally write about baseball on your web page … what’s your connection to St. Louis, and to baseball?

Will Johnson: I was born in Kennett, Missouri. Lived there until I was 12 and was sort of raised on the Cards. Lotsa trips up to the old Busch [Stadium] as a kid, and of course the Ozzie Smith-as-idol factor. Baseball’s always been a pretty big part of my life (with the exception of the punk rock years, when I guess I was too cool for it). I’m too old for that kinda snobbery now, and even as I have some issues with professional athletes’ behavior sometimes, I still feel like the game itself is pastoral, poetic and flawless. It’s beautiful no matter what level it’s played on.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I had a really similar experience, regarding the punk rock years.

Will Johnson: Yeah, my stats recollection during the mid-80’s is pretty cloudy … All I wanted to do was skate, smoke bugler’s and drink Milwaukee’s Best (…) I was divided. I was pretty good at music and sports as a kid. I got along with both groups somehow.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I definitely think that, removed from all [the legitimate critiques of professional sports], there’s a really cool aesthetic to setting two groups of people against each other and making them adhere to a certain set or rules. Life is rarely as clearly delineated.

Will Johnson: Baseball and hoops were my two strongest I think. Got crushed in football.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What position in baseball?

Will Johnson: Shortstop. Again, the Ozzie factor. Sometimes third.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): I love infield.

Will Johnson: It kept me very awake.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): So what are the current plans for the next album (Centro-Matic, SSG, or solo)? And any plans for upcoming tours?

Will Johnson: We’ve got two new records tracked. Centro-Matic and SSG, both of which we plan to release together as a double-LP set early next year. Centro-Matic does a couple of weeks in the Midwest and South with our friend, Jason Isbell in August, and I’m planning on doing a solo run or two before the year’s up.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Ok, here goes lightning round so you can go do lunch. What are you reading?

Will Johnson: Chemistry and Other Stories, by Ron Rash.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What are you listening to?

Will Johnson: Tres Monos in Love by PPT, an amazing hip-hop group from Dallas.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What movies/shows have you enjoyed lately?

Will Johnson: Beerfest. Cardinals/Tigers World Series DVD set. The Break-Up. 30 Rock. Big Love. The Accountant. Also, Roky Erickson documentary: You’re Gonna Miss Me.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What pisses you off?

Will Johnson: What pisses me off? People that assume that just because one doesn’t make a lot of money must inevitably mean that one isn’t that smart. It’s class racism, and it’s everywhere.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): What makes you feel all nice?

Will Johnson: Polvo’s margaritas. Rumor is they throw a little dash of everclear in ‘em.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Can you give me five favorite records, any genre?

Will Johnson: AC/DC, Back in Black; Neil Young, Tonight’s the Night; the Replacements, Let it Be; Harry Smith’s Anthology of American Folk Music box set; Nina Simone at Carnegie Hall (Live). Just a couple off the top of my head … That’s the toughest question so far.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Last good ethnic food meal?

Will Johnson: Seafood paella right on the harbor in Barcelona.

Morgan Neely (HTFAF): Excellent. All right Will, it’s been a pleasure. Thanks a whole lot.

Will Johnson: This has been good times. Thanks, man. Talk to you soon.

[Links]
Centro-Matic is Will Johnson, Scott Danbom, Mark Hedman, and Matt Pence
Buy Centro-Matic, Will Johnson, and South San Gabriel records
Houston Party Records
Misra Records

A Conversation With Andrew Kenny

American Analog Set is sort of a big deal. For over a decade they’ve made music that’s incredibly respected by fans and artists alike. Most people consider them to be pioneers of the Lo-Fi/Indie Pop sound that they so effortlessly mastered, and frankly I still can’t get enough of them after all this time. I count Know By Heart as one of my ten favorite albums ever (and I own a lot of albums), and consider frontman/singer/songwriter/guitarist Andrew Kenny to be one of my favorite songwriters ever so this was really a treat for me. The band is on a hiatus of sorts right now, and has been for about two years — which made for an ample opportunity for me to sit down with Andrew and talk about music.

[mp3] American Analog Set – Born on the Cusp
[mp3] American Analog Set – She’s Half
[mp3] American Analog Set – Aaron & Maria

Caleb (HTFAF) : Hey Andrew, thanks for doing this.

Andrew Kenny: Sure thing, how are you?

Caleb (HTFAF): Quite well, yourself?

Andrew Kenny: I’m gonna make it.

Caleb (HTFAF): So I get the impression that AmAnSet is sort of in a weird perpetual state of hibernation over the last few years. Would this be accurate? I mean I’ve read all the announcements but would you care to explain to the good readers what’s going on with you guys right now?

Andrew Kenny: Yeah, I think that’s always been the case in a way. The first two albums were a year apart, but every record since has been at least two years apart. That being said, we don’t have a record coming out in the fall of ‘07 so this time it’s definitely different. We’re not touring so there’s no real pressure to release a record or stay on the road.
We’ve talked about recording again; I was in Austin last month for a wedding and we [Andrew, Lee, and Mark: The American Analog Set] played a few songs at the reception for fun. Even before that we were about making another record in Austin. Chris Michaels, who helped us record Set Free, just moved his studio to Austin so that’s going to be the spot for sure. I definitely feel like it’s time to shake things up again.

Caleb (HTFAF): Very cool, this makes me happy to hear!

Andrew Kenny: Me too, I’m a big fan of our little band.

Caleb (HTFAF): I suppose that’s an important thing …

Andrew Kenny: Yeah, it’s overlooked I think, but I believe it to be very important.

Caleb (HTFAF): Ya know, it might not be a bad idea to keep doing that wedding thing: I hear they pay nice. You guys should learn some covers and come up with a cool name like “The Best Men” or something.

Andrew Kenny: [Laughter] Totally! Actually I’ve got another lined up for September. But I should say that these are both people in our family.
My toast was something like: “Suzanne, you are always the most beautiful woman in the room and yet you chose John, and we dig that about you. John, you like really inappropriate wedding reception music and we dig that about you, thanks for having us. Cheers!” I mean, the songs just aren’t very happy, although we had some people dancing during Born on the Cusp.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] Nice! I think Aaron and Maria would be a fitting wedding song, you could just change the “no one gives a fuck” line to something a little happier and more wedding-oriented.

Andrew Kenny: I thought about that one!!

Caleb (HTFAF):So besides booking and doing press for the American Analog Wedding Band do you have a day job?

Andrew Kenny: Well, my “trade” or whatever is biology; I’m a lab tech. But when I got back from our last tour a year and a half ago I started working for my sister-in-law’s company. She and her man sell iPod accessories and handbags and I run their office for them.
So, I’m not a biologist right now and have no idea how I’m going to put my career back together.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you think iPod accessories and handbag sales will find their way into the next record’s songs?

Andrew Kenny: God, i hope not.

Caleb (HTFAF): Have you been writing any since Set Free?

Andrew Kenny: I didn’t for a while, I was really worn out after that record and it’s subsequent touring— we got back right at the end of 2005 and I got married the following summer, [and] I only demoed one song that whole time. Last summer I got the wind back in my sails a bit though, and I got my small home studio put together again. I started working on songs that I knew wouldn’t be AmAnSet songs and recorded those songs this spring. I hope to be done in a few months. I also started playing in a friend’s band called Ola Podrida here in Brooklyn as well. I’m really just trying to get them all completed [the songs] and remain proud of them. I’ll pass them around when they’re done though.

Caleb (HTFAF): Sounds great, I had no idea you were involved in Ola!

Andrew Kenny: Yep! i joined up last fall.

Caleb (HTFAF): How did this happen?

Andrew Kenny: David passed his CD around last year to a bunch of friends and said, “Honestly.. I need a lanky, mysterious, bass player that can sing a lot of falsetto harmonies.”
So Lee sent me his old bass, the Thunderbird he played in the AmAnSet for so long, and I joined up.

Caleb (HTFAF): Awesome, that is a pretty magical way to join a band!

Andrew Kenny: Yeah, it’s a good story, so you’ve heard the Ola record?

Caleb (HTFAF): I have yeah, I like it a lot. Did you play on the record?

Andrew Kenny: Oh no, that record was more or less completed before we ever spoke about it. I just “operate” the bass if you know what I mean [laughter].

Caleb (HTFAF): [laughter] I do know. Do you do the old Walkman behind the amp trick?

Andrew Kenny: Totally! With a smoke machine, that’s the “mysterious” part: “Why is only one person in the smoke?”

Caleb (HTFAF): [laughter]

Andrew Kenny: Yeah that’s the mystery.

Caleb (HTFAF): I’ll look forward to seeing that. I’m gonna see you guys open for Apostle of Hustle at Schubas in Chicago this summer.

Andrew Kenny: Oh, cool! I think Whiteman really figured something out on this record,
both in songwriting and in production: they’re both stepped up and married a lot better.

Caleb (HTFAF): Getting back to you guys, is there a particular AmAnSet song you enjoy more than others?

Andrew Kenny: Well, I think the songs we took with us on the last tour were the road tested “best of the best” so to speak. I don’t think I have any one favorite, although I really like the way She’s Half turned out.

Caleb (HTFAF): That IS a great one.

Andrew Kenny: I played in Mexico City last weekend, at this festival and She’s Half was the only song I had to end up bailing on. A word of advice: if you are ever in Mexico City in front of 1000 or so people that REALLY want to see The Dears but there’s about four to five hundred people up front that are pretty jazzed that you’re there: just stick to the upbeat stuff.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] Thanks for the advice, ’cause there’s a great chance I’ll end up in that situation someday.

Andrew Kenny: I led that crowd into a dark, dark forest with no bread crumbs on the trail back. “Kenny… where’s the crowd?” I LOST the crowd.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] So there are lots of Indie-rock fans in Mexico?

Andrew Kenny: Oh man … I was shocked. Myspace and blogging have totally turned that scene on it’s ear.

Caleb (HTFAF): It’s always so strange to me when I see pictures of like … Broken Social Scene playing in Scandinavia or something and there are like 1000 little Scandinavian Indie kids singing along. I guess it’s just weird to get used to, that this whole little scene has such a reach now. It’s super cool though, that’s for sure.

Andrew Kenny: Totally. Even five or six years ago it was still kinda taboo to sing in English, I’d love to go back with a whole band … and some bread crumbs just in case.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] Did you consider doing a mariachi set with some locals? That could have worked nicely.

Andrew Kenny: Oh man, I always get the jeebies with they stand behind you at a restaurant.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] They’re pretty fearless, those guys. They thrive on playing to confused and unexpecting crowds … sort of like playing at a Mexican Indie rock festival would feel I guess.

Andrew Kenny: Exactly.

Caleb (HTFAF): Okay, time to play fast money.

Andrew Keny: Nice!

Caleb (HTFAF): What are you listening to lately?

Andrew Kenny: The new Feist album, The Reminder; Clipse’s Hell Hath No Fury; Phoenix’s album, It’s Never Been Like That; The White Birch’s Star is just a Sun; and Patton Oswalt, Werewolves & Lollipops.

Caleb (HTFAF): What was the last book you read, and do you have a favorite book?

Andrew Kenny: The last book I read was Chris Leo’s “57 Octaves.”
Man this is lame but my favorite is probably something like “The Giving Tree” or some worldly-wisdom-in-a-kids’-book kinda deals…strategy guides for video games don’t count probably, huh?

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter] No, I don’t think so.

Andrew Kenny: Yeah … you’re gonna hate, huh?

Caleb (HTFAF): What was the last film you saw?

Andrew Kenny: In the theater I saw Great World of Sound; if you don’t know what that is, I’m not going to say anything about it because I don’t want to slant you one way or another…but you should see it. Gosh, other than that we’ve been doing the Arrested Development season DVDs.

Caleb (HTFAF): Oh wow, you’re an Arrested Development fan?

Andrew Kenny: I am now. When it was over I felt sad and embarrassed that I didn’t watch when it was around.

Caleb (HTFAF): In all the years of American Analog set if you had to choose one memory as your fondest, what would it be and why?

Andrew Kenny: Whenever I think back, the first thing I think of is that everyone that makes music should get to be in one of their favorite bands or they should get to make music for a decade or more with their best friends. I got to do both and I feel pretty fortunate. That’s hell of lame, huh?

Caleb (HTFAF): Not at all, I shed a single tear just now.

Andrew Kenny: [Laughter]

Caleb (HTFAF): Yeah, just the one: two would be excessive, but that was touching.
So there is no official time table or “Hey we should start then” for anything American Analog Set-related, correct?
Cause if not I’ll just make something up like “American Analog set will release a three-disc collection next week that is exclusively available in BP stations along I-5″ to end the article.

Andrew Kenny: Man, BP don’t want none of our mess. Seriously though, not at the moment but I definitely see the guys in my future, as I said earlier!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Buy American Analog Set records here.
Buy American Analog Set shirts, posters, and other stuff here.

A Conversation With Chris Walla

Christopher Walla is a very busy man. When he is not playing guitar and producing records for this little band that he plays in called Death Cab for Cutie, he’s producing other peoples records in his studio, being nominated for Grammy’s or chilling with Pearl Jam, Neil Young, and Elvis Costello. Recently, he was kind enough to do the same with me. Chris is one of my favorite guitarists and he has produced some of my favorite artists outside of Death Cab (Hot Hot Heat, The Decemberists, Velvet Teen, The Thermals) so this was a real treat. We talked about His solo record, which is scheduled to be released in September on Barsuk, the next Death Cab for Cutie record, what he’s been doing in his offtime and Barack Obama. I hope you enjoy, I sure did.

[mp3] Chris Walla – Radio
[mp3] Chris Walla – London’s Favorite Son
[mp3] Chris Walla – Doubts
[mp3] Death Cab for Cutie – Little Fury Bugs
[mp3] Death Cab for Cutie – Passenger Seat

Caleb (HTFAF): Hey, Chris

Walla: Hello, Sir!

Caleb (HTFAF): How is the solo record coming?

Walla: It’s on hold right now; I’m mixing the new Tegan and Sara record at the moment. I’ll start back in on the solo album mid-March, for delivery the first week of May, to be released the first week of September, I think.

Caleb (HTFAF): On Barsuk, correct?

Walla: That’s right.

Caleb (HTFAF): How’s that Tegan and Sara record coming?

Walla: The Tegan and Sara record is unbelievable – more than I could have ever asked for. It’s really different from So Jealous, much looser and more organic. The songs are pretty powerful, I think people will be surprised a little, but I’d be shocked if the world didn’t receive it well.

Caleb (HTFAF): You recently moved from Seattle to Portland and built a permanent home for your once nomadic studio, The Hall of Justice, which I understand has been renamed The Alberta Court. How are things coming along with that?

Walla: Yes! It’s good…There have been some glitches in the last week or so. My automation system caught fire, and it’s out of commission right now.

Caleb (HTFAF): That’s always a treat

Walla: Yeah, it Should be back up by tomorrow though.

Caleb (HTFAF): Has it been weird for you guys to be playing arena shows? I remember looking at your tour dates back in December and seeing “Death Cab for Cutie with Jenny Lewis – Key Arena, Seattle, WA” and thinking “WHAT?” That’s where the Sonics play, how could Death Cab possibly be playing there?

Walla: [Laughter] Well – It’s gotten to be more the norm than the exception, it seems, and so it’s been less awkward than it was a year or two ago.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you ever wish you could go back to the days of playing The croc, and smaller places like that, again?

Walla: I certainly do and I think we will, at some point, for some good and right occasion, you know? I may play there for the solo tour actually.

Caleb (HTFAF): Are you planning a full tour solo, or just some one-off shows?

Walla: Hard to say right now. It could go either way. Depends a lot on the DCfC schedule, I think.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you have any idea what that will look like, in terms of who will be playing with you?

Walla: I did, for a while, but I don’t know if anyone will still be able to play come August / September. I may have to rethink the whole thing. I’d rather not say names until it’s completely hammered out.

Caleb (HTFAF): So you mentioned “The DCFC schedule” what is on that right now? When do you guys plan on being back in the studio or on the road?

Walla: It’s hard to say, actually. We’re in the process of sorting out the details right now. There will be a Death Cab for Cutie record in 2008 – that’s about all that is certain right now.

Caleb (HTFAF): Do you guys still hang out in between tours and records? I mean I know you you spend a LOT of time on the road with Ben, Nick, and Jason.

Walla: Yeah, a fair bit, even considering I moved to Portland. Jason played the drums on the [Tegan & Sara] record, so he was down here for a few weeks. Ben and Nick have both been down for weekends to say hello, since they’re on much more flexible schedules than I am at the moment.

Caleb (HTFAF): Jason drums on the whole record?

Walla: That’s true, yes.

Caleb (HTFAF): What great news.

Walla: Totally. It’s Tegan and Sara; their guitar player Ted; Jason and myself; Hunter from AFI and Matt Sharp [Weezer, The Rentals.]

Caleb (HTFAF): You said after Plans was completed that you won’t be producing the next Death Cab album, is that still the case?

Walla: Well, it’s actually kinda up in the air at this point. Chances are good that I will, in fact, be producing the next [Death Cab for Cutie] album.

Caleb (HTFAF): What changed your mind?

Walla: I was hoping to find the perfect partner, but I think that my role in the band is such that I’d feel left out somehow if I wasn’t in charge of assembly, performances and conceptual management, if that makes any sense at all.

Caleb (HTFAF): Perfect sense. Are you excited about your solo record?

Walla: I really am, yeah. I have lots of fuel from the T&S [Tegan and Sara] record left to burn – I feel like I’m really in record mode, like I’m done with touring for a while.

It’s dark; it spans a lot of turf, in terms of style. A few songs came out of the batch of instrumentals that spawned ‘Brothers On A Hotel Bed;’ one song is a re-working of a seven year old song that’s never seen the light of day; lots of drum machines that don’t sound like drum machines and drums that don’t sound like drums…and I’ve been listening to a lot of Fleetwood Mac.

Caleb (HTFAF): Is there one particular Death cab song that you enjoy more than others?

Walla: I’ve always been fond of ‘Little Fury Bugs’ from the second record [We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes]. That one and ‘Passenger Seat’ [From the album Transatlanticism] are big ones for me.

Caleb (HTFAF): We Have The Facts is one of my favorite records of all time.

Walla: Great news. Thanks! There’s so much between the lines in that album, a lot of desperation and friction, three of us against the world, in a way. But the songs are really my favorite of Ben’s. I miss the veil that he used to write under, that sort of obscurity; something he’s traded for unflagging literalism on the more recent records. He’s an excellent storyteller, but it’s nice to not have all the details on the page sometimes.

Caleb (HTFAF): I know what you mean, things are so cryptic on everything pre-Photo Album, and then they sort of clear up.

Walla: Yeah, that’s the beginning of the cleaner, straighter writing.

Caleb (HTFAF): If you quit making music in all ways, shapes, and sizes today, what would be your fondest memories?

Walla: Sharing the stage with Elvis Costello is one. Sharing the stage with Neil Young is another.

Many of them, though, aren’t quite that ‘big’, though no less dramatic – one of the things I love the most about recording is that union of voyeurism, documentary and steward that happens when a musician performs for a recording.

Some of the stuff I’ve been able to see go down is pretty staggering – Colin’s [Meloy of the Decemberists] performance of ‘Eli, the Barrowboy’; Petra and Jenny’s performances on that same record; Dante DeCaro’s fucking unstoppable guitar playing on that Hot Hot Heat stuff I worked on; Judah’s vocal for ‘Red Like Roses’ on the first Velvet Teen full length; pretty much all of Hutch’s vocals for the second Thermals record, ‘I Will Follow You Into the Dark’ [From Death Cab for Cutie’s album, Plans] – all that stuff. It’s an incredible honor to be trusted with a performance, and even shocking when the best ones happen.

Caleb (HTFAF): Ok, let’s play fast money. What are you listening to?

Walla: The new Jarvis Cocker record. Also the new and as-yet-unreleased Laura Veirs record. She’s a genie.

Caleb (HTFAF): I celebrate her entire catalog

Walla: She’s my neighbor now! She’s like eight blocks away.

Caleb (HTFAF): What was the last book you read?

Walla: I just read ‘The Lion, the Witch And the Wardrobe’ [Part of the Chronicles of Narnia series, by C.S. Lewis] for the first time.

Caleb (HTFAF): Oh wow, did you enjoy it?

Walla: It’s perfect. My favorite part, honestly, is the dedication – I can’t think of a sweeter or humbler way to send off such a gorgeous labor of love.

Caleb (HTFAF): What was the last film you watched?

Walla: ‘When Harry Met Sally.’ I had never seen it before. It’s clearly the blueprint for ‘Friends’, and strangely, for ‘Seinfeld’, I think. Full of people who shouldn’t get along, characters you love to hate.

Caleb (HTFAF): What is your favorite guitar?

Walla: I do love the black Gibson J-180, the Everly Brothers guitar that Liz at American Music in Seattle suggested I check out. She was right; it’s a good one.

Caleb (HTFAF): Who is the best band I haven’t heard of yet?

Walla: Have you heard of So Many Dynamos?

Caleb (HTFAF): Oh, yes.

Walla: Via Audio?

Caleb (HTFAF): Yes! As a matter of fact their bass player David is apparently a friend of a friend and allowed eight of us to leave our stuff in his apartment while we were traveling in New York – a very nice fellow. They are really great; I just posted one of their songs, ‘Mouth Shut,’ in a mix yesterday. That song and ‘Developing Active People’ are pretty close to perfect.

Walla: Yeah, They’re really good. Um…Ever heard of Komeda?

Caleb (HTFAF): No, should I?

Walla: Yes, they’re defunct now, sadly, but great nonetheless.

Caleb (HTFAF): What are you excited about these days, Chris?

Walla: A few things, right now – The Tegan and Sara record. Honestly, I don’t know that I’ve ever been so excited about an album I’m working on. Barack Obama has me pretty thrilled at the moment.

Caleb (HTFAF): Me too.

Walla: And my coming vacation to Alaska – three weeks in May.

Caleb (HTFAF): What will you be doing in Alaska?

Walla: Drilling for oil and clubbing baby harbor seals…not really.

Caleb (HTFAF): [Laughter], There goes your PETA endorsement.

Walla: Probably true, that!

Caleb (HTFAF): Thank you for allowing me to jeopardize your incredibly limited free time, Chris. You are a gentleman and a scholar.

Walla: Thanks, you as well. Take care, Caleb.