“Vested”
from the EP Atlantic/Pacific
2010
iTunes
Can you share a little information about yourself?
Absolutely. I grew up in a suburb of Chicago called Arlington Heights. As a kid, I spent a lot of time in my room, practicing guitar and learning every Jimmy Page guitar solo I could. By the time I was in high school, I played in a few bands, finally settling in a band that can only be described as “Caribbean Rock” which, as bad as it sounds, was actually a great band. I moved to Colorado for college when I was 17, and music took a back seat for a bit while I enjoyed the mountains. When I was 21, I started writing again, and I recorded a (terrible) demo and started playing local open mics. A year later, I moved to New York and I started co-writing with a bunch of very talented musicians, and I really started to begin to break out of my shell as a singer/songwriter. After writing songs and playing in my bedroom for a while, I put together a band and starting playing shows around Brooklyn. I had a great time playing shows, and one night someone handed me a note that said “you should really get some recording done.” I took their advice and started planning what would be Atlantic/Pacific. In between all the music stuff, I watched a lot of Gilligan’s Island and played a bunch of text-based RPGs.
You’ve read this blog and I’ve visited your MySpace page. So now that it seems the Internet isn’t a fad, what are your thoughts on the power of the web in relation to helping or hurting an artist?
There’s so much that could be said. I feel like I should put together an outline or PowerPoint presentation, but I’ll try to give my opinion best I can.
In a sense, the Internet is the greatest thing that happened to a musician. It opened the doors so an artist can now be heard across the globe and can sell a track to someone, instantly, 1000 miles away. There are so many ways to get your music heard by so many people, but at the same time, there are now millions of musicians trying to do the same thing. The walls that discouraged a lot of people before have come down, which has encouraged a lot of people to write, record and release material. But, there is so much more music in the marketplace now that a listener has to sift through to find what they want. Back in my day (which isn’t long ago), people discovered music through radio, MTV and friends. Now, people discover music through YouTube, MySpace, Last.fm, Facebook, iLike, etc. There’s a lot more of a discovery element out there for a listener, and a ton more content.
It’s a lot easier now to be heard, but it’s harder to make people care about your music. Depending on your goals as a musician, this can be tough. Even if someone likes you, you have to keep their attention, and you have to be persistent, or else you’ll fall out of their mind as quickly as you popped into it.
If used for good (meaning: not just to reach for fame and fortune), the Internet can be a really cool thing. There are some really talented, hard working musicians out there that really should be heard.
Could you describe the recording process of Atlantic/Pacific?
Atlantic/Pacific was recorded at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn with a great engineer/producer named Aaron Nevezie. Playing on the record was Steve Purcell on drums, Tim Lappin on bass, and Kirk Schoenherr on guitar (Kirk produced as well). We recorded the EP over five days, taking as much time as we could to experiment with different tones that we had wanted to add behind the songs. We did about a song a day, which was great because it gave us time to add some of the textures to the record that we had all wanted to hear. I had been listening to a ton of Wilco, Radiohead, and Sigur Ros, which definitely influenced the recording process and the sonic themes behind songs like “I am a Fishbowl.” I’m really proud of what we put together in that short period of time, and I owe it all to the guys that were in the studio with me.
Are there any current bands or records or websites that you enjoy and would recommend people seek out?
There are a lot of great bands coming out of Brooklyn right now that I hope grab people’s attention. I’m really loving Great Elk‘s record, which is one of the best local bands I have heard in a while. Jessi Robertson is putting out a record in the next few months and she just put out the first single this week, which is absolutely gorgeous. I spend a lot of time seeing Kevin Johnston‘s Unnamed band play. He has one of the greatest voices I’ve ever heard, and I find myself singing along to every song. Besides that, I’m loving the new record by Arcade Fire, and the accompanying Google Video release they did. The new record by The National is also fantastic. I heard one track by Mumford and Sons, and I am buying that album tonight. Atomic Tom just put out their record, and it’s been on repeat on my ipod. In terms of websites, I’ve been spending a lot of time on thesixtyone.com and have found some great music on there.
Parting words?
For anyone that takes the time to read this or listen, I really appreciate it. Jonk Music – thank you for your support, your blog is one of the best I’ve seen. I’ll be in Madison in December, so let’s hang out.