Sunday evening at the Majestic Theatre will not be fun. William Fitzsimmons reworded my claim of excitement and suggested that the performance will be “nice.” With a deep arrangement behind him, Fitzsimmons will dispense honest music to a seated crowd. Come witness the magic as he plays songs off Lions, his new album packed with everything fans love about the bearded psychotherapist turned bearded songwriter.
Before the tears, Ben Sollee will make his return to the venue after his October bike-across-America tour. I can’t promise that he’ll use his bicycle spokes as percussion again, but Sollee is bound to impress. The solo cello fellow is mellow, intricate, and boldly innovative. Beyond that, he puts forth 120 percent on stage.
Together, the two styles of music will thin out your stress into pure enjoyment. I don’t mean to say the styles are for everyone — I go nuts for it — but you’ll have to hear the music. See what William Fitzsimmons has to say about Ben Sollee, the new album, songwriting, and his fans in my recent conversation with him.
How will Ben Sollee complement your arrangement?
“It’s pretty perfect. Ben’s show is really engaging. He’s just solo cello right now, which I was initially curious about but super interested in. It’s a different energy and a perfect complement. We’re doing a full band thing, so it’s nice to have something a little sparser. It’s complicated and intelligent. He’s doing a radio documentary, too — he’s an artist, I’m a songwriter.”
How is Lions different from your previous albums?
“It’s not too different and I’m OK with that. It was something that I put more thought into than it deserves. I was worrying about how different it was going to be rather than how communicative or good it was going to be. If someone heard it, they’d said, ‘Oh, that’s William Fitzsimmons.’
“Content wise, its very different. It’s not just one emotion. It’s kind of hopeful, kind of ambivalent. A lot of fans will like that, maybe a lot won’t for that reason. Overall, it’s pretty morbid and will be easy to connect to if you like the earlier stuff.
“The previous record was more about writing to make a record — not a pleasant couple of years. This one came nearly completely out of the experience of adopting my first daughter and a whole bunch of painful stuff that went along with that. I write songs for understanding and catharsis, so it came completely out of that. It emphasizes how you could be grateful and joyous and sad and empty at the same time. It was nice that the album wrote itself; I didn’t even really think about it. I was just at home taking care of the kids and it came as its own.”
In what state of mind do you best create music from the ground?
“It’s changed a little bit over time. Whatever word means the absence of distraction. When I’m honest with myself and with other people. I always equate the feeling to a message in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Clementine tells Joel to hide in his shame, so he goes to his adolescence and thereafter discovers a second level of his core. My goal in writing is to get to that second core — the actual deep part that most people are afraid to get to. Every single person has that stuff and only some people are willing to dig for it, and that’s unappealing to a lot of listeners who are not ready to feel what is real.”
What did you want to do with your life when you were 21?
“I was absolutely cocksure that I was going to be a therapist. I hadn’t gone to grad school yet but it was right in front of me. I worked toward that and made that happen, but very soon after that everything totally flipped. The education informed everything I’ve done. I try to be a lot less sure about anything — corporate life, man and a plan, it’s not for me. I just try to make the most of things. As long as you get the most out of things, you’ll be OK. But there’s a lot of crap in between things. In the end, the wisdom is the reward.”
When you visualize your typical fan, what do you see?
“There’s definitely a variety. It’s probably right of the middle, gender wise. It would be a he/she. That sounded wrong. There is an equal chance of the fan being a he or a she. Age? It would probably be someone in his or her late 20s. But there are plenty of people in his or her 50s and I can’t believe how many young people I’ve seen. Someone with emotional vulnerability — that’s my fan. It’s the willingness to get into that craft, so someone who is willing to express their emotions. I have zero friends that lack emotional vulnerability. It’s something very constricting and very stinky. Can’t think of a better word. It shows somebody has no ability for growth.”
Were you always emotionally vulnerable?
“Yes. I got it from my mom. It’s the idea of emotional psychology — it’s why I love confessional folk music. It’s always been the way I am. The alternative doesn’t make sense. Of course, there are people much younger than me who are a lot more actualized.”