1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you?
I wouldn’t say that there was a specific moment. My two uncles played guitar and sang Beatles songs all the time, and my brother and I wanted to be like them. I started playing guitar and singing when I was about 9 years old. One eureka moment that I remember, however, occurred while I was watching the MTV show ‘Headbanger’s Ball’ one Saturday night when I was 11 (I watched the show every Saturday in those days, being an antisocial adolescent). I was accustomed to the typical early 90s music: some thrash metal, some glam-ish metal, lots of hair; everything was fairly polished and slick sounding. Then, out of nowhere I saw the video for ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’. It freaked me out. There was nothing like that on MTV at the time. It was so raw, so real. That really changed my life and shaped my music. I know I don’t sound much like Nirvana, but the honesty of that music, and the raw quality of the singing; both were huge influences on my approach to my singer-songwriter material.
2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites?
I go through phases with different artists. I always enjoy Sting’s music, it’s consistently sophisticated, intelligent, and unpredictable. I love everything he’s ever done except 2004’s ‘Sacred Love’. I don’t know what happened with that one!
Lately I’ve been listening to a lot of Kate Bush and a lot of Liz Phair. They’re quite different, but I love Liz Phair’s honest delivery and her lyrics, as well as Kate Bush’s vision and the demented quality of ‘The Dreaming’. That record is a trip! On the jazz side I can never get enough Kurt Rosenwinkel. And I always love Chet Baker, Tony Bennett, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong. Finally, there’s a lot of great music here in NYC that no one’s ever heard of. Especially my peeps from Denton, TX: Snarky Puppy, Sarah Renfro, Alastair Ottesen, Mike Maher. Lots of us down in the trenches up here.
3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live?
My greatest moment was, without a doubt, the concert I did on April 15th, 2009 as a member of the Brian Blade Fellowship. I remember seeing the band live (with Kurt Rosenwinkel on guitar) in New Orleans in November of 2004, and thinking to myself that if I ever got to play with the band I could die happy. It took almost five years, but I made it!
4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events?
Pop music is a great mobilizing force, it can help organize people into large groups that can then be affiliated with various causes, but the music itself…I can’t think of any song that changed the world. Bob Marley, Fela Kuti, various others, they’ve used their celebrity and music to organize people, but the songs themselves didn’t effect change directly, although if the songs hadn’t been good people wouldn’t have listened and organized around them! So music can help bring people together, and people can change the world, but the music itself does little to influence current events.
5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician?
Ah, technology. I have mixed feelings. It’s nice to be able to make my own records for cheap, but I want people to hear them, and it’s still expensive to promote things, even with the internet. If you know from the outset that the record isn’t going to sell, and you’re not going to get picked up by a record label, or if you do that there isn’t going to be any reimbursement for production costs or any advance….The decline of the record industry cannot be seen as a good thing for the professional musician. Most of us are short on cash, we can’t afford the publicity costs to be successful. I’m a little bit skeptical of the idea that you can just make a great record in your bedroom, put it up on the internet, and then wait for it to spread through word of mouth, leading to hordes of people showing up at your gigs, licensing opportunities, etc. Selling a record costs money, selling a band costs money, selling anything costs money! And most of us don’t have that kind of bread. So on the plus side, yes you can do a cheap record and put it out easier these days, but it’s harder to sell it unless you’ve got a large bank balance. There’s no record label that’s going to take a chance on you….
6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be?
A worn out pair of running shoes.
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