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Interview: The White White Lights EP Release [Saturday / Emo's]
Saturday, February 27
Emos (603 Red River St)
9 p.m. | 21+ $7; Minors $10 | Inside
[info]
Medium Head Boy kicks off with “Space Invaders” and “Heresy,” two bludgeoning tracks that immediately reveal the band’s tight-knit sound and brilliant guitar work. But it’s not all about pounding, dance-friendly rock tunes. “It’s Cold Here in Japan” and “Evangeline” both prove the quartet is equally adept when taking it down a notch. The former, especially, is a highlight of the EP, and showcases The White White Lights’ ability to craft a beautiful atmosphere. Closer “Devil’s Son,” powered by another sizzling riff, leaves us with repeated refrains of “I can’t get you out of my head.” Quite fitting, as, at this point, many of the EP’s melodies are already embedded in the listener’s brain.
This release has a lot going for it. Besides those blistering guitar riffs, the production is flawless, Jenny Gacy’s versatile vocals hit the spot time after time, and the plentiful keys chime in appropriately throughout the EP. A few songs contain (what we deem to be) unnecessary outros and could have been even stronger if a tad more succinct, but all in all, this an impressive first effort from an exciting Austin band. We caught up with Gacy and Jonas Wilson (a.k.a. Deluxe Peroux) recently to learn more about the band’s recording process.
The White White Lights’ members have done the rounds of the Austin music scene -- when did you guys get together and what drove those initial jam sessions? Are some of you still a part of more than one band at the moment?
Gacy: I was a big fan of Lomita, and after seeing a Monster Girl performance, Jonas (who is in Lomita) was impressed and offered to record my album. Davy (Hamrick) and Dan (McMonigle) came in to learn my songs and play on the album, and we all meshed well. During that month, Lomita had a show offer that their lead singer couldn't make, so they offered to let me come out to play some of my material and some of theirs. It worked really well and we decided to make something of it. I still play solo as Monster Girl from time to time and Davy also plays for STEREO IS A LIE.
How did you get connected with Indierect Records? What do they bring to the table?
Gacy: Lomita was already on Indierect, but we signed with them shortly after Dániel (Perlaky) saw and liked our first show. It was an easy fit since Jonas had worked with Dániel for so long. Indierect has really been great about letting us make what we want and finding effective ways to market what we're making without stepping on our toes artistically. They really tailor their efforts to us.
Wilson: We tend to start with rehearsal and we really thrive on a one take mentality as well. All effect ideas are committed to tape instead of adding effects in post because we want it to be a performance. People perform differently when performing with the effect on. So many people forget that what matters is what you play, not what we can do with computers to make it sound better and tighter. We never edit, we just replay the part. That's what we’re proud of more than anything is that every part on the vocals and all instruments are performed the whole way through with very minimal punching in and no punches in principal instrumentation. All the mistakes and bad notes are in there for you to hear.
Who is the primary songwriter? Who handles the vocals?
Wilson: There is no principle songwriter in the White White Lights. We may start with a drum groove, a bass line or a guitar line that one of us comes up with, and then we arrange it together as a group with very little thought in the hopes of keeping it interesting and letting a group of players play what they naturally would. We're very primal in our writing style. I wanted to make sure this band stayed a band, not one person's solo project. Even songwriting is democratic in the White White Lights. But Jenny is the only lead vocalist; I sing harmonies sometimes but she does almost all harmonies when we're recording. Why would I sing when we have a great singer?
"Cold Here in Japan" off delivers an eastern vibe quite impeccably. Any interesting instruments or devices you utilize while recording?
Wilson: Well, that’s the one song that was not cut with the band in the room. We started that version as a demo very early on and i just loved it and never wanted to re-record it. The soundscapes on the choruses are two acoustics strung with a 12-gauge string across the board, playing two parts to replicate a koto sound as best I could. The others are just guitar volume swells and two tracks of me improvising on a Mellotron, resolving from E-flat minor to C major so the swell could lead into the next song. It was done in about ten minutes.
The EP relays an energy that we can't wait to see replicated live -- are there any certain aspects of the music you find harder to translate into a live performance than others?
Wilson: No, because it's all live on recording. The only issue with the record I see that will not be on the next is that we double-tracked a lot of vocals, which I wish we hadn't done now. Jenny's voice doesn't need it, but I wanted that sound. That's records. They're never done, just abandoned.
If you could tour nationally tomorrow, who would you like to support?
Wilson: Sonic Youth.
Finally, what plans for SXSW, and 2010 in general?
Wilson: For SXSW we've got a couple of great shows lined up, one March 13th playing inside at The Mohawk directly after the Sixteen Deluxe reunion show and another March 16th at Beauty Bar for the Art Disaster event. In general, we are almost done with a full-length album. We cut most of it in three days; we had to stop to rebuild our new console. The album has no double-tracking, no overdubs and was cut with the band in one room. But our plans don't extend beyond what we decide at the moment. We're not trying to be the biggest band ever, just the best we can be. I think planning what a band's going to do in a year drives musicians crazy and causes the music start to take a back seat. Our plan is to have an awesome time while kicking as much ass as we can.
All the best for SXSW and thank you for speaking with Austinist.
[The White White Lights MySpace]
[The Happen-Ins MySpace]
[Cowabunga Babes MySpace]
