Interview: JD Samson

Whilst some of you may be most familiar with JD Samson as one third of electro-dance aficionados Le Tigre, this Ohio native has many other impressive strings on her bow. Between producing art, film making, forming her own dance troupe and campaigning for gay and lesbian rights, it’s surprising she actually has any time left not only for Le Tigre but now for new band MEN. I spoke to JD to discover more about her latest musical venture, as well as the other multiple endeavours that occupy her time.

You originally joined Le Tigre as a projectionist, and it wasn’t until a bit later that you joined the group as a musician. How did that transition from behind the scenes to being part of the band come about? 

I met them all and was friends with them independently of each other and they asked me to go on tour and be the projectionist; I was actually in film school. The first Le Tigre tour I did was in the States in April of 2000, and on the tour everyone was like, “you should be in the band!” and I was like, “I don’t know what to say!”. Then a couple of months later, Sadie, who was in the band in the beginning decided she wanted to continue her own career so she left the project. I had already been working on stuff with them, so it just kind of happened.

You studied film at university, so did you have any musical aspirations before you joined the band or is it something you really just fell into? 

I played classical and guitar when I was twelve or something, and I really loved music. Music was a huge part of my life and I listened to it 24 hours a day and I promoted shows in school. But I never really expected it to be where my career would lead me. I think that a lot of what I was doing in film and video was translating well to music, so I think my learning curve was kind of high in terms of building on that. It was really cool, doing something new and approaching it in that much more of a punk way, because I just didn’t really care what was right or wrong.

A lot of Le Tigre’s songs have been used in adverts and T.V. shows, yet the band never really enjoyed the more mainstream success that would typically come from that sort of exposure. Are you disappointed that these media inclusions didn’t elevate the band’s status to another level or do you feel such attention would have deviated away from the music? 

I think we achieved the attention that we wanted. We really developed a scene of people that was full of feminists and queers and freaks and it was such an incredible space to be in every night. I guess I don’t really wish that anything had happened differently, you know? I think that we accepted offers for our music to be on television commercials and stuff like that based on the fact that we need to make money and we’re not really afraid of doing that. We’ve kind of reached the point where we’re not trying to gain more fans right now, what happened kind of was. We feel really positive about it and nothing could damage that, I don’t think.

MEN’s sound is more typically dance than that of Le Tigre. Is dance as a genre something you wanted to explore more? 

I’ve been DJ-ing for a while, so I think I’ve been influenced a bit by what I’ve been listening to, and also by seeing what kids are into. When I play a song and there’s a crazy build with kicks that roll, people are freaking out and that kind of energy isn’t something that we really paid attention to with Le Tigre very much. I think it’s a new thing also for a new generation, it’s crazy to watch kids respond to that, it’s kind of like a trigger. So I think that also had a lot to do with it; learning what’s happening right now. I learned to make music on Pro-Tool so I’ve always been an electronic music person, but it just moved into more of a club feel because I’ve been DJ-ing.

Do you prefer to DJ or make music? 

Sometimes I really love DJ-ing, and sometimes I really love to make music, so it’s hard to say. I think the part about DJ-ing that I really like is that I’m by myself, so if you fuck up, you fuck up, so it’s easy. You make the decisions on your own and you don’t have to talk about it all the time, so it’s been a nice departure for me, to have that space. There’s also less pressure as you’re just playing other people’s music and sometimes you can play what you want and sometimes you can read the audience and play what they want. [But] making music feeds my creativity. Being able to be creative inspires me more.

Who are your biggest influences, musical or otherwise, both past and present? 

Vocally I’ve been really influenced by Sean Paul and Joan Armatrading. I think that they both have this really interesting rhythm that is really different to a lot of other people. They’re not similar to each other, they’re both so different! So those are two people whose vocals I really love. Music wise, it changes a lot. A lot of times I’m really inspired by the people around me, like my friends. I love The Presets, I think their records are really great. I love a lot of Hot Chip stuff… these are people that I know, not extremely well but that I know. Also touring with bands… we toured with The Gossip and we toured with Peaches and I’m inspired by both of those bands and their live shows. My friends really are the people that most inspire me now.

You grew up with a huge interest in art, which carried through to your time in college. How does art influence your music, or do you view them as two separate entities? 

I think we are artists, I am an artist. I feel that everything I do is content-based, whether that’s lyrics or score or making a song that’s really long but only has one chorus. There’s a reason why it’s like that, there’s always a reason. Even if it’s only a sample, there’s a reason it’s that sample. I like to think of it as more art-based music making but I don’t really care if other people know where it comes from, that’s how I make stuff.

Do you still do a lot of art? 

Sometimes. It’s really hard time-wise and I definitely feel I have to be in a space where I’m like, everything else gets cut out. But there’s definitely days where I sit and make art all day.

Who are your favourite artists? 

(Pause) I really like my friend Emily Roysdon’s art. I really love my friend Brendan Fowler’s art, he’s really incredible. I guess Henry Darger, I think he’s amazing. Who else? I don’t know… My friends are incredible. Kate Hardy, Ulrika Ulrer, she did the cover of our ‘Credit Card Babies’ 12″ that I love.

You’re a passionate campaigner for gay and lesbian rights, and the issues raised within these are portrayed through your music and your art and dance projects. How important is it for you to have these outlets to convey your socio-political beliefs? 

I wake up in the morning and I’m queer, and I wake up in the morning and I’m an activist. Even if it means I’m just walking around on this planet. I don’t really feel like I need those things to be an activist, but they are really helpful to create visibility and queer rights and equal rights in general. I think even looking at those ‘It Gets Better’ videos, we don’t really need you to but it helps.

There’s been a recent spate of suicides in gay teens and you said in your biography that growing up and coming out was difficult for you, but you’d think that fifteen years later it’d be a lot different. What’s your take on the situation?

I think that it’s really interesting, I made like, five ‘It Gets Better’ videos and didn’t post them because I felt “I can do a better one, I can do a better one.” But today I read the lyrics for ‘Keep On Moving’ which was a Le Tigre song, and then I just did that because I said this ten years ago and it’s exactly the same now. One of my things I didn’t end up using was that I was lucky my community was so awesome when I was coming out, but it’s more about the pressure that you put on yourself. I think that’s the thing that people really need to pay attention to because you could have the most supportive family ever, but if you feel like you are somehow letting yourself down or something, then that’s where the real trouble starts.

What are your plans for MEN, do you see it as like a side project? Le Tigre have been on hiatus for a few years now, are you going to get back together and record, or are you going to focus on MEN? 

MEN is my priority right now for sure. Le Tigre is putting out a live DVD in March, I think, and that’s been pretty awesome to work with Kathleen and Jo again, and we also did some writing for another artist together, which was awesome too. But I think we’re all in very different places artistically time-wise and getting our schedules together is pretty intense. So, for now, MEN is my number one thing. I see it as my project, not my side project.

Finally, what are three songs you wish you’d written? 

That’s a good one. I was listening last night to Warpaint and I was like, “this band are awesome!”. You know that song ‘Undertow’? I kind of wish I had written that song, I think it’s really good. I also really wish I had written ‘Once In A Lifetime’ by the Talking Heads, and I also really wish I had written… this a good question by the way. (Long pause) I feel like there’s a lot of Gossip songs I wish I had written, but I can’t really think of just one. There’s this one song called ‘Jason’s Basement’ by the Gossip, it was on their first record, and I’ll say I wish I’d written that one. Although now I’m like, ‘I should have said this!’.

This interview was originally published on www.culturedeluxe.com

Interview: Cloud Nothings

Despite being touted by many music critics as one of the bands to categorically watch this year, Dylan Baldi, the young man behind much-lauded Cloud Nothings could not be any more unassuming. Sat quietly wearing a beanie and tapping away on his Mac as techies run around the room chaotically and his bandmates joke loudly in another corner, first impressions are that he cares little for rock-star pretention or any glare of spotlight on his personal being that might arise as a result of his career choice. Laughing amiably throughout their meeting, Dylan spoke to me about the reasons as to why he prefers to work on a solo basis, the benefits of recording at home, and why you probably shouldn’t pay too much attention to his lyrics.

Your debut EP Turning On had a very lo-fi, almost grainy kind of sound, whereas your self-titled LP is a lot crisper and more evidently produced. Obviously this is because the first was recorded in your house and the second in a studio. Were you pleased that the newer material has shed this more lo-fi sound or is that something you’d have liked to have kept, or would want to bring back?

When I made it I was certainly happy with that because I wanted to get away from the whole lo-fi tag, but if I was to make a record right now, I’m back into liking that sort of music again. So if I made something now it would be like that but I’m happy with the way it came out because that was the record I wanted to make.

Which environment did you prefer working in and why? I mean obviously a studio has all the equipment and some amazing facilities, but did you feel you had a sense of freedom at home that was lost when you went into a more professional environment?

I kind of like working at home more because I like working alone more, really. Not that working with someone proved to be hard or anything, it went really well with [producer] Chester. But when you’re at home you feel more comfortable doing it.

Would you want to go back to recording at home or is that something management wouldn’t let you do?

I don’t have management, so I would let me do that, yeah! I might do that on the next one, actually.

The overall style in the tracks between the two releases is noticeably more different; the self-titled release has a more punky feel to it. What caused or influenced this change and development?

Kind of playing with the band, actually. I was really getting into that kind of music when I was going into recording that album [Cloud Nothings] so it kind of just came out that way. It was just sort of an accident.

Despite having a band that tours with you, I gather that you view Cloud Nothings as more of a solo project.

Yeah, through recordings at least, I like to do things on my own. I also write everything on my own and then show them how to play the parts. But it’s kind of becoming more of a band, just on its own because at the minute we’re not recording, it’s just tours. I would like to keep recordings more to myself.

Does it not get lonely recording on a more solitary basis?

(Laughs) No, it doesn’t get lonely, it’s what I like doing, so it’s ok!

If you did decide to record with a full band in the studio, what kind of effect do you think that would have on the sound? Do you think it would change it, or would it still very much be you?

Erm, I would say “do this, do this” but it would never happen so I’d just get frustrated. Not that what they do is bad, I like everything they do a lot but with the recording, I’m really kind of anal about all that stuff. So I would just get really frustrated.

Your ascension from recording in your parent’s house to being signed and now touring internationally happened pretty quickly and I’ve heard the words ‘cult following’ being banded about as a result. Would you be happy maintaining this more underground appreciation, or is cracking the mainstream something that you really want to do?

I’m not really concerned with it. You know, if we never crack the mainstream it’s not a huge deal to me, because all the stuff that I really like is not the kind of stuff that you’d say would crack the mainstream. If we do, I wouldn’t mind because it just means we get paid more! (Laughs) And that’d be fine. But I’m not too upset about the fact that we might not.

What’s the difference in response to your music in the UK and back home? You’re garnering quite a bit of attention over here but are you still fairly unknown in America

It’s pretty similar to over here, actually. The last tour especially you could tell that people were coming out just to see us specifically. So it’s just kind of steadily growing as things go on, it’s going well.

Pretty much every single article that I’ve read about you makes a significant point…

…that I’m only nineteen? (Laughs)

Yeah! I’m very aware that bringing it up now makes me a bit hypocritical but does it bother you that it seems to be such an important factor that people take into consideration?

It doesn’t bother me really, I don’t really think about it. I mean, going around and doing all these things that I’m doing, it doesn’t feel like I’m nineteen because it’s pretty crazy for someone my age to be doing. Everyone that you meet generally in this field doesn’t take it into much consideration, so it hasn’t really bothered me. It’s just something for people to write about and start an article with, that’s what usually happens!

You don’t view yourself as a ‘figurehead’ for younger musicians?

No! No, I should never be that! I don’t want anyone to look up to me! (Laughs) That’s ok if they do and if that ends up happening then cool, but I don’t view myself in that way.

Who were your biggest influences when you started writing and what bands are having the greatest effect on your style at the minute?

Hmm. When I started writing I was probably listening to a lot of Guided By Voices, and stuff kind of like that. But when recording the latest album and at the minute a lot of my favourite bands are acts like Hüsker Dü, The Replacements and Television Personalities.

I’ve read a lot of interviews where you stress the point that you don’t care much for lyrics and would much rather focus on the melody of a track. A lot of music critics and fans alike would argue that the lyrics are a substantial part of making up a song, so what would you say to people who might suggest that as a result you’re not producing the entire package?

I guess that to me, it’s the whole package. I don’t really care about the lyrics because they’re just words to me. I care about reading a poem or something, when there’s nothing else going on and you’re just sitting there reading and that’s really important and I really do like words. I took a lot of English classes in school and I read a lot. But within a song I don’t find it that important for some reason. I just never really think about the lyrics and have always focused more on the melody. The first thing that I listened to that was kind of breaking away from it, was listening to the radio that my parents listened to. It was actually really weird, like minimalist classical music. Generally there’s no lyrics in a lot of them and the way it all works is that there’s not even usually a melody, it’s all just kind of black chords, so the harmony sort of is the melody. That kind of got me away from really caring about lyrics to just focusing on sounds and things.

So would you ever consider releasing a purely instrumental record?

Erm… no. (Laughs) Maybe eventually but not in this kind of style, just because with this sort of music the element of the human voice really gives it more of a push and authenticity, more feeling. I took music composition classes in college but not with this kind of stuff.

What do you think separates you from all the other emerging indie acts out there at the minute?

I think… hmm. I think I’m the only one in the band who wears skinny pants! I don’t know. We just kind of have a rock band sound that’s more traditional and that’s not something that’s really around too much right now or too popular, which I think is too bad. And we have a real drummer!

If I was introducing someone to Cloud Nothings for the first time, which record of the two you’ve released so far should I tell them to listen to in order to get a feel for what the band really represents?

Hmm. I would say the first one actually. But then tomorrow I might say the second one, you know? No, probably Turning On just because it was me on my own, not really thinking about what anyone else would think of these recordings because I didn’t know anyone else would care. So probably that one is more of a genuine view of… me.

What’s up next for the band? With the last two recordings being released pretty close to each other, are you going to leave it a while before you release another record and just tour for a bit, or do you want to push out another record quickly?

I want to put out something else really quickly. We’re touring a lot but we have a month off in April to May, so I’m hopefully going to maybe record an album then. Maybe get it out in the Summer, or before 2012, definitely.

Are you going to be back over this way playing any festivals?

Yeah, Primavera in May and then I think a couple of ones in August but I’m not entirely sure which ones they are.

Finally, name three songs you wish you’d written.

Oooh. That’s such a hard question. There’s this song ‘Chartered Trips’ by Hüsker Dü that’s real good, I really like that song. It’s just going to end up being my favourite bands again! There’s a Replacements song called ‘Androgynous’ that is really good, I’d like to have written that. And there’s a song called ‘Rhythm of the Rain’ by The Cascades, who are a ’50s, almost like vocal group. That’s one of my favourite songs too, so we’ll go with that.

This interview was originally published on www.culturedeluxe.com