ADAM GNADE TAKEOVER WEEK – INTRODUCTION
September 14, 2009,
Written by The 405
To celebrate the release of Hello America!, The three way split album featuring Adam Gnade, Ohioan and Coasts, Mr Gnade is taking over The 405 this week!
Since The 405 started last year Adam Gnade has been one of the most supportive people we’ve had the pleasure to meet and It was our honour to ask him to become the guest editor of The 405.
Adam has a load of amazing things lined up for you this week and we hope you enjoy them as much as us.
Let’s get the ball rolling with a short interview we conducted with the man himself.
Hey Adam how are you?
Well. When this year began, I told myself it had to be a big adventure year or nothin' but I think I kind of egged on a self-fulfilling prophesy. I guess being overwhelmed is better than being depressed, so I'll take that.
It's been a year since we last interviewed you. What kind of year have you had?
Did some tourin'. Went to Europe for the first time. Got robbed and jumped in Paris. Hung out with my buddies Jamey and Miguel on the beach in Portugal in a fisherman's bar. Went to the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam. Ran out of money in Berlin. Fell in deep love with Spain. Train-hopped for the first time, which was fuckin' terrifying. Watched a new president get elected while staying in London. 2008 was great. 2000 and great. There were a lot of scary, heavy moments, but I've never felt more alive.
You just released 'The Wild Homesick'. How does the album differ from your previous efforts and are you happy with what you've created?
Well, I think it's about as close to what I imagine the genre “talking-songs” is going to be when I finally figure out what the fuck I'm doing. All the past records have been me trying to actualize this sound that's in my head. Lots of failures. Lots of mistakes and records I can't listen to anymore. Pretty insanely happy with how it came out. It's a summer record. Banjo, tape samples, guitar noise as thunderstorms. Lyrics about 40-ounces and spiritual warfare and good women. Oh, I played electric guitar on it for the first time on any of my records. See ya later, folk music, thanks for nothin', asshole. Not really. But still.
Oh, but as far as it being different, the songs are arranged in suites of music, 10 songs stuck together over the course of four tracks. Which makes it sound kind of musician-y or prog or something, but no. It's pretty lo-fi.
Having spoke to you a few times over emails it's really nice to know that your music reflects you as a person really well, which isn't always the case with people that pick up a guitar and sing. How important do you hold personal reflection in music?
I'd say on a scale from one to 10, maybe a solid seven or eight.
In terms of the writing process are you the sort of person that documents everything? Your output sort of suggests you do!
Oh no, I'm pretty selective as to what gets told. Gotta keep some of your life private.
What sort of involvement did you have with the Faux Hoax project? Can you talk about it?
Yeah, sure. For one, it's my first time on vinyl which is really fucking exciting. Didn't think I'd be so stoked on that. I'm still kinda thrilled. What happened was Danny got in touch and was like, “Hey, me and Dave are doin' a solo project, wanna record some vocals?” and that was it. I don't like my delivery in a bunch of the parts but the music I'm very much okay with. The lyrics are about loving your friends unconditionally, which is something I stopped believing in for a while. I can be a mean bastard sometimes, but I'm back now. Friends, I love you. Let's go grab a beer and catch up.
You're about to leave home to tour. Do you find touring enjoyable?
Love touring, for sure. Rather be playing live than doing just about anything. And I'm getting to the point where I'm not as shitty live as I used to be. Still, I have my share of bad nights. More than my share, maybe. What it all comes down to is it took me a long time to figure out how to play this stuff live. Messed around with full-bands, improv, different instruments. And anyway, talking while playing an instrument is pretty fucking hard. I'm getting there. Slow but steady.
The set up I'm working on at home, but haven't played out yet, is me sitting on the floor surrounded by a record player, a CD player, and a tape player—for samples and to make drones—and a bunch of toy instruments and shakers. I play those as noise suites and drones and segues and then play a 4-string guitar, harmonica, or banjo during the actual songs. There are no breaks between songs, just a long, warm, rustic soundscape. I kind of want it to sound like you're having a dream where country music and blues and field hollers and bluegrass kind of drift along together and dissolves into itself with real “songs” emerging every once in a while before going back to layers of noise. It's really, really, really mellow. I hope it works live.
Finally, what have you got planned for the rest of 2009?
Well, I'm leaving for a month or so in a few weeks and that'll take me all over the US and up into Canada. Great time to be on the road; dead of summer. After that I'm coming back to Portland for the rest of summer then moving to California. Besides that, I kind of don't want to do anything for a while. No more releases or shows or anything like that. Just chilling out and writing and re-setting my brain. This year has already been way too wild for me. I'm ready for the boring part to begin. If I could spend the next six months sitting on a porch somewhere warm reading Michener novels I'd be way into that. And lots of sleeping would be great. Right now I could sleep for three days like it was casual.
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3 responses so far...
danny
Hello Mr. Gnade!
Aaron
Good Interview!
Jenny Jewess
i lovvvve his work. it's very brutal and oft times gross and disturbing and a wee bit too violent for this lass's tastes, but i love it.
the little blogs he's been posting at his website every day are hilarious and scary! a lot of cringing at horrrible (delightfully) details. dogs eating babies. people eating guts. wow.
http://www.adamgnade.com
Will - 09/02/10
Quite often when a song becomes part of a soundtrack, the artist doesn't get a say as to what programme or advert that song goes on, as music is mostly put on a huge database that production companies pay for and choose any song they like from. Can't quite remember what this database is called and I'm not sure if I've explained it correctly either, but the point is I don't think Oberst chose to have his song associated with a bank so that he could make money... maybe. [view article]
Emma - 09/02/10
I accept Danny's Lostprophets diss (Oh how I used to LOVE them when the Fake Sound of Progress came out) BUT, Iggy Pop! Iggy pop is the man. It doesn't matter that he's sold out. I'd do the same thing in his shoes. I mean, Iggy Pop, selling car insurance? It's just funny. And that freaky little side kick puppet wasn't actually provided for him by the insurance company. At least I'm assuming it's the same one that was used in the BPA video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6NbMYbX4DU (Just made slightly less disturbing for the general public) [view article]
Euan - 09/02/10
just to throw a less 'in your face, that ad makes my piss boil' examples... Where do people stand on Journey or anyone involved with the whole Glee-commerce phenomenon...? ...or what about Leonard Cohen...? Whilst he has not sold out in quite the same way, he did sell Hallelujah to Simon Cowell and Alexandra Burke for it to be brutally butchered... though granted he had been robbed by his accountant and was broke so there was some justification... Whilst I was young and idealistic about this, I'm now a lot more realistic. I think that times have changed in the digital age whereby much of music is being acquired for free (legitimately or otherwise). Given this providing soundtracks to ads, movies, eastenders, hollyoaks or whatever is now a realism and it's a way of your favourite artist making ends meet and getting enough exposure for their record company to keep them signed. Hell, even 405 faves Grizzly Bear featured on an ad in the middle of the Superbowl, Telekinesis are the sound of Ford, Conor Oberst in the shape of Bright Eyes is telling us all about Halifax, Death Cab have appeared in the OC, as have Rilo Kiley and Modest Mouse etc etc... the list goes on... Not the most structured arguement really... but the long and short of it is this... What Iggy did was the worst kind of sell out, as his appearance had nothing to do with his music but, let's face it, it's mainly just that the ad was so fucking irritating. [view article]
Oliver - 09/02/10
SUPER excited about that lineup! [view article]
emma - 09/02/10
Caribou to play alongside Phoenix for Field day 2010 http://www.the-fly.co.uk/words/news/top-news-stories/6978/phoenix-to-headline-field-day- [view article]