NEW MUSIC: Grace Potter!

In the spirit of making this blog about media we like, speaking personally, here's an interview I conducted with my neighbor Grace Potter and her band the Nocturnals.

This band has got a BIG sound, and well worth a listen.

Check 'em out at Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals:
“This Is Somewhere” – The Interview

This past month, I conducted an “e-interview” with all four members of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals to get their thoughts on music, life on the road, their new CD, and breaking into the big time. And the mainstream media has finally taken notice of our Valley up-and-comers. If you are a TV watcher, check out Grace and the boys appearing on Jay Leno’s “The Tonight Show” on Thursday, August 2, “The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson” on August 3, and “Good Morning America” on August 7.

Rob: Tell us about making the new CD “This Is Somewhere” – how did the process compare to making "Nothing But The Water" at the barn in Goddard a few years back?

Grace: I'd have to say that the making of NBTW and this record were
about as different as any two records have ever been in terms of the
process. With “Nothing But the Water,” we tracked at Goddard, in a barn in 5 days. We tracked “This Is Somewhere” in a studio next door to Alicia Keyes and it took 4 months...pretty different."

Scott: Having so many opinions – the producer, the engineer, A&R, the mixer, people at the label - to listen to was kind of a mixed blessing. On one hand, it pushed us to step it up "professionally", but it also took a lot of the fun out of it.

Rob: Too much advice, maybe?

Scott: I liken it to the difference between little league baseball and the minor leagues...Little league is just for fun, but with the minors you get players with families to feed and legacies to create...”Nothing But the Water” was way more fun to record, but “This is Somewhere” is a way better album...weird.

Bryan: As Scott said above, the new record was of a completely different
caliber. We spent over two months working on it, versus the 4 and 1/2 days in which we made NBTW. There was a lot more deliberation on “Somewhere” - maybe even too much - you be the judge.

Rob: I don’t think too much, but listening to the new CD, there is way more going on.

Bryan: It was great really honing in on the sounds of the instruments and working hard on making the tones match the essence of the tune, but I think we learned that you can definitely take that process too far. You can get lost in it if you're not careful. NBTW, on the other hand, was sort of our "Big Pink." We banged the tunes out as they were without much deconstruction. In other words, we were broke - every minute counted.

Matt: “This Is Somewhere” was a pain in the ass to make, but the end
result was definitely worth the ass pain. One crazy thing for me was I
had my first ever string of drum lessons a week prior to making the
record.

Rob: You’re kidding.

Matt: It was one of the best things I've ever agreed to do.

Rob: The fabulous opening tune - "Ah Mary" - is a cleverly disguised
critique of US foreign policy – where did that song come from?

Grace: I didn't want to write some preachy song about how the country is
going down in flames. I don't think that's how to unify people. (Not to
mention the fact that I'm not Dylan.) But if you tell a story about a
seemingly outrageous woman with a lot of elements that people can relate
to...then it kinda sinks in.

Rob: What about "Apologies" - an older song - and a beautiful ballad. How did it come to be on the new CD?

Grace: I just felt the time was right. Songs go through cycles and can
disappear if you're not careful. That one had been dormant for long enough
for me to tap back into that time in my life without getting completely
depressed. Now the message is more hopeful than it was when I used to play it.

Rob: Where did "Mr. Columbus" come from? Such a hooky tune…

Grace: That's just a really fun song to play. I wrote it after we did a
show in Philly with the New York Dolls. It was originally intended to be
kind of a punk song...it didn't really end up that way instrumentally, but
it still has that attitude.

Rob: OK, I gotta ask - "Mastermind" is getting plenty of radio air time in advance of the CD release – what is that song about, anyway?

Grace: I love SNL (Saturday Night Live) because there are so many brains involved in putting it together. A group of people can often come up with something better than what just one person could. Mastermind is about taking a lot of small ideas and making something epic with them.

Rob: What about the touring - what were the highs and lows of this past year?

Grace: There have been no lows. I'm always flying high. Ha.

Rob: Safe answer. Anyone else?

Scott: Because I've been described as "cantankerous," I'll start with the
lows, which included driving and flying.

Rob (laughing): Can you be more specific?

Scott: Opening two shows by trying to pound out a Pete Townsend style chord only to realize that my amp wasn't working and no sound was coming out!!!...This was a tough moment.

Bryan: Blowing up 2 guitar amps during one show, having an airline lose our gear right before SXSX, and reading music reviews that compare us to Sheryl Crow.

Matt: Traveling in our van – we call her "Vanna White” - when it is hellishly hot and our butts, backs, and legs are sticking to the black leather seats.

Rob: Nice image. Thanks.

Matt: And being in LA for way too long!

Rob: What about the highs?

Scott: Going to Alaska and taking a helicopter out to a glacier. We went
ice-climbing and drank the glacier water. I've never seen a blue like
that before. Beautiful. Then there was the All-Good festival - playing "Cortez the Killer" at 4:00 in the morning in front of thousands of people while on psychedelics...beautiful also. I also remember trading slide solos with the Campbell Brothers, these amazing sacred steel gospel musicians, during the taping of NPR’s Mountain Stage – also beautiful.

Bryan: Alaska, for sure, and playing our first vinyl on my record player. Overall, this has been some of the best touring for us to date.

Matt: For me, stand out moments included playing with, watching, meeting and hanging with the guys from My Morning Jacket, and playing our first ever New Years Eve show at Higher Ground. Having Rolling Stone legend David Fricke give a thumbs up to our music was also very cool, as was Meeting Little Feat and hearing them say they loved what we were doing.

Rob: You are playing Burlington in August - where to after that?

Matt: We're going to take two weeks off to regain a bit of sanity so we
can head back out to the road for a 3-4 month tour supporting the new
record. We're also going to secretly read every review written about the
new record and leave rude voice mails on the all the critics message
machines.

Rob: That’ll teach ‘em. What about the band's dynamic – has it changed in any way in making the new CD and touring nationally?

Matt: I think the band’s dynamic has changed for the better. The more time
we spend together, the more we get to know each other and figure out better ways to gel personally and musically. Sure, shit goes wrong and triggers plenty of tension, but the fights most often make us stronger. The
studio and the road historically rips bands apart, but so far so good for
us. We genuinely love what we're doing and believe we can do contribute
to pulling this country out of the bush.

Rob: The burning bush, indeed. Any last thoughts?

Matt: Yes…why does LA have no damn seasons? Being in that town for a few months reminds you why Vermont is by far one of the best places in the world. However…we did have the pleasure of recording right next door to “Dimples,” the place where Karaoke began! Now that’s something to remember.

Rob: I’ll say – I’ll have to make my own pilgrimage there.

Matt: Grace also walked in on Drew Barrymore peeing and Cameron Diaz fixing her hair in the bathroom...only in L.A.