Georgie James - Interview - January 2008
By: Alex Lee Thomson
Signed to Bright Eyes governed Saddle Creek Records, US indie rock band Georgie James are among the more talented of acts crossing the Atlantic right now; their 2007 album Places being a masterpiece of electro-acoustic stupefaction. We chat with Laura Burhenn, front woman for the band who plays alongside ex-Q And Not U drummer John Davis... so here's our Q and A, with not Q And Not U...
Rockfeedback: (Jumping in) Firstly, how do you think the fact you're American has affected your impact in the UK; bearing in mind our music scenes, and industries, are so unalike in many ways... do you think being associated with Saddle Creek has helped your campaign due to its notoriety as a label?
Laura Burhenn: I think the bigger question about being American these days has less to do with the music industry and more to do with the political climate. Every time we step on stage and say introduce ourselves as being from Washington, DC, I wonder how that colours peoples' impression of us. It's a weird moment in history. I'm thankful it's an election year... Being a part of what Saddle Creek is doing is a great thing, of course. I'm sure more people are interested in hearing our music just because of that affiliation. We're entirely grateful to work with such lovely people putting out such great music.
RF: You've said that you were brought together as a group through shared inspirations; how important do you think it is for musicians to be influenced by the same things in regards to your relationship as people or friends, and the music you make.
LB: At the core, I think it's important for people to have a sense of something shared - but values (not musical tastes) are the most important. Differing opinions and loves for lots of types of music, films, books, art... it only makes for producing far more interesting music. If John and I loved all of the same exact things, our songs might be pretty vanilla.
RF: You're clearly influenced by a lot of American folk, most of which won't have found its way over to British shores... Are there any acts or albums in particular you'd like to share with our readers; anybody of whose genius you'd swear by?
LB: I feel like a lot of the American musicians we'd swear by have been around long enough to make their way into the collective UK consciousness. I'd say Nina Simone, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson - and as I think of it now, I'm realizing that a lot of my biggest influences have come from overseas. I'm sure John would mention James Brown, REM and a whole host of others.
RF: This of course isn't the first musical venture to your names, so is there a sense of having to start again? Did this project start from ground zero or have there been helping hands from people or fans that were admirers of your previous work.
LB: There has definitely been a sense of starting again - but this time with a little help from our friends and some other kind souls out in the universe who knew us in our previous incarnations. Everything has moved along pretty quickly in the grand scheme of things. But sometimes it does feel like molasses. I can't believe we've been doing this for almost three years already. And to finally - just now - be touring on our first album? Insane.
RF: How does being an emerging band now compare to being an emerging band back in, say, 2000?
LB: The internet has changed everything. And the climate of the record industry is just totally different. In some ways it's a lot easier (to get your name and music out through the online avenues) - the whole process of making and finding music has become much more democratic and accessible, which is a pretty exciting thing. But at the same time, I think it's harder to make money as a musician. Records aren't selling like they used to. And I read somewhere recently that, in America at least, pay for shows has actually decreased (accounting for inflation) since the 70's. It can be exciting and frustrating all at once.
RF: People often say, "...if I could do it all again, I'd... ". Have the decisions you've made as Georgie James been affected by your past?
LB: I think we've been a lot more measured in our approach as a result of our previous experiences. Like I said - it's been three years since we started making music, and we just finally released our debut album in September. Patience in planning our next moves has proved invaluable.
RF: To talk about the new album, there are various messages in your lyrics; do you think there's an overall message behind what you do?
LB: That's kind of hard to say from an insider's perspective. I feel like it's just our job to write the songs (every one of them tells a story, for sure) and the critics' and listeners' jobs to figure out what that message is. I'll leave that up to you.
RF: Do you think music needs to have a message?
LB: In my mind all music has a message, whether it's intended or not - that's just the nature of music. It carries emotion, purpose, narrative in the notes alone. As far as a songwriter explicitly giving music a message, however, no, I don't think it needs to have a message. Music can be purely entertainment after all. That said, I prefer for the songs I have a hand in to say something. You have those few minutes of peoples' attention. Why not make a meaningful exchange out of it? I think this comes from the folk and punk music I grew up listening to.
RF: What's the most significantly moved you've ever been by music, if you're happy to share with us... if indeed music has ever stirred you in such a way...?
LB: There have been so many moments I've been incredibly moved by music - times when I really got a song; and times when a song really got me. These moments usually end with me sitting in front of the stereo playing the song on repeat a million times 'til I've memorized every inch of it. 'Chelsea Hotel' (Leonard Cohen) was like that - I'd heard the song dozens of times, but one day I played it and heard it in a new light... Of course there are also the live moments: hearing the raw energy channelled person-to-person. The most moved I've ever been by a piece of music was chancing upon Samuel Barber's 'Adagio for Strings' on the car radio on a cold rainy night. That song worked its way under my skin, down into my bones - powerful, indeed, a whole story told without words.
Artists in this article: Georgie James