lifeblood: listlogs: 1999v01n214-news

ig-news-digest thursday, november 25 1999 volume 02 : number 214

today's subjects:
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[ig-news] amy interview from rant n' rave [sheryl jones <sljones1@facstaf]
[ig-news] kelly steward ig interview tape - is here [hunterj1@aol.com]

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date: wed, 24 nov 1999 08:38:10 -0600
from: sheryl jones <sljones1@facstaff.wisc.edu>
subject: [ig-news] amy interview from rant n' rave

[sherlyn's note: this message was originally sent to the indigo
girls mailing list at netspace.org.]

http://www.rantnrave.org/interview.cfm?intid=2

amy ray interview
> by hollis w. duncan
>
> indigo girls
>
> on april 12, i woke up to a richmond radio station's morning
show as one of
> the hosts was announcing the day's celebrity birthdays. "amy
ray is 35
> today," were the first words i heard. lying there i was
thinking "i bet amy's
> pissed" because your fighting spirit seems to disavow
mortality, growing
> older, and that sort of thing. happy late birthday by the
way. were you
> pissed?
>
> no, but i am pissed that time is apparently linear.
>
> since your independent self-titled ep release, in 1986, and
the days of playing
> summertime gigs in decatur's [ga] town square, a lot has
changed [sigh]. the
> one constant has been the indigo girls' staying power in a
music era where so
> many new artists have quickly faded away. what have been your
keys to
> success?
>
> our main key to success is touring. we started touring very
early so
> our career had a base. we have never had to count on anybody but
> ourselves - everything else is icing on the cake. also we
surround
> ourselves with good honest people and not hype types who talk a
> lot but can't follow through. we are not afraid to reinvent
ourselves.
>
> emily [saliers] explained in a billboard interview (december
15, 1990) "part of
> what we're about as artists is trying to connect with people
and their lives
> through music. to us, that's a much higher priority than how
well our albums
> sell or how many magazines we're featured in." almost a
decade later, has
> your perspective changed and what are the most significant
challenges
> you've faced in achieving this priority?
>
> no, this is still our highest priority. the main challenge to
this has
> been ego - it is hard being ignored by mainstream rock press.
>
> in the opening minutes of your shows, you seem to scan the
audience to
> catch a glimpse of the individuals in that "sea full of
faces" peering up at you.
> you do possess a natural rapport with your audience. is this
done
> purposefully, hoping to connect with your audience, or are
the stage lights just
> too bright?
>
> we do need to see some faces. i have a better show if i know
who i
> am singing to. the most disconcerting thing is to not see the
> audience but still be aware of the back theater doors where
you can
> see constant hub bub and moving about. i close my eyes some
> nights just to focus better. but it doesn't mean i am unaware
of the
> audience.
>
> in an interview with time's christopher john farley (may 23,
1994), you
> explained: "me solo is too much of me...emily solo is too much
of emily." what
> seems to fit then is the combo of your distinct personalities
and songwriting
> styles--emily being more gentle and musically complex with
folk roots. when
> did you first realize playing with emily was something special?
>
> we started when i was 15 and emily was 16. at that point it
was all
> about fun and teenager stuff.... the specialness was more in
> friendship and crazy circumstances we would find ourselves in
> when playing at bars as underagers. emily was always ahead of me
> musically so i understood what we had in the context of her
ability to
> motivate and create a career. our partnership is based on the
> different talents musical and non musical that we bring to
the table.
> at this point they are still constantly changing and being
redefined.
> that's what keeps it special.
>
> struggling to succeed in the music business can make it easy
to lose sight of
> the joy of the art--the reason you fell in love with music in
the first place. what
> ways have you tried to "keep it real" in the music business?
>
> one way to keep it real has been to have an indie label on
the side.
> this gives me constant perspective and inspiration. also we
tour in
> different ways - with a band / without a band in a wide
variety of
> venues. our activism keeps us inspired as well as humble and
> allows us to go places like chiapas, mexico and cuba.
>
> daemon records
>
> how has daemon records grown since you founded it in 1990?
what lessons
> have you learned?
>
> i have learned how to delegate... when i started the label i did
> everything myself but now i have great people working
for/with me
> who are ultimately better at what they do then i could ever
be. my
> most important lesson has been to stay in your own community.
> every time i strayed from this i ended up regretting it. now
most of
> my artists are regionally based in the south east with a
couple of
> exceptions. we have tried to maintain our support of the atlanta
> music community in general by doing things to help other
bands, not
> just daemon bands. a lot of business lessons have come with ten
> years but they are pretty mundane - things to do with pricing,
> distribution, timing of releases, etc.. i have had to learn
to deal with
> the ups and downs of relationships with artists. some artists
have
> felt that daemon was a free ride to success because of my
> connections, but you can't get anywhere unless you tour and work
> your butt off. when bands have this attitude i start
resenting them...
> but i should really just let go.. they'll learn for
themselves. my
> biggest hurdle is my own success as an indigo girl. i have to
learn to
> recognize bands that are truly into the indie spirit and want
to tour
> and develop, in other words bands that don't assume because i
have
> a big deal and money that once they are on daemon they are in... i
> can't buy that for anyone.
>
> daemon records has two fantastic new releases out-three
finger cowboy's
> hooray for love and rose polenzani's anybody. what do you
think of these
> two bands?
>
> i obviously love them both. maybe you could describe them to
me...?
>
> what other bands should we keep an eye out for from daemon in
the future?
>
> a cool new trip hop outfit - chuck d meets the grateful dead
- - justin
> hale.
>
> what are the prerequisites for a band or indie artist hoping
to become a part of
> the diversity of daemon records? what specifics do you look
for?
>
> my main requirements are creative/accomplished songwriting, a
> dedication to indie music, touring, touring, touring, and
regional
> proximity.
>
> the inside page of daemon's 1998-99 catalog attributes the
phrase "rock is
> cool... but the struggle is better" (which is also now part of
a verse on "go")
> to you. how so?
>
> meaning i guess that daemon is meant to be about the music but
> also about the community at large. daemon is dedicated to its
> activist past as well as its records.
>
> what bands outside of daemon records have you discovered
lately?
>
> i love the butchies on mr. lady records.
>
> new/upcoming releases
>
> pretend you're a music critic. how do you describe the new
album come on
> now social; where does it fit in the indigo catalog?
>
> i consider our new record the best of our past and the
promise of
> our future, it's a much bolder and committed record than our
past
> releases. i find the songs to be more of the world rather
than so
> insular.
>
> what does, "raise your hands high/don't take a seat/don't
stand aside/this
> time don't assume anything/go! go! go!," mean to amy ray?
>
> it's a call to action, don't assume that you will lose or
win... just act.
>
> the chorus and first verse of "go" first appeared as a
mystery track (track 13;
> disc 2) on 1200 curfews; you've been kicking around versions
through sound
> checks and live shows for years. so it occurred to me that a
song can be
> "old" by the time it surfaces on an album. how has "go"
evolved? briefly,
> share how the high school kids from south carolina inspired
you to finish
> writing the song.
>
> go started out as a song about my own personal rebellion but
> this didn't feel right, so i shelved it. when all those kids
in south
> carolina and tennessee came to our aid i felt inspired. they
> understood the importance of struggle and stance and rebellion.
> sometimes this struggle is more important than the hipness of
> rock. on the other hand i recognize that music/rock is a
rebellion -
> when music can gather people together - well that's a
movement in
> itself. but i was feeling thankful to them for staying out
the storm
> with us and inspired because they had the fire inside.
>
> do you have a favorite emily song on the new album?
>
> the one that affects me the most emotionally is "andy"... but i
like
> playing "trouble" the most.
>
> is it true that "ozilline" is a song about your grandmother
ozilline walker? what
> has her wisdom taught you?
>
> yes "ozilline" and some other people also - the wisdom of the
song
> or that i have tried to learn is about the simple cycles of
life and how
> to learn from them and how to appreciate beauty in the face of
> physical pain.
>
> twenty-five years since you and emily met as 10-year-old
atlanta school girls,
> you both look so comfortable with yourselves on the stage.
with little left to
> prove musically or otherwise, what's the best part for you now?
>
> well i would say we have a lot to learn musically still, so
the best part
> is learning still. the activism has become massively
important and
> fulfilling.
- ----------------------------------------------------------
sheryl jones
sljones1@facstaff.wisc.edu
cooper seay page: http://www.geocities.com/felidae/cooper/cooper.htm
bootleg page: http://www.geocities.com/felidae/boots.htm

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date: wed, 24 nov 1999 18:18:57 est
from: hunterj1@aol.com
subject: [ig-news] kelly steward ig interview tape - is here

[sherlyn's note: this message was originally sent to the indigo
girls mailing list at netspace.org.]

yes, got that tape in the mail today and i am all set to start making copies
for listmembers and whoever else wants one. i hope you saved my address
because i am not about to repeat it in front of the world but email me if you
need more directions. please send a sase so the tape will get back to you.
a 60 min blank should do it.

i'll repost this after y'all get your thanksgiving plate clean ;)

and to others who live away, please don't be discouraged from asking for the
tape. i do australia, i do europe, i do canada :) yeah!

jude :)

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end of ig-news-digest v2 #214
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