Michael Krassner - That Unique American Sound
Michael Krassner is perhaps best known for leading the Boxhead Ensemble that
created the soundtrack for the Dutch Harbor documentary and who toured
the United States and Europe with the film, performing live, improvisational
accompaniment to the screenings. Krassner, however, also leads another
troupe, The Lofty Pillars, who create incredibly beautiful and moving
orchestral pop. Their debut, When We Were Lost, is perhaps the most
beautiful record of the year. Krassner was kind enough to answer my questions
on the album and the differences between it and his first solo album, which
is of a similar style and made using much of the same lineup. He also provides
great news about upcoming projects for the Boxhead Ensemble, along with other
records and artists with which he is working.
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| fakejazz:When the album that became When We Were Lost was started, it was to be
a solo album and a follow up to the self titled Michael Krassner album. When
did the solo project morph into a group? What fueled the decision to credit
the album to the band The Lofty Pillars instead of just Michael Krassner? |
| michael:When We Were Lost is very much a follow up to the first "solo" record.
To be honest, I never really felt too comfortable with doing a solo record,
but I didn't have a band at the time so I gathered up some friends, and we
recorded some of my songs. In the time between the first and second records,
the band solidified into more of a group project. On Lost, everyone had
100% input and control on what he or she wanted to bring to the songs. I
guess it just reached a point where it became a group. Wil Hendrick's song
writing contributions were also a big part into making it more of a
group. |
| fakejazz:When I first started listening to When We Were Lost, I immediately thought
"country," but the more I listen, the less strong such an influence seems.
Aside from the pedal steel, do you see country music as an influence? If so,
what country music has influenced you, and what artists or groups would be
most influential to the The Lofty Pillars' sound? |
| michael:I listen to a lot of music, but it's really difficult to pin point any
sort of influence. I think the pedal steel gives the record a very
"Americana" feel much in the way the slide guitar gave All Things Must
Pass (Ed: George Harrison) that unique American sound (although it's very much
not an American record). The initial response is that it must be influenced
heavily by country music. I listen to country music, but I certainly don't
feel like
I'm writing country music. I'm just trying to write the best song that I
can. I guess I'm learning just as much from Cole Porter and Robert Wyatt as
I am from Willie Nelson and Townes Van Zandt. |
| fakejazz:For both Michael Krasser (the album) and When We Were Lost, songwriting
is credited to both you and Wil Hendricks. How does this writing relationship
work? Are you the main songwriter but regularly ask for Hendricks' input and
refinement of your ideas? Or is it an equal partnership? |
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michael:Wil and I started playing together about 10 years ago in Los Angeles. It's
a relationship that seems to work out very well. What usually happens is
that I come up with the basic framework for a song and present it to him,
and then he has a natural ability to strengthen and improve whats there. Wil
also has a much stronger knack for melody and harmony. It works well because
he prefers to work on existing songs while I'm always working on new songs.
It's a little tricky now since I live in Chicago and he lives in San
Francisco. We do a lot of our writing by phone or by sending cassette tapes
back and forth. I would definitely consider the songwriting an equal
partnership. |
| fakejazz:Both poetically and expressively, is complex language needed to express
complex emotion, or can plain language be as effective? How do you feel your
lyrics fit into this balance?
A lot of your lyrics seem more like short stories than personal reflections
(e.g., use of 3rd person). Are most of these "stories" actually personal?
(In general, what is your lyric writing process?) |
michael:Lyrics and words are always the hardest thing for me. The Lost record
is a very personal record, although one might not be able to tell by
listening to it. The songs were mostly about people and situations that were
very close to me at the time. I think I tend to write in "code," where I'm
expressing certain things, but the words are very much open to
interpretation. Quite often I write on a subconscious level and I'm not
really sure what the words mean until much later. As a listener I tend to
prefer words that are simple and straightforward. I think this is something
that I continue to work towards. Saying a lot with a little like Curtis
Mayfield or someone like Neil Young... straight from the gut. I think I
accomplished this (maybe too well) on the first record with a song called
"Such a Fool." The next record we're working on is much less personal, more
story telling. I thing it will be a much more straightforward record
lyrically. |
| fakejazz:What do you feel are the major differences between the Michael Krassner
album and the The Lofty Pillars album? Are you more satisfied with When We
Were Lost?
What led to the change in instrumentation between albums,
i.e., less bass and drums, more everything else? |
| michael:I think the Lost record is a continuation from the first record. The
first record was a big learning experience for me. I never really made an
entire record of songs before. I think I made some mistakes and would
probably not put out most of the songs on the record now, but I'm glad I
did. It's all about the process and growing and moving ahead. I don't think I
could have made Lost if I didn't make the solo record first. i'm proud of
the solo record, but i'm aware of some glaring weaknesses on it. I started
Lost the day I finished the solo record. I felt then that I was finally
ready to make a record. I purposely wanted to keep the solo record simple
and understated. Ultimately I think the solo record accomplished what I
wanted it to do, a sort of introduction.
While the solo record was recorded on an 8 track, I decided to record the
Lost record on the 16 track. I think this is, at least in part, some of
the reason for the greater instrumentation... more tracks to play with. I
also felt that I had something to prove (mostly to myself) a little. I made
this simple little record that seemed to be ok, but I wanted to make
something more substantial, with a little more impact maybe. I spent the
better part of the next year writing the songs and rehearsing and trying to
learn how to sing. I like the way the record turned out. I think Fred
Lonberg-Holm did a tremendous job arranging the horns and the strings. I
think everyone was fantastic. My job was easy. |
| fakejazz:What other projects are you currently working on? Are there any future
plans for the Boxhead Ensemble? What are the plans for The Lofty Pillars? |
| michael:The future looks busy. I'm currently finishing up a movie soundtrack and
a CD with the Boxhead Ensemble. I've been doing a lot of work with the
Boxhead Ensemble lately and a number of releases should be coming out next
year. I solidified the group somewhat. In the past it was a pretty revolving
group, but now there's just 6 or 7 of us. It's a lot more focused, and I think
the sound of the group is getting more refined. I'm also going to start
working on a new Simon Joyner record. It's our third one together, and I'm
really excited to get working on it. I think he's the best. I just finished
a great record by a band called Manishevitz on Jagjaguwar. In October, the
Pillars will be touring on the west coast and beginning the next record
(Amsterdam) in December. All is good... |
| fakejazz:Would you please tell me some about the movie Boxhead Ensemble is
working on? Do you plan on having the band tour with the film again?
Who are the 6 or 7 members in the current incarnation? |
| michael:The Boxhead Ensemble is currently completing music to a film called The
Speciman. It's a documentary film about a man who makes his living fighting
and wrestling in Japan of all things. We won't be touring with that film.
We've also retired from performing with the Dutch Harbor film. The next live
music and film performances will be out west in the late winter and early
spring of 2001. Braden King (director of Dutch Harbor) and I are currently
in the process of organizing the films. Probably a series of short films
from several different film makers.
The current Boxhead players are Fred Lonberg-Holm, Scott Tuma (ex-Souled
American), Mick Turner + Jim White (Dirty Three), Jessica Billey (Ms. Mick
Turner), Ryan Hembrey, and Glenn Kotche. We also play with others from time to
time. |
| fakejazz:That sounds terrific. Thanks for taking the time to talk with us. |
