Wild Light at Great Scott (Photo from MySpace)
Last week we checked out Wild Light at Great Scott, maybe for the last time at such a small venue. Because they're starting a tour with the Killers. Judging from the band members' immaculate dress, huge guitars, and super-tight pants, they're ready for the big stage. Somewhere in their crazy rock-star schedule, singer/guitarist/general-musician Jordan Young got a chance to answer some questions for us.
Did you intentionally nail the harmonica tone from Neil Young’s Harvest on “California on my Mind” and “Surf Generation”? Cause it sounds damn-sweet.
I think Tim just plays how he plays, without much consideration of who it sounds like. I’m glad it doesn’t sound like John Popper. I love the Neil Young comparison. Harvest is one of the saddest most beautiful albums ever. Perhaps Rob Schnapf (producer of “Adult Nights”) was going for something there—he’s a huge Young fan. We definitely all like that old simple harmonica sound.
How have you managed your releases? DIY? Through a label? And as a band, have you guys grown up more in Boston or New Hampshire? Where do you associate more?
Our first release, a four-song EP, was pretty much independent, with help from our new manager (Mark Kates) at the time, but our next release, “Adult Nights” came out on our label, StarTime Intl. They helped HUGELY in all aspects of the album. How else could we ever afford Rob Schnapf?
And concerning origins, we’re a New Hampshire band. We’re not a Boston band. We never were. We lived south of Boston, in one of the worst towns ever. It’s pretty much where people went to die. You never saw anyone walking the sidewalk. They all just disappeared in their cars, down the road, on the way to work, or back into their houses in the evening, after their 9-to-5 whatever job. It was bleak. It’s where the first Dunkin’ Donuts was. Okay?
We all grew up in New Hampshire. Pretty much in the same southern area. I think if we were a Boston band no one outside of Massachusetts would know who we are. There’s that song “Boston” by Augustana. What is that??
We’ll always find comfort in the Granite State. Boston, things could have been different between you and I.
How have you raised your notoriety? Has it been right-place-at-right-time type stuff? Intense touring? Sending demos to blogs? What has worked for you in terms of getting exposure.
Focusing on the songs was always our priority. The music was more important to us than the friends, or any scene or community. Some of our “notoriety” is right-place-at-right-time, and some of it was who we knew, I won’t lie. But how far can one band get without the music, before anything else, being good? I’m convinced not very far, at least not in the long run.
I don’t think I have ever really read a blog. Though I’d like to think people’s enthusiasm about blogs has somehow helped our exposure. I’m more of an MTV, radio, word-of-mouth, used record bin type of discoverer. But now that MTV has nothing to do with music, the radio is obscure, word-of-mouth is the internet, and record stores don’t exist anymore, I guess the idea of getting exposure in the modern ways is cool. At any rate, it would be funny if there was an obscenely indie band called Blogs.
We’ve toured a lot the past year and a half. That’s our goal right now—just to tour our asses off.
Any changes to the way you approach your songs, knowing you’re going from Great Scott one day to a massive arena the next?
More rock moves and tricks. You think, you stink. A tip to anyone who’s never played big shows: The sound is better, so you sound better, so you don’t have to worry about your shitty equipment as much. It’s much harder to sound good at PA’s Lounge than it is at the Orpheum Theatre. Our songs go over better in those big settings. It’s something we realized early on—unintentionally we were writing songs meant to be played in large venues.
So you’re touring with the Killers. Brandon Flowers has a pretty rock-star front man name. Any plans to change any of your names to be more appropriately rock? Any plans for arena-rock antics? Will Seth get a revolving drum kit that gets hoisted into the air above the crowd?
Yeah…I’m Jordan Young, I can’t speak for the rest of the band, though. Arena-rock antics? Nope. Revolving drum kit? Of course. And lots of black lights and glowing water—we’re taking along Blue Man Group. Oh, and whoever directed those old Coca-Cola ads where they are walking around on trash cans. They’ll be developing our stage set-up. And hopefully The Killers will let us use their lights and amps. I’ll ask when I get there.
If there is one band that you could chill in a hot-tub with, with a bottle of bubbly, maybe atop some sort of mountain resort, who would it be?
High Tech Ape. Great band from New Hampshire. And Handsome Furs would be there too.
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