On a sunny day in Universal City I got to meet up with Sarah Jaffe. Sarah is just coming off her tour with Lou Barlow. We got to discuss road life, inspiration, a cat named Nilsson and we even snuck in some recipes for stiff drinks when you’re at a local bar.
Fabio Marquez: It’s been a real busy year for you. You’ve been away from the “Golden Triangle”.
Sarah Jaffe: What’s the “Golden Triangle”?
FM: Isn’t that what they call the triangle formed by Denton, Ft. Worth and Dallas in Texas?
SJ: Do they? I didn’t know that. I guess I learnt something new today.
FM: Where have you been touring? It’s only mid year but you have been to a few places.
SJ: In the winter, I toured with Midlake who are also from Denton, TX. We did about a week in the US, and then we went to Europe for a little over a month and that was great. I then came home for a few weeks and then went on tour with Norah Jones through the Midwest and now I just finished a tour with Lou Barlow.
FM: How was that?
SJ: It was awesome. Lou is legendary and he is also one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. He’s very gracious, funny, cool and incredibly laid back. We had a total blast. There was no stress.
FM: How did you like touring Europe?
SJ: I had a blast. I turned 24 in Amsterdam and had the time of my life. Touring with Midlake was great. They’re not only a great band but they are also some of my closest friends. I also got to see a few bands; in Sweden I got to see this band First Aid Kit and they were really, really good.
FM: Do you get a chance to see bands in the States?
SJ: Not at all. We are just touring nonstop and on days off we are just driving.
FM: Now that you’ve toured and seen bands in different places, has your view on indie music changed?
SJ: I can’t really say a whole lot because I’ve only been in the game for about 4 years. You could probably get a lot from Lou Barlow who has been doing this since before I was born. I do think there is a lot to learn from people like Lou. Personally, I do think there’s lot of good things going on. Just like with anything, though, there’s a lot of saturation. There are equal amounts of great talent and there’s also a lot of s**t coming out. They’ll have their moment in the sun. I’m glad to be doing what I’m doing at this time. For me. I’ve had a reasonable progression and I’m happy playing.
FM: So what are you listening to right now? If we had to break into your car in Texas what would be on your radio?
SJ: Haha!! I like a lot of current stuff but I also like other stuff. For example, I love Harry Nilsson. I am obsessed with his stuff. I even named my cat after him. I love classics. The way he writes melodies and his progressions are amazing.
I do listen to current stuff as well. Right now, I’m listening to this band Empire of The Sun that I really like. I also like electronic music, you know, like Passion Pit and Magnetic Fields. I also like Top 40 radio for ironic reasons.
FM: So what music did you grow up with? Were your parents big music fans?
SJ: Oh Yeah! My dad loved Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor. That has definitely played a part in the music I play. I get the most reaction and comfort from those types of singers. My mom listened to a lot of Jazz so the mixture of the two worked well.
FM: Listening to your album, specifically songs like “LUV” and “Clementine,” it reminds me of singers like Damien Rice. I really enjoy the melodic progressions and the textures in your songs. The overall production is great. Did you find that working in the studio has changed the way you envision music in your head?
SJ: For sure. In this record in particular, a lot of the sounds came from the way we recorded them. We actually recorded a handful of these songs live. I think that I wanted my music to translate live. I didn’t want there to be an inclination that certain things were on the record but not live.
FM: I know. It’s a bummer once you see certain bands and the experience is completely different that on the record. Different in a bad way.
SJ: Yeah! It’d be cool if it was different but they could make it up a in a certain way. You need a lot of creativity for that. So for my record, again, I wanted the sound to translate live. Especially since this is my first record, I wanted an honest introduction. I feel like I want to grow more as a musician. I want to learn different instruments. I mean, the people I play with are very talented. Through our producer, John Congleton, I’ve been introduced to so many talented people. It’s great.
FM: How did you get into music? When did you start playing the guitar?
SJ: I had been asking for a guitar for a while and my mom finally got me one at a garage sale down the street.
FM: Do you still have that guitar?
SJ: God I wish I did! But I pawned it when I was about 15. So after that I locked myself in my room and just started playing. Now, though, I’m ready to move on to other instruments. I’ve started now playing a little bit of bass and drums and that’s helped me think about the way I play guitar. I tend to steer towards one rhythm when I’m playing guitar but now that I’ve been playing drums it’s giving me more perspective.
FM: So, how did you hook up with your band now?
SJ: I met all of them through John Congleton about 3 years ago when I did my first EP. Also, by moving to Denton, I’ve met an entire community of experienced and accessible musicians. Depending on who is on tour and who’s home you know. I try to change it up on every tour. On one tour I’ll have a violinist and I’ll have a keyboard player on another tour. I’m always trying to change it up.
FM: Now that you’re done touring for a bit, have you found it easy to write on the road or do you leave that for after the tour?
SJ: I guess all of my energy has been focused on the live shows and pushing the new music. I’ve never been one to try to push creativity. I think things can get fucked up that way. Most of the songs that I have written have just come by themselves. I have ideas but I just don’t want to push them.
FM: What else do you have planned for the rest of the year?
SJ: I think the plan is to work on some support tours in August and September in the US and maybe Canada.
FM: So, you have July off? What are you going to do?
SJ: I’ll probably work at home and try to save some money.
FM: Where do you work?
SJ: I bartend at this really cool bar called Dan’s Silverleaf. I love working there. It’s my home away from home.
FM: Do they ever play your music there?
SJ: No way! They know better. That would be horrendously embarrassing.
FM: Do you have a special drink that you make there?
SJ: I do. I love making what I call a “Dirty Shirley Temple”. It’s Vodka, Grenadine, Sprite and a cherry. Pretty stiff on the Vodka too.
FM: You should try this drink my friends my made up called the “Sister Morphine.”
SJ: What is that? Ooooh! Tell me, what is it?
FM: You pour Yukon Jack first, follow it up with Jack and top it off with Amaretto.
SJ: That sounds brutal. I’ll make sure to have one or two of those when I get home.
photo by Melanie Gomez
