You can take the boy off the mainland but you can’t take the banjo away from the boy.
Steve
Taylor - banjo player, guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer - a
founding member of the underrated Los Angeles alt-pop band The Uninvited
- moved his base of operation to Hawaii but was sure to take along his
banjo. He has hooked up with some superb bluegrass players and morphed
an island country band, Flat Jackson, into a new musical genre -
Hawaiian alt-grass. This is some major Maui Wowie. The band has just
released their first EP, an amazing 7 track endeavor that takes you on a
journey from an alternative bluegrass country folk vibe to head
spinning psychological mind games worthy of Cake. Yes, that’s right, a
Hawaiian roots alt-grass banjo-based band. What makes it work so well?
They all can write and they all can shred. Get the self-titled Flat
Jackson EP and listen to this work of art made on island time and
inspired by the beauty of the Pacific. Laid back. yes; lazy, no.
Absolutely different, new and interesting.
I
was able to catch up with Steve Taylor in between his naps in the
hammock on a slow Hawaiian surf day and he granted me this interview:
Steve, love the new EP.
Q. How did Flat Jackson come about?
A. Like
many bands, Flat Jackson was the result of a catastrophic lab accident
at a major pharmaceutical company…or was it a jam session? Actually, as I
think about it, we did start out as just a group of friends jamming.
The lab accident happened later, and I’m really not at liberty to talk
about it…
Q.
Your work in The Uninvited had a much more folk-pop rock flavor than
Flat Jackson which you describe as alt-grass. What brought you to create
the unique sound of Hawaiian alt-grass?
A. Well,
obviously, living in Hawaii and all, it just kinda rubs off on you.
There is a deep rooted culture here, and something else that’s hard to
put your finger on. A feeling? A vibe? I’m not sure how to describe it,
but Maui resonates at a certain frequency that your soul can just tap
into.
The
Uninvited’s sound was the culmination of the people involved, and at
that time we were all about distortion, loud guitars, blasting bottom
end, and gin. We liked gin. Flat Jackson is also the
culmination
of the musicians involved who all bring their varied life experience to
the sound. Right now, FJ is into pushing the boundaries of acoustic
instrumentation – bringing an electric energy to an organic format. And
whiskey. FJ is more on the whiskey side.
Q. When did you begin to play banjo? How did that become your instrument of choice?
A. My
Dad played banjo and he originally turned me on to the instrument. He
would sing old Kingston Trio songs and I would sit there mesmerized. I
began playing in the sixth grade and became a bit of a freak. I couldn’t
put it down. I took it to school with me and played it on the long bus
ride.
Q. Who made your banjo? You also play guitar. What makes do you have and prefer?
A. For
banjo I love the Gibson Mastertone. I have a Deering Crossfire electric
banjo for when I’m feeling Sex Pistols, but my all time favorite banjo
is the one Dad made for me. It’s an amazing work of art.
For
guitar, on the acoustic side, you can’t beat the high end Taylors. For
electric, I have an old beat to hell 1980 Gibson Les Paul Custom that I
LOVE. It will peel your face right off your skull…metaphorically of
course. It’s not some kind of horror movie guitar or anything…
Q. Did you have a mentor as a banjo player? Who?
A. My
Dad taught me for about 2 weeks, but I drained him like a musical
vampire. Then I found some old Pete Seeger records and copped all his
riffs. Soon after I discovered Earl Scruggs, and it was game on. I
collected up all the bluegrass legends and did the best I could to
emulate their styles. After a few months, I met a banjo player named
Woody Zuill, who can best be described as the Jimi Hendrix of banjo. He
rocked it. From then on I wanted to be like Woody.
Q. Who are the other band members in Flat Jackson and what are their musical backgrounds?
A. Russell
Halverson on upright bass. Not only is Russell an amazing bassist and
guitarist, he is also a master luthier who works for Steve Grimes (http://www.grimesguitars.com/).
Russell’s inventive craftsmanship is reflected in his unique approach
to playing and phrasing. You never know what he’s gonna do next, which
makes playing with him a true joy.
Aaron
Jernigan on guitar and vocals. Aaron is a one-of-a-kind. I love his
voice and I love the way he approaches a song. His phrasing, the way he
messes with the vocal timing, is reminiscent of Sinatra. Personally, I
believe his attitude, his songwriting and his unique vocal approach give
him a star quality that I wish I ran into 20 years ago. Flat Jackson is
the first professional band he’s played in.
Christina
“Stina” Nelson on guitar and vocals. Stina gives Flat Jackson
authenticity. Her light southern drawl is not affected, it’s born of her
Arkansas upbringing. She is the only person I have ever met who has
actually jumped in a box car and road the rails full-on hobo style.
Stina brings a depth of experience both musically and real-life that she
gives back in her songwriting and vocal performance. Set your coffee
next to the speakers when she harmonizes and you won’t need any sugar.
Jonas
Troxell on drums. Jonas is a local drumming star having been a founding
member of Maui’s premiere jam band, A Kettle Prime. When AKP split up
he stopped playing professionally, but we pulled him out of retirement.
He has an awesome respect for the acoustic approach, but he’ll beat
those tubs like they owe him money when it’s appropriate. We’re super
lucky to have him.
Steve Taylor on Banjo and Vocals. I do my thing and try to stay out of everyone’s way.
Q.
The new 7 track self-titled Flat Jackson EP is Flat Jackson’s first
official recording. How long has the band been together? How did the
band come together?
A. We’ve been together for 2 years now. You can get the story here: http://www.flatjackson.com/about/
Q. How did you go about choosing the songs that appear on the EP?
A. We
recorded about 14 songs, but threw out half of them because it was
taking too long to finish things up. We’ve already started planning out
the next full-length record.
Q. Who wrote the lyrics? Who wrote the music? What was the process you all went through to create the songs on the EP?
A. Whoever
is singing is the main songwriter. Everyone contributes to the
songwriting/arranging process but Aaron, Stina and myself usually
provide the skeleton that we all flesh out.
Q.
The final cut “Everything You Know About Love” you call an “Action
Jackson Remix”. Why? The treatment is reminiscent of a few Cake songs.
Was that intentional?
A. K,
it’s a long story, but everyone in Flat Jackson has a nickname that
ends in Jackson. Yes, it’s hard core dweeb, but hey, we live in the
middle of the Pacific Ocean and sometimes you get bored. Anyway, I got
the nickname Action Jackson, and that particular song is something
created in the studio in bits and pieces. Russell came up with a bass
riff, recorded it on a voice memo app on his iphone and emailed it to
me. I looped it here and there, grabbed a sample of Jonas’ drum work,
did some spoken word weirdness over the track, threw in some banjo, and
had the rest of the band come over and put down whatever they wanted.
We never really rehearsed or planned the tune in any way. It just sort
of happened.
Q. What is your favorite cut on the EP? Why?
A. My
favorite songs are the ones between the first and last track. As a
child of the 70s/80s, I can’t help but see albums as a whole – it’s just
the way I grew up. You dropped the needle on that wax frisbee and
escaped to rock land for 45 minutes. Old habits are hard to break….
Q. Aside from Flat Jackson, are there any songwriters out there that you find inspiring? Who? Why?
A. John
Taylor, easily the best semi-unknown songwriter on the planet bar none.
Anyone who can make you both laugh and cry in the time span of 3
minutes and 30 seconds is a musical mofo. I’m currently listening to a
lot of Wood Brothers, whose lyrical genius requires multiple listenings.
As far as established songwriters go I’ve really been getting into
Mozart lately. The music industry of the 1700’s was just as sucky then
as it is today and he got pretty hosed. Despite those setbacks, or maybe
because of them, he created work that has resonated for hundreds of
years. Now that’s bigger than the Stones.
Q. Your favorite and why? Vinyl, CD or digital download?
A. That’s
a trick question because each one has huge drawbacks. Digital is
getting better and better and will one day rule them all. However, once
you have recorded on 2 inch tape on a 24 track machine, no reproduction
of that original recording will ever sound the same regardless of media.
Listening to an original 2 inch recording can bring tears. Seriously.
Q. What is your hometown? Do you have a favorite record store in or around your hometown? If so, where and why?
A. Though
I didn’t grow up in LA, there was a Tower records on Sunset Blvd. in
Hollywood that consumed many of my waking hours. And dollars. Many
dollars. The first time I saw one of my band’s CDs in that store I
almost had an aneurism right there in the Rock section.
Q. Whiskey, Jaeger, Tequila, Beer or Wine?
A. I
have consumed my fair share of all five in the many years I have
trudged this Earth, but these days it’s all about beer and wine – Maui
Brewing Co.’s Coconut Porter and any awesome Napa Cab will rock my
world.
Q. Are there plans to tour the EP? If so, when and where?
A. Hopefully we will be on the mainland late summer of 2015. Keep an eye on our website!
Q. What is next for Flat Jackson?
A. Next
up we are all going to get Doctorates in Astrophysics so we can finally
solve the age old mystery of where the other sock disappears to when
you throw a pair in the dryer and only one comes out. WTF with that?
Q. Where can the Flat Jackson EP be purchased?
A. iTunes, Amazon, CDBaby or wherever fine digital goods are sold.
Q. Just two more questions: 1. If you could be any type of animal in the world what type
would you want to be? 2. As a kid what did you want to be when you grew up?
would you want to be? 2. As a kid what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. Though
it’s a bit of a cliché, I think if I was going to be an animal I would
want to be a duck-billed platypus. Nothing says “cool” like a platypus,
and they have a hidden poisonous barb if anyone f’s with them.
When
I was growing up all I ever wanted to be was a pirate. As I got older I
discovered the closest career in modern times was touring musician; you
roll into town, burn down the house, take the money and run. Livin the
dream, baby.
Thank
you Steve for taking the time to talk with me. Waveriders,check out
Flat Jackson’s new self-titled EP. It is akaw! Primo stuff.
- Old School
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