I remember the
dark room from which my first One Trick Pony experience was born. It was the song A Whale’s Death. My eyes got sour for a second because the loud
quiet heavy soft simple intricate haunting palpitations of the song sort of had
a hold on my soul. Throwing me around. And then there was Phone Book…which had a completely different effect. It made me
incredibly happy…like how I feel when I hear This Charming Man by The Smiths. That being said…they’re not really
one trick ponies. They’ve got tons of stuff up their sleeves…I think I mention
that in the first question. So read on. - Keba
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| Photo by Zoe Roth |
Your
band's name implies an inability to do new things. But your music
proves otherwise. So how does One Trick Pony perpetuate
its creativity?
Randolph:I've always been the song writer
and the band has had different forms over the years but I'm most happy with the
form it's taken now and the philosophy we have. We
have a solid creative core (drummer Jen Matos and I) and we try to
make sure each song can stand alone but we also have rotating members who come
in and out and allow us to reinvent the songs so that we're never
bored. Some people have said to me that a changing line up and
an unpredictable song catalogue lead to confusion of the audience but we
like to believe people are more complex than that. We crave change
and dynamics and I think some people can appreciate that. Jen and I like
to believe that there is no genre we don't like (though there's tons of stuff in each genre we don't like!) and the struggle is to rein in all those
influences and digest them in a subtle way. All that being said, Jen
is not afraid to tell me that something is in her words, "lame",
so as soon as something is labeled lame we try to turn it on its head and go in
a different direction.
I
like that philosophy. So how long have you guys been playing together and how
did you form?
Randolph:Well I was playing as One Trick Pony since 2003, originally with a drummer
and bassist I met when I moved here. Wow, it was terrible music! Anyway
countless member changes later I Jen when I played a show at musician's
institute. She actually wanted to manage "us". Ha! Right
before our first meeting to talk about management my whole band quit!
Rebuilt the band, met Charlene, our violinist, while doing the music for a Sam Sheppard play, then as we planned a little tour
in 2005, the drummer moved home. We were looking for a
drummer and Jen mentions in passing "oh yeah, I play drums and sing."
and the rest is history, though relatively unread history! I think we've
learned that the theme of our band is the path of least
resistance, doing what the easiest and most natural working with
what we have, keeping it in house. We're all friends first. Right
now Josh Solberg plays bass for us (I was just in his wedding) and our
friend Todd Mclaughlin plays banjo and mandolin, we've all known each other for
years now.
How
would you say your music has evolved since you guys have been playing together?
Randolph:I think it was a process of
finding and accepting our "voice", I would think that’s similar to
many bands. For us it didn't happen until very recently.
Probably the biggest part was finally having the stability of the Jen
and I as the core of the band. Before her I think the "band"
felt forced and artificial, we were trying to compete with louder rock bands so we could get on the more popular
bills. With Jen, I realized we could have more impact with stripped
down line up and focus on lyrics and arrangements instead of just
getting the traditional drummer, bassist, keyboard, guitar band
thing together. Before I felt we were covering up weakness with a
bunch of instrumentalists, it felt hollow. Jen and I went to Berlin a
year ago and played as a duo, her playing on a cardboard box with a kick
pedal and me on acoustic guitar, mainly
because we couldn't afford anything else, and I think it really
helped our confidence. We proved to ourselves that the songs can
stand on their own. From then I think we were finally able find
our sound and direction. Now even when we play with our other
friends in "full band" mode it feels natural and heart felt, not with
some band model superimposed on us. We are flexible and with
the line up, our relationships in the band, and I think we are happier
and the music shows that. I believe "Full of life"
is the first album we made that reflects that feeling
“Box
Song" is in the film Junction. How did that whole thing get together? And
what's the movie about?
Jen:We were approached by the writer of the film, April Wade, who had heard of our music through the songwriter Ryan Hanifl. She loved Box Song and thought it would work well for the climax of the film. It's a rather dark comedy, I think it's one of the better things we've had our music placed in, it has won a few awards.
Jen:We were approached by the writer of the film, April Wade, who had heard of our music through the songwriter Ryan Hanifl. She loved Box Song and thought it would work well for the climax of the film. It's a rather dark comedy, I think it's one of the better things we've had our music placed in, it has won a few awards.
Randolph:Honestly
I've never watched it. I think the creator approached Jen and asked if
she could use it. I tend to be pretty liberal about people using our
music, Jen's more paranoid about it, I just say "give it
away".
There are so many bands in Los Angeles. Do you guys get any inspiration from that?
Jen:I wouldn’t say that we pull too much inspiration from other LA bands. For me, I go to shows for the same reason other people do: to be entertained. That being said, I never get tired of seeing locals Death to Anders, Mad Gregs, or Leslie and the Badgers. If I had to list one local drummer I find intriguing, it would be Lewis from Mad Gregs, his beats are amazing.
Jen:I wouldn’t say that we pull too much inspiration from other LA bands. For me, I go to shows for the same reason other people do: to be entertained. That being said, I never get tired of seeing locals Death to Anders, Mad Gregs, or Leslie and the Badgers. If I had to list one local drummer I find intriguing, it would be Lewis from Mad Gregs, his beats are amazing.
Randolph: um... I wouldn't say
"inspired". Bands bands ad nausea. Here is where
I should check the wave of bitterness swelling inside, ha! No I don't
think we pull inspiration from number of bands in LA, I'd call LA
bloated. Ok, let me get to the next question, end on a positive
note!
What bands do you guys listen to?
Jen:Recently I've been listening to St.
Vincent, Grizzly Bear, Neutral Milk Hotel, Jason
Lytle, and The Rhone Occupation. I've also been listening to a lot of classic
rock/alt country lately.
Randolph:
there are few bands in LA we love. Death To Anders are one of the
most underrated and dynamic bands here. Mad Gregs are awesome. Avi
Buffalo doesn't need my endorsement but they are amazing. Bastidas, Seasons,
Die Rockers Die (defunct), Health. as for what we're listening to now, I've
been listening to a lot of Scott Walker, Miles Davis, and my old hip hop actually, Mobb Deep.
