Full Interview with Joel Peterson of Broken Spindles and The Faint

I interviewed Joel Peterson of Broken Spindles and The Faint recently. I used the interview for a write up I did for the Post. Here is the interview in full.

 

 

Are you working on a new record? (What does the new stuff sound like?)

 

I just finished one that’s going to come out a little later this year.

 

I self released one I just did. Hand done hand numbered sort of thing.

 

I always use the term album with quote marks. It’s all instrumental and it’s stuff I did for a film. It’s not really a proper album but it is hence the quotations.

 

I read that that you started up Broken Spindles because you were making a soundtrack for a friend’s film? What about that film sort of lead to the sound Broken Spindles uses?

 

I think for the first album it pretty much contributed directly. I sort of knew what the person wanted. It was kind of music I was already interested in anyway. I think from there it sort of evolved and became more me.

 

What was the film about?

 

The first one was a video project someone was working on. It wasn’t a narrative. It was just sort of arty skateboard thing.

 

 And the second one?

 

That was a full length film that one of my friend’s did. Steve Berra. It’s called, The Good Life. I think it’s still kind of in the works and getting made.

 

 

There was a lot of talk about inside/absent being this sort of intimate new direction for you, but I heard a new song you made called “Red Face” that I thought sounded like a cool light fun electronic pop song. Is the stuff you’ve been working on lately a lot like that? Is its lack of lyrics you trying not to do what you’ve done before or does it just happen to be a song you felt like writing at that time?

 

That track is off this new thing. For score based music. That sort of helps why it’s in that style. I feel like that track sort of takes a nod towards my first record. More instrumental a little more driving more pop. The new one is closer to inside/absent, but it’s a lot better. It has a lot more of a band feel a lot less programming.

 

 

There’s a lot of interesting percussion in your songs, on “Burn My Body” it sounds like you might be banging on a kitchen sink. How do you come up with your ideas for percussion like that?

 

Ummm… just always trying to find something that sounds cool. We all know what a kick drum sound like. Those sound great, but it’s always fun to have other sounds. It helps move other instruments along. Make everything react from each other. Yeah I think a lot of the guitar structure for me in that song was sort of simple, sort of defined and somewhat simple. So less traditional sounds seemed like the way to go. It’s all a juggling act. Trying to balance things.

 

 

What’s good in Omaha right now?

 

Well… I’m not there. But I can’t speak for right now. But as of a few weeks ago… I’d say our new recording studio. I just finished it… we recorded the new Spindles and new Faint records there. It’s called Namal and it’s amazing.

 

 

Does a lot of planning go into recreating your sound for a live set?

 

Live Spindles is pretty… there’s a wide range of what I’ve done and what I probably will do. That’s what’s exciting to me about playing them experimenting with what already exists with the song. I’ve done all kinds of tours where it was really video based. This one is just me and nothing pre-recorded, nothing set up, no pre done electronics.

 

I’ve got sort of a stable of toys. Drum machines. Cheap synths. And a microphone.

 

I don’t want to ask you too many questions about The Faint, but you guys are starting a record label to put out your next album?

 

Correct. It just really felt like the right thing to do and the right time to do it. We took a lot of ourselves and put it into this record to do that with the release of it… with the way business things are done just seemed appropriate.

 

Have you played Denver with Broken Spindles before?

 

Yeah. I played at the Larmier Lounge two or three more times.

 

Women

Women’s self-titled debut is due out on July 8th on Flemish Eye Records

Women – “Black Rice”

Few songs make me nostalgic for time periods I didn’t exist in. “Black Rice” somehow accomplishes that task. The song is propelled and marched along by basement soaked pop guitar riffs and bass tag-alongs that recall The Velvet Underground and are nearly as infectious. Parts of the album were reportedly recorded on ghettoblasters in Sub Pop artist Chad VanGaalen’s basement, and sound the guitars emit back up this claim. Yet, the song also features an airy glockenspiel backdrop that fades in and out. “Black Rice” is a euphoric meshing of idols like Velvet Underground and the Zombies with the claustrophobic indie pop VanGaalen does so well.

Women – “Group Transport Hall”

This song is too short. Much too short. It teases like no other. The awfully catchy vocals are backed by minimalist percussion, a dashing guitar chord progression, a bouncing bass, and that twinkling glockenspiel. It’s a one minute song and each time it abruptly ends it makes me wish it was still going. I’m left with calls of, “You made other plans,” and the ringing of a guitar that should still be playing.

“Black Rice”

“Group Transport Hall”

An introduction of sorts

My name is Marlon Frisby. I’m an intern at the Denver Post, and I do mostly music journalism with a sprinkling of film and book criticism. It turns out when you work for a newspaper not everything you write or can write goes in. This is a site for me to post about the things that I wasn’t able to trick my editors into putting in the post. Enjoy.