From the Archives: An interview with Vienna Teng

As part of NewBeats.com's 10th anniversary, here is an old interview with singer/songwriter Vienna Teng.

Vienna Teng: Suburban Folk Artist
By David Chiu


In mainstream Western pop music, Vienna Teng is a rarity as an Asian American singer and songwriter. But even if that wasn't a factor, Teng's music stands out on its own. Her orchestral, classical piano dominated sound reveal a somber, moody view of life that cover the arc of the human condition: love, death, struggle, and hope. It's about the ordinary things that seem to barely scratch the surface but when they do, they make us see for who we really are. Add in Teng's warm and expressive voice and impressionistic piano playing, and the music is quite arresting and lush.

A native of the Bay Area, the 25-year-old musician graduated from Stanford with a degree and worked at Cisco Systems. But music was her true vocation from an early age and wrote and performed during her college days. That period was represented on her first album Waking Hour, which was a number one album on the indie charts. On the basis of that work, she was signed to Seattle-based indie label Virt Records.

This past February Teng returned with her latest album Warm Strangers and is currently on tour to support the record. Down to earth and soft-spoken artist, she talked to NewBeats by phone about the new album, her music, and how she got to where she is.

How different is your new album Warm Strangers compared to your previous album?

This new album definitely would be part of me having a bit of experience being a professional musician. It was the first time I was working with David Henry [the album's producer]. I knew he was a cellist and also I kind of got it in my head that I wanted to do a lot of classical instruments on the album and staying away from the traditional guitar-bass-drums driving popular music. The sound of the album is pretty orchestral and pretty acoustic, and that's the sound we were going for which was a little different from the stripped down me and the piano sound of the first album.

Vienna, how would you describe your songwriting?

I've always struggled with what to call my music. To a certain degree, it's what they call chamber folk or chamber pop because it is pretty lush. And it is based more in classical music. But I feel like the subject matter of it is like folk music rooted in the modern suburban experience. That's sort of the perspective that I write from the universal struggle that everyone goes through kind of silently, and away from the public eye.

Does your lyric writing reflect actual experiences in your life?

My imagination has to be grounded in my own experience. I feel a good 2/3 [of the album] is completely fictional. It's just me writing about situations that I've never been in or people I've never met. It's about being a fiction writer. I try to create situations that feel realistic without always being autobiographical.

One of your songs, "My Medea" is a very emotional and powerful track musically and lyrically?

I wrote that song when I was going through depression for the first time. It seemed very trite to write about how I was unhappy. It really didn't seem like I can approach it directly that way and make it a compelling song. So I started thinking about metaphors. I thought about Medea (from the Greek mythology about Jason and Medea and their adventures together) and how she was a brilliant and compassionate person but can really turn on you in an instant. That was the metaphor that I used-being this child who was at the mercy of Medea who would nurture me but can destroy me if she felt like it.

The song "Harbor," along with "Shasta," is one of the few uptempo tunes on the album and somewhat poppy and upbeat.

"Harbor" came almost purely out of frustration that I write slow, moody songs all the time. I laid some ground rules where I sat down that night and I said it has to be upbeat, it has to be optimistic. That came from being very pleasantly and surprised and grateful that my relationship hasn't been weathered by my touring over the past year or so. I think it gave me a lot of admiration and appreciation for a family that have to deal with that, especially military families whose husbands and wives are shipped off to who knows where, and the courage that it takes to be there at home and say that I'm here from you. It came out of gratitude for that. So it seems like a happy subject.

Your music has been compared to Sarah McLachlan and Tori Amos in that your sound is very subdued and dominated by the piano.

For any artist, especially a new one, it is kind of a double-edged sword. To be compared favorably to an established artist is a great compliment. On the other hand, there is the hope that eventually people will just see it on its own terms. It just becomes dangerous if people think of me as a Tori Amos wannabe or a Sarah McLachlan sound alike. As long as people recognize that I am doing my own thing, then I really don't have a problem with it.

You wanted to play music since you were a child but you studied computer science and became a programmer.

I always had it in my head to have a music career. I do remember being a kid and thinking the best thing in the world was to become a film composer and write movie soundtracks. That was really my first dream. It was really the encouragement of other people--my parents put it in my head that whatever I dedicated myself to had a good chance of happening if I was smart and passionate about it.

Do you like performing live?

I was kind of afraid in the beginning that I wouldn't enjoy performing because I think of myself as a private person. I find performing is really energizing, and it's actually made more so in front of new audiences who never heard me before. Because subconsciously it raises the stakes a little bit like well I have to introduce the song to them properly. If they never heard of my song like "Gravity "I have to play the way it was meant to be heard. The audiences I found are such nice people-open and generous.

What do you want people to get out of your music?

What makes me proud and happy is when I hear from people who say they really adopted a song and gave it a lot of meaning in their own lives. It just makes my day when people come up to me and say, 'We got to know each other through your music and listen to your CDs together and now we are engaged.' That's the greatest thing. I originally wanted to become a soundtrack composer and then go onto being the soundtrack to other people's lives.

Are you still amazed of where you are today?

It happens every night. At least during one song in the set, I always have this moment where I look out at the audience and realize that I am on the stage, and [think] 'Wow I get to do this for a living!' I am definitely in awe.

Read more!

NewBeats now on Twitter!

http://www.twitter.com/newbeats!

Read more!

CD Review: Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Yeah Yeah Yeahs
It’s Blitz!
Interscope
By David Chiu

Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ third studio release shows a bit of variety beyond the aggressive electronic rock I remember from their first album Fever to Tell. Some of those aspects are evident on some thrilling tracks such as “Heads Will Roll” and “Zero,” some old school disco on “Dragon Queen”; and the jaunty-sounding "Dull Life." But there are some really wonderful haunting and atmospheric tracks including “Skeletons,” the charming “Hysteric” and the hymn-like final song “Little Shadow.” Adding a nice bookend to the album are four acoustic versions of the some of the songs showing a depth to this band that perhaps causal fans didn’t know beyond Karen O’s charismatic, expressive vocal style; Nick Zinner’s buzzing guitar; and Brian Chase's drumming (The acoustic take of "Soft Shock" sounds reminiscent of Appalachian folk). It’s Blitz! offers a nice blast of 21st century techno rock with some subtle yet pretty tracks.

Read more!

From the Archives: An interview with Denise James

As part of NewBeats.com's 10th anniversary, here is an old interview with singer/songwriter Denise James.

Denise James
By David Chiu

Denise James's sound is a throwback to the music of the '60swell at least on record anyway. This Detroit native's recent album It's Not Enough to Love channels the spirit of Haigh Astbury, the Byrds, Patsy Cline, and English and French folk rock music in one hypnotic package. The jangle pop guitars, the use of reverberation echo, and James' sense of melody and trippy lyrics makes the music sound like 1969 than 2004 (i.e. the title track, "Come Home to Me," "Absolutely Sad," "Your Every Word"). Retro-sounding notwithstanding, the music sounds contemporary enough to strike an emotional, pensive chord with today's listener thanks to James's cool chanteuse voice and melancholic lyrcs.

James have been a regular in Detroit's music scene (that city's history of music acts past and present needs no reiteration). She had played with other acts that included the Dirteaters and the Jills, and have guested on tracks by Teach Me Tiger and the Volebeats. Striking out on her own, she recorded her debut self-titled album in 2001 on Alan McGee's Poptones label to acclaimed reviews. When the label folded, James jumped ship to Rainbow Quartz, an indie label known for its melodic rock and pop acts.

In addition to playing in Detroit, the singer/songwriter has also performed in Canada and the music showcase CMJ. James spoke via telephone about her music and how she got to where she is now.

How would you describe your sound?

That's something I always have trouble with. And I hand them the record and say you gotta listen to it. It's hard because they're influences of different things. There is obviously pop in there, some country. It's just a mixture of a lot of different music. So it's kind of hard to describe.'

How does this new album compare to your first one?

It was very sparse. This time around we had different material to work with. It just kind of fell into that production style. I think that's what worked best with those songs. Especially having a more melodic pop sound.

How you do think people interpret your songs?

I've been told probably in the last decade with a lot of stuff I've written that people feel a sense of melancholy. It seems to be more profound in some of the music. It wasn't anything deliberate-it could have been something that bothered me [for] years that came out in a song last year. It just kind of happened.

What is your favorite track on the record?

I'm more inclined to the slower sadder songs. I would say "Absolutely Sad" is my favorite song off the record. It's still resonate with me a lot.

Was there anybody that influenced you growing up?

Now at this time in my life I see those influences come back. So they never really leave you.

The Beatles were still on the radio. I was hearing songs like "Eleanor Rigby," and it did make me sad. Things like that stuck with me. Detroit had a really big AM radio thing going on in the early '70s. There was a lot of that pop music going on. Later on as I got into my mid to late teens, when I started taking music more seriously, I really started to listen to a lot of classical music. And then being kind of isolated for a while I started writing my own music. I don't really think anyone in particular influenced me per se. That's what it really seems like to me.

Detroit's got a great music scene with some acts vaulted onto the mainstream. Do you keep track of them?

I pretty much always did my own thing. I do get out and see bands. Regardless of what the current thing is, I still write the music that I write. It's just what I do. It's good to see people from Detroit get some success. It gives everybody a little hope that it can happen.

When did you know you wanted to become a musician?

I always knew music was going to be a part of my life. I started playing piano at a very young age. I don't think it's anything I would ever give up. It's something that's always there.

The songs on the album have such a textured, atmospheric quality in terms of production. Is it difficult to translate that onstage?

It all depends where you are playing. Some places that we've played have been a very quiet setting smaller venues where you can do the slower quieter songs, and you can actually hear them. Other places you just have to stick with the uptempo ones.

How has your music been received then?

The feedback that I got was that it sounds better than the album, which is surprising. You can't always bringing everyone and everything to reproduce that sound but we try and keep it close as we can to the energy and level of what you hear on the record. There are a lot of harmonies. I think it's a whole different thing live. Sometimes I think the strength of the song can really carry itself. I think so far people seem to enjoy it, so I hope we're doing something right.

Starting out, you have been involved in other people's band and you only recently started our own career proper. Has that been difficult?

Daunting, yes. Especially being a woman and playing the guitar, you're labeled immediately right off the bat as a girl singer songwriter. And I don't think a lot of times people take you seriously. I don't mind collaboration at all. When I start writing songs there was only really one way to accomplish the things I wanted to do, and that was to kind of go forward by myself. Where I had control what I was doing and what I was writing. I take it to the band and say This is the song, this is the key, this what I hear for your guitar part. It just works really well. It kind of unfolded that way.

Do you enjoy touring?

It's just really exciting. It's a fresh audience for me. The people in Detroit who like me are generally the same crowd. It's nice to go out there and get a fresh idea and perspective of what people think about it.

Has this always been what you wanted from the start?

This is what I want to be doing. I'm so happy staying buys doing this. It's really wonderful. It's nice to know that you're going to a studio to record an album, and someone is going to put it out. It's an exciting time for me.

Read more!

CD Review: Radiohead

Radiohead
Pablo Honey
The Bends
OK Computer
Capitol
By David Chiu

To say Radiohead has evolved musically since their 1993 debut album Pablo Honey is a gross understatement. Judging them on that record alone, it seemed liked they were destined to be like every other alt-rock band at that time: fashionable but irrelevant. To remind one of how far the band has come, its former record company Capitol just recently reissued the first three Radiohead albums each containing a bonus disc of demos, live tracks and other rarities.

To those new fans who’ve only heard the band’s latter experimental albums, the debut record might sound like a shock. In retrospect Pablo Honey isn’t a great album, but it isn’t a bad one either as it’s your typical guitar rock record. It carries the typical slacker angst of the ‘90s evident on tracks such as “You,” “Stop Whispering” and of course the breakout hit “Creep.” It also has its share of some underrated songs like the folkish “Thinking About You” and the rocker “I Can’t.” Overall, Pablo Honey is decent but it is also nothing really distinguishable.

Two years later Radiohead nicely rebounded with The Bends, a bolder-sounding album with the flashes of the brilliance this band is capable of generating. It’s especially best known for two great songs, the eloquent and spare “Fake Plastic Trees” and the lovely power rock ballad “High and Dry.” In between this album has a nice mix of brash rockers (the title track, “Just”) and semi-acoustic tracks (“(Nice Dream)”), “Bulletproof…Wish I Was”), There is a sense of beauty and a greater emotional depth here that was lacking from its predecessor, which why this album works, and it features Thom Yorke’s strong singing up to that point.

Then came OK Computer (1997), in which Radiohead made a 180-degree turn in terms of their musical direction and sound. An art rock conceptual masterpiece for the ‘90s, OK Computer’s songs convey the sense of alienation, detachment and confusion in this increasingly technological age;, heightened by great tracks such as “Paranoid Android” and “Karma Police.” The musical mood shifts from Gothic, atmospheric hymns (“No Surprises,” “Exit Music”) to noisy, sometimes electronic-laden, rock tracks (“Airbag,” “Electioneering”). Yorke’s distant and remote vocals especially adds to the album’s fear of the future. From OK Compyter, Radiohead would be on their way to become one of the most popular and important bands still to this day.

Read more!

CD Review: Queen

Queen
Queen's First E.P.
Hollywood
by David Chiu

After 30 years Queen’s first-ever extended play album, which was initially released in the U.K. in 1977, finally got issued in America in conjunction with Record Store Day from last Saturday. Each of the CDs also contains a number, which adds special value to it. (Mine is 705!). Fans of the band won’t find any rare or newly added tracks here on this reissue—only the E.P.’s original four-track listing, whose songs have already appeared on previous albums: the randy “Good Old Fashioned Loverboy”; the early progressive rocker “White Queen (As It Began)”; the soulful “Tenement Funster”; and the vitriolic “Death On Two Legs.”

Read more!

DVD/CD Review: Jeff Buckley

Read my review of the new DVD/CD live collection by Jeff Buckley, Grace Around the World, on Microphone Memory Emotion, a fine new music blog by Georgia Kral.

Read more!

Interview: Booker T. Jones

Read my recent interview with organist Booker T. Jones of the famous Booker T. and the M.G.'s on Spinner.com. Photo by Gary Copeland.

Read more!

From the Archives: An interview with Amy Farris

As part of NewBeats.com's 10th anniversary, which is official this month, here is an old interview with musician Amy Farris.


Not Just the Fiddle Player Anymore: Amy Farris
by David Chiu
Had you not known that Amy Farris was a singer and violinist, you could have sworn she was a silent screen actress or the It Girl of the Roaring '20s. Her distinctive photogenic face makes her a shoe-in as a Hollywood starlet. It's something that this native of Austin Texas and current Los Angeles resident would consider as a possible career.

"I would get the biggest kick out of that," says the effusive artist on a Sunday afternoon on holiday back in Austin. "That's something I would like to look into since I'm living in Los Angeles. I think I'd like to be a corpse on Law and Order, or anything. When I was growing up, I used to say, "Daddy, what should I be?" And he would never tell me what he thought until I was 22. He goes, "I think you should be an actress." And I was like, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?""

But that is for another time as Farris right now is making name for herself as a musician. After spending the last couple of years as the fiddle-playing sideman (sidewoman to be politically correct) for Kelly Willis, Alejandro Escovedo, Ray Price, and Bruce Robison, Farris recorded and released her debut Anyway (Yep Roc). In order to do so, Farris moved out from Austin to Los Angeles-prior to that, she's never lived anywhere outside of the Lone Star State.

"Moving to LA has been a huge adventure," she remembers. "A lot of people have been kind to me so I had a lot of help. I've been out there a year and I'm only beginning to comprehend that city. I'm trying to figure out what the deal is, if that's possible."

A big slice of Americana music, Anyway was produced by Blasters guitarist Dave Alvin. It was a dream come true for Farris, who first saw Alvin performing with her favorite band X when she was a teenager. "So when I got really serious about making the record, we had a mutual friend and we got in touch," Farris says. "I took a chance-I didn't think he'd ever work with me. I mean in my wildest dreams, Dave Alvin would be my producer! I wrote to him and he wrote back and said he'd be happy to work with me. And he signed it, 'Your fan Dave.'"

Alvin would turn out to be a fit not only as a producer but also as a songwriting partner on three songs. "At first it was scary working with Dave because he's one of my heroes," she says. "By the understood me so well. He understood my eclecticism. The fact is that I play violin but I didn't sit around playing bluegrass, all the time-that I have an interest in a lot of different music. And Dave does too. Co-writing together was probably the most fun."

Farris's her favorite song on the record is the title track, the most accessible and poppiest song on the record. It's also become a special song for another hero of Farris. "Dave gave a copy of the record to [X singer] John Doe, and John Doe called him up the next day and he was saying, "This is my favorite song of all time." I grew up as this X dork and that was a big deal for me."

The X connection also extends to Farris meeting Doe's bandmate Exene Cervenka at one of her L.A. shows. So what were the two's reaction to Farris's cover of their "Poor Girl" on the album? "They liked it fine. John Doe was like, "Oh that was good, but I love "Anyway!" That was through Dave."

Although Anyway is clearly a nod to old-fashioned twang and alternative country, like "Pretty Dresses," it also reveals some stylistic range. For example, the song that closes the album, "Let Go," possesses a bluesy, almost torch, feel. "That song kind of all came together in one day,." Farris remembers. "I wrote it in '97 because Sara Hickman recorded it on her album. In my mind I wanted to record it with a Motown string section-a Roy Orbison sound to it. Sometimes I find myself trying too hard that it becomes ineffective. So it's a song to myself to chill out. To me that song is a benediction to be people who try too hard."

Another song that breaks out of the alt country mode a bit is "My Heart's Too Easy to Break." "That's when Dave [Alvin] and I wrote together and I've been really enjoying doing that one live. People really have been responding to it. I guess everybody feels that way sometimes."

Farris also covered others' material on her album, including the aforementioned X song "Poor Girl," and Bruce Robison's "Drivin' All Night Long." The latter song opens the album on an atmospheric, introspective mood with Farris' sounding a bit like Nanci Griffith. Farris had previously played with country singer Robison, so she knew where to go for material on Anyway. "I remember very vividly the yellow pad with the lyrics and it was so haunting with the imagery of the empty houses on the highway and the sort of desperation and the obsessive quality of it. And the melody was so incredible. It hit me really hard. I asked him way back then if I can record it. So it was another dream come true to finally sing that song."

Achieving that dream and many others started out gradually for Farris who in a past life was working as a legal secretary. But she was also playing fiddle in the Austin clubs just enough to capture the attention of other musicians who sought her services. One of those musicians was Alejandro Escovedo who brought her along his tour. "That was a great opportunity," Farris recollects. "I learned so much. He's one of the most charismatic people I've ever met. He liked me well enough to take me up to Bumbleshoot in Seattle. That was wonderful. I kind of hooked on travel and coffee on that trip too."
She also toured with legendary country singer Ray Price, and had the distinct honor of being the first woman to be allowed in his tour bus (Apparently Price's wife didn't appreciate single women to be around her husband on the road).

Having spent most of her early career playing behind singers, she now has the responsibility of singing as well as playing her fiddle. It's a new situation that Farris relishes without hesitation and is prepared for it. "It feels great. I knew I wanted to do it for a long time but for one reason or another it's taken me to have the confidence and finances and everything else together. Now it feels wonderful."

Touring with Kelly Willis and Bruce Robison became a valuable learning experience, but there might be those occasions when Farris would seek advice. "I'll call her up sometimes and go, "Hey Kelly what do I do when this happens?" or "Bruce, what do I do about this?" And I also know a lot of terrific musicians, so I know who to call."

Being onstage is exciting to her particularly as a fiddle player, able to show the range of the instrument on both the spirited and mellow tunes. "I like nice, uptempo kind of rock songs," says Farris. "I like doing the ones that show off my chops and cause me to stretch my abilities. I love listening to those players because I feel that's where I learn. I love improvising on the other songs as well, like the solo on "Heading East." It was a blast and I could just cut loose."

Growing up in Austin, Farris first picked up the violin when she was ten. "I started on piano and I just hated it. I love listening to the piano but I just hated playing it. My folks got me a _ size violin that I could play it right away. And I just felt right at home with it. There's something about generating the tone of the violin. It's such an emotional instrument and a very human and vocal instrument. It can do an incredibly wide range of stuff."

Farris was raised on Disney records and Broadway musicals, which encouraged her to sing and write. "I'd be in my room and I had my mom's old records. I had "Pineapple Princess" by Annette Funicello, "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," [by the Charlie Daniels Band], and I had The Sound of Music soundtrack with Mary Martin. Singing was something I always I did. It came naturally."

As her tastes developed, she listened to artists such as David Bowie, the Beatles, Duran Duran, Patti Smith, Loretta Lynn, Jeanie C. Riley, and fellow Austinite Willie Nelson. But it was the legendary Los Angeles band X that charted Farris's musical course. Although regarded as one of the major American punk bands, X also drew from and on roots rock and rockabilly that Farris immediately identified with. "They are so melodic. For a punk band, they have so much going on musically. Some of the lyrics are just brilliant.

"Singing "Poor Girl" was a thrill. I knew every word of it. When Dave asked me, "Hey do you know "Poor Girl," and I'm like "Yeah!" I was singing, it, and there is this verse, "When you ran out of Pete's hotel," and he goes, "Oh, I remember Pete." And I'm like, "Oh my God." You remember Pete?" To me, this is like J.R.R. Tolkein-it's not real to me. They were a huge influence on me. Wild Gift [X's 1981 album] kind of kills me."

With the release of the album and the tour to support it (in addition to recording new material), things are happening for Amy Farris. And by all accounts, it's all one fantastic adventure. "I guess I had a lot of stuff inside me that wanted to come out, and now it's finally getting out!" she says with a laugh. "I wish I could be more eloquent about that, but I guess I'm ready. I love to tour and the feeling opening my eyes and not being sure where I am in a good way. It would be totally different this time because it's me. Don't have anybody to hide behind."

Photo: Loren Minnick

Read more!

CD Review: U2

U2
No Line on the Horizon
Interscope
By David Chiu

It may be too early to tell if No Line On the Horizon is a great U2 album but it’s certainly their strongest in recent memory. Some of the new album songs are reminiscent of past works: the title track could have been from Achtung Baby with its electronic buzz and hum; “Unknown Caller” has a sort of anthemic quality a la The Joshua Tree; and the rocker “Magnificent,” with the Edge’s signature repeating guitar lines, recalls The Unforgettable Fire. But it doesn’t mean that the longtime Irish band is bringing anything fresh on the table: rather the new music is strong aided by the typical atmospheric production of longtime collaborators Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno. There are some strong cuts such as the poppy “I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight;” the empowering “Breathe,” and the intimate closing song “Cedars of Lebanon,” which carries the tradition of singer Bono’s spiritual yearning through his timely lyrics.

Watch a clip of "Get On Your Boots" by U2:

Read more!

CD Review: Beth Orton

Beth Orton
Trailer Park--Legacy Edition
Heavenly/Arista/Legacy
By David Chiu

The fact that Beth Orton’s 1997 album Trailer Park has been now given the deluxe reissue treatment is not a real big surprise because the gentle yet haunting music still reverberates. Combining intimate folk music with electronic influences, Trailer Park shows how those seemingly incongruous styles gel so well. There is heartbreaking folk on “I Wish I Never Saw the Sun Shine” and “Don’t Need a Reason”; upbeat, joyous-sounding pop on “Someone’s Daughter” and “Live As You Dream”; and trippy atmospherics on “Galaxy of Emptiness” and “She Cries Your Name.” All of the songs are matched by Orton’s plaintive and aching voice. The reissue’s second CD of additional material, with tracks like “Pedestal” and the beautiful, elegant ballad “I Love How You Love Me,” enhances the original album.

Watch "She Cries Your Name" by Beth Orton:

Read more!