Feature

Atlantic recording artist Pete Yorn has come full circle, musically speaking. With the release of his latest album “Nightcrawler,” he has completed his “Morning, Day, and Night” Trilogy that began in 2001 with “Musicforthemorningafter.” Now, Yorn is on a world tour that just brought him back from Australia the day before we spoke, and he plans on making a stop at Soul Kitchen on Nov. 7. With a line-up of all-star guests ranging from The Dixie Chicks to Dave Grohl (Nirvana/Foo Fighters), Yorn is back in the spotlight with a vengeance.

SC: You just got back from touring Australia. What kind of reaction did you get from that crowd as far as the new music is concerned?

PY: They were great! They seemed to be digging it. We did a few headline shows, and those were great. Everybody was singing along, and it was my first trip over there. So, it was interesting to see what was going on. Then, we did all these shows with The Dixie Chicks that were really fun too. I’ll tell you, man, going there, the flight was no problem. There was no jetlag. Coming back is a bitch! You leave in the morning, and you get back at the same time on the same day. So, you live the same day twice. I’m in a freakin’ fog right now!

SC: “Nightcrawler” is the third in the Morning, Day, and Night Trilogy. You said that it isn’t really night music, but it’s more reflective as far as living and life is concerned. What do you think that you’ve learned from your experiences?

PY: It’s not so much a reflective album; it’s more different perspectives. It’s commenting on things after experiencing more and having a different perspective on these things than I did three or six or ten years ago. It’s not so much reflection as it is just a different way at looking at things.

SC: You did a lot of time on this album playing a majority of the instruments. What was it like in the studio making “Nightcrawler?”

PY: It was different. All the studios I worked in were mostly home studios. It was private people’s recording places. It was nothing super fancy cause I hate the being on the clock thing. You know, each studio I went to, I pretty much set up everything to be ready to go at any time, so I could have full creative freedom. I would mic up the drums, mic up the bass amp and guitar amp, have all my keyboards ready to go and my sampler. I had everything wired up ready to roll at any time. I would be winding around the room and be like, ‘I got this great beat I want to lay down’ or ‘I just want to play this on acoustic and sing the whole thing in one take and then put everything around that.’ Some tracks came together real quick like the basic tracks. If you look, there’s a lot of drum, bass, acoustic guitar that I did myself that would happen really fast. Basically, in all the different places that I set up, I tried to create a super environment where you could kinda run around the room as ideas hit you, and you could add stuff. I probably laid down, in fact, I know I laid down tons more stuff that didn’t make it into the final mixes like extra background vocals, keyboard parts, or extra guitar parts when we were mixing it. The best experience of that was working with Tony Berg. He’s a producer for like “Policies” and “Georgie Boy.” He’s got a really eclectic bunch of instruments. It was like old, weird sh*t like dulcimers and old, weird vintage pianos and keyboards and stuff. His studio was half the size of a normal garage, but we definitely had fun over there playing around with his different toys. He’s really a creative guy, and he gave a lot of great guidance.

SC: What was it like working with Dave Grohl?

PY: Grohl was a breeze! He was great. I met him through touring with the Foo Fighters a few years back when I was touring for “Day I Forgot.” We were friends through that. When you look at the credits, you’ll see that it’s (obviously) not just me playing everything. There are a few guests. Some are higher profile guests than others. There was a song in general that he was perfect for. I heard that Nirvana bounce to it. I knew that Dave was around working on his record “In Your Honor.” I just gave him a shout. I don’t know if you’ve ever talked to him before, but he’s a really down to earth and funny guy and always joking around. So, I call him up and I’m like, ‘Yo, it’s Pete. What’s up, I got this song I want you to come down and play on’ and he was like, ‘No!’ and there was a weird pause, and then he was like, ‘Nah! I’m just f**cking with you!’

SC: Previous to your full-blown tour, you played a few acoustic mini-concerts in more intimate venues and record stores. Which do you prefer: the big arena atmosphere or the smaller more intimate experience?

PY: Someone just asked that the other day in Australia, and honestly, I like the balance of both. It’s really fun to play the super intimate, sweaty bar shows or the up-close acoustic in-stores with the fluorescent lights on, and everybody seeing who’s there and what everyone looks like. Then, there’s this other thing when you’re on this giant stage in an arena, and the lights are blinding you, and you can’t see past the second row. You feel like you’re U2 up there, and the sound is so powerful and huge. You’re freaking over the amount of people that are there. Both are great for different reasons.

SC: Tell me about the “Westerns” EP.

PY: I recorded like 60 songs for this record. I won’t say for the record; I’ll just say I recorded 60 songs for the last few years for whatever the heck I was gonna put them on. There was a certain batch that made sense that was “Nightcrawler,” and there was a certain batch that made sense (which isn’t even all of it but some of it) as a western EP. It’s kind of a more twangier thing. I thought that “The Man,” which is on “Nightcrawler” as well, fit on there well. It’s something that you can only get at my live shows. It’s not for sale anywhere yet; although, it might be at a future date. I got Leon Russell playing on a song called “Good Advice” on there. Over the past few years, I went through a phase when I was into Bowie’s stuff and Roxy Music. Then, I went through a phase when I got all into Roy Orbison and Hank Snow and later period Elvis. I think that’s more reflected on the “Westerns” EP.

SC: So, now that the Morning, Day, and Night Trilogy is over, what’s next?

PY: I don’t know. Life will dictate that. I’m basically keeping my options open. I feel like I’ve explored some interesting stuff on these first three records. I enjoy making music and will continue to do so. When whatever I do next reveals itself, then it will. It could be a concept record of sorts where everything has a through-line. I could start a band and play with other people like a Traveling Wilburys thing. It could be a dance record. Basically, I feel I have the freedom to do whatever I want and explore whatever I’m inspired by. Whatever inspires me in the next year is what I’ll put forth.

Stephen Centanni is Lagniappe music editor. Contact him at scentanni@lagniappemobile.com.

Archives