Singer/songwriter Josh Rouse has made a name for himself for combining the singer/songwriter era of the 70s and the style of modern roots rock to his music. Having based himself in Nashville since his 1998 debut album, Dressed Up Like Nebraska, the past year marked a change of scenery for Josh and a new record deal with Nettwerk after being with Rykodisc since his debut.
His new album, out this Tuesday, is called Subtitulo, a Latin-flavored album heavily inspired by his new surroundings in Valencia, Spain. That's where the man called me from to talk about his seventh record. I would like to welcome Josh Rouse to this space.
I was wondering if you could set the scene for me from where you are in Valencia?
It's really old. It actually looks like California here. Everyone speaks Spanish, which is sort of like California as well. The part where I live is pretty urban, but it's close to the beach. There's a few restaurants and independent shops. The weather is nice today, but it's still a little chilly.
What prompted such a drastic change of scenery?
I was dating a girl that lived in Spain. I was originally going to move up to New York, instead I though I should move to Spain first and I've been here ever since.
What did your family, friends and record label think of your decision?
The record label didn't care because my contact was up with them. My family was like, "Well, if you want to go over there, then check it out." I think everyone was really supportive, no one told me not to go. I've played a lot of concerts over here, just in Europe in general, so I've been comfortable there.
Did you find a community of musicians in Valencia?
Not really. It's a different community than Nashville. When I first moved here, I lived in a small town and there was definitely no community of musicians.
How long were you there before you started writing and recording this new album?
I didn't start the recording process until nine months after I moved, but I started writing immediately. I was listening to a lot of Brazilian music, that was more of an influence than any kind of Spanish music.
Did you set up a recording studio in your home?
Nothing elaborate. I have a thing called MBox where I can demo some things on there. I recorded it down in Puerto de Santa Maria where Christopher Columbus sailed from. There's a studio called Paco Loco down there and we started last August.
You worked again with producer Brad Jones on this new album. Was he up for the challenge of ushering in some Brazilian sounds into your mix?
Yeah, I've always been a fan of that music and he was too. I had some songs in that flavor, so we had that in the back of our minds. I was living on the Mediterranean coast, so we wanted the album to have a sunshine feel to it. He's pretty well knowledged in that music.
Let's talked about some of the songs on the album starting with the first track, "Quiet Town." Obviously, it's about your new lifestyle. You worked with another songwriter on it named Daniel Tashian. Tell me about the process of writing this song.
Dan actually started the song just with the phrase "quiet town." I started coming up with lyrics back in April, so I was thinking about images of this little sleepy town. I was making up ideas of people I didn't know. I was aiming for a little Harry Nilsson, "Everyone's Talking" kind of vibe with some quick finger picking on my guitar.
Just when you think the whole album is going to be Latin-rhythms and acoustic guitars, here comes "It Looks Like Love," which sounds like a classic John Rouse song. It has that 70s singer-songwriter vibe to it. Did you want to have a little more variety to this album instead of being all Latin-inspired songs?
Yeah, some of the songs I didn't want to mess with too much. We could have tried to change some things to make it more Brazilian sounding, but in the end, the song tells you what it wants to do. We left that one alone, so it does sound like something I do a lot.
Being a Jersey person myself, "Jersey Clowns" is a good song. Is it about anyone specific?
No, for some reason I had this mafia guy in mind. [Laughs]
Were you watching a lot of The Sopranos?
It's funny that I haven't been watching that show, but I had this ordinary guy in mind that hung around with guys. He was a macho guy and I put him in a sensitive place. His lady had been running around on him and his friends don't want to tell him that.
You get an idea of a song and you write a lot of lyrics for it. Next thing you know, you're telling a story. Brad thought it was about a guy in Iraq.
My favorite song on the album is "The Man Who..." probably because the harmonies work so well. There's a build up of instrumentation through the song. You even throw in some slide guitar. Did you experiment with different instruments before settling on the final result?
We did. At first it was just me singing it and it sounded like a Kinks song. I talked to my girlfriend and asked if she thought it would be interesting if I made it a duet, having the song also be from a girl's point of view. We ended going back and forth on it. I wasn't sure how the music would fit into to it, so we tried a bossa nova mix to it. It sounded like a Belle & Sebastian song.
So she never recorded anything before in the studio, so I thought her accent would be nice. She came in and did it and it worked out well. At first, I thought it would be weird to have a pedal steel guitar on it because it wouldn't seem to go with the song, but it turned out nicely. Actually, that was the first song we recorded for the record. Brad was the one who arranged it, so he can credit for the build-up of instruments.
You answered my next question: where did you find Paz Suay? She would be your girlfriend.
Yup, she also did the artwork on the album.
Is there a song on the album where you say to yourself, "This is why I moved to Spain?"
"La Costa Blanca," the instrumental track. That song just sounds like Spain, it's a like a mixture of desert, mountain and ocean.
Did the album turn out how you expected?
I think so, I never try to get my expectations up before a record. I've been doing this for a while now, so I try not to pinpoint anything in my brain. I think the song "Wonderful" turned out how I wanted. I wanted it to be exotic.
Did you plan on it being so short? It's about ten song and 32 minutes long.
That was planned. I enjoy short records. I like the old Neil Young albums that were about 35 minutes long. You listen to the record more. You don't have to wade through 15 songs and it's 60-70 minutes long, which is fine sometimes.
My favorite album of yours is 1972, which is your ode to the singer/songwriter era. That seems to be a thread through most of your music. I'm sure you recognize that. Do you ever worry that you might dip into that well too much?
It is a part of what I do and it has to do with the chords I use. I do like putting together a song in that Brill Building style. It's arranged well and it stands up on its own. I can't get away from it too much. I've mastered that sound pretty well. I do want to do different things.
Now you're back on tour. Are the same people you made the album with going to tour with you?
Pretty much. The guy who plays bass with me, he's gone on the past few tours with me will be with me, but he didn't record with me. The producer Brad played bass. My drummer will be with me. For New York, we'll have a string section so that will be nice.
Can we expect that whatever you produce in the future will be Latin-centric, meaning are you in Spain for good?
In a way, yes. I bought an apartment here. I do want to do some different things. I'd like to do a jazz record.
How about a BritPop album? I know you're a big fan of the Smiths and the Cure.
Oh yeah. I would love to do a straight-up rock record. I've got a lot of ideas, whether I follow through on them is a different question.
My last question: can I come over and visit?
Yeah, sure man. [Laughs]
I can come over and clean your pool or something. I can cook, so I can make you something.
That will work.
If I'm ever in the area like in Ibiza or someplace and I need a place to crash, that would be cool.
Anytime. [laughs]
Josh playes New York's Town Hall on April 7 or you can check out other tour dates on his myspace page or his offical website.
Hey Chris,
I just stumbled across your site as I was searching for Josh Rouse stuff. I saw him last night in Toronto, and the show was just great. I also think you were mentioned on Josh's site as well. You're getting shout-outs all over.
So yes, I started reading your blog, then an hour went by, and hell, I'm working for the man, so I had to stop.
You've got a great writing style and taste in music as well.
I'm in New York at the end of April, for 5 days. What are the shows to see? The venues to check out? I'm from Toronto, and haven't been to the city in ages, so am out of touch.
Any news would be good. Thanks a lot, and keep writing the good and funny stuff.
Loren
Posted by: Loren | April 12, 2006 at 03:55 PM
The venues to check out? I'm from Toronto, and haven't been to the city in ages, so am out of touch.
Posted by: aion power leveling | June 15, 2010 at 04:19 AM