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Phosphorescent

Posted almost 4 years ago
I am on such a roll at PW...I've gotten the "Opening Riff" slot three weeks in a row now. For this one, I actually talked to Matt Houck of Phosphorescent and he is not a great interview. Which is why I had to use the thing about the van. Anyway, here goes:Opening RiffPhosphorescent by Jennifer KellyGet in the Van, Man Matt Houck, the man behind the ghostly harmonies of Phosphorescent, is standing in a parking lot somewhere in New Haven, Conn., checking out a tour van. The van has been parked there for roughly three years. If Matt and his buddies can get it moving, they can use it for their upcoming 12–week tour. It starts. It stops. It seems fairly dubious. The thing is, if scientists ever get their cloning technology to work, Houck won’t really need a van when he hits the road. He can use a Smart Car, a motorcycle, heck, even a unicycle. That’s because everything you hear on his new full–length Pride comes from Houck himself. The pounding drums of ”At Death, a Proclamation,” the plaintive accordion and quiet strumming of ”My Dove, My Lamb,” even the spectral midnight Mass harmonies of lovely ”Be Dark Night” are all Houck, painstakingly recorded one instrument, or one voice, at a time, then layered carefully on top of one another. It’s the sort of thing that takes a long time. And if you try it in a club, people will get up and go for a beer, maybe forever. As a result, Houck is fleshing out his songs on tour with a four–person band. That’s Ben McConnell on drums, Jeff Bailey on bass and Scott Stapleton on piano, and as Houck notes, ”Everybody sings.” Pride has a hushed, spiritual glamour, full of exactly the sort of weird natural glow that the band’s name suggests. Live, it’ll be a little rowdier, says Houck. ”Every night it’s a little different. We’re quite a bit louder than the record would suggest.” That’s if they can get the van to move. If you’re good with engines—and plan on going—you might want to bring your tool kit. Houck and the touring version of Phosphorescent will be very happy to see you.
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Comments (6)

  1. Michael Goldberg
    Michael Goldberg says This is a cool piece of writing. Much more interesting than if he had said more. Did you ever read Joan Didion's piece about waiting for Jim Morrison? One of the best things ever written about the Doors,and there was no interview, just her waiting around with the other three just for Jim to show up. I think it's in her collection, "The White Album."
    Permalink posted 02/20/2008
  2. Dale
    Dale says Whoo hoo, congrats on the Opening Riff slot, you deserve it!
    Permalink posted 02/20/2008
  3. jenny
    jenny says Thanks Michael. About the interview: he was really, really nonspecific. For instance, he mentioned he liked poetry and I asked him whose and he wouldn't say. He wouldn't give me the name of the opening band (Bowerbirds, incidentally, who are pretty good, too). It was like pulling teeth to get him to name the people in his band. I've seen interviews that were about the difficulty of interviewing certain people -- not the Doors/Didion piece you mentinoed, but another one involving Robert DeNiro in Rolling Stone where the writer ended up timing the pauses. It's an interesting way to salvage things, but I don't think anyone goes in wanting to have to do this. And thanks, Dale. It's kind of a rush thing. You find out usually Saturday or Sunday afternoon and it's due either Monday or Tuesday at 10...so there's a certain amount of anxiety involved, but it's nice to be picked.
    Permalink posted 02/20/2008
  4. Jonh Ingham
    Jonh Ingham says I really liked reading this - it made me play the track. You should look up the Doors/Didion piece - it is very good. The best part is that when Morrison does show up in the studio, he sits on the couch and ignores everybody and they him. At one point he lights a match and holds it to the zip of his leather jeans - just wonderful meaningless stuff conveyed in a flat manner that in itself creates overtones of what-am-I-doing-here feeling. At the same time, she got the definitive Jimbo quote, the one about being interested in chaos and things without meaning.
    Permalink posted 02/21/2008
  5. goodmusiconly
    goodmusiconly says I came across Phosphorescent at some point last year but I wasn't snagged by what I heard. I really like the drum cadence on this track though ... I'm going to have to go back and investigate. Congrats on snagging the PW slots! It seems you're on a roll elsewhere too, you've been writing up a storm. :)
    Permalink posted 02/26/2008
  6. jenny
    jenny says You know, I've been writing excessively for weeks and they're just finally starting to run stuff...so maybe I'll rest for a little bit.
    Permalink posted 02/26/2008

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