trespassing in the stereo field

by K. Vicious

Photos Courtesy of American Analog Set

About a decade ago, the American Analog Set burst quietly onto the American indie music scene like a slow burning fuse, their frantic guitar melodies and melancholic keyboard hum furrowing deep into the brains of the many lonesome dorm rats who own one too many flannel shirts for their own comfort. Then of course, their endless cultural references (from Paul Simon to Dr Pepper) and the cool musical influences favored by the band back then were as easy to identify with as laundry crises. The AmAnSet's heartfelt music attracted an underground following quickly but their records soon became saddled with comparisons - sometimes unflatteringly so-to the other slowcore bands that were knocking around at that time.

So it came as a real pleasant surprise when the band managed to beat the millennium blues to the punch by dropping "Know By Heart" (2001) and "Promise Of Love" (2003) on our laps, two awesome albums of inspired pop music that explore new sound expanses beyond slowcore, while lead singer songwriter Andrew Kenny dishes out lyrics about the first blush of romancing or those that nailed down that terrible feeling of being forsaken. The current band members-Andrew Kenny, vocals and guitars; Lee Gillespie on bass; drummer Mark Smith; and Tom Hoff and Sean Ripples on keyboards-are tipping confidently towards all things new and venturous. And when they got an invitation call recently to travel all the way to Taiwan to perform at the Formoz Music Festival, the band gladly jumped at the opportunity. Aging Youth talks to Andrew Kenny, lead singer of the American Analog Set, from his living room to yours.

Hi Andrew, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Some of our readers may not be familiar with American Analog Set. Just to get it out of the way, how about offering us a brief intro to the band: where you guys came from, when was the band formed, that sort?

Andrew: Sure. We formed in Fort Worth, Texas around the spring of 1995. For most of us, the AmAnSet was our first band. I think writing, rehearsing and recording was originally a great way for the four of us to be together and beat the oppressive Texas heat. When the fall came, Mark and Lisa moved back to Austin for school and Lee and I followed a few months later. Austin was where we first found an audience and so we often say we're from there. The four of us continued to write and play, and tour around our school/work schedules over the next four years. In January of 2000, our keyboardist, Lisa, left the band to pursue a career and Tom joined in her place. Sean joined a few months later and we retained that line-up through the next two records and for a good deal of touring. Friend and keyboardist, Craig McCaffrey, joined the band about a year ago and that's the line-up we took to Taiwan (in July) and the team we're working on the newest record with.

The band recently traveled to Taiwan to play at the Formoz Festival. How did that came about, and why did you guys decide to do it?

Andrew : We're not totally sure how it all came about. I thought that the Album Leaf may have recommended us for the festival but Jimmy (Album Leaf) told me in Taipei that he thought we recommended him! So however it came about, we had a wonderful time and would love to do it again someday.

I don't know if you are aware of this, but your performance got a bit of coverage in the mainstream Taiwanese media, which is kinda surreal. I think it was also because the former Taiwanese premier attended one of the press conferences. What was your impression of the country?

Andrew : Are you serious? I had no idea! We were in Taipei for a week and most of us made really good use of our time there. It was our first exposure to the Eastern world, individually and as a group. I can't tell you what an honour it was for us to be chosen to play. The experience was wonderful. The city is really easy to get around in for Westerners and we did a lot of exploring. Sure we all came back with aching legs from all the walking we did, but we had fancy sneakers to show off for the effort (all except for Craig... who has size 12 feet and couldn't find a decent pair to fit him!)

When the first few AmAnSet records came out, I recall the band being rather too hastily lumped with the other indie bands of a so-called slowcore vein, bands like Bedhead or even Low. I think that with your last two records, Know By Heart (2001) and especially Promise Of Love (2003), there just seems to be sort of a different touch to the music, a sense of maturation perhaps. What do you think accounted for the progression?

Andrew: We've always been a slow developing band because we're barely a band to begin with. We're more friends with complimentary instruments. So yeah... maybe it took us a little while to figure out what the American Analog Set was all about. I think 1999's "The Golden Band" was the first record that really sounded like us. "Know By Heart" and "Promise of Love" were the result of experience and a lot of touring too. People have different favorites and it's discouraging sometimes to hear, 'You need to make another "Golden Band" or "Know By Heart"' because really I think each record we're released has been better than the one before. At least, we're getting better at being the AmAnSet.

Another thing I hear on the newer songs is that the lyrics are more defined, like there are these stories and characters that shadow the songs...

Andrew : Lyrics can be a real pain and the honest ones can be really embarrassing. But I decided a few years ago that the ones I was most proud of were the honest ones, the real ones (the embarrassing ones) and so I've concentrated a lot more on them for the last two records. The last two records really began and continued a story for me. "Know By Heart" was about falling in love. On "Promise Of Love", trouble develops and on the new record the trouble is resolved for better or for worse.

Was there any specific influence on the direction Promise Of Love took? I understand that most of the album was first recorded in your apartment and the other members added their contributions from there...

Andrew : Actually, most of the music was tracked in Austin in 2002, and I added the finishing touches, vocals, percussion, etc. at my apartment here in Brooklyn. The songs though, were written long before. In fact, I think we played nearly every song on "Promise Of Love" on tour in 2002.

Were there any bands that you guys tried to emulate when you were first starting out, in terms of a certain band's sound or independent attitude or whatever that you guys admired?

Andrew : When I listen to the first two records (and love them as I do, this is still a little painful in spots) I can hear the bands we listened to rattling around in there. Spiritualized, Low, the Red House Painters, Stereolab, Mojave 3 and so on. Not so much in the songs themselves, but in the way we chose to present them. It wasn't intentional of course, and the comparisons were crippling early on, honestly. But I think we figured out what we were all about over time. It's a bit of a 'growing up in public' kind of thing. We could've waited a while to release our first record but we were a recording project, and we were proud of what we were recording... comparisons or not.

It happens that we are featuring a few bands in this issue who are influenced by shoegazer bands. Well, you just mentioned Spiritualized and Mojave 3 as a few of the bands that have influenced your sound. Would you consider the shoegazer movement a formative influence then?

Andrew : The shoegazer/ early brit-pop influence cannot be understated. The music itself was a potent and nearly singular influence on me in the early nineties. More importantly, Meeting Mark, and Lisa, and Kurt (original second guitarist for pre-AmAnSet project) would've never happened has I need seen them at those shows that Texas was lucky enough to receive in those days. Ride. Lush. Pale Saints. Spiritualized. Catherine Wheel. TeenageFanclub. Swervedriver. Slowdive. Blur. By the time bands like Stereolab and Verve came to Texas, we were going to those shows together and playing with one another. They were important bands to all of us! That whole period more or less began with the release of the first Stone Roses record and ended with the release of their second record.

On a whim, could you list for us your five favorite records or CDs of 2004 so far?

Andrew : I love doing this... no order here ok? (and I'm probably leaving something obvious out): Sun Kil Moon's "Ghosts of the Great Highway", FrenchKicks' "Trial of the Century", Matt Pond PA's "Emblems" and n Lannon's "Chemical Friends"; Hidden Cameras' "Mississauga Goddam"

There are these two very long live tracks on your singles collection CD. Is that reflective of your live performances? Does the band enjoy stretching out the songs live?

Andrew : Some things are a little longer. Some are a little shorter. Those two pieces were arranged as such to reflect the way they were ordered on the record. Parts of the first three records were put to tape in large multi-song blocks and mixed that way too. In fact, "Golden Band" was just two long twenty-minute blocks of music (side A and side B), each song flowing into the next. They were a nightmare to mix that way... one side of a record at a time. But playing them live like that was a nod to the way they were recorded. We always played 'New Drifters Parts II and III' as a pair for instance.

I want to touch a bit about the gear you guys use. How did you use to arrive at that distinctive keyboard sound on your records?

Andrew : We started with the Farfisa and we occasionally used a Moog Opus3 on the recordings. We added the Fender Rhodes on the second record, and the vibraphone on the third. We rarely use all three, but the trio is really important to our sound. If Mark and Lee are the soul of our band, the mellow buzz of the Farfisa is definitely the heart.

I thought the Home Series EP you recorded with Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) for Post Parlo is a modest gem. Is there a difference in the way you approach writing songs for AmAnSet, and songs for your solo ventures?

Andrew : Well, the "Home" EP was my first attempt at a solo release. I like those songs a lot and I remember that one was an AmAnSet song that we couldn't figure out how to arrange our instruments. Now that I'm in the habit of making a demo for every song we attempt, I've noticed that there are many songs that sound good on their own. Just a guitar or piano and a little percussion. Finishing this American Analog Set record is my top priority, so for now I'm putting those songs aside for a rainy day.

Have you guys started making plans for the new record? And this time round, how different will the future material turn out to be as compared to your previous releases?

Andrew : The record isn't done by any means. But we've put in a lot of work on it. It began with a session last January in Fort Worth, Texas (in the house where our first record was recorded). We recorded for another two weeks last May in Austin (in the house where the last two records were recorded). Currently, I'm tracking guitars and percussion in Jackson, Mississippi. This is the first record that I've been able to devote a lot of time to and obsess over the little stuff. I'm not going to give up until I'm certain it's the best AmAnSet record.

The material is definitely us. I don't know what to say exactly. We write the kind of songs we write. We could try to color outside the lines but I think it would sound deliberate. I like the way our band sounds right now, I'm taking advantage of it by making a record that sounds like us. That being said, this record is much more a recording project than the previous two. I wouldn't expect bells and whistles, but I don't plan on being able to play this whole record live. Not without some help anyway.