INTERVIEW: Orson
- Posted on October 5, 2007 5:21 PM
- 0 comments
Interview By Katie Spain
Have you heard of Orson? If the name doesn't ring a bell, their music will. Chances are, you boogied to their Number One single 'No Tomorrow' or wiggled your bits to their platinum selling album, 'Bright Idea' back in 2005. The boys from America are back and they've turned things up a notch or four on their new album Culture Vultures (released on October 22nd).
The band hope their fans will enjoy listening to it as much as they've loved making it. They don't care if people simply pump out an Orson track whilst they're slapping on make-up before a night out - as long as it's loud and works them into a happy sweat.
We caught up with singer Jason and drummer Chris in London to talk about the album, about English food and the bad habits of a certain band member. After a full day of interviews, the guys are still chatty... words (and tattoos) are something they're not short of. Enthusiasm it seems, is also plentiful.
Your platinum selling album was released in 2005 under a budget of about $5000. What has been different this time around? I assume that the budget is bigger, but music wise, what has changed?
Jason
The reason the budget was so cheap last time was because really, no body had any money and we just had to make an album however we could. When you have computers and stuff, you just don’t need a lot of money. Half the time that we spent on the last album was spent trying to find rooms where the sound was good. This time, other than having an actual studio that sounded good, we recorded it the same way. We flew our producer out who was amazing. We actually really thought like, oh man, big time, so we talked to loads of producers but Noah was just funny and he is a really big fan of ours. So, basically, we didn’t really do things a lot differently. We had a choice of some nicer stuff but we still used the stuff which we could afford last time.
Chris
He captured what we do and that is all we ever ask.
It is more about the rock this time isn’t?
Jason
I believe it is. We are still sweet, loveable…
Chris
…adorable Orson
Jason
Just a lot louder.
Chris
Definitely.
So, do you think that maybe it has captured more of the live Orson experience?Was that the aim?
Jason
Yeah, I think there were a lot of things that we wanted to do. We wanted to write a bunch of new stuff and all kinds of stuff that didn’t even make the first album…it was important for us, in a new environment, to get in there and get the wheels turning. I don’t really talk about this much, but this is one of the first times as a band that we have actually had more than an hour in a rehearsal room. When we were in LA we would just come up after work and say ‘Oh, I had the worse day,’ and ‘Don’t piss me off’ whereas now, it’s like wow, this is our job. We had always dreamed of a day when you could just roll up to the studio in the morning and get some coffee and then just rock out all day. We used to dream about that and now we do it! The novelty wears off really quick though; you get sick of each other.
We wanted to do something quick and loud and anti indie – not because there wasn’t any genuinely talented artist out there, but just because of what it was turning into. It was just turning into a haircut.
Chris
It has turned into a haircut.
Jason
Nobody was more indie than we were. We had no money at all, but we didn’t feel like, lets take what little money we have and make it as big as possible. We were just shooting for the moon with Fleetwood Mac and Motown stuff. We were just really trying to make a very precise, specific sounding record.
Chris
We accomplished what we set out to do.
It is obvious through your music that you guys are all about having fun and that’s what music is to me…
Jason
Well, sometimes you are like, oh man, I want to mellow out and I want to cry so I will listen to Damien Rice, you know? Or you will be like; I wan to be preached to so I will listen to Bob Dylan. Orson are OK with people being like, I want to go and have a good time. We want to be the music before the music, we want to be the music that you are listening to whilst you are trying on your clothes and you are miming in the mirror.
Your press release says that when you started out, you were seeking a double barrelled party – did you get what you were after? I know there was the BRIT awards incident where you soaked Noel Gallagher with champers…
Chris
That was the people at label!
Jason
We didn’t do it.
Never believe what press says then. Has it been a rock and roll party so far?
Jason
Yes, it has been amazing but we have been working. People keep asking us what those crazy parties are like, but, I think that actually, we were those partying guys but we got fixed and cleaned up. I can’t imagine what we would have been like with a little bit of cash…
Chris
Back in the day?
Jason
Yeah, we would have been terrible.
Chirs
Everything has worked out perfect!
Jason
How ever it turned it, it was necessary that we lived our rock and roll lifestyle before we actually got signed.
Your latest single is Aint No Party – what is the story behind that one?
Jason
For me, it came out of the fact that on Oscar night, every year; it is like a ghost town. You can drive around, it’s really creepy because there is no one about as everyone is out partying their ass off. We had part time jobs that you have when you are in a band…Hollywood is the land of made up jobs. They say art department, but it is really slave labour on a film digging up trees…
Chris
Or labelling tapes…
Jason
But, in the industry enough to think that you will definitely get in to a party. Never…
Chris
Never.
Jason
Never, ever, ever. So, I thought, screw you guys, we will have our own party – no body ever showed up. It is kind of about this fantasy party that you know no one is ever going to show up to.
Well, times have changed now though, all those people that didn’t invite you…
Jason
Yeah, screw them!
Chris
So, we can invite them to the parties that we are not invited to now? Haha!
Time for some fan questions – Kaz wants to know how you decided on the album title Culture Vulture.
Jason
We go in and of various colourful versions of the story, but the truth of it is…
Chris
That it is not about a sandwich…
Jason
We were really struggling with a title and on the final day, we were sending a lot of music equipment back and there was these compressor units that were on the floor ready to be boxed up. I, of course, tripped over one of them, and the name on the compressor unit was culture vulture. No one ever really uses the term culture vulture in America, so we thought we could make it mean that as a society, we were picking off all the dead carcasses of all the cultures that have come before us never dreaming in a million years what the real meaning is for culture vultures. Now that I know what the definition is over here, I think it is even better – more ironic. If a culture vulture is someone that attends the theatre and every art gallery not just for the wine then it makes it even more fun.
Patricia wants to know if you think your new album will be as successful as the first one?
Jason
Who knows, we didn’t know the first one would do any good. We certainly hope that it will do well?
Chris
Yeah, all you can is hope.
Jill says that she has heard snippets of the album and that Aint No Party is a certainty for a number one – how many are tracks have you had for a while and how many are brand new?
Jason
Honesty, Aint No Party is the only one.
Chris
It’s the only new one…everything else is new in the last three months.
Den Duran wants to know has been your favourite act that you have toured with?
Jason
We did Robbie Willaims and Duran Duran…I have got to say Duran Duran. It was bizarre for me because Duran Duran is huge in America. It was disgusting too how many songs were actually hits. They would do two and a half hours and it was just all hits.
The last question is from Meehans Mum. What typically British food will you miss when you go back to the USA?
Jason
Any kind of potato..
Chris
A turnip if you will…
Jason
Parsnips and water cress…
Chris
I will miss Indian food!
Jason
I don’t really understand the bad rep British food has. London is like New yourk, you get everything quick . I love pub grub now, I will probably miss the roast!
Chris
Yeah, the roast is good!
If this isn't enough for you, then why not take a look at Orson's MySpace.
Or check out their official site.
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