Terrapin Sound is very pleased to bring you our first interview. A few months ago, I shared some music and conversation with Jesse Mangum, a producer and recording artist currently working out of Jacksonville, Florida. Check out the full interview after the jump, where Jesse talks about his influences, song writing style, and what we can expect in the future!

What first got me interested in Mangum’s work was the demo of his song “I Saw You Last Night.” I loved what I heard and soon Jesse sent me excerpts of other pieces he was working on, in particular, Suite No. 2.

TerrapinSound (Joe): Your two songs (or I should say one song and excerpt of another) have very different sounds to them. What influences push you in these different directions?

Jesse Mangum: I grew up listening to traditional country music… my dad has fronted a country/western swing band for decades… so that music has been seeping into my skin since I was born. I think that’s what you might hear in I Saw You Last Night… a bit of Dwight Yoakam is present… and I was consciously attempting to write lyrics with the honesty of a Hank Williams’ song. My dad doesn’t think there is anything even remotely “country” about that song, although he likes it a lot.

I think Suite No. 2 sounds so different because it cycles through entirely different genres so rapidly, as opposed to keeping a particular feel throughout the song. I tend to get bored when music is too repetitive, so I threw typical song structure out the window and hoped it wouldn’t be too abrasive! As far as specific influences go for this piece, I think I was channeling Esquivel and Stravinski more than any other singular muse. There’s always going to be a hint of The Beatles in everything I do… that’s inescapable.

I should mention that I Saw You Last Night is actually the first part of Suite No. 3. I haven’t quite finished writing that one yet, but it follows the same genre-jumping form as No. 2, perhaps with a bit more emphasis on full songs rather than little snippets in rapid succession.

TS (Joe): Ah, I was waiting for that Beatles influence to get mentioned. In fact, the first thing that popped into my head after listening for the first time was Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. The way that album changes tempos, styles, and sounds so often – I think Suite No. 2 reminded me of that. Plus that last segment of No 2. sounds straight out of a circus tent and always reminds me very much of The Beatles’ For The Benefit of Mr. Kite. As far as I Saw You Last Night, unfortunately country music is my least seasoned taste – but to agree with your dad, it didn’t remind me of country/western music at all. I did hear a lot of Elliot Smith however.

JM: Wow! Elliot Smith? That comparison hasn’t been made before… but it’s quite flattering. I’m a big fan of his music, so I’m sure it shows up too (although, by extension, his style owes a lot to The Beatles, just as mine does.) Thanks for the complement!

TS (Joe): Suite No. 2 pushes 15 minutes in length. This is a bold task to undertake and an interesting idea to pursue. Did you have the idea in mind beforehand to write a lengthy tune like that or did it kind of evolve into it?

JM: Would you believe that the entire suite came to me more or less fully formed in my head? Seriously… the way it sounds on tape is the closest I could get to how it sounded in my head… it was like taking dictation! It had been on repeat in my head for a few years before I decided I was ready to record it. The lyrics gave me the most trouble, because I wanted to tell a cohesive story that unraveled as the music went on… at the same time I wanted the lyrical content of each section to be appropriate for the implied style.

TS (Joe): That is actually quite mind-boggling that the entire song formed in your head – especially because it’s not just a simple pop song. I know some artists dream up songs and then compose them, like Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel or how Paul McCartney did with Yesterday. Do songs hit you in that way? Do you get an idea and mull it over in your head a lot? Or is the whole process more abstract and hard to define?

JM: I know it starts to sound like bullshit when artists say this kind of thing, but it really did happen that way for me. I totally buy the story of how “Scrambled Eggs” became Yesterday. I totally had the melody and song structure worked out from the start… and the lyrics practically wrote themselves. What’s interesting is that I can never just sit down and write a song… I basically have to wait for them to show up, so to speak. When I try to force it, nothing good ever comes out of it!

TS (Joe): Once you have this song formed in your head, it’s got to be quite the undertaking to get it all out and on tape – especially while playing all the instruments (and there are many) on the track. Where does that process begin and where does it end?

JM: This is where I have the most fun… translating the sounds in my head into real-world sounds. Most of the time, the instrument that I “hear” playing a certain melody is obviously a guitar or a piano or a banjo or whatever, but sometimes I have no idea what it is! For example, a few seconds into Suite No. 2 you hear this thing that sounds like a cross between an opera singer and a synthesizer… I really couldn’t sing that part without sounding ridiculous, but when I tried using a typical synth-sounding-synth it didn’t sound right. So I ended up programming a synth patch that emulated a human voice… and I think it came out okay. I certainly can’t imagine the song without that in there. I should mention that 95% of the sounds on the recording are real instruments… not samples or synths. I only end up using samples when the instrument in mind is completely out of my reach (for example, I don’t yet own a harpsichord.) As far as when the layering ends, it usually just reaches a point where it becomes almost overly saturated with sound… that moment is always pretty apparent… so I just stop adding things.

TS (Joe): What can CSMB, as well as fans in general, look forward to from you in the future?

JM: The notion of having fans is pleasant! I suppose if there are any fans out there, they can be on the lookout for Suite No. 2 in its entirety in the very near future. I’ll be releasing it as an EP of sorts on CD… probably only 50 copies or so. Of course, it will also be available online. I’m also working on a “proper” recording of I Saw You Last Night. Not that I’m not extremely pleased with the demo version, but it was never intended to be released. I just had to get it down on tape while it was still a fresh idea… my good friend Chase Capo, AKA The Lazerstar recorded the demo version for me in his bedroom! No worries though, the new version won’t sound too different.

I guess I should mention that I’m also quite busy producing/recording other artists… I think everyone will be very pleased with the forthcoming releases from Fashion Knee High and Stegosaurus… I have a tremendous amount of respect for these bands. Both should be out by the end of summer.

TS (Joe): And finally, let’s wrap it up with 10 Quick Q’s. Ready… Set… Go!

TS (Joe): Last song you listened to?
JM: Water Curses by Animal Collective.

TS (Joe): Favorite album of all time?
JM: The White Album.

TS (Joe): The Beatles or Rolling Stones?
JM: The Beatles. No contest.

TS (Joe): Kanye West or 50 Cent?
JM: Kanye. No contest.

TS (Joe): Clapton or Hendrix?
JM: Hendrix. Again, no contest!

TS (Joe): Artist/band you’re most looking forward to seeing this summer?
JM: Tom Waits, if I can find a ticket. I’d love to see Portishead as well.

TS (Joe): Favorite new upcoming artist?
JM: I really like Feist.

TS (Joe): Best song you’ve heard in the last month?
JM: Panda by Dungen. I just heard it for the first time last week and was blown away.

TS (Joe): Favorite producer (currently)?
JM: Nigel Godrich. His work on Beck’s Sea Change and all of the Radiohead records is brilliant.

TS (Joe): One song you wish you had wrote?
JM: Meditation by Manatella… they’re a band from Jacksonville that I’m recording right now and I haven’t been able to get this song out of my head for months! I’m working on a cover version of it… and coincidentally, they’ve been talking about covering “I Saw You Last Night”!

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Many thanks to Jesse for taking the time and sharing his music with the us and all of his fans. We’re looking forward to hearing more from him and stay tuned next week when we’ll have a Terrapin Sound exclusive look at his most recent project, Gospel Music’s new EP Bless Your Heart – a side project from Owen Holmes, bassist of the Black Kids.

Download:
Jesse Mangum – I Saw You Last Night (mp3)
Jesse Mangum – Suite No. 2 (Excerpt) (mp3)

Links:
Jesse Mangum MySpace
The Glow Studio MySpace

Posted by Joe.