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Alpha Ya Ya Diallo
Jai Uttal
Joanne Rand
Joules Graves
Clan Dyken
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Citizens Band
Tommy Anton
Abakadubi
Jim Page
Jim Hinde
David Rovics
Scott Huckabay
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Chris Chandler
Anne Feeney
Kipchoge
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Nicki Scully
Laura Piece Kelley
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Tony Yosco
Dr. Atomic's
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and many others
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August 20,21 & 22
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North Plains, OK
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Music starts Friday 2 pm,
ends Sunday a/ternoon
$75 adult pass - three days and nights
($100 day of event)
$50 youth (ages 12-17)
$20 per car for parking (car pools please)
Tickets at dandngdragons.org
©Wiser nth & Willamette
or 541-607-8099 (msg phone)
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Tanyia Johnson Design Editor
White's 'hick-hop' album
blends depth and humor
Jim White’s ‘Drill a Hole in
that Substrate and Tell Me
What You See’ provides
musings with its music
By Aaron Shakra
Pulse Editor
The existence of Jim White might
be likened to some ripple in the fabric
of space-time. His music exists some
where in the ether of old "Twin Peaks"
episodes, 1950s science fiction films
and the religious iconography of Pen
sacola, Fla., his hometown. His third
album is titled "Drill A Hole In That
Substrate And Tell Me What You See."
with nothing but a set of guitars, a
drum machine (which he introduced
as "Mr. Casio, my Japanese dmmmer
who never misses a beat"), and a loop
box. Between songs, he told a story in
which he received a phone call from
himself in New York City seven years
into the future. Seven years later, he de
scribed a drunken night in the city
where he placed the phone call. This is
the world of Jim White — filled with
strange loops.
By most standards of musical suc
cess, White is also an anomaly. He did
n't make his debut until his 40s, when
"Wrong-Eyed Jesus (Mysterious Tale Of
How I Shouted)" was released in 1997.
Previously, the performer was a fash
ion model, New York City cab driver
and professional surfer. He is also a
graduate from New York University's
During a
summer
REVIEW
2002 per
formance in
Portland,
White took
the stage
SOLO
continued from page 9
Johnson: There are a lot of indie
labels. They're still at it.
Emerald: With bands like Beat
Happening, you became known for
putting the emotional content ahead
of technique. Is that still part of your
aesthetic?
Johnson: 1 just try to go with the
feeling and go where that takes me.
That's still my basic modus operandi.
Emerald: Do people respond well
to that?
Johnson: I don't worry about it too
much. If they don't like it then there
are plenty of other distractions they
can spend their time on. Video games
or whatever. I'mjus^ awtte* carnival
film school.
While all this might portray White as
some kind of novelty art, the haunting
quality of his music resonates with
depth. And while White's deft sense oi
humor helps him spin a good yam, the
story itself remains deadly serious. This
characteristic imbues his music with a
great sense of beauty.
A band saw accident impaired his
ability to play guitar, but this did nol
discourage White, who credits the in
jury to improving his music, which he
has described as "hick-hop." "Comb
ing My Hair In A Brand New Style" —
the third tune off the new album —
probably best exemplifies this style.
White flows that he doesn't want any
"self professed saviors of my soul / no
lowdown top-secret CIA moles / no
crackpot psychopath behavior special
ists / no Shriners / no shyness / no de
cisive moment existentialist / that's
right / no vegetable / mineral / no in
stitution / gonna disrupt the constitu
tion of my ingenious hairdo solution
..." over a funky-jazz country beat.
Another great example of this form
might be the hilarious "If Jesus Drove
A Motor Home." The song is informed
by hip-hop more in its music than in
the lyrics, which are delivered by White
in a thick country drawl.
Since he has garnered a significant
amount of critical acclaim for his mu
sic, White's releases have increasingly
attracted high-profile musicians. This
time around, the list is nearly over
whelming. Singers such as Aimee
Mann and members from Barenaked
Ladies and the Sadies are just a few.
The initial fear in combining this lisi
of contributors is that it will lead to an
unfocused album. Fortunately, Whitt
and co-producer Joe Henry kept true tc
White's sound, remaining contiguous
sideshow they re walking by and il
they decided to stop, then that's great
If not, then there is another one righi
next door.
Emerald: Do you have any plan;
for the future?
Johnson: I plan to be touring foi
the next few months and that's aboui
it. I enjoy performing and I think I'rr
pretty good at it. I just want to get oui
there a bit more.
Emerald: How does the recorc
company run without you there?
Johnson: I'm lucky enough to hav(
some very good employees who an
able to handle their responsibilitie;
without my direct daily oversight.
Emerald: 1 low many employees dc
you have?
Johnson: I have four.
Emerald: Anything happening^ b
with previous albums while expanding
the overall sound — banjos, man
dolins, horns, sampling and loops are
omnipresent.
Like many of White's tunes, "Bor
rowed Wings" is a sly religious narra
tive that begins, "That night we drank
wine from the crazy well / shot a shot
gun out the window of our automo
bile / we was young we was wild but
we sure had our fun / 'til the sheriff
caught up with us and we tried to run."
The chorus: "Now we return to earth
on borrowed wings / Left from the
shoulders of sweet dreaming angels /
Now the world beyond the world we
never will reach / Because you can't get
to heaven on no borrowed wings." The
punchy banjo and tripped-out churchy
organ bridge, along with the displaced
female backing vocals, make this tune
one of the disc's highlights.
Other tracks stay truer to a simpler
folk-country sensibility, such as "That
Girl From Brownsville Texas" or the
closer, "Phone Booth In Heaven." "Al
abama Chrome" (a slang reference for
duct tape) begins with a tinny guitar
progression that sounds like some
thing from a Who album before
adding jangly country- and Persian(! )
inspired riffs.
This album is an absolute pleasure,
too; the production creates a sound to
tally unlike pop music while still using
many of the same tried-and-true tech
niques. Only the opening track, "Stat
ic On The Radio," might be considered
a failure because Mann, in duet with
White, sounds totally out of place.
"Drill A Hole in That Substrate And
Tell Me What You See" will be released
on Luaka Bop Records next month.
Highly recommended.
Contact the Pulse editor
at aaronshakra@dailyemerald.com.
that you are particularly excited
about?
Johnson: We just released a new
album by Old Time Relijun that is re
ally quite exciting. Also the new Mirah
album is very powerful.
Emerald: How would you describe
your own music?
Johnson: I tend to write songs in
classic manner. Nothing too terribly
radical. That's the format and I just
go with the feeling in terms of con
tent.
A CALVIN JOHNSON
Where: CoreStar Center,
439W.2ndAve.
When: Saturday at 9 p.m.
How much: $5