Ed interview '99, Timely words of wisdom Options

[swamiscott]

Came across this October 1999 interview with Ed. I find this particular section interesting:

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Men With A Message

10/15/1999 4:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Gail Worley

Live's charismatic singer-songwriter, Edward Kowalczyk, is reluctant to take on the guise of New Age Pop Guru. Nevertheless, the allegiance to a spiritual path that permeates his lyrics is so deeply enmeshed with his being that it is, in fact, written on his body.

....

LAUNCH:
Live enjoyed phenomenal success with Throwing Copper, yet Secret Samadhi was, relatively speaking, a disappointment. What are your thoughts on why that record failed to go all the way for Live, and also, what did the band gain from doing that record?

ED:
The use of the word "samadhi" [a state of meditation] was something that was so personal to me, but it did in some sense distance us from a large portion of the population that doesn't necessarily know what that word means. The record was never designed, conceptually or in any facet, to be a Throwing Copper Part Two, which is what people wanted. It was really a record that we needed to make as a band at the time, that we felt we needed to do to grow as musicians and songwriters. I, personally, as a lyricist, was kind of hiding for awhile from the "man with the message" persona that I had come into with Mental Jewelry and Throwing Copper. I think it was a growth record. It was a band searching to find a level of comfort in itself.

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"...a record that we needed to make ... to grow as musicians and songwriters."

OK, we've heard this before. But when I revisit those words post-Samadhi, and I think about where Live is now, I'm more convinced than ever that the band needs a personal and experimental album. The River, I don't think, shows much promise of that happening on Black Mountain, but it's only one song.

The point, if there's one at all, is that Live did find "a level of comfort in itself," and it's stalling the band artistically. The Distance to Here was a natural extension of Samadhi, and V was a cute little experiment with the notion of Limp Bizkit-lite angst and cockiness. Bird of Pray - grossly underestimated in my view - was never-the-less a retreat to comfort. Will Black Mountain continue this trend? Or we in store for Bird of Pray II in the same way that the band opted not to make a Throwing Copper II in the mid 90s?

So many questions and so many release date delays. Time enough, though, for Ed to think about making another personal record. An artist should constantly strive for growth; push the comfort level; dwell in vulnerability.

[mrmcpheezy]

An artist should constantly strive for growth; push the comfort level; dwell in vulnerability.

I couldn't agree more, and live has not done this for some time.

[swamiscott]

An artist should constantly strive for growth; push the comfort level; dwell in vulnerability.

I couldn't agree more, and live has not done this for some time.

Uh-huh. More precisely, not since The Distance To Here, and even that's an arguable. A good measure for me is the "making excuses because I'm a fan of the band" test. I listen to V and Birds of Pray, and I mentally make excuses for the band in an attempt to enjoy the record. If I'm listening to Transmit your Love, for example, and I'm pretty much ignoring the amazingly ho-hum lyrics and trying to focus instead on the musical structure, which is actually quite refreshing.

I listen to the first four albums and I don't need to make excuses for the music. Samadhi, in fact, goes a step further and tells you to shut up and listen. Its emotional resonance is commanding. That's art.

This post has been edited by swamiscott: Feb 16 2006, 6:35 pm

[andthelettuce]

I think what defines Live best is that their best albums have a cohesive sound to them; V and BoP may each have songs that are similar sounding to other tracks on the album, but I don't get a sense of unity from either album. From what I've heard of SFBM, I think there is going to be significantly more unity and listeners will feel as if it's more of an album than a collection of songs. This says nothing of the quality of the songs, but let's face it: Live never really wrote the greatest songs. All of their old hits were basic songs with decent lyrics, and that formula hasn't changed. What has changed is the level of optimism in the songs, which has nothing to do with comfort levels or lack of development. Go ahead and listen to MJ, TC, SS, and TDTH again, and you'll hear that the only huge differences between those albums are the general feel of the album; the songs never got more complex or interesting. SFBM is a continuation of that pattern, I believe, like it or not. What keeps me going is that it seems that Live is truly passionate about the album, which I think goes along with a cohesive album sound and was lacking on the last two.

[mrmcpheezy]

This says nothing of the quality of the songs, but let's face it: Live never really wrote the greatest songs. All of their old hits were basic songs with decent lyrics, and that formula hasn't changed. What has changed is the level of optimism in the songs, which has nothing to do with comfort levels or lack of development. Go ahead and listen to MJ, TC, SS, and TDTH again, and you'll hear that the only huge differences between those albums are the general feel of the album; the songs never got more complex or interesting.

I'm gonna have to disagree here. While I will agree that Live has never done anything all to complex/complicated/difficult, the quality of the music has most definitely dropped. Listen to the forms of development in songs like the dam at otter creek, iris, tbd, stage, white discussion, heropsychodreamer, and gas hed goes west. All of these songs have at least mildly creative song structures. They all have at least mildly creative methods of theme development. They all have at least mildly worthwhile and interesting lyrics.

It's obvious that the tone of the music has changed. But the dark emotions are not the only things that have decreased in recent albums: the creativity has as well.

[andthelettuce]

I agree about those songs being attempts at varying structure, but none of them is truly a great song in my opinion. However, I am sort of stretching it here and will admit that the quality is down, but I don't think it's as bad as people are saying.

[sherocker]

we just have to wait and see i guess....

This post has been edited by sherocker: Feb 19 2006, 6:20 am

[secretsam]

the songs never got more complex or interesting.

I think the songs started out ie: MJ, TC, SS, with more interesting tone lyrically, and now they have actually gone backward somewhat. So they never get more complex, I agree. Although being complex doesn't mean it will be a good song, or album. Look at the eighties rock bands, nothing complex there, but god love um!!!!

[DesertWater]

I hate 80's music save for a couple of bands, but back to the topic.

The quality of Live's music has definitely dropped. Comparing I Alone, which I've always thought was really creative, to The River "Lalala"... Well, I guess that is a cheap shot. They are two completely different songs. However, I will say that the guitar riffs have become more catchy as their albums have progressed like Simple Creed and Lighthouse.

[alcoholiday]

I agree with you all, but where does the blame lie? The record label? Ed? The band as a whole? TDTH was the last albums they made with a spiritual aproach and since then, it seems unanimous that the albums have lacked intensity since then. Ed's lyrics have been ones a grade schooler could write. No offense to him. In concert, Chad and Chad both pound on their instruments with the same intensity they always have...yet on POP and V they admittingly used some processed drums on a few songs (whose idea?) and Chads guitar parts seemed to be toned down...where the solos?
They need to dig deep and bring back some edgier songs, like the dam at otter creek (which started the album off amazingly), or lakini's juice, voodoo lady, shit town, hell, anything on throwing copper for that matter. I'm sick of the fall asleep to songs they are currently pushing. What about "dont Wait" which never even made it to an album? christ.
guess we have to sit and pray
I'm sorry, but the only good thing about "the River" is that several if you belive it is about a vagina, ha.

[DesertWater]

Seriously. Dont Wait is an awesome song and almost every b-side off of TDTH. Vine Street, Deeper, Lift me Up, Still Aroused, Change. All of those songs put together on an album would surpass BOP and V easily.
There was a topic on the old board about y they don't bring out a b-side album. Does anybody have a answer?

This post has been edited by DesertWater: Feb 20 2006, 5:21 pm

[swamiscott]

Seriously. Dont Wait is an awesome song and almost every b-side off of TDTH. Vine Street, Deeper, Lift me Up, Still Aroused, Change. All of those songs put together on an album would surpass BOP and V easily.
There was a topic on the old board about y they don't bring out a b-side album. Does anybody have a answer?

Superficial answer Ed would give: Not wanting to dredge up old material and instead wanting to move forward with fresh stuff.

Answer cynic would give: Most of those B-sides have an ounce of creative flavor that doesn't fit neatly into the new Live song formula (read: verse, chorus about love, verse, chorus about love, (maybe 5-second solo here), chorus about love).


Real answer: Probably a little of truth in both. None are reason enough to not officially release these B-sides. Deeper, if I may say, is an amazing track. In my fantasy Live album, Deeper is the perfect closer to a trippy jam album.

[sherocker]

they could put a B-side album with a new album, as a bonus...?