Mike Doughty Strikes Up Residency at Artist Colony

Posted on Mar 27th 2009 12:00PM by Benjy Eisen
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This past February, Mike Doughty went looking for inspiration at a place specifically created to create creativity: Yaddo, an uber-prestigious artist colony in upstate New York whose previous residents have collectively brought home 63 Pulitzer Prizes.

"I didn't particularly choose it because I wanted to do something specific there," Doughty tells Spinner. "I just applied and got in and that's what happened."

Upon arrival, he was given a cabin as both his living space and his work studio that was distraction-free and off-limits to visitors. "I had a piano and a table and so much time to work," says Doughty. "There's a great little routine you get into. You go up to the mansion every morning for breakfast, and they give you a lunchbox to take back to your studio. Then you come back for dinner."

Doughty dove head-first into an electronic dance music project, knocked out a couple new solo tunes, and hammered out a bunch of prose for a memoir he's been working on. "One thing about it," he says, "I definitely had fun making loud weird electronic music in this tiny cabin -- I don't know how often that happens at Yaddo! I was totally isolated, too, so I could crank up the sound any time I wanted to. I definitely can't do that in a Brooklyn apartment building."

For questions or more information, ask Doughty yourself: he's taking his 'Question Jar Show' on the road to points west this May. During the performances, he'll answer questions that were written by fans and placed inside a jar prior to the show. He'll also, you know, play a couple tunes, sing a couple songs and probably bust up a few Starbucks along the way.

Download Mike Doughty Songs