Drew Smith's Lonely Choir Interview: SXSW 2010

Austin-based singer-songwriter Drew Smith is riding a groundswell of local praise since the release of his debut, 'Drew Smith's Lonely Choir,' in 2008. The record was named as the No. 1 Austin album of 2008 on Austin.com and blends Smith's love of '70s power-pop and classic genres with a smidgen or two of Texas-tinged Americana and blue-eyed soul. Drew has a very short drive to his SXSW showcases this year, and beforehand, Spinner spoke with Drew about his job as a songsmith.

How did Drew Smith's Lonely Choir form?

Well, Me and my friend Matt Russell [keyboards] had been playing together for a long time in different variations of Drew Smith bands, but the actual "Lonely Choir" came about two years ago. We picked up a drummer and guitar player, and basically formed that band to record that album.

How would you describe your sound?

I always describe it as songwriter pop music influenced by roots music. And when I say roots music, I don't necessarily mean country roots. We don't have roots in country music like Texas country or modern Nashville, but I try and harken back to the roots of country western music which is actually the roots of rock and roll.

Who are some of your influences?

The Beatles, as a whole, and Harry Nilsson are my two favorite songwriters or largest influences, and Ray Davies as well.

What is your biggest vice?

My morning coffee. My really dark, almost a waste of grounds, dark coffee that I brew myself .

What is in your festival survival kit?

My festival survival kit is probably a lot different than all the bands that are coming to Austin. I get to go home, sleep at home with my wife and my dogs. If I don't want to go to a day party I can stay at home. If I want to go to a day party I can. I don't have to have much of a survival kit.

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

By a normal person's standard my guilty pleasure is power pop. I think people either love it or hate it. I happen to love it. It's so big. People are going to read this and say "That's not a guilty pleasure. Those guys are awesome!" but I'll say Jellyfish, who I think is an absolutely wonderful band.

As far as the road goes, what is the craziest thing you've seen or experienced?

I had a classic example of the dirty business side of things that could have been out of 'The Blues Brothers' or something. We pulled into this one town and played and there were about 150 people there, but it was a very disappointing night for this particular venue and all of the sudden, they start slapping fees on top. We hadn't signed a contract with them -- we did everything the unprofessional way, like trusting that other people aren't gonna take advantage of you. It was $10 at the door, about a hundred and fifty people came and we got handed $130. We were like "What in the hell happened here?" And [the venue rep] shows us this piece of paper that says "Well, we hung posters for you, that's 200 bucks. This is how much it is for the soundman ..." -- just this laundry list of things. Our road manager took the 130 bucks, ripped the paper up and threw it at his face. It's maybe not the craziest story, but it was our learning lesson.

The Beatles or the Rolling Stones?

I choose the Beatles because I usually lean towards pop over straight-ahead rock 'n' roll. The Beatles were like pop artists in the studio, building songs and piecing together these brilliant masterpieces. And the Stones, you think of them as more of the live, touring forever band, playing rock 'n' roll. The Beatles had three brilliant songwriters, so that kind of ups the advantage.

You grew up an army brat. You've lived in many places. How did the oft-changing view that you've seen outside of your bedroom window throughout your life, contribute to your journey as a songwriter?

One thing that I found, being in a family that moved around once a year is that I was very visually sensitive, but I didn't know it and didn't know how to express it. I started writing songs when I was in 7th or 8th grade, but I don't feel like I had any imagery in my songs until I was in my 20s. All of the sudden, these images from my youth start to back. I've read that if you're ever stuck on anything, think about your childhood. When you're younger, all that stuff comes pouring in. I feel as an adult that it's my job to pull it out and put it on paper.

You have a Harry Nilsson obsession. Can you tell the younger people out there who Harry was and why he matters as a songwriter?

Harry Nilsson was a blue-collar guy who grew up in the northeast and migrated out west to California. He was just a hard living, in-the-moment guy. You know, an alcoholic, a rambunctious guy. People would say that if he showed up on your door, you knew you were in for three days of going nuts. He had that rough outer edge, but he wrote beautiful pop songs. He wrote songs while working a bank desk job. Eventually, he sold some of his songs to other artists like the Monkees. Then the Beatles somehow got a hold of his music. Three of them called him their favorite artist in some interview and everything went nuts. He decided never to be a touring act and went on to write some of the greatest songs ever written.

Would you rather have an early afternoon drink with Van Morrison, dinner with Ray Davies or a lost weekend with a Harry Nilsson who's fresh out of rehab?

I would go with Harry Nilsson any day. Something tells me that Ray Davies would be the nicest, maybe he would cook a nice dinner and it would be super pleasant. If I was with Van Morrison, it would be hit or miss on whether you were going to get the Van who would tell you stories and why he wrote a certain song, but I think on some days that afternoon drink would be about five minutes long with him leaving with his glass half full. But hmm, a lost weekend with Harry Nilsson fresh out of rehab? Damn, you know it could be amazing. Because maybe we would go record some music because he would be so pent up, having gotten right out of rehab.

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