Interview - John Doe (Portland, OR; October 18, 2011)

melophobe: First off, I get the impression that you don’t give a lot of interviews – either that or you’re impossible to Google – so I appreciate you talking to me today.

John Doe: I do my fair share of interviews. The Google confusion is just a good byproduct.

melophobe Alright. With multiple projects occurring simultaneously, how do you know when a song is right for one of them as opposed to the others?

JD: Um, to be honest, it’s really hard to get X to rehearse and put together a record, which is why we haven’t in many, many years. Also, most of the slower material doesn’t really fit with X or the Knitters. The only time it’s been confusing is when there’s a song that works for both the Knitters and the Sadies. Then we just make two different versions.

melophobe You have a tendency to re-record and reissue existing songs on subsequent albums, like “Darling Underdog” on both A Year in the Wilderness and A Day at the Pass. Why?

JD: Why not? It’s always going to be different. It’s rare to find a song with only one good version. Good songs can be reinterpreted.

melophobe: A lot of artists don’t revisit their work, so it’s interesting that you do.

JD: There’s something about being closer to the creation. It’s the opposite of [what] Paul Simon does, where each version of a song gets less and less interesting. I guess that’s mean, but people who make records quickly and don’t worry about mistakes and accidents tend to make better records. That’s what was wrong with the ‘70s – that’s how punk came about. In a way, we owe a debt to the overproduced musicians of that era, and we love them for it. The Stooges, Patti Smith, and others came along and said “this is bullshit.”

melophobe: That phenomenon is happening again with Auto-Tune.

JD: Right, and who gives a shit about Lady Gaga, or Beyoncé and whether she has a baby bump? Lots of people I guess, but they shouldn’t.

melophobe: Nobody ever went broke appealing to the lowest common denominator.

JD: Somebody smarter than me said that – PT Barnum, perhaps? Ooh, I’m driving by this great car right now. It’s all beat up and being driven by two old men. I love L.A.

melophobe: Burritos and aggressive drivers.

JD: Casa Mañana up in Northern California has great burritos.

melophobe: Oh? I’m a Californian in exile, so I appreciate a good burrito story.

JD: It’s in Fairfax. Shout-out to Casa Mañana. How come you left California?

melophobe: It’s hot and expensive.

JD: True, but it gets cheaper north of San Francisco.

melophobe I’ll keep that in mind. Has your recent move from L.A. to Northern California had a calming influence on your material?

JD: It started a couple years ago with changes in my personal life and [my] not wanting to be a sad sack. So yes, but the process had already started. I’m no spring chicken. I like the peace and quiet, and living among people with similar political beliefs.

melophobe: The new album art looks like familiar areas of Southern California. Joshua Tree? Desert Hot Springs? Or am I way off?

JD: It’s close. It’s Vasquez Rocks on the way back to LA from Pearblossom. I was just thrilled that Autumn de Wilde was willing to take my picture again. She’s pretty much the best.

melophobe You mentioned that the song “Never Enough” was inspired by [the television show] Hoarders. I’ve also seen you quoted about over-consumption and the lack of an alternative to capitalism as influences on the song. Do you think people are starting to wise up to those issues?

JD: Absolutely. I think people have been wising up since Nixon was thrown out. It’s a slow process, but people realize the government is taking advantage of them. The current administration hasn’t even indicted anyone [for the financial crisis]. It would be different if they did. It’s not about alternatives to capitalism. It’s about greed and being responsible. I support the Occupy movement even without a specific plan. The people are dissatisfied.

melophobe: On a different note, I love the bio intro on your website – that you were born when you arrived in Los Angeles. I feel the same way about Portland. Care to elaborate?

JD: Let’s see – I’m trying to summarize. I was friends with John Waters in Baltimore, and was also a big fan of Andy Warhol and The Factory, and enjoyed seeing those people change their names and reinvent themselves. I was sick of the East Coast, so it was “go west, young man.” I was also a fan of the Frank Capra film, Meet John Doe, with Barbara Stanwyck. She’s at her best in that. Her character creates a fictional person named John Doe, then hires somebody to portray him. I thought, “why not me?” Plus, my given last name, [Duchac], is Czech and is difficult to pronounce.

melophobe: How do you juggle acting, recording and touring with multiple bands, and your regular life? You’ve been in Portland at least three times under three different banners since January. That seems rough.

JD: I’m trying to make hay while the sun shines. I don’t do much acting. I love being a performer, but the business is very competitive. I don’t want to audition for a part with four lines that should have gone to somebody’s cousin. I’m busy with music, where I have a little more control. I’ll reemerge some day as the next generation’s David Carradine, but less crazy. I do take my hat off to him. He was pretty awesome.

melophobe: He was. What do you make of people misinterpreting songs, like using “Golden State” as a wedding song?

JD: I’m always flattered; it means they put thought into it. It’s a great compliment. I know what I wrote it about. If they want to reinterpret it, cool. It’s not that far off; it is a love song.

melophobe: Your new record sounds energetic and more poppy. Is that a direction you meant to move in, or did it happen on its own?

JD: I don’t know about pop, but definitely more positive. I thought I was making a Rolling Stones record, at least in my head. I wrote somewhere that I was listening to the Band’s second record, and [the Rolling Stones’] Let it Bleed, and Joni Mitchell. They had some influence. Given the choice, we would steer toward a similar kind of arrangement and have the band more present. It’s more positive and you can hear more interplay between the instruments. Unfortunately nowadays I’d have to be a jam band to fit in in the Bay Area.

melophobe: Please don’t do that.

JD: [Laughs] I will NEVER! It was cute the way you said that, though. Very Barbara Stanwyck.

melophobe: Sorry but I have a special hatred for jam bands. I went to hippie college, and if I never hear another jam band it’ll be too soon.

JD: Which one?

melophobe: UC Santa Cruz.

JD: Oh, my daughter goes there! She called me up the other day to tell me she had spent the night in a teepee.

melophobe: Sounds about right.

JD: What about the new hybrid: Jamgrass?

melophobe: Haven’t heard of it. What is it?

JD: It’s a combination of jam band and bluegrass. Y’know, like the String Cheese Incident.

melophobe: I wasn’t aware they had their own sub-genre.

JD: Oh yeah, it’s like jam bands but with more acoustic guitars and a mandolin.

melophobe: Got it. I have one last question. I really enjoyed your onstage chemistry with Jill Sobule when you two played here [in Portland] in July. Had you met her before the Neil Young cover you did together?

JD: We first played together on X’s unplugged tour in ninety – Jesus – ninety-three? On the tail-end of her big smash-hit [“I Kissed a Girl”]. She opened for us. X and Jill Sobule became very good friends. She and I lost touch for a bit, but reunited around 2003/2004. She’s been doing a lot of direct-to-fans music, which is what we did with A Day at the Pass. We’ll definitely do more together. If there’s a more underrated songwriter than Jill Sobule, I’d like to know who it is.

melophobe: I’m with you there. Plus, she wrote a song about my hometown.

JD: Palm Springs?

melophobe: Yep.

JD: You poor thing! You turned out ok.

melophobe: Thanks! It’s because I left. But, we’ve reached the end of my questions, so I’ll let you go. It’s been a pleasure talking to you.

JD: Likewise. Hope you can make it to Dante’s on Saturday.

melophobe: I’ll see you there.

John Doe will be performing at Dante’s in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, October 22nd. His latest album, Keeper, was released in August, 2011 on Yep Roc Records. 

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