Interview: Rod Jones (Idlewild)

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Hello, Stereokillers. For my first post, I have a tasty interview with Idlewild founding member and guitarist Rod Jones. Idlewild recently held a five night residency at Glasgow’s famed King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, performing each of their studio albums in full, alongside b-sides, rarities and fan requests. The gigs were bloody brilliant, and, being a die-hard Idlewild fan, I was pretty stoked to be able to ask Jones a few questions about the residency, the band’s upcoming album and his own solo plans. This interview precedes an article/review on the five gigs, which should be up in a couple of days.

Stereokill: How did it feel, for you personally, to revisit the past and play each album in full?

RJ: It was an interesting experience. Just hearing the change in our music over the years, and re-visiting the playing styles we used on our early albums; it was almost like re-learning your craft. It was great to see the reaction from the crowds each night and see how much the albums meant to some people.

Stereokill: Are there any Idlewild songs, in particular, that are your favourites? Are there any you tire of playing live? And were there any older tracks that were thrilling to revisit over the five nights?

RJ: Its always fun to play your early songs every now and again, to let go of the more considered approach and concentrate on volume and energy more. In terms of favourites, I love to play the songs which allow the band to flex its musical muscle a bit more and test our playing abilities. Songs like “The Space Between All Things” [from 2005's Warnings/Promises] where we can experiment musically a bit more. There are plenty of songs that become a little tired after playing them too much, but we try to re-work them. And with a big back catalogue now we have a lot of songs to choose from.

Stereokill: Following the same path as the previous question, what is your personal favourite Idlewild album, and why?

RJ: They all have a significance for me, personally and musically but I feel our most consistent albums have been the last two [2005's Warnings/Promises and 2007's Make Another World]. There are good parts to all the records but I feel that we have become better at our craft as time goes on and I feel more confident in our song-writing as time goes by.

Stereokill: Roddy [Woomble, vocals] announced on the final night that a DVD is to be released from the residency, however each gig was over two hours long. Will this release feature highlights from the each of the five nights, or is it a documentary?

RJ: It’s uncertain at the moment what will happen with the DVD format. It really depends on how the footage looks and fits with the recordings but there should be a good cross section of the nights.

Stereokill: Also, in a recent interview, Roddy revealed that you wrote the lyrics to “You’ve Lost Your Way” [the opening track to 1998's Hope Is Important] – can you shed any light as to what this song is about

RJ: I only wrote a few of the lines and to be honest they were more about dynamic than meaning. It was just a case of finding phrases that fitted with the rest of the song. Honestly I cant even make out or remember what I was singing. I just made it up on the night of the album show.

Stereokill: I recall reading that the band’s next album will sound similar to the songs, “Once in Your Life” and “Future Works”, from Make Another World – is this still the case? In what ways does the album differ from previous releases, and are there any new tracks, in particular, that you are excited about?

RJ: I’m excited about the whole record. I think it is a really good collection of songs. I’m not sure that it will be so similar to those songs. There are elements of that, but it has quite an upbeat musical feel, I think. The feeling I have is that it is sounding like a band having a good time.

Stereokill: Initially, the new album is to be be released directly to fans, through idlewildmusic.com. Do you see the band continuing to release material in this manner, and what do you make of the current state of the music industry?

RJ: The music industry is in disarray at the moment both financially and logistically, and more and more bands are starting to take control of their own music. Whether we will incorporate a more traditional label approach later on depends on what the album feels like when it is done. It definitely feels good to own our music again and that is something it would be hard to give up again.

Stereokill: Any idea as to what label the band will use when the “conventional album release” occurs?

RJ: As I said previously, we may or may not do that. We may release it ourselves but time will tell.

Stereokill: Are record sales and chart success things that concern you and the band? Do you ever miss the level of commercial success the band achieved with [2002's] The Remote Part?

RJ: Obviously it is great when a record does well at radio and a lot of people get to hear your music, but we are still very fortunate in that we have a loyal and trusting fanbase who allow us to keep making music and improving, I think.

Stereokill: I’ve always been a big fan or your harmonies and chord progressions, so to hear that you’re working on a solo album is pretty exciting. Your MySpace account states that there will be a full band involved in its recording – at this stage can you reveal anyone who is involved?

RJ: Im not sure how it will go yet. There may be a full band invovled in some songs, but the more I listen to the songs the more I like the simplistic nature of them. I have finished writing it and will probably record it in early spring, and perhaps even release it myself through the internet.

Stereokill: Will the George is Jones album [Jones' collaboration with American singer-songwriter Inara George] ever see the light of day?

RJ: Doubtful I have to say. It is sad that a record which people seem to have really taken to will not make it out but there are too many problems surrounding it.

Stereokill: Do you consider [1998's] Captain to be an “album”, a “mini-album”, or simply an EP?

RJ: I never really think about it, but I guess if put on the spot I would say a mini-album. It was a sort of introduction to Idlewild.

Stereokill: Do any members of the band remain friends with [former bassist] Bob Fairfoull?

RJ: There are no bad feelings between any of us and we have all seen Bob a few times over the last few years and remain on good terms.

Stereokill: Who have been your main musical influences, throughout your career?

RJ: Early on I’d say bands like Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Pavement and Superchunk but as time has gone on I’ve listened to alot of different music from Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac, The Police through to John Fahey. Contemporary bands like Modest Mouse, The Walkmen and Midlake have all had an influence on me recently, and I must admit to having a budding interest in prog-rock also.

Stereokill: Are there any upcoming bands that you are a fan of?

RJ: I really love The Twilight Sad who toured with us on our last album and also a couple of LA bands: I really love Seawolf and The Pity Party.

Stereokill: You recently curated an event for the Scottish Mental Health Arts & Film Festival. How did this come about?

RJ: Idlewild were approached about doing something for the festival but due to time constraints we couldn’t take part. I, however, really wanted to get involved as it was something close to my heart having suffered from depression myself. I was asked about trying to put together a gig and just phoned a few of my friends and peers in bands and they were all quick and keen to help out. The response was amazing and thanks to the hard work of all the musicians and people behind the scenes, who all gave up their time for free, we put on a really great concert and got a lot of valuable press to highlight the mental health issues in Scotland and also bring attention to the services available to help people.

Stereokill: Finally, on the recorded version of ‘Finished It Remains’, is it yourself or Allan [Stewart, guitarist] that performs the climactic solo? I’ve always thought that it was yourself, but when it was performed live at King Tut’s I noticed it was Allan. I was wondering if you could shed any light on this personal little question?

RJ: It was Allan. We tend to trade off on solos these days as there is a real feeling of mutual respect between us. It is, as they say, a “kick ass” solo.

A big thank you goes out to Mr. Jones (hold the Counting Crows puns, please) for taking the time to answer these questions.

His first post is an interview with Rod Jones? This is why I hired him. – Ed.

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