Interviews -Retisonic-

New York, 2002.11
text by Yoshiyuki Suzuki
interpretation and translation by Stanley George Bodman

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"Don't forget: we are not a DC band! "

I enjoyed your debut EP "LEAN BEAT" very much. What does this title "LEAN BEAT" refer to?

Jason：It is the name for our style of music. It is frustrating trying to describe what type of music we play. I have been forced to use words that are misleading, or lumping this band in with other bands that are not similar (or that I don't like!). Words like EMO and POST-HARDCORE, or PUNK, or ROCK don't accurately describe the sound or feel of our band, they don't really mean anything. Rather than use these terms, we tried to figure out a new style, a new genre name that not only verbally describes the feel of our music, but could also be a guideline for creating that music.
LEAN BEAT means two things: 1) writing songs that are LEAN, concise, focused, direct, free of complicated arrangements. 2) playing those songs with a certain DRIVE to them, leaning with the beat. aggressive songs should slant forward in anticipation of the next snare hit, lazy songs should drag behind the beat, almost drunk... we try to recognise the way a song should be played, or wants to be played.

RETiSONiC is currently a 2 piece unit. Do you think you will maintain it as a 2 piece, or do you have plans to add another member?

Jason：From the start we wanted to be a three-piece: DRUMS, GUITAR, BASS. But before bringing a third person in, Joe and I wanted to arrange the songs I had written. We still hadn't found a suitable bassist when we were ready to record the LEAN BEAT ep, so I played the basslines. Before leaving for our first tour, we got Jim Kimball to play bass. It worked out great. Live, we are now the three-piece we originally intended to be.

Please introduce us to your new partner Joe Gorelick, and let us know how you joined up with him.

Jason：Years ago, Joe's previous band GARDEN VARIETY had broken up at the same time BLUETIP had lost a drummer (the first of many!). Though we had never met each other, Joe contacted us by calling Dischord Records. We did one tour with Joe as our drummer... 65 shows in 64 days. By the end, he realized he did not want to move to DC, and quit the band. at the end of last year I contacted Joe to give him a copy of the last Bluetip CD. We got to talking, I described what I wanted to do with music and mentioned I was looking for a drummer.

How do you write & arrange songs? Is it a different method than what you did while in BLUETIP?

Jason：Very different. Songwriting is hard., For bluetip it was a battle... everyone had different ideas on what kind of songs we should write, or what kind of band we should be. Sometimes that is a good thing, but usually it's just frustrating. I might come in with song parts and a strong opinion on what the arrangement should be, everyone figures out their instruments, then we'd try a thousand different arrangements based on each members whims. songs would be clipped, extended, beaten, voted on, trashed, resurrected... by the end when we're tired and ready to agree, the arrangement would end up sounding almost exactly like what I originally brought in. I think bluetip songs sounded great on our records... the fight seemed worth it. But live it could all become a jumble with everyone playing their individual and intricate parts.
With retisonic I wanted to skip some of the wasted energy and frustrations bluetip faced with songwriting. Now I write the song on guitar matched with a vocal melody idea, figure out a simple supportive bassline, and come up with an arrangement that gets the point across. I bring it to Joe and we test the arrangement, fine tune it, alter it some, until the song feels focused. All the while keeping in mind that it needs to sound good in a live setting. At least that's how we did the songs for the EP... who knows how the next batch will be written.

The word "RETiSONiC" is also the title of a BLUETIP song. Why did you decide to use it for your new band name? Do you have strong feelings for this word?

Jason：The lyrics to the bluetip song "retisonic" were written when I knew bluetip was over. It's an introduction to the new band (like a flyer for an upcoming show?). I made up the word, I like what it sounds like.

This EP was produced by your long time friend J Robbins. Do you feel very comfortable working with J? Also, you have worked with Ian Mackaye before. What are the differences between J & Ian as producers?

Jason：I love working with J. We seem to like the same things in a recording. He will work exhaustively to make each instrument sound incredible, alone and in concert with the others. Both Bluetip records he worked on were happy, fun recording sessions. I especially enjoyed making "JOIN US", the second Bluetip record, with him.
The first bluetip album "DISCHORD No.101" was done with Ian MacKaye. Many people I've met consider that our best album, and Ian's influence had much to do with that. He has a strong idea of WHY to record, he's trying to capture something that maybe the band didn't even know was there, weird moments like sparks that you can't control. but he helps to create a situation where those moments might come out... It has much to do with communication, intent, experimentation, documentation. Not cleaning things up so much. the end result is raw and true.
Everyone wants me to compare those two. In my mind both are great producers. the difference? Listen to "DISCHORD No.101" against "JOIN US". Ian and J are both far too sensetive for me to criticize one against the other...We can't have these boys sulking.

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