Beulah

After the orchestral-pop surprise of "When your heartstring breaks", everybody was waiting for the new Beulah's album. And Miles Kurowsly and Bill Swan haven't let down their fans: "The Coast is never Clear" is one of the best pop album of 2001, packed full of perfect harmonies with a hint of sadness and lots of humor. We talked with Bill about all this, and he explained us the fear of flying to Europe that is so common to US bands and his secret love for Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.

I know you're probably tired of being labeled a "sixties oriented band", and the affiliation to the "Elephant 6" collective doesn't help: do you recognize yourself in that definition? Or maybe it's because people think any California pop band should play like the Beach Boys?

I think it was the jingle bells we put on some of the songs and the fact that we use more than two part harmonies. But you're right, we are tired of the 60's label, and I think it's going to take something drastic for us to shake it off. I expect a lot of incoherent white noise on the next one so they can at least compare us to Lou Reed in the 70s. In fairness, we borrow ideas from all decades (except the 80's, ha ha) but try to stay grounded in our own.

I was surprised to read in press releases that Bill and Miles supposedly hate each other, since your music is very enjoyable and does not show much tension. How do you work in the studio? Do you get there with full songs ready or do you work them out in the studio?

On "Coast," Miles gave all of us a tape of him singing "fake" lyrics with guitar, since he doesn't actually write the lyrics until all of the music has been recorded, and we were asked to add our own parts to the tape and send it back to him, without the five of us sharing the ideas with each other. Then he made a list of whose ideas he wanted us to try for certain parts of the song, and then we rehearsed them live for a month before going into Tiny Telephone to record. We made further arrangement adjustments in
the studio.

For the new album you have used more samples in place of calling outside musicians. Was it a question of budget, of wanting a different sound or wanting to be able to play the songs onstage as they are on the record?

It was a question of budget. On "Heartstrings" I believe we had 18 musicians, but the majority of the people on that list were string players, and there were two separate sets of string players for two separate sessions who were willing to help us out for free. When we came calling this time, they all asked for an exorbitant fee so we just said "forget it." But it is also true that we wanted a different sound that we had a little bit more control over shaping.

Before the record came out I read some interviews where you described it as more complex than "When the heartstring...", and as a challenge to yourselves. Are you 100% satisfied with the results? Do you think you've pushed your sound further on?

Yes, I believe we have. A lot of it has to do with recording on better equipment, but the arrangements flow a little better and the changes in instrumentation in sections of the song are less abrupt. If our albums were movies, this album would have fewer abrupt "jump cuts." There is more variety and depth as well.

I've read The coast described as "a tribute to every pop album ever made". Now, what are your favourite pop albums?

It's always changing, as we're always exploring. I can honestly say that my favorite pop album now was not the same as the favorite one five years ago. I always go back to Rubber Soul or Revolver if I can't decide what to put in the CD player, but I think "Kind Of Blue," by Miles Davis can be classified as a pop record, too, since it is such a crossover outside of the jazz elitist crowd. I also like the Getz/Gilberto record, the one with "The Girl From Ipanema" on it. Lately I've been returning to "Five Leaves Left," by
Nick Drake, and Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy," but I suppose I am skirting around your question. Perhaps the "tribute to every pop album made" is a bit of an overstatement, as we did not put together a list of records that we deliberately tried to emulate. But all of the above records I mentioned have an influence somewhere in there. There are many others. We all agreed that "Summer Teeth" was Wilco's best record, but their core fans (and their record label) seemed to differ with that.

Something that strikes me much in your songs is the contrast between the brilliancy of the music and the lyrics, which often shows a melancholy not easy to get into: how do you write lyrics? Do they follow your personal experiences?

Yes, they seem to be personal, especially on this record. Not as much on the previous two, as they were cloaked in the abstract a little more. Miles waits until the music is completely recorded before completing the lyrics. He has an idea of the subject matter, but waits until the end to help him focus. Pat, on the other hand, usually has the lyrics done ahead of time, before the song is presented to the band. There is no lyrical role playing or theater in this band. None of us can act.

For example, I think you have the smartest and sweetest way of writing songs about depression, tht is if "I'll be your Lampshade" and "What will you do when your suntan fades?" are indeed songs about sad affairs.

Well, I don't think the songs remove all doubts that things could get better. "Suntan Fades" is merely asking questions. "Do you feel afraid?" "Will you fade away?" "What will you do when your suntan is fading and the summer's gone?" And "Lampshade" is a tribute to a friend. So there is not a sense of hopelessness, but it would also be a stretch to say that they are "sun-kissed pop songs," that irksome expression that keeps popping up in articles written by people who have not really listened all that closely.

Where do the name Beulah comes from?

It comes from "Ferris Beuller's Day Off." It means you better not try and put your dad's expensive car up on a jack and throw it in reverse to erase the miles you put on it on the odometer without asking for permission ever again.

You've already been in Europe, what do you think are the differences between the indie scene in the UK and the US? And how do people react to your shows in Europe? How much space there's in the US for independent bands?

Well, depending on the size of the room, there can be a lot of space in the back. This is why we play in small rooms, so the European crowds get agitated and have no choice but to scream. No, I'm amazed at the reaction, which is usually enthusiastic. Before we first came over and played on your side of the Atlantic, we were afraid that everyone was just going to stand their with their arms crossed but that has not been the case. However, I think UK audiences are more fickle and are quicker to move onto the next thing than American audiences are. I am not so sure about the rest of Europe, though, as we have had limited exposure thus far.

Why did you cancel the european tour? Any plans to touring Italy in the future?

We took a vote on it while in the middle of our US tour and we decided to postpone our plans overseas. A lot of other artists were cancelling Eurpoean tours, such as Weezer, Janet Jackson, and so on, so we felt it was best to take a wait and see attitude regarding this "War on Terrorism" thing. I felt like it was too soon to hop on a plane, and the majority of us agreed. We hope to come over in the spring.

You've played live with Call & Response which I personally adore (and they're Californian as well). Have you heard their record? How are they onstage?

They're pretty mellow, more like they are on their record than we are. We turn it up a few decibels. Nice people. We had a good time with them. They brought Krispy Kreme Doughnuts backstage, which is a sensation here in America. It probably means nothing to you, though. I had one too many and felt a little bloated onstage. I think that was their ploy, to make us less energetic and bloated so they could show us up. Didn't work, though.

The "Gene Autry" video it's very nice and well done, starting as a videogame and then turning into a very funny cartoon (especially the "i'm gonna write 'my name' in the sand" part). Whose idea was it? Did you have a cartoonist involved?

Yes, it was a group called "United Bread," a group of kids who were friends from school down in L.A. They brought some drawings and gave us an idea of what they were thinking of doing and we gave them the go ahead to do as they saw fit. In other words, we didn't really interefere with the process. It's an acid trip, to be sure.

Salvatore

Links:

Beulah: www.beulahmania.com
Beulah@indiepop.it: bands/beulah.htm