TLOBF Interview // Alexander

Los Angeles native Alexander Ebert has been turning heads for years in his bands Ima Robot and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, the latter picking up substantial acclaim of late thanks to their unusual and unpredictable live shows. Only now, with all this experience under his belt, has Ebert adopted his new and more personal recording name of Alexander and put out a debut solo LP. Released on Rough Trade, the self-titled set of songs is a simultaneously sunny and introspective statement, with a dizzing variety of influences, shifting from ’60s pop-folk to hip-hop by way of Morricone Western soundtracks.

As the new album appears, heralded by its beguiling but infectious lead single ‘Truth’, Alexander is entering a new phase in an already labyrinthine musical career that has covered the better part of fifteen years. At this transitional time, when his star seems to be rising faster than ever, Alexander promises that his productivity is not about to let up as he kindly – and briskly – answers TLOBF’s questions.

Hi Alexander – how are things with you today?

Good, thank you, fun.

Is the personality of Edward Sharpe completely absent from your solo album?

Not to me it isn’t.

You’ve talked about wanting to “build an album basically with my hands”, and you’re responsible for every sound on this record. Do you feel that it is more liberating or constraining to write and record without collaborators?

Both. But, for me it is intensely fun, challenging, to do it all. Perhaps after a few albums I’d get annoyed by it, but I do love playing/trying to play all instruments.

Are there any lasting lessons you’ve learned from the “do it yourself” home recording experience this time around?

Well, I’ve become a better mixer, and mixing was very, very hard on me. I think I’ve learned to make sure I bring my car stereo with me wherever I go, so that I can listen to mixes and masters in the stereo environment I am most used to, sadly.

http://soundcloud.com/alexanderebert/million-years

Your work, both with the Magnetic Zeros and in your own right, have been compared with the likes of Paul Simon, and personally I think I hear something of that great songwriter in a song like “In the Twilight”. How do you feel about these kinds of comparisons?

Sure – I absolutely love most of Paul Simon’s songs. I was definitely influenced by him and others to ease up on my delivery.

A lot of writers trace your influences back to the artists of the 1970s. Do you ever feel more kinship with them than you do with your own peers, musically?

Yes. I do… I listen to them more, and rarely am listening to ‘current music.’ From affectations (which I have well explored) to metronome-recordings to over-compression I find much of the music being made lately to be hard to swallow.

Taking into account the album’s cover and the inspiration from “children’s clapping games” and “optimistic Disney tunes”, is there something deliberately childlike going on with these songs?

I sometimes do bring myself back into a state of childlike freedom intentionally – especially when I find I’ve bogged myself into taking myself ‘seriously’ or am caring too much about what other people might think of something I love.

Taking into account your efforts with Ima Robot and the Magnetic Zeros, your solo album will be the third LP you’ve released in three years – and there’s another Magnetic Zeros record on the way. How do you keep your productivity up – and do you think it will last?

Yes – it will last. I am not one to savor languishing in contentment for any longer than it takes to replenish my vitality, and often not that long . The calls of creation, co-creation, and adventure are loud and true .

Recent Magnetic Zeros shows have been acclaimed for being more ambitious and unpredictable than the usual live fare – do you plan on trying to match that with the solo live shows, or to take a different approach?

The ‘solo’ shows (where I am accompanied by at least 5 usually) are quite a bit more street to me – pedestrian, fun, party, storytelling. That said, anything can happen – songs changing mid-course, all the fun that comes with fun-having.

It seems as though the last few years have been tremendously busy for you; what do you hope the future holds, personally and musically?

I want to help. I want to learn and help and share.