The Divine Nine: Q / A with Jen Gloeckner

ADAM: Thanks for doing our interview, Jen. How’s life?

JEN: You're welcome, Adam. Things are going well. Looking very forward to getting out on the road and promoting Miles Away.

ADAM: There’s a literary quality to your songwriting that is lacking in a lot of your contemporaries. What kind of stuff would we find on your bookshelves?

JEN: I really do not read much at all. I will occasionally purchase an Anne Rice novel. When I write my lyrics, I try and dig deep in myself. I try to put just as much thought into the lyrics as I do the music.

ADAM: Track sequencing is one of those mysterious pieces of making an album that, to me, is both underrated and hard to critique (I just know I wouldn’t change anything on Miles Away.). For you, is sequencing a heady process—this track must go here to complete the arc—or is it a gut process?

JEN: The track order issue was always in the back of my mind, and was something I was a little nervous about facing. It came down to the day that I had to send the CD to get mastered, and I had to take my best shot. A friend of mine was hanging around, and I told him the dilemma I was having. We then took off for a long ride in the car, and started piecing it together. Everything just kind of fell into place. Though I made all the decisions, it helped a lot to have my friend there helping me put things into perspective. The track order actually seemed to start to tell a story, which was very cool, and weird. I think it is one of those things that seems a little scary, but once you decide to jump in and get it done, it comes pretty easy. I think the track order of a CD is very important, and I am glad that the order on Miles Away works for you.

ADAM: Your bio says that people are surprised that you’re able, as a small town resident, to find inspiration and produce such diverse material. This helps fuel, no doubt, well-meaning but patronizing review clips like “she has the maturity of an artist from a big city.” I live in L.A. but grew up in a town of 4,000 in Wisconsin; sadly, neither maturity nor inspiration is falling from the palm trees out here. Are people really so surprised that creativity can live in Dubuque, Iowa? And, even though that is a false premise, is it safe to say that it’s smart marketing to feed that idea?

JEN: I would first say that the more you have experienced in life, the more artistic you will be, no matter where you come from, or reside. I also feel that art is very universal, and those who are artistic will appreciate good art when they see it, no matter where it comes from. I believe that truly artistic people have no boundaries. I have had people question where the music comes from. I suppose many people who have never left the big city think that living in Iowa means picking corn and milking cows...HaHa. I really do not know if it is good for marketing, as many may not even give the material a serious listen when they see the FROM address on the envelope.

ADAM: Working without an established label or PR company, what’s the best advice you can give to other musicians reading this who are looking to find audiences and drum up publicity for their own albums?

JEN: It is very important to have someone else, whether it be a family member, or friend who totally believes in what you are doing, who will do a lot of the promotion for you. I think that most musicians are so wrapped up in writing music, that is is very hard for them to concentrate on promoting themselves. It is really two different worlds. I would advise others to send out as much promotional material as possible, and use that incredible tool, the internet. There are so many resources to be found there.

ADAM: I’m interested in something I read about you finishing songs that are started in your dreams. I can never hang on, consciously at least, to whatever creative threads run through my dreams. Is it general impressions that emerge from the dreams, or specific lines/melodies? How can someone not very in touch with that part of his subconscious try to harness or engage it?

JEN: I have always been very much in tune with my dreams. I remember them well, and a lot of times they set the tone for the day, which can be both rewarding, and burdensome. I would say that many times it is more of a state of mind, but I do get specific melodies often as well. I think that you can do this if you make a conscious effort to try. Many people have a very hard time remembering their dreams, so for them, it would be a good idea to keep a recorder, or pen and paper by their beds, and write down things as they come in the night. Never be lazy and say that you will remember it in the morning, because you will not!

ADAM: As you continue to write and prepare for the next album, what would a larger indie label need to do to entice you to sign with them?

JEN: They would need to allow me to have complete artistic freedom.

ADAM: My father and brother once drove from Wisconsin to Colorado listening only to Garbage’s Version 2.0. What album wouldn’t wear out its welcome with you, even played on repeat halfway across America?

JEN: Bob Dylan - Blood On the Tracks.

ADAM: Musicians always like to say that there’s no telling what the future may bring, there’s no telling what direction their sound will evolve. With that as a given, what will we never hear on a Jen Gloeckner album?

JEN: That is a good question. I would have to say that it would be a song with no soul.

- Adam McKibbin

With such a rich talent behind the flawless debut album, and Americana/roots music making an ever-increasing impact on the European music scene, it seems almost inevitable that a European label will pick up on 'Miles Away' in the near future.  Like many of her peers, very little is known about Jen Gloeckner, so I thought I'd ask her a few quick questions about the background of the album.

MW: The first thing that struck me is that whilst ‘Miles Away’ has a roots and alt folk. edge to it, there are also definite world (‘Clear The Sand’), jazz and pop influences – who are/were the musicians who have influenced your music most?
Jen G: I am most influenced by artists such as Bjork. And any other artist who writes from their heart and soul and does not purposely write to make hit songs.

MW: Your music influences and inspiration aside, is there anything else that has inspired your music?
Jen G: Much of my inspiration comes from a spiritual awareness that I have.   I really cannot put my finger on it, but when I write, the visions I see and try to interpret are very similar to what one may experience in their dream state. I have also had collaborations with musicians in my dreams, which I have taken and finished writing in the conscious state. I often wonder if these other musicians are the various forms of myself.

MW: This is your debut album, but with 15 stunning songs on the tracklist, is this basically a collection of songs you’ve written over the years?
Jen G: When I first started recording Miles Away, I had maybe 5 or 6 songs to start with. As I went on, only a few of those survived, the other 13 or so were written as I went. I believe the first song, Hazy Sky, was written about two years ago.

MW: There’s very little known about your musical background – could you elaborate on your collaborations with Patrick Hazell?
Jen G: Patrick is a blues legend in Iowa. He started the Mother Blues band in the 60's. Mother Blues is a legendary blues band which included musicians such as Bo Ramsey and Joe Price. Pat is a great songwriter, piano player, and one of the most original sounding harmonica players I have ever heard. He heard my song Hazy Sky on a local college station one night. He really liked the song, so he contacted me immediately thru an e-mail. We then hooked up and did some jamming and recording. Since then we have done a few shows together. There is definitely some great chemistry there.

MW: There seems to be even less known about the musicians in your backing band than the people we just mentioned; despite this apparent anonymity, they certainly are a talented bunch – is this your permanent backing band, and what is their background?
Jen G: Yes, a very talented bunch. The musicians are friends who play in various local bands. When I recorded the Miles Away, I put down the basic song, and when that was finished I called on my friends to sprinkle their magic on it, for that extra bit of shine.

All of the musicians who played on the CD, are very active, and music is their lives, just as it is mine. Most of the musicians play with me from time to time, but I do not have one set lineup. I feel it is important to keep things open, so that the sound is always changing, and growing.

MW: On to the songs - some of the lyrics to your songs seem almost surreal to me, ‘Nothing Personal’ for example, whilst others verge on self-reflective – is there a common thread behind the stories these songs tell?
Jen G: As far as Nothing Personal, I guess it is about Eve, with an Alice In Wonderland
spin as well. With my music, I don't necessarily always try to make everything make sense, but more aim for a state of mind that I want the listeners to feel, and understand, but not know why. Kind of like when you wake up from a dream that made perfect sense
in the dream world, but no sense in the awake state.

There is a common thread to a degree I guess in that each song does put you in a zone that may inspire the next song. However, I do not limit myself to any certain style, which I feel allows ideas to flow more freely.  I guess that I pretty much write in the moment.


MW: Musically, ‘Miles Away’ is an almost perfect debut – how on earth does one follow up something like that, and where do you see yourself heading musically?
Jen G: Thank you very much for that. At this time I have most of the material that will be on the next release. When I get more into getting the next disc together, things will probably change, and I probably will scrap things, and write a lot of new material.  I really do not have a vision about the future, but more of a state of mind that I would like to express. Only 1 was the last song I wrote for 'Miles Away', and probably best shows where I wanted to head musically, though I doubt I will ever write anything like it again, if that makes sense.

MW: As far as I know, there are no plans to lift a single from the album, but if you really had to choose a song from the album as your personal favourite, which would it be, and why?
Jen G: As I stated before, Only 1, for it most sets the path towards where I want to head.
The song was actually written after the other songs were sent in for mastering. I had to make a quick a decision whether to put the song on the next release, or put it on Miles Away. In the end I felt a strong need to get the song out now.

- February 23rd 2004