An Interview with Dent May

[Note: I've been planning on starting including interviews on the blog for a while now, and since it's "take it serious, oh crap I'm graduating very soon" time with this stuff, I figured it's time to do it up right. So, I bring you the first of what will hopefully be quite a few interviews. Thanks for reading.]

Dent May [photo yanked from his myspace]

 Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele came through Nashville earlier this year and played one of my most anticipated shows in recent memory. Little did I know before I arrived at the show, the Mississippi native was not even going to headline that night, leaving that duty to another Nashville band that has since disbanded.  There were a handful of folks on hand, admittedly mainly girls, that were up front while the man & his uke played, singing along to the words, and the set seemed very short, more than likely due to the fact that his voice was starting to go out a bit.

Well, he's coming back to town and it's something that I hope more folks are interested in this time around. He'll become your favorite crooner with his charm and wit - check out what he had to say to some questions via email below, listen to some tunes, then try to deny it....

Conglomeration Fabrication: How did you get hooked up with the Paw Tracks folks to release your full length earlier this year?

 Dent May: I met the guys in Animal Collective, who run Paw Tracks, when they were recording their latest album in Mississippi.  We hit it off and kept in touch, and they ended up asking me to release music on their label.  It's kind of a boring story, really.  But I'm super honored to be on the label.  I've been a fan of Black Dice and Ariel Pink for a really long time, so being in their company is still crazy to me.  And touring with Animal Collective was so dreamy.
  
CF:You’ve been touring all over the place this year. What are some of your favorite places that you’ve gone so far?

DM: That's a really hard question.  We had a day off in Barcelona and were really blown away by what we experienced.  There's an energy to the people and the lifestyle there that is so exciting and inspiring.  We checked out all the Gaudi architecture and swam at the beach.  Other places we've fallen in love with include Berlin, San Francisco, the Czech Republic, and pretty much everywhere in France.

CF: You live in a small Mississippi town- is this where you grew up? How does this environment influence your songwriting?

DM: I grew up in Jackson, which is the biggest city in Mississippi, but now I live in Taylor.  Population there is about 300, so it's quite a bit smaller.  For one thing, I have a lot of space.  I live on 2 acres, and we have a big garage for music recording.  My roommates are also artists who played on my record but are too busy with their own stuff to tour with me.  Michael Bible is a writer and he started a literary magazine called Kitty Snacks.  Konrad Bevilaqua has a new project called Flight, which is amazing.  So it's kind of the best of both worlds, living in a super chill place where I have complete freedom, yet still being surrounded by lots of creative people.

CF: You wrote the song, “At the Academic Conference” about faking being an English major (and being not the greatest English major myself, I love it), do you have any suggested reading?

 DM: Oh, definitely.  I've also worked in bookstores on and off for a while now, so literature is super important to me.  As a Mississippian, I have to recommend Barry Hannah first.  Check out Ray and Airships.  He's kind of like a southern Beckett, and his language is beautiful but still a bit filthy.  Some of my other favorite writers are Donald Barthelme, James Tate, Amy Hempel, Charles Simic, Etgar Keret, and of course my hero Samuel Beckett.  Oh, and William Faulkner is pretty legit too.

CF: What’s the plan for the near future? More touring, writing and recording soon?
   
DM: I'm trying to take a break from touring, but it keeps piling up.  I'm going to Australia and New Zealand in January, and I can't wait.  I'm working on new stuff, which has a little more of an analog electronic feel.  A big influence is the ELO record Time, which a lot of people think sucks but doesn't.  It'll be similar songwriting, just with a more expanded musical palate.  There won't be much, if any, ukulele on the new stuff.  I wanted to come out with another record in 2010, but it's increasingly looking like it might be the following year.  I'm also about to record an EP with my country-western band Cowboy Maloney's Electric City.

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To Get an even better idea of what Dent's all about, this video for the song "Howard" speaks volumes...


Dent & his crew are hitting the End in Nashville this Monday (Oct. 26th), with Bows & Arrows opening, for only $6 at the door.

NBN: Thursday Night Wrap Up

It seemed like a normal night at Foobar on Thursday until you walked into the back room where the bands were playing.


I have to say that I am very glad the venue was added to Next Big’s line up last minute, seeing as I don’t think these bands would’ve gone over as well if they weren’t on the east side- they seem to be a little more accepting to the quirkier acts over there.

By the time we arrived, the first two bands, Goodbye Sons and James Wallace and the Naked Light, had already played and Happy Birthday Amy was finishing setting up.

Perhaps it was the crowd, or Raul Panther of Protomen on a few songs’ background vocals, Chris Click of Ascent of Everest on tuba or maybe the venue, but something in the air made this HBA set extra enjoyable. Also, after seeing the quite a few times the past 3 or 4 years, it was one of the best sets of theirs that I have seen.

Cheer Up Charlie Daniels was admittedly the reason I decided to take a chance on the one NBN night at Foobar (plus I happened to be staying with friends on that side of town). I’d only seen them play at the 1970’s themed 8 off 8th and randomly met the singer, Neil, a few nights before as he was flyering for the show; his personal appeal to me worked once I started seriously planning the night.

The band’s set was really good, tunes with a pop rock sound, a few other pinches of stuff thrown in, including stuff that you almost shouldn't like but kinda have to, pending on when you grew up (example: the Steely Dan cover). They put on quite a show, including a guitar getting busted during the set (I somehow missed this and figure I was next door or something…the remnants were on the floor near the end of the set). Simple costumes and fake facial hair were also in full effect, with the fake ‘staches available for the crowd if they so chose.

Cheer Up Charlie Daniels is quite a fun band to see live with some pretty good songs, so I’m really excited to hear their new release and also see how it sounds on record (yes, it’s coming out on vinyl- yum). Keep an eye out for an album review as soon as I can get my hands on the music.

Umbrella Tree played after CUCD, but I got a little distracted and the next thing I knew, their 40 minute set was over. I will say they are one of the most original acts in Nashville, though, and that says a lot.

By the end of the night one thing was clear to me- Foobar is a fun place to see a show and I hope there are more that are going on and people find out about- it could easily turn into the spot to be if the cards are played right.