Interview with Jason McCue

Photo by Jake Hanson

Seattle-based indie folk artist Jason McCue comes through Chicago on Friday. He's on a month-long cross-country tour in support of his new album WASTELAND. Recorded in his bedroom, the album takes on a lo-fi indie sound with intermittent psychedlic spins. Lyrics explore the tumultuous, foreboding nature of present day life in America. We're sure there is a mess, but how bad will it get and who will clean it up? The album is out now via Fluff & Gravy Records, check it out at Bandcamp. Jason McCue plays at Teal Nebula in Chicago on Friday, August 30 with Jessica Ever, Badwater Sound and Michael Garrity. More info on that show here. I talked with Jason about the scene in Seattle, hitting the road and recording his new album.

Phil Collins: Where all are you headed on tour this summer?

Jason McCue: This summer, I’m touring across the country from Seattle to Pennsylvania, and then back again. While headed east, I’m going to be in Wenatchee, Missoula, Butte, Billings, Rapid City, Aberdeen, Eau Claire, Madison, Milwaukee, Chicago, Toledo, Fredonia, and then West Chester PA. I grew up in West Chester, so I’ll be spending a week or so with my family there. Then coming back to Seattle, I’ll hit Harrisonburg, Asheville, Florence AL, New Orleans, Lafayette, Austin, Denton, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Denver, Montrose CO, Provo, then back up to the Northwest. I’m taking off this Wednesday August 21st, and I should be back by September 28th.

PC: That's a nice long set of dates. On your own in a van or are you touring with anyone?

JM: Yeah, you’re telling me! It’ll be nice to be out adventuring for a long while. There’s something pretty enticing about putting everyday life on hold for a bit to do something completely different. I’ll be in an ’04 Toyota Corolla. I have some friends that are jumping the passenger seat for different stretches of the trip, but I’m the only act of the touring unit. There will definitely be a few long drives with no one to talk to but the cactus I keep in the car, but I feel prepared for that. Plus, it’ll make it that much easier to make friends when I get to the different towns I’m going to.

PC: Are there any routines you get into on the road to make it feel more comfortable?

JM: I usually try to start driving as early in the day as possible. That way, I can pull over at rest stops more often to get out of the car and run around in circles for a bit, or something. It’s easy to get antsy on those longer drives, so moving myself around whenever I can helps. That and making sure I’m eating healthy. And staying off social media.

PC: Eating healthy is tough on the road. Coming from Seattle, can you tell us about the music scene there?

JM: Seattle’s music scene is great because it has a little bit of everything. I mainly hang out in the indie/house show scene around town, but no matter what genre you’re looking for, it’s not hard to find in Seattle. I think to a lot of folks still associate Seattle’s scene with the 90s and with grunge, but what’s going on now is incredibly new and exciting. I’m lucky that I get to base myself out of there.

PC: I was out there a couple years ago and saw a show at a space called the Black Lodge. It’s fun going to DIY shows on the road because it’s both new and familiar. Do you have any favorite spots in Seattle?

JM: Oh yeah Black Lodge is awesome, I’ve seen some great shows there! Yeah, totally agreed, I’m so excited to meet all of the people I’m about to encounter at the DIY spots I’m playing across the states. One spot I love in Seattle is called Vera Project, they’re really good people who run that spot. Sunset Tavern is another great spot. And there’s an incredible venue called the Fremont Abbey, it’s an old church that throws pretty intimate shows, and it always sounds otherworldly.

PC: Any bands from the area we should check out?

JM: Tons of great bands in Seattle right now! First that come to mind are Coach Phillips, Revel, Dude York, Smokey Brights, and Whitney Ballen. The city’s really exploding with great music.

PC: You have a new album out now. What was the process like putting it together?

JM: I do, it’s called Wasteland! I started getting ideas for the album together last summer, while I was touring to promote my previous record, Pangaea. When I got back home, I was able to gather up the melodies and chord progressions I had been thinking about while on the road, and put them into songs. I wanted the songs to play with each other through the lyrics, almost like it’s a conversation between them. After the songs were written, I recorded them on my laptop and my USB microphone in my room. Then I took them to a professional engineer to clean the bedroom sounds and to get it mixed well and mastered. Once there was no more tweaking to be done, Wasteland was born.

PC: Had you played many of these songs live before or will this tour be the first time for some of them?

JM: I’ve been playing a few of the songs for a little while now, but this tour is definitely when they’ll get solid. It’s tricky touring solo when so many songs on the album are fit with drums and different instrumentation. But it’s fun to twist them around to keep them interesting with only me and a guitar.

PC: Do you play all the instruments on the album?

JM: Yep it’s all me.

PC: What do you hope people walk away with when they listen to Wasteland?

JM: I mostly just hope people like the music! If they take anything away after hearing it, I hope it’s pretty apparent that all the songs are supposed to be a part of the same story.