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AJ & Altercana
Published: June 2003
Story: Daniel Unterburger
Photo: Kelly Bechtold |
Alt-country, y'allternative, cowpunk, no depression: whatever you
call it, the fusion of country twang and punk rock attitude has
informed some of the most memorable music of the past 30 years.
From Gram Parsons and his Flying Burrito Brothers throughWilco and
Son Volt (the two-headed monster of '90s alt-country), artists have
been pairing the gorgeous confessional nature of country with the
purgative temperament of loud rock 'n' roll to produce startling
amalgams of the two seemingly disparate musical styles. To the
endless list of journalistic shortcuts used to describe the fusion of
country and rock, Lancaster native AJ (nee Andrew Jacobs) adds
"altercana," the marriage of alternative and Americana.
"I grew up on SST punk," AJ says, "stuff like Black Flag, the
Minutemen, Meat Puppets, and especially Hüsker Dü." Hüsker Dü's chief
songwriter, Bob Mould, would prove to be an enduring influence on AJ.
After the Hüskers called it quits on their speedy, noisy pop, Mould
embarked on a solo career that would end up spanning a decade (and
counting). Along the path to what is surely sonic nirvana, Mould has
stopped off in the Acoustic Kingdom and even indulged his country
influences on occasion.
Cue AJ close-up, and fast-forward to the scene where he leaves
punk-poppers Element and embarks on his own solo career of sorts. "I
grew up with Bob Mould's music," AJ says. "My musical tastes and
listening habits matured with [Mould's] growth as an artist. Right
when I first started getting into acoustic guitar, along comes
Workbook [Mould's 1989 solo debut], you know. Like it was fate."
AJ seems to have taken Mould's records to heart. Throughout
Altercana, his own solo debut album (and the namesake of his band),
AJ combines driving guitars and breathlessly emotive vocals with
sharp pop hooks that fit so perfectly into the song you can't help
but smile. To tell you the truth, Bob Mould has probably spent the
last five years wishing he were writing songs this convincing.
AJ's current listening schedule veers more toward the
singer/songwriter side of rock, with Rhett Miller and Pete Yorn being
enormous influences of late. After strongly recommending Yorn's new
album, AJ expounded on the virtues of Rhett Miller. "Miller's solo
album is so good," AJ says. "The songs are so well-written, the
arrangements are great, and the album just sounds incredible, like
they were having fun in the studio." That is the point, after all.
AJ released Altercana in October 2001. After writing all of the songs
on acoustic guitar and gigging them around the Lancaster area in solo
acoustic performances, AJ assembled a crack team of local musicians
to fill out his sound in the studio. Allow me to introduce the
remaining players in our little band profile: second guitarist Sam
Gorgone, bassist Clayton Mars, and drummer Tom Chaffin. These three
upstanding citizens rounded out the sketchy arrangements of AJ's
songs and snapped the recording into life. The result: the mighty
fine Altercana mini-album; eight songs of straight-up, hard-driving,
hyphen-inducing rock 'n' roll.
In the 18 months since the Altercana release, AJ has expanded his
billing to include the members of his backing band. Hence, the
cumbersome and somewhat-confusing AJ and Altercana moniker. I asked
AJ about the origins of "altercana."
"I started writing these songs, and they seemed to come from
listening to lots of guitar-based, alternative rock music, but at the
same time they had this real kinda earthy, down-home feel. So,
'alternative Americana,' or 'altercana,' AJ explains. "Besides, the
songs were pretty unique [in their blending of genres], so I figured
that if I was going to be pigeonholed, I might as well name my own
genre!" That explanation works for me, and it seemed to work for the
other hundred or so patrons of the Lizard Lounge who watched AJ and
Altercana tear the house down.
Never mind the unwieldy band name: when AJ and Altercana plug in,
their performances adhere to the straightforward, heart-on-the-sleeve
ethos that makes rock music such a powerful emotional force. While a
few songs make it painfully clear that the transition from acoustic
writing to electric performance is not an easy task to undertake ("30
Miles" and "Saturation Overhaul" struggle under the weight of a
full-band arrangement), nearly everything else in the Altercana canon
rocks mightily. In addition to the eight songs on the Altercana
release, the band debuted two new songs at the performance I caught.
"Lovers and Sinners" and "Coming Back" bring a sophisticated pop
sensibility to the already-established altercana formula, and serve
to introduce a natural and welcome maturation in AJ's songwriting.
Bringing to mind Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks' new album, as well as
the clever, unexpected catchiness of Spoon's best material, these two
songs point in a promising direction, and hark well for AJ and
Altercana's second album.
Where the Altercana release functioned merely as a full-band
extension of AJ's acoustic songs, the forthcoming sophomore album
will take a more collaborative approach. "This new album is going to
be a little different," says AJ. "Most of the new songs were
co-written with the band, so they sound and feel more like a group
effort. For the first record, I just brought in a demo CD and said,
'Here you go!'"
"Yeah, we just picked which one of the 40 guitar tracks we wanted to
play," adds guitarist Gorgone.
The arrangements for Altercana were worked out in the studio a few
hours preceding a recorded take, but the new album will consist
mainly of songs co-written by AJ and the band.
When asked where he wants to go with the new record, AJ falters at
first. "Well, I just want it to sound natural."
"Poppier?" I ask.
"Yeah, I guess, poppier, but at the same time trying to stick with
the twang. Really, I'm not too worried about what genre it sounds
like. I just try to focus on recording well-written songs." Judging
by the two-song preview I witnessed at the Lizard Lounge, the writing
process is making headway, and the recording should follow suit.
An interesting facet of AJ and Altercana's live repertoire is their
choice of covers. I've generally noticed that a band's take on
another performer's song often provides a shortcut to understanding
their sound, and Altercana's choice of covers definitely speaks
volumes. AJ's take on Rhett Miller's "Your Nervous Heart" made the
song sound almost combustible, as if even the slightest objection to
the narrator's affections would burn down the whole building. A few
songs later, Altercana proceeded to wrench more emotion out of
"Strange Condition" than the smugly maudlin Pete Yorn could even
imagine his song containing.
AJ and Altercana continue to take a workman-like approach to their
particular brand of rock music. Their prodigious intake of Pabst Blue
Ribbon may encourage the twang, but it sure as hell takes nothing
away from the rock. Look for AJ and Altercana's as-yet untitled
second album toward the end of the summer. In the meantime, catch the
band live at a club near you, where they will undoubtedly rock your
socks off.
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