Interview with Jason Boesel from Rilo Kiley
JB: Hey Veronica!
VC: Hey Jason, can you hear me ok?
JB: Yeah it sounds good over here.
VC: So how is the Coldplay tour going so far? I know you just started but how have the first few shows been?
JB: Yea we just started but it’s going really well, it’s a lot of fun. Right now we are in Grantham Pennsylvania, tonight is actually the first show of our own. This tour we are doing three or four shows of our own in between the Coldplay dates.
VC: With the band you have traveled all over, is there anywhere you are dying to go?
JB: Um, I’d really like to go to Egypt. I don’t know if they have too many shows over there but it’s a place you just need to see.
VC: Where is the worst place you ever visited?
JB: I would say Detroit is up there.
VC: Why is that?
JB: I don’t know… The city just has some problems but I think its getting better, at least people tell me that it is. Every time we go out there there’s been break-ins, cars are stolen you know its kind of a rough city.
VC: Speaking of rough cities the band had a show in New Orleans but because of obvious reasons it was cancelled and all the proceeds from sales of “More Adventurous†are going to the Red Cross correct?
JB: Yeah it just seamed like we should help in some way. When we had that show even when the hurricane started we thought ‘Oh the shows not for a couple weeks it will be fine’ and then truly all hell broke loose.
VC: What would you like listeners to get from your new CD?
JB: Well I guess new listeners we would just like them to enjoy the record as a whole. I think a lot of records are made to have sort of one or two radio songs and the rest is kind of a throw away, well we like to think that every song on this album is worthwhile to listen too. For the people who have been listening to the band for a while hopefully we have displayed some sort of growth.
VC: What are your favorite songs off the album?
JB: I think my favorite songs are “A man/me/then Jim†and “Does he love you?â€
VC: When you play live shows what is most important?
JB: Keep the fans interested and give them a good show. I guess live we tend to rock out a little bit more its just the nature of us playing together on stage, we try to slow down and play some acoustic stuff and kind of give a longer set and not to wear people out.
VC: How would you describe Rilo Kiely’s sound to someone who has never heard of you?
JB: I guess I would say rock based with folk and country influences.
VC: Your music video for “Portions of Foxes†was that the bands very first video?
JB: It was actually our second video, the first one was “It’s a Hit†but that was all animation so we didn’t do much for it. “Portions for Foxes†was the first one where we actually showed up for the video.
VC: How was that experience?
JB: It was a lot of fun! We filmed it in Burbank in this taxidermy warehouse, set up all our stuff and had a couple sweet directors work on it.
VC: Who came up with the treatment?
JB: It was my idea actually. The idea came from a Susan Orlean essay where she went to this taxidermy world championship or something like that. It’s a really great essay.
VC: Whenever I think of taxidermy it reminds me of that Eddie Izzard sketch, have you seen it?
JB: Oh yeah, I love Eddie Izzard.
VC: What is it you love about music?
JB: It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do. I’m drawn to it.
VC: Is there anything you don’t like?
JB: I guess the traveling schedule can be a little tiresome, and the business side of it bums me out sometimes.
VC: Well if you weren’t musically talented what would your dream career be?
JB: I guess to be a fiction writer.
VC: Where would you like you see yourself and the band in six years?
JB: Wow six years? I think within those years there will be about a year and a half break and emerge from that with a new set of records. I guess better than anything we have done in the past.
VC: So describe to me your personal style.
JB: Well my style is best described, as “old while young†I like to incorporate clothes that perhaps an older gentleman might wear. I got these novelist white sneakers in a really cool shoe store in New York they are defiantly something old men wear.
VC: Do you have any favorite fashion designers?
JB: Marc Jacobs I saw some new shirt by him, I think it was new kind of like a French Navy style shirt with horizontal stripes it looked really awesome.
VC: A random question; if you had a theme song what would it be?
JB: Hmm a theme song? I think it would be “When I Paint My Master Piece†by Bob Dylan.
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