WED., JUNE 18, 2008
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Ask the Artist: Liz Phair (Pt. 2)
by J. Edward Keyes
On what she learned about the young Liz Phair:
One of the funniest things I learned — I read a bunch of the old interviews I did, and the things I said! They were so shocking! I don't know how I had the balls to say those things. I was just so serious and so sure of my own greatness — I was really embarrassed by those things! The heads of Matador, Chris and Gerard, were talking about the things I used to say to them on the phone — like, "This is going to be a big record. We should make a video." Gerard said, "You were pretty sure of yourself." And I actually felt sorry. I'm glad I'm not the megalomaniac I was back then. Although, at the same time, I got a lot of 'em right. My prognostication was pretty damn good! All that pot I was smoking — maybe I was channeling some kind of collective unconscious.
Another thing that was really interesting was thinking about what happened when "indie" merged with the "mainstream." It was interesting to go back with hindsight, to be able to stand above all this stuff and see the battle between staying indie or signing to a major label. This was back when Urge Overkill signed and Smashing Pumpkins signed. I got to see what the forces were that pitted the people who felt "indie must remain indie" against the people who felt indie was a stepping stone to a larger thing. I came away from my own last 15 years understanding that what Steve Albini has always said — about the pitfalls of signing with a major label, and how it's sort of a no-win proposition. I tried every which way till Sunday to make it work for me, but it's just a massive system. And that major label system is something that the individual can't really beat.
On her experience with a major label:
God it's amazing who the fuck they hire to be presidents of major labels. I'll never understand. I've met so many shitty presidents of record labels. How these assholes get promoted to the level that they reach… If I had fucking three million dollars a year to spend on someone, I think I'd fucking pick someone a lot better than that. Someone that had some leadership, or maybe some wisdom? I mean, God, what happened to leaders? Where did they go? What is with the dysfunction in seats of power? How do they get there? I was talking about this with my mom, and what we came up with is that they're willing to do stuff other people aren't. They are willing to stab in the back, or they don’t have particularly healthy personal lives. So they rise and rise because people who want to protect what they have tend to step out of the way when they see people like this.
On what she's working on now:
What I've noticed since I've been off of a major and signed to ATO is that, because I'm perverse, and because I'm getting to express that perversity now, I'm almost going exactly the other way [from my last two albums]. My new thing is to do exactly what you're not supposed to do. I now want to marginalize myself, and do something that requires a lot of attention. Every meeting where we're talking about sales or how we're going to market, my responses have been like: ONLY VINYL. [laughs]. I'm totally into this mode where I want to go all the way to the other side and make things hard to find. It's really funny — I've been having quite a lot of what I consider non-productive discussions with people that I've been working with, because I won't let them finish it off. I want it all raw and demo. So they'll be like "But…um…I…uh…just want to move the bass," and I'm like "DON'T TOUCH IT" [laughs]. I'm like, "This is the easiest 5,000 bucks you're ever going to make, just shut up and let me fucking do it." I want it to reflect my aesthetic — which I think is the biggest gift I have right now. I have the opportunity to let my aesthetic rule the day. It's my work in process. I want it to be messy and spontaneous. I want to add layers of polish, but I want that core to be my messy aesthetic.
To read Liz's thoughts on "6'1"" and "Dance of the 7 Veils," click here.
One of the funniest things I learned — I read a bunch of the old interviews I did, and the things I said! They were so shocking! I don't know how I had the balls to say those things. I was just so serious and so sure of my own greatness — I was really embarrassed by those things! The heads of Matador, Chris and Gerard, were talking about the things I used to say to them on the phone — like, "This is going to be a big record. We should make a video." Gerard said, "You were pretty sure of yourself." And I actually felt sorry. I'm glad I'm not the megalomaniac I was back then. Although, at the same time, I got a lot of 'em right. My prognostication was pretty damn good! All that pot I was smoking — maybe I was channeling some kind of collective unconscious.
Another thing that was really interesting was thinking about what happened when "indie" merged with the "mainstream." It was interesting to go back with hindsight, to be able to stand above all this stuff and see the battle between staying indie or signing to a major label. This was back when Urge Overkill signed and Smashing Pumpkins signed. I got to see what the forces were that pitted the people who felt "indie must remain indie" against the people who felt indie was a stepping stone to a larger thing. I came away from my own last 15 years understanding that what Steve Albini has always said — about the pitfalls of signing with a major label, and how it's sort of a no-win proposition. I tried every which way till Sunday to make it work for me, but it's just a massive system. And that major label system is something that the individual can't really beat.
On her experience with a major label:
God it's amazing who the fuck they hire to be presidents of major labels. I'll never understand. I've met so many shitty presidents of record labels. How these assholes get promoted to the level that they reach… If I had fucking three million dollars a year to spend on someone, I think I'd fucking pick someone a lot better than that. Someone that had some leadership, or maybe some wisdom? I mean, God, what happened to leaders? Where did they go? What is with the dysfunction in seats of power? How do they get there? I was talking about this with my mom, and what we came up with is that they're willing to do stuff other people aren't. They are willing to stab in the back, or they don’t have particularly healthy personal lives. So they rise and rise because people who want to protect what they have tend to step out of the way when they see people like this.
On what she's working on now:
What I've noticed since I've been off of a major and signed to ATO is that, because I'm perverse, and because I'm getting to express that perversity now, I'm almost going exactly the other way [from my last two albums]. My new thing is to do exactly what you're not supposed to do. I now want to marginalize myself, and do something that requires a lot of attention. Every meeting where we're talking about sales or how we're going to market, my responses have been like: ONLY VINYL. [laughs]. I'm totally into this mode where I want to go all the way to the other side and make things hard to find. It's really funny — I've been having quite a lot of what I consider non-productive discussions with people that I've been working with, because I won't let them finish it off. I want it all raw and demo. So they'll be like "But…um…I…uh…just want to move the bass," and I'm like "DON'T TOUCH IT" [laughs]. I'm like, "This is the easiest 5,000 bucks you're ever going to make, just shut up and let me fucking do it." I want it to reflect my aesthetic — which I think is the biggest gift I have right now. I have the opportunity to let my aesthetic rule the day. It's my work in process. I want it to be messy and spontaneous. I want to add layers of polish, but I want that core to be my messy aesthetic.
To read Liz's thoughts on "6'1"" and "Dance of the 7 Veils," click here.
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