The 5X5 Interview: Ted Leo, Musician
Ted Leo has been mixing pop and politics since the late 1980s with various outfits ranging from Citizen s Arrest to Chisel. Revered by many is a long-standing indie king, Leo is about to release the 4th full-length album with his current band the Pharmacists. For the uninitiated, comparisons and influences are sometimes pointed at The Clash and Elvis Costello, but we think he s created his own flavor of soulful, tuneful, and thoughtful pop. Dig in as he discusses the new album, busking, file-sharing and why the RIAA can go fuck itself.
Age: 3 weeks to 34.
Location: New Jersey/Rhode Island.
Occupation: Um, musician?
1. Your new album Shake the Sheets is coming out in October. Any real departures on this or just more of your consistently good material that keeps the kids shaking in the rain at the South Street Seaport?
No REAL departures... I mean, the songs are all shorter. Does that count? The biggest difference, for me, is that I really wrote most of these songs in one block, so they work together thematically, musically, etc. — not like a rock opera by any stretch of the imagination, but, like, there was really only one sequence to put them in, you know? There's a definite arc to the listening of it.
2. You grew up in Jersey, lived in DC, Boston and New York. (Am I missing any place?) You're about as East Coast as it gets. Is this what influences your songwriting? The snarls and speed traps of I-95?
The snarls of 95, and every other highway I spend most of my life (literally) on these days, give me some serious time for introspection, which is a precious commodity in the modern world, I'll say that much positive for them. Beyond that, I could write a book about my probably bogus theories on how the North East has shaped my outlook on life, but for now, I'll just say, "yes," and save the rest for that book.
3. You participated in an outdoor busking experiment, in February no less, playing five of the worst songs of all time for Blender magazine. What did you learn other than it would have been much easier to do this on the L train platform?
First of all, I have to disagree that it'd have been easier to do that at an L stop — could you imagine??? The point was to get the opinions of true "passers-by," not play into the already overly ironic, smug, hipster insanity that lies across the East River (and beyond that, I'd have been mortified if I was spotted by anyone who knew who I was!). As far as what I learned, well... Not too much, really! Guitar strings break really easily when it's cold, which makes me think that U2 were probably barely even actually touching their unplugged instruments in that snowy "New Year's Day" video.
4. You're known to write a politically-charged anthem or two. Is it easier to compose protest songs under Republican administrations?
Maybe, but if so, then it's our job to push ourselves to stay vigilant under other administrations. I mean, I wrote a lot of songs during Clinton's 8 years, and most of them had some sort of "issue" to talk about. There are many many things that need fixin' in the world — war and corporate greed are just some of the currently most obvious.
5. Got any quick opinions on big media, the RIAA, file-sharing or anything else that's affecting the landscape of the indie musician?
I'm really torn on file sharing. I have done it, I have benefited from finding some things that have been unavailable to me and that have opened up other doors for me to explore as a fan, and so I'm sure I'll probably do it again, but not to the extent that I feel it's my "right" to "own" a personal copy of something that someone else put sweat, thought, feeling, and money into — the output of someone's true work — without offering them something in return.
Two quick points: 1.) the notion that "music should be for everyone, and not owned" is tripped up by file sharing itself. If you're talking about having it out there in the ether, like just being broadcast on the radio or something, then that's one thing, but the very act of taking, keeping, and burning — creating more hard copies of a hard copy — means that you take into your ownership a version of this piece of work. So you're saying the artist and record label can't "own" it, but then you turn around and own it yourself? That shit ain't right. You're really just saying that you think you shouldn't have to pay for it. And to that, I say, if you ask nicely, you might get a copy, but if you think you have some entitlement to something, your request is falling on unsympathetic ears. 2.) As a promotional thing, it's great to have people passing your stuff around, and as an artist, it's awesome to know that people care. But when you exist in a world that sees you on tour 8 - 9 months out of the year, thus making it hard to hold down a different job, but you COULD, theoretically, be at least paying your bills with the work you do in your chosen field (that being, of course, making music), then it's easy to break down just what a dent excessive file sharing can put in your ability to keep doing what you're doing.
Check it — Metallica are multi-millionaires. Who cares if they lose $100,000 to file sharing? I don't. But speaking for myself and my band, a few hundred downloads that aren't later backed up by purchases can be the difference between us paying rent or not. Ain't nobody in my band got health insurance, you know what I'm sayin'? I'm just talking about RENT. So yeah — it hurts a bit, but I'm not going to tell people to not do it, it would just be nice if we could put all our cards on the table and forego some of the unproductive rhetoric that surrounds the issue. The RIAA can go fuck itself for all I care — my interaction with that world is almost nil, and I really don't care if so-and-so has to put that last piece of bling they bought into hock. I'm just saying that there are people out there trying to do it righteously who could use a bit more support, and a good way to show it would be to give them something in return for what they give you. A musician can't download a guitar, you know?
Ted Leo's Top 5:
Borat's Guide to America
Slade - "Play it Loud"
The Atlantic Ocean
Oliver Sacks
Konono No. 1
Shameless plugging: Check out Ted Leo s website, his page on Lookout Records, and a "Shake the Sheets" listening party at Hi-Fi on Wednesday at 9pm.
