Since the mid-1980s, J. Robbins has been doing his part to bring the world rad music. In the three decades since his musical career began as the bass player for the final line-up of legendary DC Hardcore band Government Issue, J. has played in, fronted, and/or recorded some of the best music to come out of Washington, DC (or anywhere else) in that time period. The abridged list of notable projects include a stint in Scream, a band whose lineup included Dave Grohl at the time, Buddyhead favorite Burning Airlines and, of course, Jawbox.
If you don’t know at least one of the bands mentioned so far, chances are you’re a poser. As if his resume wasn’t impressive enough already (though, as you’ll see, dude has been a part of some questionable music videos), J. has also found the time to become one of the most sought after producers in indie rock. His latest project, The Office of Future Plans, will be playing one of its first shows ever as part of our East Coast Halloween Party in Washington, D.C. With that and a Jawbox reunion performance on The Late Show with Jimmy Fallon planned for December 8th, J. is a busy man these days, but we convinced him to take the time to answer some of our burning questions.
Notable Tracks:
BurningAirlines – “Pacific 231″
Burning Airlines – “Outside the Aviary”
Buddyhead: For the record, what does the “J” stand for? It’s “Jermaine,” isn’t it?
J. Robbins: James.
BH: You are in the process of writing and recording a new record under the moniker Office of Future Plans. What has the writing process been like? How is this material shaping up compared to your output in the past?
JR: I got ProTools at home so I wouldn’t have to go all the way down to the studio on off-days if I wanted to work on music … I’ve almost never given myself a chance to let a song develop along with the recording before; this time I started out playing everything but the drums myself, recording anything that came to me whenever I could, and building the songs by recording and re-recording. I am trying not to rule out any sounds or any approaches that seem like fun to try. So in what I’ve recorded thus far, there’s some acoustic stuff, some loop-based stuff, a fair bit of piano and Rhodes … anyway it was a solo record, but now I don’t know what it is, because I’ve been rehearsing the songs with a band for over a month, so it sounds like a band and it’s all much better than it was even though the notes and rhythms haven’t changed all that much. So, most of the material I was thinking of as “the record” will get re-recorded with everyone playing live together. Anyway there’s no schedule. It could be out as an album in a six months or year, or released in smaller batches online. Who knows?
BH: Do you think you have a particular “aesthetic” as a songwriter? How do you approach writing music?
JR: I like a fair bit of noise, polyrhythms, melodic dissonance and tension, suspensions, things that don’t resolve quite “right” — but I never want those things to just seem perverse or gratuitous, they have to be tied to the essence of the song. My idea of a great “pop band” is XTC in 1983 – hooky and structured, but also brash and cantankerous … I try not to take things for granted. On guitar, I’ve always tried to write beyond my ability to play and then work up to it. I love it when I can get into a receptive state of mind and a song seems to write itself, but I can’t stand to just churn something out.
BH: Buddyhead generally takes an anti-reunion stance. However, we’re pretty jazzed about Jawbox playing the Jimmy Fallon Show (except for the Jimmy Fallon part). Anywhere else we can catch this newly reunited Jawbox?
JR: Only on TV!
BH: While we’re on the subject, Jawbox went on tour with Stone Temple Pilots once. At any point did you and Scott Weiland “dance with Mr. Brownstone” together? Got any dirt on those dudes?
JR: Well … they were nice guys. Everyone on that tour was nice. We were shocked to be treated respectfully on a big rock tour, but that’s what happened. The Deleo brothers were stellar guys, really great — they actually hung out with us and even helped load our gear a couple of times; the drummer sort of clocked in and clocked out. Scott Weiland was the first person we met on that tour and he was super ingratiating, but I think he took the measure of us very quickly because we barely saw him after that. One look was all you needed to know we weren’t holding anything more exciting than bottled water and Advil.
BH: If you could pick any other band to reunite, who would it be?
JR: I don’t know about reunions but I would love to travel back in time to see the mid-80′s John Cale touring band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHF7b326ydg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CZ06Lq_mUw
BH: What is the state of your anti-Bush themed project with Vic Bondi from Articles of Faith, Report Suspicious Activity? Can we expect a new record now that W. has vanished into the Texan wilderness?
JR: RSA officially called it quits not long after Obama was inaugurated. With Bush and Cheney mentioned by name in something like half the songs, it seemed a logical endpoint.
BH: Over the years and across your many projects, you have always written thoughtful and poetic lyrics. Any lyrics from your past you’re particularly fond of (don’t be modest)? Where have you found inspiration for your lyrics lately?
JR: Nice of you to say such things, but I am not a fan of my lyrics whatsoever. Except for the line “I grew up on science fiction, that doesn’t mean I want to live in it,” from the Channels song “New Mandarins.” And I only like that because it’s true. The best thing about writing lyrics is that when they’re done, then you have something to sing/shout at top volume and thereby get a bit of therapy out of it.
BH: You played in the seminal hardcore band Government Issue as well as with Dischord records legend, Scream, so some might say you know a thing or two about hardcore and its history. That said, how psyched are you that hardcore has finally evolved to its final and most important stage called “Crabcore“? How do you feel about “Crabcore“? What’s your reaction? (FYI – “Joy” is the normal reaction)
JR: Joy is the normal reaction? Whimsy is about as far as I can go.
BH: On a serious note, you have been a part of the indie music scene for a very long time. How do you feel about the state of affairs in indie music today v. the late-80s early-90s?
JR: There are still good bands and there’s still creative intensity… people are more jaded than ever in the history of mankind so that makes things a bit tougher if you are playing music because you want to rattle people’s cages. And maybe it also makes it harder to believe in the uniqueness of your own vision, or maybe it fosters an attitude that’s not so important. But there are still people out there who mean it, enough for me to be excited about music anyway. Mostly, I don’t think we are dancing with quite enough enthusiasm on the grave of the major label music industry.
BH: You played bass in Government Issue and RSA and guitar in most of your other projects. Let’s settle this right now: which is a radder instrument, guitar or bass?
JR: Bass is the best. Guitar is also the best.
BH: Let’s switch gears and discuss your work as a producer. When did you get your start producing/engineering records? What were your earliest projects?
JR: Early 90s. Most of the Kerosene 454 records, Monorchid: “Let Them Eat the Monorchid” (still one of my all-time favorites), The Most Secret Method, Sleepytime Trio…
BH: Would you say you have developed your own approach to recording/producing over the years? If so, how would you describe your approach?
JR: The more I do this, the more I want to get the recording process out of the music’s way, the more I love the most stripped-down approaches to things. When you get a band that wants to track live together, and is really capable, that is awesome, and the sound of those basic tracks, before anyone starts getting too detail-minded and tries to “fix” everything, is always magical to me – I think the essence of a song is always the thing that I really hold on to, and if there’s an intense sci-fi vision about the production, I always want it to be clearly linked to whatever is at the heart of the song. I am into doing whatever is necessary for a record to sound like the band at its best and for the people in the band to end up with the record they want to hear. To have a serious orthodoxy would be boring and often not helpful.
BH: For those artists’ records that you don’t produce, what do you like to hear from a record in terms of its “recording?”
JR: I just want to hear songs, and I don’t want to feel like I’m being bullshitted (bullshat?). I hate it when the production is the most interesting aspect of a record. It’s not THAT interesting. The sound of people trying too hard is rough.
BH: What advice would you give to bands to get the most out of their recording experience? What can bands do in advance to help make the process smoother?
JR: If it’s a band we’re talking about, rehearse a lot and really listen to yourself. Try to understand what you actually sound like rather than focusing on the sound of someone else’s record that you admire. Or, if you can’t do that, then learn as much as you can about why that record sounds like it does so you can rip it off in very specific terms. And that’s not about the recording as much as it is the gear and the approach to performance. If you are paying to record at a studio, know what you are going to do before you get there. If you are recording yourself, hey, let your freak flag fly.
BH: Does your career as a producer inform your career as a songwriter? If so, how?
JR: I’m not sure we should be calling these “careers.” Anyway, how could it not? Being around people at the peak of creative intensity all the time is totally inspiring. It’s not like I suddenly started trying to write whiskey-soaked Gothic Americana after I recorded Murder By Death, but you get a lot to chew on from studying people’s aesthetics.
BH: Just so we have it in writing, what is your position in the so-called “loudness-wars” with regard to people attempting to master records as loudly as possible?
JR: 99% of the time, it doesn’t come from a musical impulse whatsoever, it’s about as cool as shouting loudly to draw attention to yourself in a crowded room. It sounds like shit, most of the time meaningful musical information is lost and replaced with white noise, and it’s hard to listen repeatedly and really get into a record that’s mastered that way. Once in a blue moon, it works for a particular band. But it still sucks. Your stereo has a volume knob so you can decide how loud the music should be.
BH: You’ve been active in music since the 1980′s. In the three decades of your career, during which decade would you estimate people had the worst fashion sense? Any embarrassing haircuts/outfits you’d like to fess up to now?
JR: The final lineup of G.I. was one of the most consistently worst-dressed bands in the history of Rock. I won’t elaborate. Every decade has its offensive fashions, though.
BH: What bands have you heard recently that have excited you? Who are some artists the Buddyhead readership should be on the lookout for?
JR: I love Ponytail and Sick Weapons (from Baltimore), True Womanhood, Caverns and Imperial China (from DC), Adebisi Shank (from Ireland), and Papier Tigre (from France).
BH: Finally, what recordings have you been involved in that you think really exemplify your work as a producer? How can bands book your services?
JR: Recently, I’m really proud of the Adebisi Shank record I did, also the “Turns Red” EP by the Japanese instrumental band LITE, and the new record by The Bomb. The most reliable contact for me is through my studio Myspace page: www.myspace.com/magpiecage.
THE END
Burning Airlines Live -
Government Issue Live -
LINKS -
www.dischord.com (Buy Jawbox and Channels releases)
www.desotorecords.com (Buy Jawbox and Burning Airlines releases)
callumrobbins.blogspot.com (Dedicated to supporting J’s son, Cal, who is living with Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 1…please donate if you can)