We’ve waited patiently for Farewell Republic’s debut full-length. “The next step is recording,” they told us. “Soon,” they reassured us. “Fall 2011,” they promised us. They teased us with advance single “Wake”, and then tossed off the hurricane-inspired gem “Come Irene” like it was nothing.
All the while, we waited. We were so good. We didn’t even complain. “Take your time,” we thought. “Just make it count.”
And then, yesterday, the band finally followed through, releasing Burn the Boats into the world. Is it as good as we hoped it would be? No. It’s better. It’s sprawling and ambitious in a way that the band’s EPs only hinted at. It's loud and menacing one moment, ornate and gorgeous the next. Its layers of guitars soar, they come pummeling down, they swirl. Its production is rich and brimming with the kind of sonic flourishes that rewards repeated listens. Its a record fit equally for headphones and towering speakers. Simply put, Burn the Boats establishes Farewell Republic as a one of the premier young bands to come out of Brooklyn in recent years.
You can visit Farewell Republic's Bandcamp page to take a listen to the record, but this Thursday we'll have a chance to hear the band let these tunes loose live when it headlines Monument's benefit concert for D.C. Vote. (New Yorkers have an earlier opportunity with the its record release party at Mercury Lounge tonight.) Looking forward to then, we decided to check in with the band's frontman - and DC native - Sivan Jacobovitz.
BYT: Burn the Boats is finally being released this week. What took so long?
Sivan Jacobovitz: After spending a month in the studio, doing 16-hour days tracking the record, we moved to Brooklyn. I live with our engineer Michael Coffman, and once we got our home studio set up, it took nine months to mix the record. We had so much stuff we recorded in the studio it took forever to sort through it and get it to the point that we felt good about.
The long and short answer is that we recorded tons of tracks for everything and a lot of takes and it took forever to mix. Sometimes it takes a long time to get things sounding the way you want them to. Some of the songs had over 80 tracks on it due to room mics, etc. There is almost no artificial reverb on the record. The record was finished in July and we didn't want to release it at the end of the year and have it be forgotten, so we waited until early 2012.
BYT: Is everyone in Farewell Republic as big of an audiophile as you? Or are you the David Fincher-esque perfectionist always asking for another take?
SJ: The reason we did a lot of takes was because we had nice preamps and mics in the studio and wanted options. Brian [Trahan] – our keyboardist and the record’s co-producer – is the small detail perfectionist.
BYT: How did you hook-up with Brian? How has the Farewell Republic line-up changed over the years?
SJ: I ‘m the only original member of the band. We started at the university of Michigan. Brian was the best musician I knew and had recorded pre-production demos for us to send to Gus [Oberg, Grammy-winning Strokes producer] before our first EP. During our junior year of college, Brian's awesome band he'd been in since high school was starting to look like it was going to end and he came on board with us. He has been my harshest critic since the start and really pushes me creatively.
Our original bassist and drummer left the band after recording their parts on this record. I look at the lineup as fluid. The next move is to add a girl who plays guitar and sings.
BYT: Would you settle for a really high-pitched dude? Because we've heard Josh Phelps sing...
SJ: Only if all our shows had open bars for the audience beforehand.
BYT: I imagine the transition from Michigan to Brooklyn was pronounced. Have you found the audiences more receptive to what you're doing? Do you have any frat party horror stories from the early days?
SJ: The audiences on the east coast were always very receptive. That's why we used to always make a big effort to tour when we were in school. We didn't play live while recording our record, but have played three Brooklyn shows since, which have all been great – especially our show at Glasslands a couple weeks ago.
We never played frat parties at Michigan. There’s not a strong bro contingent at our shows. But we’re definitely glad to be back on the east coast.
BYT: You're from DC – how did the local scene influence your taste in music growing up?
SJ: It wasn't until I left for college that I realized how lucky I was to grow up in DC. We spent our weekends in high school at shows at black cat and the 9:30 Club. I had no idea that all ages venues weren't the norm in other cities. Growing up, I was mainly a classic rock kid. I had only been to shows at big venues. Then when I was 15, after getting tons of shit from my friends, I tagged along to a Q and not U show at Black Cat with about 10 other people from my grade. I only knew the hits going in – “Wonderful People”, “No Damage Nocturn”, etc. – but that show was a catalyst for me getting into indie/punk music and was a really eye-opening experience.
The big bands at my school were Q and not U, Ted Leo, Black Eyes, Medications, etc. We had no clue that these bands weren't more popular than they were. It was devastating when Q and not U broke up. Its last show was during my senior year of high school and I knew multiple people who got into elite colleges after writing their college essays about that show. It was the best non-Radiohead show I've ever been to. Those bands really taught me that you should always try to do your own thing and carve out your own sound.
BYT: Where does the title Burn the Boats come from?
SJ: My roommate Lincoln – the star of the promo video trailer for our record – came up with the name. It was our mantra going into recording: the idea of no going back and really trying to do something that was new, cohesive and original. Basically jump off the cliff and hope we'll build a plane before we land. It took a long time to get it the way we wanted.
BYT: Are there any bands that were particularly influential to Burn the Boats, either for particular songs or the album as a whole?
SJ: We all have really diverse influences so I can't speak for anyone else. As a band it's always been important to never say, “Let's make x part of the song sound like y band.” All the influences are more conceptual. I take just as much influence from any medium of art. I was really trying to do something different on this record, so bands and artists who are trying to do something different were inspiring to me: Rothko, Malick, Duchamp, Bausch, Radiohead, Silver Mt Zion, Fugazi. I was also listening to a lot of traditional Yemenite folk music – where my grandparents are from – while we were recording the record and elements of that definitely influenced having a lot of group vocals on the record. I was also listening to a ton of Ryan Adams while making the record but we sound nothing like him.
The last song on the record has an overt Philip Glass influence though, in terms of direct musical influence) A lot of indie bands now are clearly influenced by him in their horn arrangements but we wanted to take a track to the next level and have it straight up sound like a Philip Glass track with singing over it. I wrote this song for organ and we recorded it using an actual church organ. Then Brian wrote an incredible string/horn arrangement for a 13-person ensemble.
BYT: Ryan Adams aside, we're going to assume you have better taste in music than we. Who are some bands we should be on the look out for? And, more generally, what are some of your favorite releases from the past 12 months or so?
SJ: To tell you the truth, during the 9 months mixing the record I rarely went out. Basically, I only end up seeing my friends' bands who live in Brooklyn. I’ve been really into Father Figures. They call themselves "zombie jazz" and are a bunch of NYU grads my age. They’ve been doing a residency at Zebulon this month and I go every week. It’s really awesome weird improv music that grooves really hard. You should also check out Right on Dynamite – great lo-fi ,90s slacker rock. John Agnello mixed their record and it's awesome. For a chill psychedelic vibe with sick beats, I'd recommend Young Magic. Their record just came out. Make sure you listen to it with speakers with subs. Lastly, I produced a 7" last summer for NY-via-DC band Fantasmas. They're opening our NY release show and sound like a mix between DC punk , no wave and noise with a Latin edge.
BYT: When people talk about your music, are there any sort of comparisons or genres that you wish people would avoid?
SJ: All I can control is how I make music. It's impossible to answer any question about what your band sounds like without coming off like a pretentious asshole.
BYT: Do you have a favorite moment or song on the record?
SJ: I think my favorite song is probably “Crimes”. But that changes a lot. My favorite moment might be the very ending of the record in “For Your Health” – the 'cue end credits' moment.
BYT: So when can we expect the follow-up to Burn the Boats?
SJ: We just started pre-production on our next record, Young Effete Titans of Industry. Without giving too much away we are starting to record it next month and hope to have it out before the election. We'll be playing a couple tracks from it at our release shows.
BYT: No way! We were totally kidding! What's the story behind the title?
SJ: I'd prefer not to divulge too much about that right now.
BYT: Fair enough. One last question - what can we look forward to on Thursday night?
SJ: Isn't suspense the best part?
Previously in BYT interviews:
- 5/16: Interview: Brian Regan
- 5/15: Richard Davies (Cardinal) Interviewed by Archie Moore
- 5/11: Interview: Horse Feathers' Justin Ringle
- 5/10: Reflections on a Conversation with Mickey Avalon
- 5/9: Inside the STYLELINER
- 5/8: The Politics of Mastodon
- 5/4: Preview: Mucca Pazza @ The Kennedy Center's "Look Both Ways" Festival
- 5/3: BYT Interviews: Morgan First of Wine Riot and Second Glass
- 5/2: Interview: Neil LaBute talks "Double or Nothing."
- 4/30: Nick Lowe: Rickrolling In The Deep
God loves a cheerful giver.
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