How is this for an endorsement: IF THERE IS ONE PERSON THAT can make me cry like a 16-year-old-whose-boyfriend-just-took-her-virginity-and-then-decided-to-cheat-on-her-with-her-bestest-friend than that is Rachael Yamagata.

fuck.

Now, almost four years later after that had been permanently stuck in my (fragile) psyche, Rachael is coming out with a new album (Elephants… Teeth Sinking Into Heart, out October 7th), a solo tour (stopping by Birchmere for your inner-demon-exorcising pleasure tonight) and a all-girl Hotel Cafe national hop later on.
The other night, she called me to talk all about it, plus growing up in DC, how cool is Antony and whether Zach Braff is really all he is cracked up to be.
You know you want to read this:

Hey Svetlana, its Rachael Yamagata! (in a voice as warm and throaty as you can expect, btw)
Hey Rachael, I really did not expect you to be calling, I thought it would be someone from your pr company.
I think it is past most of their bedtime (soft laughter) so I just took things into my own hands.

Well-awesome. How are you? How is everything? What are you doing RIGHT NOW?
I am great, thank you. I just got done with practice so I am sitting in a car with a bunch of dudes from my band and they are all trying to distract me.

Well, keep this short, I promise. So-first things first-The new record. Finally, its out. Why did it take so long to make this happen?
Haha-yes. Well, in all honesty, it was one of those weird things that just happened out of my own control. After the first record we toured A LOT then the second record was written by 2006, and then we spend a few months recording it in Woodstock and all was going great, and then my Arista rep left, and then there was a big label shift, and then I thought maybe I should put this record out myself, and I ran off to the Dominican Republic for a little while, which was amazing, and then we finally met with Sony BMG and decided to have them put the record out and now….now it is finally about to be out there.

Have you been playing any of new songs while still touring with “Happenstance”?
We’ve played Elephants quite a lot, and slowly integrating the new songs into the show….

I have to ask this….Do you feel that over four years you’ve maybe outgrown some of these songs? I mean, your writing is so personal, and draws so much for your own experiences, is it weird to now in 2008 sing and promote songs about people and things you felt in 2004?
Well, at least the record was written in 2006, so it is only pain from 2 years a go, as opposed to 4 years a go (laughs)….but yes, I can see how it could almost be seen as sad to sing these songs. Thankfully, I am in a state of permanent romantic turmoil, so they always seem relevant to me.

And to us. So - I always thought one of the great things about the time off was that it gave people time to REALLY learn to love the first record more. As a result…you’ve been in every possible soundtrack and collaborated with so many amazing people ….
That has definitely been amazing. I didn’t even really realize how many soundtracks we’ve done until I looked it up the other day ( Definitely Maybe, The Last Kiss, The L Word, Elizabethtown, Nip/Tuck -and that is just the beginning-ed) and working with people like Rhett Miller or Ray Lamontagne or Ryan Adams has been amazing, as you can imagine. Just to have people you love tell you they love your work is the coolest thing in the world.

Anyone else out there Rachael Yamagata would love to do something with?
Oh man, the list is endless. Joni Mitchell, because she is a genius. Rufus Wainwright as well. Antony and the Johnsons…

OMG-He is soooo cool.
I KNOW-SOOOOOOOOOO COOL.

There is this venue in DC, the Sixth and I Synagogue…
I’ve been there, its great!

… and in my mind, Antony will come, play a show there, I will go see it and then I will be able to die happy
Oh man, I know. I just listen to him and I am IN AWE. My uncle does sound for him and I turn into a total groupie when I talk to him about it. Oh man.

Anything else you’ve been listening to?
I always feel very non-cutting edge but I’ve been enjoying Kings of Leon and Tegan and Sara, and …

All excellent choices
I think so.

Ok, so speaking of good music tastes, I promised my co-editor that I would ask whether Zach Braff is as dreamy as he seems to be, since you know, you’ve worked with him a bunch and whatnot
Zach is awesome. He is such a music fan and it shows instantly, and I think it is absolutely fantastic what he does…

Yeah, I mean, he really used his platform for good…
EXACTLY. You have this power to get people to listen to things because the music you use will reach such a wide audience, and he was so smart with how he used the power at hand. Plus, he’s really sweet.

Cale will be really glad to hear this
I am glad I can say it.

OK, so-we are a DC site and you are a DC area girl. I actually know some people who went to Holton Arms (private all girls school Rachael attended here-ed) around the same time you did
Oh man, and what did they say, did they like it?

I think the feelings about Holton arms are pretty uniform, all puns intended. But there is some level of camaraderie involved…
Yeah, I mean we survived it all. We will always have that.

You left right after high school (Rachael attended Vassar and Northwestern before staying in Chicago for a while), does it feel odd sometimes to be back as an adult now?Do you think the city changed a lot?
The city definitely changed. But you know, my family lives here, my Dad is now in Georgetown, my brother lives in the area, so I always came to visit a lot, there has never been a big disconnect between me and DC. Though I will say, when we were in school, I was nowhere near cool enough to go to shows and stuff, we just studied and played sports and did theatre…stuff like that.

Any places you used to frequent then, that you love now too…
Haha, well, I really used to love to run down the Canal in Georgetown, plus, its kind of awesome to see all the cheesy bars I tried to get into when I was 16, but couldn’t, and now probably don’t even want to go into. And the music venues are great.

You’re playing Birchmere…
Which is awesome

I think it is perfect for you…
Its really great especially when you want to strip things down a little. Which we may do on the 23rd (tonight!-ed). Iota is really great as well, so intimate, and of course The Cat and 930 Club. It is just fun to rock out a little at 930 club.

Well, we’re pretty excited about the show. We have our kleenex ready and all.
laughs

Thank you for doing this. One last question: what are the Rachael Yamagata plans now?
To start with I have to go find my band. The walked out of the car, and I walked out with them, and then they went somewhere and left me sitting on the curb alone, talking to you. After that, I guess we’ll tour and play some music.

Sounds good. Good night and good luck
Good night to you too.

Want more:
Rachael on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/rachaelyamagata
and tonight live @ Birchmere

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