School of Seven Bells
Alejandra Deheza talks how SVIIB formed their sound - and touches on a new album.
School of Seven Bells accomplished more in the last two years than many bands could ever hope of accomplishing in their entire careers. In large part an unfulfilled fantasy in between the initial inklings of 2004 and its formation in late 2006/early 2007, the band has since released a handful of EPs, been remixed by Robin Guthrie of the Cocteau Twins, toured with Blonde Redhead and Prefuse 73, signed a record deal and released its debut album to critical acclaim. I waited more than five hours for a chance to sit down with singer and multi-instrumentalist Alejandra Deheza at their February 12 show at the Bottom Lounge.
HEAVE: So guitarist Benjamin Curtis started off in Secret Machines. You and your sister Claudia started off on On! Air! Library! It sounds like you and your sister met Curtis back in 2004 when both of your bands were on tour with Interpol. Can you describe in detail how you met?
Alejandra: Honestly, it’s so funny because we were both New York bands for the same amount of time and we didn’t know each other. We had heard of each other, but it wasn’t until the Interpol tour that we started talking. It was actually the first time I heard Secret Machines. That was the first time he heard of us because they were away for years before that on tour. I guess it was probably then, after our s hows we’d hang out at the bar, catch up with what they were doing. I just thought he was an incredible guitar player, and I was really, really into it. Especially because he didn’t play in that traditional blues manner. Everyone does that, so it gets really old for me. I loved his influences. You could hear them. I loved where he was coming from.
HEAVE: What happened in between 2004 and late 2006/early 2007 when School of Seven Bells started playing together? How did you reconnect?
Alejandra: Basically, we had kept in touch and obviously he was still doing Secret Machines until late 2006. It was just the right time, just when he left, I guess he wanted to start something new. It was just the right time for everybody to starts things for real.
HEAVE: How did School of Seven Bells’ sound develop? Was it the sum of the parts of your previous bands or was it something new entirely?
Alejandra: The only rule or concept we had beforehand was to create things without worrying about whose part it was, what instrument it should be played on or which person should play it. We didn’t hesitate to write certain things for fear of stepping on someone else’s shoes. It was basically just to be as creative as possible and not worry about where we were going to end up because that would work itself out if it was right.
HEAVE: Your band’s sound incorporates sounds from a range of musical genres including pop, world, some might say shoegazing, electronica, I’ve heard krautrock referred to, was there a conscious effort to bring all those sounds in or was it just what came out?
Alejandra: It wasn’t conscious at all. We just basically did what we wanted to hear. Your brain is like a sponge so influences are going to come out. And we like everything. So it was impossible for all of that stuff not to come out.
HEAVE: Your band garners a lot of comparisons to My Bloody Valentine or the output from the 4AD label. How do you feel about that?
Alejandra: I love My Bloody Valentine. So I don’t mind that at all. I’m actually extremely flattered that anyone would even say that. But you know, it’s funny, because a lot of people compare us to the Cocteau Twins and stuff like that, and I’d never listened to that, which is not to say that stuff’s not great, because it is, but it was really surprising when that started happening and I started hearing it more. I can see where people are coming from, and for me it’s like the people who are saying that are people that really love it, so I take it as a compliment.
HEAVE: It sounds like you all live in the same house. Is that still true? How does impact your songwriting and your sanity?
Alejandra: Well, that’s a good question actually. We’re always around what the others are doing. It’s impossible to pick up an instrument in the house and not have someone else hear what you’re doing. And, because it’s something that we love to do and we’re fortunate enough to be able to do just that, it’s never a chore, it’s just a part of life and that’s how we wanted it. Not that we’re like a commune and that’s all we do, it’s not like that at all. I actually think it does help us to make music. A lot of people may ask, “How do you live with these people?” and “How do you tour with these people?” But it makes things a lot easier because all of those formalities are gone and you don’t have to worry about politeness. Not that you’re going to be rude, but you don’t have to sugar-coat things when you say things like “I’m not too crazy with what you did there.” We really just want the song to be good so there are no egos present. I mean, you’re talking to the same person who’s like “Dude, don’t leave your dishes out.” So I feel like that really helps.
HEAVE: When did you decide to start touri ng? And what was it like without a booking agent at first?
Alejandra: In 2007, we got booked on two really great tours, one with Blonde Redhead and one with Prefuse 73 and that was simply because they asked us. It was one of those things where we were just winging it. We hadn’t really thought of our live show as much. We weren’t really thinking of how our songs would translate into a live setting. So I think playing live helped a lot with how the record was going to sound. We knew we were going to record; it just wasn’t at the front of our minds yet because we were just messing around with stuff.
HEAVE: What was it like recording Alpinisms with no producer and no record label? Who approached who - did you approach Ghostly International or vice versa?
Alejandra: It was awesome to record without any of those people around because we really didn’t have anyone telling us what to do. We met just because our friend Guillermo Scott Herren from Prefuse 73 was friends with Sam Valenti IV of Ghostly International. We weren’t really looking for a label, but we really liked what Ghostly International was doing. Guillermo said “My friend Sam, he has this label, and I hope you don’t mind that I gave him some of your stuff.” We were like, “OK, sure, but you gave him that stuff?!” > But it was all very casual.
HEAVE: I also read that you trashed an initial recording of Alpinisms. What was the difference between the trashed version and the one that was eventually released?
Alejandra: Time. We will revise something until it’s completely different from how it started. And honestly, what helped to actually finish the record was having a deadline, because we would have kept writing and writing and writing and it would have been another set of songs. Definitely. The lyrics probably would have changed. They were just shape-shifted into something else. When we trashed that version is when we got our deadline from Ghostly. They asked us how soon we could have it said we were like “Three weeks.” We were like “It’s going to be a different record,” so we trashed it and worked up to three weeks.
HEAVE: Your album artwork is probably some of the coolest I’ve seen in a long time. Who's responsible for it and what role does the band play in its development?
Alejandra: That’s actually a really good friend of ours, Bryan Collins. He’s an incredible artist. We’ve known him for a while now. Basically, Bryan was at the first School of Seven Bells show and he approached us and asked us if we needed artwork for our record and said that he’d love to do it. So we just got together at a bar in the afternoon one Sunday and just talked about our influences, what our songs were about, what our record sounded like, what we had at home, dreams, absolutely anything that inspired us. He left the meeting and probably like within a couple of days he had already made the first images of what would become our artwork. He was really inspired.
HEAVE: Do you have a favorite venue?
Alejandra: It’s a tie. It’s between The Orange Peel in Asheville, North Carolina and Holocene in Portland, Oregon. They’ve both very different. Both cities are incredible. I love the vibe. I don’t know if it’s because of the room so much or just because of the people. They’re crazy. The shows are awesome.
HEAVE: You’re booked through June. What’s after that?
Alejandra: Recording a record.
HEAVE: A full length?
Alejandra: Yeah. Making music.
HEAVE: Do you have songs for that now?
Alejandra: Oh yeah. We’re writing all the time. All of us individually and there are different things we’ve shown each other. It’s already started building. There’s definitely enough material for another record.
HEAVE: What was it like filming the music vi deo for Half Asleep?
Alejandra: It was really fun. I don’t know if you noticed but Benjamin was driving. He was driving, and it was our friend Toby Halbrooks who was filming it. It was really fun. I mean, it was in New York, and we were at home, and it’s weird to see the city like that because we’re never in cars. In New York, you don’t need a car. And just like having the music on, it’s a really bizarre experience, singing your own song over and over again while you’re driving over these beautiful bridges. It was really, really cool.
HEAVE: What artists are you currently enjoying listening to and who decides what to listen to while your driving the tour bus?
Alejandra: Whoever is driving gets to choose the music. The one thing that we’re all crazy about right now is Fever Ray. I love it. And it’s weird because I never really got into The Knife, but it’s only now that I’ve revisited some of their records. Silent Shout is gorgeous. It’s weird because it sounds like alien freestyle. Total freestyle melody, total freestyle beats, but with crazy alien voices. I love it.
HEAVE: Favorite movie? Oscar predictions?
Alejandra: “Milk.” Penelope Cruz. I love Penelope Cruz in “Vicky Christina Barcelona.” Come on, she was fucking incredible. She stole the show. Everyone in “Milk” was incredible. “Slumdog Millionaire.” And I’m saying everything that everyone else is saying.
Posted by Ben Wadington on Feb 23, 2009 @ 12:00 am
