The Avett Brothers

0:00Very good. How you doing? I'm good man. I just listened to record for like the fourth time. It's awesome Thank you. It's so eclectic and so different than anything you guys have done. I'm so excited to talk about it with you Well, I'm sure you're hearing it a lot you're probably doing a lot of press right now Well, you sure but it's good to hear The opinion of it, right? Well, let's start into it cuz I know you don't have much time I guess let's start cuz I'm gonna try and get this up for Monday So you guys are gonna be doing Jimmy Kimmel are you gonna do something random like when I saw you on Conan this summer? And you chose to play murder in the city or are you gonna try and play one of the new things? Let's see what we did. Oh, I guess this Jimmy Kimmel. Oh, okay. Okay, maybe maybe my I'm wrong here

0:50I think I think your Kimmel show is airing again this week coming up then. Okay. All right. Well, yeah for Kimmel We did live and die and a little bit of a little bit of February where we did the full performance that they go And show Fallon will be playing there as well, and I'm not positive. We're doing something from the new album But I'm not I think I know that I think it's not confirmed yet Well, it's interesting that you have that option to say I think we're doing something from the new record because usually you'd have to play the Single on these shows so has that has that changed or is that something you guys have just never fallen into? Well one thing I have to say I'm learning a lot of stuff like people have made This is our second album and to a major label and I hear that often like someone in Canada the other day mentioned to me

1:38They said well when you come back to Canada We'll hope you play one of those small venues again, but you thought I don't have any choice in that right? We don't have a choice And I've never seen it the other way but the more that we work the more I realize there may be a norm out there that People don't have the choice and that that's a problem. If the art is later of what they what they make You know, it's kind of so much anything, but it seems that the art of thin think should be Now with with I said what I said wasn't sure because they actually How much younger when they're much younger and you're still learning them mechanics and then you can't deliver the mention

2:51Well, maybe you could do this song and we know our instinct will tell us to meet about what might be marketable But we know what we'll deliver you mentioned in there some of these songs are younger So where did this record start how long ago did start? What were some of the first songs that were written for it? Well, I think pretty girl from Michigan was I think we performed on the radio in Athens, Georgia in 2005 maybe of that old Wow, okay, and it's changed it changed and we've recorded it Maybe three but for emotionalism. Well one of them are here. So go are you're excuse me about two years ago?

4:05So do you find that you're writing because I know I talked I talked to a lot of writers right now and a few of them say that It sometimes it's just the quick bursts and and that's they know it's a good song when it all comes in in one flow But it seems like with you or at least with some of these songs They take a long time to dress date and a long time to finally get right. Do you do you find that? Yeah, okay? Exactly the same For instance live and I've the single right now Where do you write typically are you do you need to write by yourself? Or do you write with your brother and Bob or how does that all work?

4:52Well, you were always writing Together it's just kind of you know, I'm yeah, I'm not together as much we inventory together I think once we get off the road, but we caught up Are you a pen and paper kind of guy or an iPhone notepad like how do where do you Both yeah, I got it all I sure like the pen and paper. Oh the voicemail was I love that one. Yeah. Oh, yeah

6:08Oh, yeah, do you typically start do you gravitate more to a banjo or a guitar when you start to write or is just whatever's The banjo will lead off. What have you been playing the longest? What did you start musically? Well, there's all the background stuff. So let's talk about this record

6:54For me I'm gonna read a quote to you that you wrote or that you said to some journalists somewhere for me in the process between I and love and you in this album there have been Three years of me trying to refine a series of steps of letting go of certain things I've held on to so what were you trying to let go of? That's what would be ego because of the massive success No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, you know, I was full when I was 15. I never really Nothing nothing that happened material or physically to us as a band has really made me feel any anymore. He just I've been in a different process

7:44As we've gained gain numbers. It made me feel And and shrunk my ego much more we we went through a seven-year period where we we were and then all of a sudden as

8:37Continue to grow, you know, it just I just form a humble way and imagine that if someone was to get to some certain number As a young man, I probably been like, okay, I'm going to this is not working out with my deadline But instead I've learned much different things and the letting go has been I've found that At any time there's there's trouble which you can you can find so many ways to careful line

9:33You find that or somebody else you end up Calming your heart and talk about calming There's and I this is an awful segue actually But you seem to have an obsession with death on maybe not an obsession is the right word but but you seem to Talk about it a lot especially on this record There's a lot of not just death itself, but winter and cold references that can be associated with death So I'm assuming a lot of this might have been made during the winter and why why all the winter and death themes Is that something you're going to find a lot? Have to speak on it specifically per song, you know, like in winter speaking on depression

10:29I've referenced that you know as soon as you talk about death or say death hold on a second There's there's people we know and other people we know the times I believe you only have the one daughter, right?

11:44Eleanor as far as I know I have a son to max and there But they're both fairly young like this is all new. Yeah, warning for okay So so how is that changed your writing as a songwriter? How is that obviously going on the road must be a little harder for you now? But has as it I don't know make you more self-conscious about what words are coming out of your mouth knowing now that your kids are gonna hear them Yeah, sure sure I don't hang everything on it eager to run But I used to take an opportunity so that changed that quite a bit it used to be there's an idea

12:53You make it happen well, you can't play the piano when you got four hours of sleep In that window, it's just like um Well, let's let's hang on that time. You just almost sometimes just say the hell with it I was gonna say really let's hang on that idea of songs coming to you in the middle of the night What's one of those ones from this record where the idea or the melody just hit you you woke up and we're like Oh, I got it. I need to get to a piano or a guitar or something Yeah, I think the chorus to uh the once in future carpenter that song wrote itself relatively quick

13:43Standing and had in the song for a long time Not went out a long time probably six months and then then the chorus I truly believe that the chorus was waiting to be to be I love how you uh, you call women different things on this record and that's on you call a woman called purpose and in general

14:35And you say misprogress. It's just a really cool way of writing. I don't have a question. I just want to say I appreciate it. Yeah, I know we don't have too much time here So I did want to talk about Dylan just for a second Because of the Dylan and Johnny cover that you guys did on uh on chimes of freedom And it's a version that has Dylan and Johnny in it, which I don't think was ever released So did you how did well, let's just talk about creating that. Where did you find that recording? Today we're doing this project change anything about this, you know, it's really risky Dylan

16:01From it. You just felt like you're not in it

16:48What um, I don't know if this is is you in a good question. I'm gonna ask it anyway What was a cooler experience that or or actually playing with Dylan? Um It goes about so quick and you can kind of save for the recording quite a bit and there's there's you can get I would imagine you can get a little closer to the the spirit you're in the present leave around you listening so and write some kick-ass songs, man

17:57Um, I'd say he sure did. Yeah So do you guys don't don't sell yourself short Um before I let you go five quick questions one word answers Road or studio Leonard McCartney When you hear a song what usually hits you first lyrics melody or rhythm Song you've written you're most proud of all on the new record nice and in one word Yeah Well, some people like to go back. They said they haven't written anything as good since anyway Um

18:43In one word the avant brothers brothers. Yeah Describe yeah, what's the first word that comes to your mind when you think of your band or I guess you and Seth More your music in the band this place People said like break-in sidewalk before it's all good Yeah, I wanted to say America So silly um, uh especially for Canadian publication, but that's all right That's right. It's just this just silly. Yeah, I want to say country Nice That works, you know, I feel like that's in a it's in a strange state and I just feel like

19:29Country is such a yeah, I agree with you and I'd love to discuss that further But I'm sure you've got more interviews and a whole day of stuff going So you know, I feel like Neil Young would probably have experienced some of that, you know, I mean that Yes, he should be in the country hall of fame probably and maybe one day he will you should work on that You've got some sway and some polls some strings and stuff now Get on the well Baby a baby a couple years down the road