Dr. SeussJuice

[audio http://drseussjuice.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/02-on-this-side.mp3]

the acoustic sound of Tiny Vipers is a resonant one. with an undeniably chilling voice and a style reminescent of singers/songwriters past, Jesy Fortino tells lonely tales in tunes not soon forgotten.  Seattle, and the fog in which it is shrouded, surely provides the perfect setting in which to write songs of such subtle beauty.

the first Tiny Vipers show i attended happened to be my first summer in Seattle and she, the first concert. a couple of friends turned me on to her. there was something about her acoustic style and the majestic melodies she sang…

although a resident of the city, Jesy Fortino has been quite busy since i heard her last. touring throughout the United States and Europe, Tiny Vipers has garnered worldly inspiration and is headed in a new direction with her fourth album. she was recently gracious enough to lend a few insights into her life, creativity and her new album.

our 1on1, short and sweet:

where’s a good place to eat in Seattle?
at home. me and my boyfriend like to cook. or pretty much any pizza place..

your city is one filled with people who read in pubs, parks, the bus… are you reader?
i read at home alot. i like to read in the bathtub, it sort of destroys my books. i am reading Atonement by ian mc ewan. i like reading alot but not in public. whenever i try to read at work or around people ask me what i am reading too much.

is it difficult to translate your feelings into musical form?
i am not trying to do anything when i write music.  it isnt an attempt to translate my feelings or anything like that. it is difficult but not in a way that i feel frustrated. it is fun. its like solving a difficult puzzle.

a weird difficult puzzle. it is like solving the puzzle while you are making it up. making invisible rules and trying not to break them while exploring what you can do inside those limitations. each song sort of has an invisible set of formulas that you made up somehow for some reason, and you try to stay within those formulas and not betray their function and sometimes you have to stop and revise their function and go back and rewrite something. it is alot of fun. it unifies the parts of my brain that like playing games and looking at pretty things.

ha it may seem like an abstract answer but that is what it feels like i am doing when i am writing a song.

you’re signed to Sub Pop.  how did that transpire?
they asked me to do a record and i said yes. then we went through an elaborate ceremony where i had to balance on one foot on the top of a may pole that was festooned with white and black flowers, while the A&R staff chanted and circled the pole, holding black and white ribbons that were suspended from the top. then we all sat down and talked about the release over warm cups of blood from a cats face.

how does it feel to create music people want in their homes and iPhones?
i dont think about that aspect. i dont know why. when people say they listen to the songs at home or in the car i just cant imagine it. it isnt that i think they are lying i just dont think about it.

when is your new album releasing and what can we expect?
it is releasing on july 7th. i dont know what you should expect. it is more minimally recorded then the last record. and we used all analog from recording onto tape to using chamber reverb. so the sound if much richer.

you have quite a few stops on your tour this summer, any specific places you’re anxious to visit?
i am excited to go to europe again. especially Germany. i love germany.