Hi, everyone! I got to sit down for an interview with Spencer Tweedy, son of legendary Chicago rocker Jeff Tweedy of Wilco. Tweedy has been involved with music since he was very young. Whether it was through his involvement with his childhood band, the Blisters, or performing drums on the Madison Square Garden stage with Wilco when he was eight, Tweedy has gained a lot of valuable musical experiences in his twenty-two years of living. Though a drummer by trade, Tweedy also plays bass, and does vocal and engineering work all over Chicago. Since 2013, he has released two few EPs (one in late March) and a few singles along the way. He has also performed on some of Wilco’s more recent records, as well as Jeff Tweedy’s solo material. Additionally, he got to drum with a variety of high level musicians such as Beck and Mavis Staples. Hearing about his music background, and connection to one of my favorite bands, I was more than excited to reach out to Spencer for an interview.
bazzreviews: You’ve been around music since you were very young. When would you say you realized you wanted to start a music career?
Spencer Tweedy: I think that a big part of it has to do with a band I had with my friends called the Blisters. We started playing together when we were seven, but only playing covers. We then moved to playing original songs and grew into a real band. We went through school together and kept getting a head start with playing music. That, more than anything, gave me the feeling that playing music was something I wanted to do.
br: Have there been any artists or albums along the way that have influenced the way you make music today?
S.T.: Totally. I think an album that a lot of people talk about is Paul McCartney’s RAM. I count myself among the crowd of people that are influenced by that record. It’s really inventive and inspiring. I listen to a lot of Badfinger’s records, especially No Dice, when I start working on things. More generally, I draw on records that were released from the late 60s and early 70s. Mostly stuff that didn’t sound too bombastic. I still think there’s great music being made today, but a lot of modern records are made in ways that don’t sound as humane as records from that time period.
br: I saw that on your albums, you’ve done almost everything on the music side. Being a drummer primarily, what made you want to shift to playing other instruments?
S.T.: I play anything besides drums only by necessity, but I think the reason I started picking up more instruments was so I could facilitate the arrangements I want for certain songs. Though I’ve been playing drums my whole life, I’ve played guitar for almost as long. If someone needs me to improvise on piano or play for someone who can’t, I’ll step in as needed. As long as I have unlimited time in the studio to do everything by myself, then I can sort of fake it.
br: Can you describe how your process for making songs?
S.T.: Before I get to recording at my home setup, I’ll work out a chord progression by playing on an acoustic guitar. I typically don’t start on a song unless I have a rough idea of how I want stuff to be built around the chord progression. Once I have the rough picture in mind, I’ll record the basics. By that, I mean the acoustic guitar and other things. Sometimes, it’s fun to add auxiliary percussion or a synth pad over the acoustic guitar because it can contribute to the feeling of something not sounding the same every time.
br: What’s more important to you when you’re making music- lyricism, or production value and instrumentation?
S.T.: I could never rank one over the other. As a listener, I pay more attention to a way a song sounds and what emotions its melody evokes. I’m not saying lyrics are unimportant, I’m just hit by the other pieces first. I want the lyrics to be worthy of the rest of the music, and I don’t think that people should be s------g out lyrics that they don’t care about. To me, the emotional drive just comes to the nonverbal parts of the song.
br: I saw that you made an album with your dad a few years back, what was that like?
S.T.: It was fun. We’re working on stuff all the time, and it’s a pretty stress-free process. Music has been a thing that’s part of our family for a long time. Whether it’s my dad and I, or my dad, my brother, and me, we have the ultimate luxury of playing in The Loft, the studio my dad owns. Being able to work there makes it more of a daily job that you can show up to without a lot of pressure. We can work at a slower, more comfortable pace and make sure we get everything down that we want. It’s a lot different than if we had to book a studio and had a finite amount of time to get each part recorded.
br: I also saw that you have gotten to perform on some of the newer Wilco records and some of your dad’s solo stuff. How does it feel to have such trust and support from your dad and the band?
S.T.: It’s crazy. I never would have dreamed at all growing up that I would get an opportunity to play drums on a Wilco record. I thought we might have collaborated and done other things, which we have done. The way it happened was sort of by happenstance because of the way we were working on things when the Wilco records were coming out. All the songs ended up coming together. To answer your question, I’m incredibly grateful to Glenn [Kotche] (drummer of Wilco) and all the other guys in the band for being supportive and welcoming to me. If I were in their shoes, I could imagine it being kind of weird to ask someone’s kid to be a part of this album. They care about having the songs as good as they can be.
br: Going back to what you said about your dad’s studio, I understand that you’ve done work with respected artists such as Mavis Staples, Beck, and Norah Jones. How has working with them helped your career evolve?
S.T.: It’s hard to observe that from within, and I don’t know if I have the perspective for that yet. What I do know is that I've had some awesome experiences. I admire all of those musicians so much. The Beck thing was not directly with him, only my dad and I working with Tom Schick (recording engineer) on his songwriter album. Working with Mavis is amazing. She’s the most giving, sweet, and generous person of all time. I guess if I had to put it in a bigger picture of my life, working with Mavis was validating because she accepted me. My dad and I were both working together for her, and the fact that she though my stuff was up to snuff, it’s been a very distinct mark of validation on my career.
br: Do you have any upcoming projects in the work?
S.T.: Yeah. I’ve been helping my friend, Henry True on his latest record. I’ve been recording and engineering that for him. I’ve also been drumming for some of my other friends like Liam Kazar, who’s been doing solo work for a while. I’m always trying to finish solo stuff of my own, but having just put out that EP in March, I don’t like to do that stuff at such a quick pace. I get it down, I let it marinate, and finish it when I think it’s necessary. It may not be the smartest way of making music, but I like to prioritize drumming for friends of mine.
br: What music goals do you have in the future?
S.T.: I think my main goals are to continue to make new solo records, they’re really gratifying for me. I’d also like to hopefully play for more people and also make stuff with my dad. I might do some collaborative work on things that aren’t usually in my wheelhouse.
Thanks again to Spencer for giving me his time to interview. He was very well-spoken and humble guy, and I'm very lucky to have gotten to speak with him. For those who haven't listened to his new EP, I suggest that you go do that now. Thanks again to all you guys reading this, I hope you have found some great stuff to keep reading!
To support Spencer Tweedy's music, go to https://spencertweedy.bandcamp.com/
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