Interview: Son Volt

As usual this interview took place over the phone previous to Son Volt’s Zephyr Club date. Why I continue to get these phoners can only be explained by my introverted nature. I wouldn’t dare talk to any of these people in person. The obvious hope of anyone interviewing a band is to talk to the leader/songwriter dude. Sometimes that person is more introverted than the person doing the interview. Such is the case with Son Volt. The record company publicist told me that Jay Farrar is not the best person to talk to.

I spoke to Dave Boquist, the multi-instrumentalist, who plays guitar, banjo, fiddle and lap steel for Son Volt. The winter flu had hit me hard. The combination of fever and medication made me barely coherent. I almost called to cancel the interview, but Trace was one of my top albums in ’95 and I sincerely wanted to talk to Boquist. I’m sure he thought he was speaking to a space alien. My brain was not functioning at even a fraction of its minimal normal capacity during this conversation.

DB: I couldn’t find a phone much quieter than this one. It’s not too quiet is it?

SLUG: It’s good enough.

DB: I’m at a place called Tommy’s I think. Tommy’s Joynt. J-O-Y-N-T. Kind of a deli kind of place. (He was obviously looking around inspecting the joint as he said this.) Deli bar, actually pretty nice.

SLUG: I guess I should find out how you hooked up with Son Volt. You’re from Minneapolis, right?

DB: Yeah. The guys in Uncle Tupelo, before they broke up, had been friends with the Jayhawks, I guess they still are friends. I played with the Jayhawks a little bit back in ’85. Anyway, I’ve got a lot of musician friends up there. I met Jay when Uncle Tupelo came through Minneapolis on their last tour. The other thing is my brother was playing in a band. My brother Jim (Boquist, Son Volt bassist) was playing in Joe Henry‘s band. They were opening up for Uncle Tupelo at that show and a few others on the tour. My brother and I have played together for quite a few years off and on.

SLUG: Have you always been playing, kind of, underground country?

DB: I’ve always played with people that have had that influence. I guess I’ve had that influence as well. I’ve also played in rock bands too. There is that combination of things which I like.

SLUG: Some people call Son Volt a roots rock band. Do you have anything to say about that?

DB: I don’t like any labels. What does that mean?

SLUG: “Mystify Me” is the only cover on the album. DO you have any idea why that song was selected?

DB: Well, yeah. When we were getting together to rehearse for the record, during breaks and stuff we all put on music that we liked. And that was one of the albums, Ron Wood‘s album, that we put on and we liked. Jay happened to bring his copy of that album to the recording sessions so we could all listen. We were all listening to that record and that song sort of popped out as one that might be possible to cover. I don’t think there was any planned effort or anything. It was just a song that we all took a shine to at that moment. It happened pretty quick.

SLUG: How long did the album take to record?

DB: Three weeks.

SLUG: Have you toured in Texas yet?

 DB: We started out in Texas. Started in Houston and went up to Austin and then Dallas.

SLUG: Did you meet Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Buddy Miller, Butch Hancock, any of that group?

DB: No I think some of Jimmie Dale’s band members, I might have met one of them. My brother was also touring with them for awhile. Joe Henry toured with Jimmie Dale. Kelly Willis did come up and do a duet with us. (Willis and Farrar duet together on Red Hot & Bothered. The Indie Rock Guide To Dating. “Rex’s Blues” has received much praise as the best song on the compilation).

Boquist was not comfortable being lumped in with Texas country musicians. As he said, “I think we are little more of a rock band. It’s nice when, you know we had Doug Sahm come up and do a song in LA. We aren’t really paying attention to what we are. We’re just doing it.” (Sahm is another guy who doesn’t pay much attention to musical style. It’s kind of fitting that he sat in with Son Volt.)

SLUG: Have you worked out any new songs while you’re on the road?

DB: We haven’t worked on any more original songs. We’re doing a couple of new covers. We’re doing one off Bob Dylan‘s Planet Waves record called “Going, Going, Gone.” We’re doing an old Del Reeves song, a truck driving song called, “Looking At The World Through A Windshield.”

Well whatever. Hope you were in the audience when they passed through. Next up, Golden Smog?

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