The Thorns |
 |
|
Wed. April 09.2003 12:00 AM EDT |
||
The Thorns Go Their Own WayMatthew Sweet, Pete Droge, and Shawn Mullins unite for a record full of roses. by C. Bottomley |
||||
|
||||
 |
The Thorns (Linda Zacks) |
|
||
Even the Thorns themselves are a bit perplexed by their existence. Matthew Sweet spent the '90s forging his rep as a master of bittersweet power-pop, Pete Droge leaned more towards the roots rock of Petty and Springsteen, and Shawn Mullins had a
Linked through a series of mutual associates, however, the trio recently found themselves together in the studio. There, working on a song called “I Don’t Remember,” they discovered their voices and talents were remarkably in sync. The wonder of that bond is all over their self-titled debut. Inspired by the classic pop of Fleetwood Mac and the Bee Gees, the Thorns’ songs are brilliantine marvels. Singing of nature’s wonder in harmonies as warm and thick as a bath of honey, they make a singular sound for this noisy modern era. There's a sweetness at work, and it makes you wonder whether summer will ever come fast enough. In spite of their first outing's old fashioned beauty, Sweet, Droge and Mullins don’t know what to make of it all. In a way they're still feeling each other out, slightly wary of the ardor with which their arrival has been embraced. Negotiating thoughts on the singer-songwriter revival, their musical bonds and Toys R Us tomfoolery, the Thorns spent a recent morning explaining themselves in mid-town Manhattan. VH1: We’ve seen the likes of John Mayer and Vanessa Carlton catapulted to stardom. Is the singer-songwriter making a comeback? Pete Droge: Being a “singer-songwriter” these days is still not going to propel you to instant fame and fortune, but that’s good for the genre. People who are doing it are going to do it for the right reasons. You need to do it because you have to, because you love to write songs. I have many friends who don’t have a big record deal, but who are just amazing. They’re not on the radio, but they’re still doing it. Those are the people that have my respect. Shawn Mullins: The musicians who are constantly working at that craft are our friends. So to us, singer-songwriters never really went away. Maybe it did to the public. It’s cyclical; it comes around every ten years or so, when people get tired of the other stuff. [Watch Clip] VH1: Is it strange to be back on the pop treadmill with the videos, tours and press? Matthew Sweet: No, because we were totally tricked! None of us realized it would be like some big deal. [At first] The Thorns was just a one-off thing. Droge: The idea was never presented like, "We’re gonna do this thing and we’re gonna have mass exposure." Sweet: The label said “We don’t care about singles." But as we got into it and started making the record, it mushroomed. Then, when we turned in the record, the response was huge; it became a much bigger thing than we first suspected. Droge: One good thing is we were left alone during the writing of the record. If the label had come to us and said, “Hey, we need a radio song,” or “Make it this way, make it that way, use a loop, do this …” we would have run in the opposite direction. But we were allowed to grow on our own. Maybe that’s why people are excited about it now, because it wasn’t tampered with and tainted and ruined by trying to be something it wasn’t. [Watch Clip] VH1: So there’s no anxiety getting back into the game? Sweet: All of us have done this before, so there’s an element of same-old same-old about it. But it’s fun for me, because there are other people to depend on. I wouldn’t say I don’t get nervous. I worry that I’ll be the one who messes up. One of the fun things about it is being with other singers that are so dependable. It really feels like we have a power when we’re together. [Watch Clip] VH1: Musically, where did you guys first find your common ground? Sweet: These guys had already been doing some writing together and then I came in. We were in a studio in L.A. and on the second song we wrote, “I Can’t Remember,” our vocals really came together. The Wednesday after that, we were offered a record deal. That was weird, because we had barely done anything! Droge: Early on Matthew and I definitely bonded over Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk. We’re both fanatical about the Lindsey Buckingham stuff on that record. Then Shawn and I really bonded over Kris Kristofferson’s early records. And these guys were talking about [Missouri bluegrass stars] the Dillards earlier today. There are all these areas that have influenced us. But you might be hip to things the other guys aren’t as familiar with. Some cross-pollinating is bound to happen. VH1: Were you surprised to discover you actually worked so well together? Sweet: We thought it was pretty unlikely that it would work. We were all skeptical in our own ways. But when our voices came together - it’s something you can’t plan - people started to respond. Droge: It’s interesting. Hopefully the songs stand up lyrically and melodically, but singing these songs without these guys sounds very empty and lonesome and bare. VH1: The album is very inviting and warm. It’s almost like comfort food. Sweet: There’s definitely an aspect of a guilty pleasure about it. That’s what makes it different than what we normally do. The Thorns have this gentle nature. The music is very friendly. To sing and perform it is relaxing because of that. VH1: Does it sound the way you might have imagined it going into those sessions? Mullins: Yes and no. The harmonies and voices are very close to what they were when we were writing together. But we had Roy Bittan from the E Street Band play some piano and drummer Jim Keltner on the record, so there’s more production. Sweet: I was a little surprised. My expectation was that we would make a record that would sound more like a throwback. This record is a little more current sounding. VH1: You can’t escape the Crosby Stills & Nash comparison, though. Sweet: Crosby Stills & Nash are the most like us, because they were three guys doing harmonies. Some songs sound more like Crosby, Stills and Nash than others. But I think with every vocal group, it’s always going to be different depending on what everybody’s voices sound like. VH1: Aside from CSN, who are some of your favorite harmony groups? Droge: I would go with early Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, the Beatles, and the Byrds - all the "B" groups! Sweet: I love the Lindsey Buckingham-Stevie Nicks era of Fleetwood Mac. Our record has their vibe, that Fleetwood Mac sound, even though we don’t have any female singers. Mullins: But some of us sound like girls! VH1: So what’s the dynamic between you three? How would you describe each other? Sweet: [Whispering to Droge] A couple of jerks. Droge: Yeah, he said it best! They’re just the sweetest, most kind … [laughs.] They’re great guys. Good fellows. Just good, good people. Sweet: [Laughs.] We’re all good time boys! VH1: On the tour bus, what is it about the other guys that’s going to piss you off? Sweet: I know you’re looking for the dirt here, but it’s early on was the most turbulent time. Now we’re getting along better. Droge: We each had certain thresholds of sensitivity. As solo artists, we’re all are incredibly sensitive in some ways and insensitive in other ways. In the beginning these levels of sensitivity and insensitivity clashed with each other. But we’ve been pretty quick at learning how to get along and deal with that. VH1: What’s the bond outside of the music, then? Droge: Toys R Us. We had a day off and the whole band went to Toys R Us. We constructed this toy grand piano and we were jamming on these little hand drums. Shawn and Matthew bought remote control cars, too, and we drove them around the bus. It was hilarious! |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  |
There was an error pulling related news.
 |
 |
Receive Free Music News Daily Via Email |
|
Receive Free Artist Updates Via Email for The Thorns |
|
All news for The Thorns |
|
Breaking Music News |
 |
Add VH1 News to My Yahoo |
|
