Exclaim! interview (2004)

Jim James at Roseland, New York 2006, photo by Mindy Bond

In October 2004 Exclaim! published an article featuring Jim James written by Lorraine Carpenter, the original article can be found here.

Keywords: politics

"We've always made it a point not to be a political band," says My Morning Jacket's Jim James. "I don't write political lyrics, I don't get up on stage and make speeches because I think music should be a beautiful escape for anybody, regardless of their politics."

Unlike Fat Mike of NOFX — who penned a song about Bush called "Idiot Son of an Asshole" — James refuses to bad-mouth the Republicans, preferring to let his band's inclusion in the Vote For Change tour do the talking. But that doesn't mean he's not critical of their imperialist endeavours and deficit-dilating policies, which My Morning Jacket's generation (and their kids) will pay for.

"If I can't afford health insurance and rent, I'm gonna be too busy thinking about that to meander on my couch all day, playing guitar and writing songs," says James. "I try to make my life and my music into as much of a fantasy as possible, but if I don't try and help the real world, I'm not gonna have a fantasy world to come back to."

Exclaim! interview (2003)

In September 2003 Exclaim published an interview with My Morning Jacket written by James Keast. The original interview can be found here.

Keywords: Reverb, Live Music

"I don't know how familiar you are with our music, but I'm a big fan of reverb," My Morning Jacket's Jim James deadpans. The title of the band's third record, It Still Moves, could in fact describe the bouncing echo that resonates long after its final notes have faded. My Morning Jacket is the band equivalent of the Grand Canyon — its sounds magnify tenfold, seemingly coming at you from all directions.

The reverb is just one distinct mark that James puts on everything he does; as on this new effort, his first two albums (1999's The Tennessee Fire and 2001's At Dawn) merged a definition of psychedelic from distinctly different eras: equal parts Neil Young and the Flaming Lips, filtered through a lens of classic Americana. "We live in a different world than the world that my favourite records were made in," he says. "For us to make records that I think sound good, we need to create our own world."

That's exactly what they did, on a farm near Shelbyville, Kentucky, just outside their home town of Louisville, where the band has constructed a studio atop a three-car garage owned by guitarist Johnny Quaid's grandparents. The key element to the farm is the variety of opportunities for reverb. "That whole garage we turn into a giant reverb chamber for the drums," James explains enthusiastically. "Pull all the cars out and mic it up. There are also a couple of silos out back, and we turn those into old-fashioned reverb chambers — put a speaker in the bottom and throw a microphone up top."

By recording in this distinct space, My Morning Jacket creates their unique sound — not one selected from a pull-down menu on ProTools. But while the wide-open spaces of Kentucky may have inspired Jim James — he thought of recording in the silos because he used to retreat there for some quiet time, sitting alone singing and playing guitar — My Morning Jacket are not some band of backwater Luddites. In fact, technological advancements are key to the ease of their efforts. "We ran some Ethernet cable out to the silo — it was the cheapest, because we had to run 600 feet of cable out there." The result meant that they could easily send everything — from a single snare hit to the entire album — out to the silo for reverb treatment and back to the mixing board.

For anyone who has only heard their records, seeing them perform might come as surprise — while their albums tend towards the laid-back vibe of Neil Young or even classic country influences, their live shows have become intense, flailing full-on rock freak-outs. It's a transformation that has intensified in the past couple of years, following the addition of drummer Patrick Hallahan. "We're five dudes in a van; we can't always convey everything live. We have to look at [performance] in a different sense — you're trapped in a van all day, spending nights in different hotel rooms, so by the time we get on stage, we don't hold anything back. A record is going to last forever. We try to think about it and add everything that we want to hear forever — whether we're here for 20 more years or two more days."

Exclaim! interview (2001)

My Morning Jacket in Doornroosje, Nijmegen, The Netherlands 2000, photo by Riny van Eijk

In June 2001 Exclaim! published a questionnaire with Jim James, unknown interviewer, original interview can be found here.

Keywords: Jim James

Current fixations:

"Bag Lady" by Erykah Badu. Jimmy Rodgers the Singing Cowboy. Outkast.

Mind-altering work of art:

Amsterdam, Holland.

Most memorable or inspirational gig and why?

When we played at the Monte in Antwerp, Belguim, I played "Easy" by the Commodores and the crowd sang the "Ahh ahh ahh ahh" part. They sounded like fucking angels. It made my head want to explode with the life. They were so nice and gentle and their voices really did a number on me.

What has been your career high and low?

I think every time I pick up the guitar and play with the boys it is a fucking blessing. Every time someone tells me that they enjoy my music and that it means something, to me I have accomplished my mission. I try not to think about the lows. The highs make them disappear.

What should everyone shut up about?

Shitty music.

I would drop everything to play a benefit for:

Juvenile diabetes / cancer.

What trait do you like and dislike most about yourself?

My face.

What would make you kick someone out of your band and/or bed, and have you?

People change. Everyone knows that. I think when you and someone else get to the point that you cannot function together any more, it's time to move on. It's nothing personal. I have parted ways with many people who used to be good friends and it hurts. But life is just a never-ending series of moving on, rebuilding and destroying.

When I think of Canada I think:

About Terrance and Phillip.

What is your vital daily ritual?

Exercising my body and mind. Mmmm… bodies.

How do you spoil yourself?

I wrap myself in tinfoil and sprinkle powdered sugar and lemon juice on myself, then I get 50 of my closest friends and do the same to them. We all get in a big plastic bag and pretend we are lemon drop candies. Then one person is the "eater" and he or she "eats" every last one of us.

What was your most memorable day job?

I've had so many fucking day jobs, I can't remember half of them, but definitely Heine Bros. Coffee in Louisville, KY. I fucking love that place. It's like a big living breathing soap opera. It's fucking beautiful.

If I wasn't playing music I would be:

A garbage man, just like my cousin Johnny Quaid.

What is your greatest fear?

Watching "American Beauty" by myself. When the ending comes on after he is shot, it's so beautiful it hurts. It feels good to have someone there. I've never had to watch it alone – that scares me.

If you had a superpower, what would it be?

Invisibility.

What makes you want to take it off and get it on?

The Rev. Al Green's "I'm So Tired of Being Alone" and "Do Right Woman," the Flying Burrito Bros's version.

Music and sex: Is there a difference? Why?

No, the only difference is penises and guitars. Unless you are a drummer.

Strangest brush with celebrity:

Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.

Who would be your ideal dinner guest, living or dead, and what would you serve them?

Shannon Hoon from Blind Melon. He seemed like such a beautiful person, and he had probably one of the most amazing voices I have ever heard. He always makes me cry. When he died, no one gave a shit. I loved Kurt Cobain, but I think Shannon had more talent in his pinky, but no one declared him a martyr. Strange how that works.

What does your mom wish you were doing instead?

My mom is fucking awesome and totally supportive. I think she is happy with what I'm doing. But if I was a baseball player, I might have more money, but maybe more problems as well.