Mod
Magazine Chocolate
Weasel
Shop
|
Dwindle Interview Dwindle has never had a "buzz" of any kind besides individual substance abuse -- Jeff, Dwindle Passion is the most interesting motivation. Passions drive us to explore, to reach beyond our pre-defined limits, to strive for excesses we have yet to witness, and to commit acts that defy law and logic. Wearing many hats throughout my week, I get to explore my passions inside and outside the workplace, close to- and far away from music, with- and without human contact. Many of these seemingly disassociated areas of excitement in life come together in finding bands that, just as I, are passionate about the music they listen to, discuss verbosely, and create. Some of the most exciting music arrives in my post box from friends in bands that I have worked with in the past (or are currently in production with). Recently, Eric Stoess of Hula Hoop sent me a mixtape of some bands he is in, as well as others he has been listening to lately. Amongst the Hula Hoop, Chong Marker and Furbelly songs on the tape, were several recordings by Minneapolis trio Dwindle taken from their upcoming third CD Explanations not Required (to be released on Guilt Ridden Pop). I have become engrossed in their music and ways of approaching life, since first hearing the Slint-like murmurs of "The Fall Guy" from this long-awaited release. In short, their passions and mine have crisscrossed one another. Changed forever, I now have fallen for their passionate discipline for creating unique rock music. Having worked with Keith from Guilt Ridden Pop for a little over three years, Dwindle are embarking on their third CD release for the label. On the heels of their debut EP, Present General Conditions, and their first full-length Recently Okay, Dwindle will release their second full album, Explanations Not Required this April. The allegiance between band and label has allowed both entities to grow together, enabling the commitment to one another to blossom forth three releases, each out-performing the previous exponentially. Singer/guitarist Brooce, and drummer John, have been roommates since ‘91 when they started at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Brooce is from St. Louis, bassist John is from Muskegon, Michigan, and Jeff grew up in Florida; coming to Minnesota by way of Texas. Dwindle got started in the summer of 1993 just before Jeff’s senior year at Macalester. Shortly after forming the initial trio, they were joined by Mr. Greg on second guitar, with whom they played their first cool rock show at the 7th St. Entry with Scrawl. During the summer of ‘94, Greg and Jeff graduated from Macalester with Fine Arts degrees and bad attitudes. It was that summer that Dwindle first ventured to Olympia, Washington to record five songs with Tim Green (of Nation of Ulysses). They played one show while in this hub of hipsterness that can only be described as "entropy" wherein they gave away all the hand-spraypainted T-shirts Greg had made before the trip. The band returned to Minnesota and released a single on Inki Records. The single launched Dwindle’s recording prowess with two songs, "Present General Conditions" and "Tape." "Tape" was originally called "Take" but whenever Dwindle were about practice the song Jeff would say "let's play Take 7" and that so irritated Brooce that he changed the name of the song to "Tape". The lyrics to "Tape" are as follows: Take it inside Breathe it in I kill myself willingly I did this to myself. (screamed) Upon staring at these words on a page, one can understand that the song is about smoking, and Brooce's relationship with the activity. This single was to be Inki Records’ first and last release. Friendships got strained and Greg left the band soon after the single was "released." Dwindle returned to playing as a three-piece. After a poorly planned first tour, the band met Keith Moran at a show. Keith detailed his plans to release their first CD on his brand new label, Guilt Ridden Pop. The five songs recorded in Olympia became their first EP, Present General Conditions. Dwindle played and played, later returning to the west coast to record with John Goodmanson. This next batch of songs became the challenging Recently Okay, their first full-length adventure. After this CD swept the nation, Dwindle did some touring which according to Jeff, can only be described as, "very little." After much discussion and brow furrowing, the band managed to get out to D.C. last year to record Explanations Not Required with J. Robbins. John has since left the band and thus in ‘99, Dwindle enters its third incarnation. With the loss of a bass player, it would seem Dwindle's future is unstable. With the impending release of their most cohesive, dramatic recordings to date, it is evident they are prepared to finally garner the attention they so deserve. The core-duo of Jeff and Brooce are re-examining Dwindle’s upcoming recordings and touring plans to jump-start the momentum once again. Playing for- and working with people outside Minneapolis could help shed the skin of localism, but open up the gaping wound of fear as the world looks their way for the first time. All said, things still puzzle me about Dwindle. For starters, I don’t get how these songs that evoke such a magical emotive response were simply born of practice space meetings and repetitious rehearsal. According to Brooce, it is rather simple: "I come up with my part first and then bring it into the context of the band. I have never been fond of jamming as a way of writing. Some people are really good at it, but it's always been a frustration for me. Jeff is interested in dynamics and aesthetics, and john tries to play between us while keeping himself amused." Despite this cool demeanor, Brooce’s creativity is the end-product of inner turmoil, "For some reason I am drawn to confessional lyrics which seem to be on the out now (although I don't know why...well maybe because it became irritating and cliché when every band on commercial alternative stations started whining about something or another...). Maybe "self-analytical" is better. I once read a sociological analysis of the creative work of people of different western religious upbringings and it said that catholic creativity tended to be 'confessional' and Protestant was 'self analytical.' In listening to their three compact disks repeatedly in recent weeks, questions about "creativity" continued to nag at me. How was it that someone developed into this creative factory? The way Brooce explains things, always seems rather simple (which begs even more questions), "For a long time, music was the total driving force behind everything I did: It was my identity, my religion. Muisc defined who my friends were. When I was younger (like a teenager) it gave me a sense of purpose. When I was learning how to play and first write music, it was difficult for me to create because I never felt like I could. I never felt like I could do what my idols did. It was really frustrating, because more than anything I wanted to do what they did (although uniquely) and I was totally unable to. The idea that "anyone can do it" really affected me. This phrase, more than anything, convinced me that I could create. Aside from creativity, it has been my understanding that unique people have unique approaches to life. Their approach to comprehending the complexities of living is often what drives their creativity. Brooce sort of agreed with my Rules of Being a Good Person in saying, "Resist classist, consumerist culture and make some small, but meaningful impact on another person/people. In short 'have a good time, all the time'. Indeed. |