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Interview: Shawn Fogel
Golden Bloom and Neutral Uke Hotel frontman talks about the ukulele, Jeff Mangum and the follow-up to Fan the Flames
Shawn Fogel (Photo: Alicia J. Rose)
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Let’s face it: Neutral Milk Hotel isn’t reuniting. Now or (probably) ever. It’s a major drag, I know, but there is another group out there that can help you release your pent up “Two Headed Boy, Pt. 2″ singing. Neutral Uke Hotel is exactly what it sounds: the songs of Neutral Milk Hotel, specifically those from In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, played on the ukulele. It’s the idea of Shawn Fogel, the the brainchild behind Golden Bloom, and Encore had a chance to speak to him via e-mail shortly before his CMJ gigs (see below).
Which came first: the idea of performing NMH songs with a ukulele or the band name?
Unlike the chicken and the egg, the name Neutral Uke Hotel and the idea behind it came out in the same breath.
When did you begin to the play the ukulele?
A little over a year ago. I started with baritone ukulele, which is basically a guitar missing the low E and A strings. After that, I picked up tenor and concert uke, which are tuned a fourth up from the baritone.
In the Aeroplane is one of those albums where most people remember where they were and what they were doing when the first heard it. Where were you and what were you doing?
The first time I heard In the Aeroplane, I actually heard it out of order. “Untitled,” the instrumental 10th track, was the first song I heard, in the back lounge of Guster’s tour bus after they played a show at UMass Amherst. Brian Rosenworcel, their drummer, shared the tune with me in a “you’ve gotta hear this!” moment of musical show and tell. I was immediately hooked, and bought the album the very next day.
What’s your favorite song to perform, and why?
Either “Holland, 1945″ or “Two Headed Boy.” Both of them end up being intensely passionate sing-a-longs that the entire crowd belts out at the top of their lungs.
Do you know what Jeff Mangum thinks of Uke Hotel?
We tried getting the message to Jeff through a few different avenues (friends, record label, lawyers). We never heard from Jeff himself but everyone we spoke to who knew him had a feeling he’d be fine with it. We’re not doing this to make any money; we’re trying to celebrate one of our favorite albums with fans who love it as much as we do.
Any chance of hearing anything from On Avery Island?
We’ve played “Song Against Sex” as an encore song when we toured this summer. There are maybe one or two other songs from On Avery Island that would translate well to the uke setting (“Gardenhead” maybe?), but the real point of the project is to celebrate the In the Aeroplane record specifically.
Any progress on the follow-up to Fan the Flames?
I’m currently on-and-off in the studio working on new Golden Bloom tunes with Peter Katis. Pete has made some great albums recently; Jukebox the Ghost’s Everything Under the Sun, Guster’s Easy Wonderful, the National’s High Violet and more. The Golden Bloom songs we’ve mixed are in my opinion the best sounding songs so far. I can’t wait to share them!
CMJ Shows
W/ Golden Bloom
Cameo Gallery, 8-8:30 p.m.
W/ Neutral Uke Hotel
Cameo Gallery, 9-9:30 p.m.