Start Listening To: Jack Name

Our interview with Jack Name came on the cusp of his newest album, Magic Touch. We spoke about the process behind this latest project and the influences and inspirations that drove this creative process.

Can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?

I’m Jack Name and I’m from Los Angeles. I make all kinds of music and the new stuff is always a little different from what I made before.  

There’s definitely a peaceful quality to your music. Was that always the intention?

I always want the music and lyrics to match the mood of whatever the song is about.  Because of that the music goes all over the place.  On my earlier records lots of the songs are hectic, or abrasive or dissonant, to match certain moods and other songs are softer or spookier.  

Magic Touch is all about people and love. Happy love, sad love, angry love, nice love, mean love… all the loves. I guess there are peaceful feelings that come with romance and friendship and other strange kinds of peacefulness that come at times, like right after an argument, or when you’re feeling down. I wanted the music to match those kinds of moods. 

The vocals, recorded close-up and completely dry, make the brutal honesty in the lyrics even more personal and compelling. Did you always intend to record your vocals like this? What do you feel the close-up production adds to the album?

I wanted the voice to sound like a personal conversation with someone close, so I wanted to sing at the same volume as when I’m talking (and I’m a quiet talker). I recorded it that way to make the sound itself feel as personal as possible and to let the singing stay more relaxed and natural.

What does ‘Magic Touch’ mean to you?

‘Magic Touch’ means ‘Human contact is magical’. For better or worse, when someone comes into your life they leave an impression on you and vice versa. Those impressions can send ripples through entire lifetimes, even generations.

You’ve got some really lovely features on this record including Chris Cohen drumming on “Dudette” and the voice of Izella Berman. What was it like working with these artists? 

It’s true, I’m very lucky to be friends with so many amazing artists. That includes everyone who played on the record. Chris Cohen is a good friend, and someone I really admire as a musician; he’s very sensitive musically. That’s probably why he’s also such a great improviser. When I first met him he was improvising on the drums all the time at these DIY shows around town. Since then I’ve always wanted to have him play drums on something and I knew he’d understand the mood of that song perfectly. He came over and listened to it once or twice, played it through and that was it. It’s a beautifully simple part that’s perfect for the song. I love what he did.

I met Izella in LA too. We worked together and became good friends that way. After being friends for a year or so, I noticed that she had a really special singing voice. So I asked her to come in to record. I had written these two duets forever ago, back in 2006, and they never found a home but I knew they would fit on this album. At shows back then I would sing both parts myself, but I wanted to sing with someone else on these recordings, so it was lucky timing with Izzy. I think it’s the first recording of her singing too. If that’s true I’m really happy to have that moment on the record. She does a lot of other music on her own as well so hopefully we’ll hear more from her in the future.  

I read you recorded predominantly in your Hollywood apartment with only a RADAR 24-track? What was the recording process like for this album? 

I was living in this very strange (maybe haunted) building, where I had a bare-bones studio set up. I have this crazy little analog mixer that only does volume and pan but it sounds really nice and clear, and it has a ton of outputs for everything else, and has a bunch of little buttons to route the sound to where it needs to go. So I have a few other basic recording things I was using, like an EQ, a preamp, a couple compressors, and the RADAR, which is basically a very simple but great-sounding recorder that I got from a classical music guy out in Arizona a few years ago. 

It’s a very slow, unconventional way to make a record but what’s most important to me is being able to work all night long in my own private space, with a simple set up, good sound, and never needing to look at a screen. So it was perfect.

You’ve released this new record through Mexican Summer, one of our favourite labels. What’s it been like working with them?

It’s been really great. It’s a good feeling to be on a label that cares a lot about the musicians. 

This album feels quite stripped back. What were your intentions behind this? 

I wanted a gentle, personal sound. I didn’t want a lot of flourishes and it felt like stripping things down would let the music have more space, some room for whoever’s listening to wander around inside. I guess it’s just as much fun to get lost in chaos too, so this is just a different kind of space for a different kind of mood.  

I really enjoyed your album. The guitar on I Came To Tell You In Plain English (I'm Leaving You) is so blissful even though the lyrics seem incredibly melancholic. What was the creative process like behind some of these tracks?

I thought about leaving someone, and being left, then I tried to mix those feelings together. The creative process for these songs was a lot of guitar playing, walking around the side streets and hills of LA, late night drives, and lying on the ground or in the tub, thinking about life and people. 

What is your favourite song to perform and why? 

I don’t really have a favourite, but I do have a lot of fun playing Sacred Place and Dudette.  It’s satisfying to hear all the parts weaving in and out of each other, particularly with those songs, even more so when it’s live.    

What are some of your favourite releases from 2020? 

U.S. Girls put out an album called Heavy Light this year. Meg’s voice is really special and the music is great too. She also plays of a song of mine called “born to lose” and the way she did it is really beautiful.

Tim Koh just put out a great album called In Your Dreams. My copy’s in the mail so I’m looking forward to getting my hands on that too.

I’ve also been listening to a lot of Morton Feldman. He’s probably my favourite composer and his music is perfect for these days because it stretches time out in a really interesting way. It’s great for spending hours home alone. There was a new performance of a piece of his called “For Samuel Beckett” by the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, and I’m listening to that right now.

Thank you for your time! Would you like to add anything else?

Nice talking to you. Take care and don’t forget to vote.