William Elliott Whitmore
A Man And His Banjo
photo by curtis lehmkuhl
An interview with William Elliott Whitmore
by Dietmar Stork
A basement club somewhere in the hip area of Berlin-Friedrichshain. The club might be small but it's packed with people, even though the promotion for this William Elliott Whitmore show was decisively low-key. But apparently word got around, and William is getting the attention he deserves. What's more important: People are thrilled by his concert, and what was originally planned as a little half an hour gig turns into a long set with lots of encores. Listeners just don't want him to leave the stage.
How different it was a few years ago, when Whitmore came to Europe for the first time. The deal with Southern Records was already signed, but the record was not out yet. So when he was announced as the opening act for noisy Hardcore act Ten Grand nobody knew what to expect. But what I was expecting was definitely anything else than what was coming. Some guy who makes lots of noise, something which fits to Ten Grand, that's what I was waiting for. But after a few minutes of complete surprise the music began to soak me up. This was intense, but definitely not noisy - great songs stripped to their core – just a guy singing and accompanying himself on a banjo or a guitar. But definitely no lame singer/songwriter stuff which gets thrown at the listeners way too much these days. "When you're up to your neck in shit, the only thing left to do is sing", he quotes Samuel Beckett on his new album - a nice motto for a Whitmore album.
A few facts are pinned down before the interview. William Elliott Whitmore has just released his second album Ashes To Dust on Southern Records, the follow-up to his 2003 debut album Hymns For The Hopeless (but next time you see Willie, ask him if he still has one of those great CDRs "The Death Valley Sessions" he brought along for the first tour). And that 27-year-old dude - yes, that's right, he hasn't even hit his Thirties and yet already sings with that deeeeeep voice - is on tour endlessly. He's back in the UK in late April supporting Willard Grant Conspiracy, and then again in May and June, hitting the continenent and icing the cake off with a headline tour in the UK. We envy you, Brits!
Let's start with Iowa. How is it living there, how is it growing up there, and how much does it influence your music?
Whitmore: Growing up in Iowa is beautiful. It's the centre of my spiritual universe, that's for sure. I grow a lot of influences from the land. I grew up in the woods on a farm, and that definitely influences the way I write songs. Living on a farm has given me a different idea of life and death and the circle of things. When it's time to slaughter the chickens - as a kid that gives you a perspective on death, that things come and go and everything works in a circle.
So you grew up on the same farm you're still living on?
Yeah, it's the same. It's about 150 acres. We used to have horses, but my folks passed away about ten years ago. When that happened we sold all the horses. We used to plant crops but don't do that anymore, so I just live on the farm with my uncle when I'm not touring.
Do you ever feel the desire to move into a big city like Chicago?
I lived in San Francisco for about seven months, which was the only time I ever moved and lived somewhere else. But I have the advantage of traveling a lot and touring alot. I kind of get my fix that way, so I never had the urge to move to any big town. For me it was always a better place to visit. San Francisco was great, but I am used to the quiet, I am used to the country.
For us unenlightened Europeans, Iowa and the Midwest sound totally redneck, backward.
Iowa traditionally leans toward voting Democrats, but this time it voted the other way. Yes, Iowa is very backwater. The people I hang out with and I am associated with are more liberal minded though. We just want to have our freedom. As long as you're not hurting anyone you can do what you want. I hate for people to think that everybody who lives there is a Bush supporter. That's not the case. But I can see how you can draw that.
Yeah, it's simplifying things. But words like "the bible belt" come to mind. Are people very religious?
Not the area that I live. The "bible belt" is a little below us. But I know plenty of Christians. It's not as much in the conscience of people though. They might be Christians, but it's not as much in your face. Our family has never been very Christian, we considered ourselves more spiritual in the Native-American way - each tree has a spirit and so on.
Tell me a bit about your upbringing, your musical development. I assume you have your hardcore influences too, at least you toured with Ten Grand, and so you must have been into them.
I grew up digging through my grandfather's record collection, and my father's as well. That's how I got into Blues and Country and things like that. Around the age of 15, I started reading skateboard magazines. I grew up very isolated, and that was my way into the outside world. And that's where I was reading about Minor Threat and Public Enemy - all these great bands I could connect to because the attitude of a Blues song and the attitude of a Punk song are not so different. It's a simple way to express your dissatisfaction with your environment. It was a natural progression to start listening to Punk rock. In hanging out with that scene I started to meet a lot of like-minded folks. These kids of my age were putting out records and touring with no help, that's how I got into the whole DIY scene. I was playing guitar and writing songs for a couple of years already, and I knew if I ever was putting out records it wouldn't be through the "Alt.country" scene, it'll be through the Punk rock scene. I was in a few garage bands, but it wasn't as fun as playing the banjo and my folk music. But I love to watch those bands.
How did it happen that you were touring with Ten Grand?
They were just my friends who I met when I was old enough to drive. Their band was called Vida Blue back then, and I was their roadie. But I also brought my banjo along and played a couple of songs because their set was really short. Then they changed their name to Ten Grand and signed to Southern Records. When the people from Southern Records came to see them, they saw me as well and offered me a deal, which I wholeheartedly accepted. For three years I've been making my own CDs, making the whole packing and so on. That has a certain charm, but I was ready to sign up. I wanted to have vinyl, which I could have never afforded. I have to thank Ten Grand for everything. I still rarely play Country venues or with other Country bands, I usually play with Indie, Punk rock or Hardcore bands.
How is the reaction of the crowd usually? I remember that Wild at Heart show here in Berlin, when I saw you for the first time. There weren't that many people, but those who were there didn't expect anything like your music.
First it was sort of weird, but it didn't take long. We toured the States extensively, for months and months and months. In the beginning it was hard to get people to pay attention. But by the next time I came around through that town, they knew I was coming. And it turned out that lots of hardcore kids like Country music. You see lots of hardcore kids wearing Johnny Cash shirts. So they were ready to accept it. And now it's easy.
It always looks like a cliché to me - those kids with Johnny Cash shirts. They like that stuff, but there's nothing behind it. If you say you like Robert Johnson you get the answer "Who the fuck is that?
That's probably true. I just hope they get a foot in the door with someone famous like Johnny Cash and maybe seek out more. But it's true, people usually only know one name. I don't sound a bit like Johnny Cash, but still people tell me that my music reminds them of him. But there's no similarity at all. It's just a name they can grasp on.
So what's more important for you: Country or Blues or Punk?
I couldn't say. I couldn't live without anyone of them. I have to have all of them. I've been listening to a lot of Hip-Hop lately - like I said I got into Public Enemy at an early age. I am a lyrics guy. I like good lyrics. Hip-hop is another extension of that, just a modern version of Blues to me. I couldn't do without that either - I just got to have all kinds of music.
One thing I am not sure about. I love very noisy bands, but I am not sure if you really can express feelings through that. Blues - I don't listen to Country that much - is more authentic in that sense. I don't know if you can relate to that. If you have a loud guitar bands you have a lot of layers to hide the core of the songs. You with your guitar don't have these layers, just the core.
That's why the simpler stuff always appealed more to me. If I could record an album with just my voice and no instrument, I would probably do that - if I would think I could get away with it. The lyrics are the main thing. The same in Punk rock: The more stripped down bands are the ones I like more. But that's not to say that I don't like Lightning Bolt as well. But for me I just need to keep it simple.
So will you ever play with a band?
Sometimes it's nice to have a few people around me. The only band I ever played with is the three remaining members of Ten Grand. Playing with them is nice because they are my friends, but I really enjoy playing by myself. They might come with me when I come back later this year, but it's more like hanging around with friends. I wouldn't want to have a band of complete strangers.
Did you learn to play guitar first or banjo?
Guitar. I played the acoustic guitar for years, but right before my grandfather passed away, he gave me a banjo. And since then the banjo became the main thing.
Is it easier?
To me it's the same. I mean, I just play a rudimentary style; I can't do much fast picking. Same with the guitar - I just use it as a background. I enjoy banjo because of the sound, and it's less common, so it's way to grab people's attention.
And people don't think there's one of these lame guys on stage that wants to play some hippie songs on a guitar.
Yeah, I like to play guitar, but it's such a cliché thing. "Here's this guy, he's going to be playing acoustic guitar by himself on stage" - the banjo separates me from that. And now I play both. I don't want to be stereotype.
The voice is definitely something that separates you from other singers. I guess people always ask you about your age because of that unusual deep voice.
Oh yeah. I don't really think about it. I was smoking a lot for years, and I've been singing every day for 15 years. That has an effect.
Maybe people always have this picture in their mind that this kind of music belongs to very old singers in their sixties or something.
That's true, and I try to emulate the style of those older guys like Leadbelly. I take it as a compliment when people say something like that.
You could see that in the audience yesterday: There were lots of Indie and Rock fans, but also some older people. Do you always have that?
Usually it's younger folks, but more and more I see that older people come out too. For me it's great to see that mix of young and old. It helps to see that maybe we all have something in common.
Catch William Elliott Whitmore on tour near you soon.
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