Interview
An Interview with Jason and Chloe Roweth
by Valda Low, 1998
Us Not Them is the husband and wife team
of Chloe and Jason Roweth. Chloe sings, plays mandolin and bouzouki
while Jason plays acoustic guitar and bass and also helps vocally.
With roots in traditional folk and blues and more contemporary influences,
they have been writing together since 1994 and have recently joined
the well known traditional group, Wongawilli.
How did the name Us Not Them come about?
We were discussing
the demise of Blissbomb (the original electric band which first
brought us together) with Wayne "Spike" Milligan (a bass
player from Diamantina - another original electric band of Jason's'
for some years). We were obviously attracted by the political and
musical advantages of a duo rather than the full band, whereupon
Spike christened us Us Not Them - an offhand phrase that hung around.
Fill
us in on a potted history of the duo and your musical influences.
We played our first gig as a duo at Kartoons Night Club, Dee Why
in 1995, complete with cardboard cut-out cartoon characters, under
fluorescent lights (!) - playing mostly original music with just
guitar and voices. We've been lucky enough to perform fairly constantly
over the past few years, at pubs, folk festivals and clubs, and
various private and public social venues, mainly across NSW. At
first our prime influences were each other with
our differing backgrounds;
Chloe: Folk, Pop, some Classical, Susan Vega, Sinead O'Connor...
Jason: Original Garage Folk and Rock 'n' Roll/Blues. We recorded
our first CD of 15 original songs, "Wailing Bizarre",
in May '95 in Sydney, when we realised that we might even sell a
couple. Our relocation to the Central West (Bathurst) gave our music
a new home - and we were soon influenced by the surrounding performers
at the Great Bathurst Folk Club, notably Mike Martin who we joined
in "Jindi" performing Australian songs and tunes, with
a focus on the Central West. After a year in Bathurst, we recorded
the second CD "Feet in the Dirt ... Head in the Clouds"
with an expanded sound, including the addition of mandolin.
Through '97-'98 we've travelled to perform at many festivals, big
and small, along with folk clubs and pubs supporting the CD. The
folk clubs and festivals in particular have been fantastic in terms
of audience response, and for the chance to session with other musicians/performers.
Being invited into theme concerts such as Rob Willis' Hillbilly
Band, has encouraged some very enjoyable diversification under pressure,
and led us to new influences.
Music has allowed us to see and absorb more of the great Australian
landscape, which has been an inspiration in itself. Our latest move
(Oct '98) has been to Jamberoo to work with the Wongawilli Colonial
Dance Band, beginning a new era in our education and experience.
As Us Not Them we are currently working on our next CD "Songs
of the Bush", which we hope will further explore the Australian
country, history and people through old and new material.
You have recently
joined Wongawilli. How did that come about?
We'd always enjoyed the company of the Wongawillis at festival sessions
etc. and also, thanks to their support, were beginning to develop
an audience on the South Coast. After meeting and performing with
some of the great Illawarra songwriters in the form of Dave Beniuk
and Erika's Jive, we'd often half thought of moving south. When
both Wongawilli and Us Not Them were at Port Fairy in early 1998,
Dave De Santi mentioned that John Harpley and Neil McCann were going
to take a rest from the band, and jokingly asked if we'd ever thought
of moving down there. He may have been surprised at our answer!
We played the final Old Wongawilli gig at Jamberoo Festival with
many other friends, and filled in at the National Festival (20hrs
of polkas with purple people!) - we must've passed the audition.
The other new addition was Jane Brownlee on fiddle, so all together
Wongawilli is now a seven piece acoustic band - this mini orchestra
is a big change from the duo, and we've enjoyed gigs at dances,
festivals and in pubs over the last six months. We've also played
a few spin off gigs with Jane Brownlee and Dave De Santi aimed at
the lively pub crowd. It is a real buzz playing with the other Wongawillis,
great musicians of such tireless enthusiasm and humour.
How
important to your songwriting and music was your time in the Bathurst
region?
The load of Sydney lifted from our shoulders. Jason was returning
to the country with relief, while this was all new to Chloe. The
people in Bathurst and the landscape itself both had a definite
positive impact. We became actively involved in the Folk Club, meeting
and playing with other performers in the lively Bathurst music/poetry
scene. Performing in some great old country halls and pubs, playing
songs and tunes that these venues had heard for generations, gave
us a chance to experience the music in its traditional environment.
In terms of songwriting, Jason naturally tended to write with a
rural perspective, having started playing guitar and writing songs
when his family were based around Portland, Tottenham and Forbes.
The Central West feels like home with a large proportion of his
life spent in the area, which contains a lot of family, and family
history. Chloe, having spent her first 12 years in South African
cities followed by high school in Sydney, enjoyed and became involved
with the new surroundings, and her lyrics moved generally from internal
to more external themes, as she soaked up the rural Australian character,
landscape and history. It took a lot to lure us away from the Central
West, and we will continue to perform there as often as we can,
if only to catch up with some good friends.
Do you have
any set approach to your songwriting?
We regard all our songs as co-written, as they seem to draw from
combined experiences, discussions etc. We spend a lot of time just
improvising together. Although lyrics are invariably written separately,
often with a melody, feel and sometimes an outline of chords, from
there on it's all in. Jason tends to spend hours inventing
fragments until a complete idea appears - a bit like banging your
head against a wall until something falls out.
Chloe takes a long time between ideas, but then songs usually form
quite fast as words with a melody incorporated in them. Arrangements
and details are always developed as a joint effort.
Do you have
a favourite song/tune you really enjoy performing together?
It's a pleasure to find yourself playing the right song at the right
time. Our set list includes hundreds of songs and any one can have
the magic on a given occasion when everything falls into place and
the communication/atmosphere is special. "Past
Carin'" (Lawson/Lobl) is one song in which we feel very close
in performance. In a quiet, acoustic setting this song can be devastating
and leaves us drained every time - perhaps "enjoyable"
is not the right word.
Tell us about
some of the songs on your latest CD.
"Feet in the Dirt ... Head in the Clouds" is a transitional
CD for us, recorded after we had lived in Bathurst for a year. Recordings
tend to reflect your state of mind or periods in your
life, and there is real contrast between songs written in Sydney,
and those written in Bathurst. "North" the opening track,
while written in Sydney, shows clearly our desire to
change our geography. "Glory" was written in traffic and
personifies the angst of living in the city. Songs like "This
Town", "Past Carin'" and "Bathurst Plains"
reflected our new surroundings. One of the real pleasures of recording
the last CD was "Bonnie Moon", a beautiful song collected
by Rob Willis from Carrie Milliner. Our eyes were being opened to
the extent and quality of collected music in Australia. Paul Nunn
(Stumphouse Productions), with his imaginative recording approach
and beautiful microphones allowed us to capture some of the physical
space we were experiencing. The recording process was a great learning
experience.
What music do
you like to listen to?
A large amount of our listening is live at festivals, sessions,
gigs etc. On the radio as well we look for music that is new to
us, thanks largely to the ABC and community radio(!) At home we
listen to an eclectic collection (see below) and in the car (if
and when the tape player works) we're likely to play tapes of collected
Australian music, or some Bob Dylan albums as the lack of one speaker
suits mono recording - or Beatles albums Karaoke style (singing
the missing voices/instruments).
Are there any
performers who have influenced you?
Various performers have influenced us with their music or their
attitude/approach. Others have sung songs which we love and perform.
With their approach to traditional music as a creative medium and
as song writers: Michelle Shocked, Alan Musgrove, Bob Dylan, The
Band. Our partner in crime in Jindi, Mike Martin has been a great
source of music. He has also shown us the value of a good show as
opposed to just playing a set of songs. The freedom and power of
Jeff Buckley in live performance was an inspiration.
Alan Musgrove, Rob Willis, Carrie Milliner, Tom Waits, Van Morrison,
and an old friend Ian Large, in one way or another have all given
us songs we love to sing.
List your 5
favourite recordings.
A favourite CD list would have to go on for miles! Some CD's we've
listened to more than most over the past few years would be (in
any order):
"The Basement Tapes" (read: any of a Dylan/Band collection)
"In Some Old Shed" Harvest Moon
"Grace" Jeff Buckley (the best live performer/improviser
we've ever seen)
"Astral Weeks" Van Morrison
"Wrecking Ball" Emmy-Lou Harris
"Trinity Sessions" Cowboy Junkies
Not forgetting the collected recordings of Joe Yates, Carrie Milliner,
Sally Sloane, Joe Cashmere's songs and tunes. Tex Morton, Dougie
Young, "Apple Isle Fiddler" Eileen McCoy, John Meredith's
"Folk Songs of Australia Collection", "Port"
David Beniuk.
... Now we're cheating. |
