Interview with Teddy Humpert from Kaslo

As I mentioned in my review of "The Ohio EP" on Friday, I was able to have Teddy Humpert from Kaslo answer some questions for ThaBombShelter over the weekend. He sheds some light on the recording of the EP, as well as some of the plans for the future of the band.

ThaBombShelter - So tell me more about the Ohio EP, what was the impetus that began this crazy journey?

Teddy Humpert - We tracked piano for our last album on a 1920s Steinway belonging to some family friends in their house in Athens. During those sessions our producer, Josh Antonuccio, and I were toying around with the idea of doing what we then called a “living room EP,” where we’d use the first floor of the house (living room, dining room, kitchen, foyer, etc.) to live-track the full band in a one-weekend recording session. So really from the start, the idea was pretty fully conceived; just not set in stone.
WTCC came out in October 2007, and by then Kaslo had really shifted member lineups quite a bit, and we all knew we wanted to track and album with the group of folks we now called Kaslo. So really, it was just a matter of picking a weekend to record, finding the finances to do so, and writing some new material for a new outfit.

TBS - How many of the songs had you written before the weekend? Did you come in fresh and write everything or did you have some stuff in mind?

TH - Five of the songs were in pretty full form by the time we got to the week before the sessions. We had a few practice/production sessions with Josh before the actual weekend – mostly because he would be playing bass on the EP, and needed to pick out his parts. The only song that really needed work was “Furnace” which was largely written on a walk home from a friend’s house, singing creepily to myself on the sidewalk. Josh was critical in finishing that song out with regard to the outro after the cello-slide break…the guitar riff, the horn parts, and the real cacophony that takes over in the end. Other songs, like “Poopface” had some parts worked out while we were recording over the weekend – you tend to hear things in new and different ways when you’re being forced to put them to “tape.” The horn parts in “Poopface” for instance were written during the sessions.

TBS - I've gotta ask, why the title, "Poopface"?

TH - I have a spectacularly difficult time giving titles to lyrics I write. And in typical Kaslo fashion, I brought this song to a practice and we worked it enough to play it at an upcoming show, but it still didn’t have a name enough to write down on the setlists. So Luke, in vengeful jest, suggested we just call it “Poopface” until I gave it a real name --- I never gave it a real name. I know it comes off as very middle-school; but if Kaslo can claim to do anything regularly, it’s sticking to our not-so-serious guns…which can wind up rather low-brow at times. Plus, with songs that can get a little weepy at times, I figure it’s good to retain some levity – in whatever form.

TBS - Is there an overriding theme to the EP?

TH - Well, par usual, the EP’s about relationships. It might be a subject that’s overdone in music universally, but I’ve always wanted to write songs that actually mean something to me; and write songs that aren’t fabrications to too great an extent. And when you’re twenty-something, in college, you’ve got girls and guys and any combination therein. The theme isn’t heartbreak, but it isn’t joy exactly either. I suppose it’s not even really melancholy. I like to think of it as a 6-song biography that sort of covers all the bases. Even in the first song, you kind of get an idea of how the sometimes happy/good/whatever situations can completely deconstruct. But however, cliché, there’s always the chance that something will resolve to a quasi-state of okay.

TBS - What was the craziest thing that went down over the weekend? I imagine with enough coffee and late nights things were interesting.

TH - I don’t know that there’s any one situation the band would agree was the craziest thing, but for me it was getting attacked by the house’s electricity. We were setting up for the first day of tracking, and I was taking me and my guitar over to the scratch vocal mic, and in the process passed by a light switch. The light switch apparently decided it’d be a good idea to send out a mini-lightning bolt to my hand through the metal plate; melting through part of the plate, my guitar cable, and burning on of my fingers. It obviously didn’t incapacitate me, but I can tell you I avoided that light switch for the rest of the weekend.

TBS - Where do you see Kaslo in 5 years? Are you planning to stay in Athens or are there foggy notions of moving on?

TH - I’m not sure to be honest. The majority of the band will still be in Athens through next year, and there’s talk of trying to get a mini-tour together for this summer. Whether by choice or force, we tend not to think too much about the future. We’ve been a pretty easy band from the start, to the end of commitments. Juggling school, work, and the band can get tricky for everyone. We’ve been through our share of lineup changes in the years we’ve been together – but things are still good. And I think as long as folks enjoy being a part of what we call Kaslo, we’ll still be doing it. So, if in five years we’re still enjoying it, we’ll still be around in some form – probably Kaslo 6.1 by then.

TBS - Are you actively searching for some kind of record deal or is it a more low-key endeavor at this point?

TH - With this EP, we’re really trying to get ourselves a little more “out there.” I can’t say we’re promoting the pants of ourselves right now, but we’ve been and are all still very excited about this EP. To the point, that I think we just want folks to hear it – across the land. Which I guess, in part, explains the free download release. I can’t say we’re looking for a record deal particularly. With as much as DIY culture is evolving, I think the band would agree that a record deal is not a necessity. Wouldn’t get turned down on principle or anything of that nature. But not critical to our well being, if that makes sense.

TBS - Was there a reason you chose to release it for free online when so many artists and labels are trying their best to keep things off of the internet?

TH - I guess, like I said before, the free release stemmed out of a desire to get the EP out to more people than WTCC has reached. As much as DIY has been good for us on this EP, it’s not easy to mail out copies or to get copies in retail stores as much as the internet can reach. True, we may not be making the profits that we could if every single copy were purchased, but the point isn’t really money for us at this still early stage of things. I’d just like to see people listening to it, sharing it with whomever they like. Ya know, “hey, this band’s really great” or “this song’s really great, you should listen to it” and “best part is you can just get it offline in its entirety.” I think the first artist I saw do it themselves was Jacob Borshard – and even if I reach just one more set of ears for having it available online, I’ll feel good about it. Music isn’t meant to be hidden behind walls of $20 price tags, it’s meant to be heard and shared, etc. And I’d like to think most songwriters would agree with me.

TBS - What's your opinion on File-Sharing? How would you feel if you came across "Watching the Carousel Collapse" on some torrent site like The Pirate Bay?

TH - I realize this is easy for me to say because my livelihood doesn’t depend on profits from my music in any form, but I don’t have a problem with file-sharing at this point. True, it may be simpler and faster and more universal, but it’s not much different from making a tape of some vinyl and giving it to your friend, is it? And we sort of have to accept it don’t we? I know that may sound defeatist, but it’s omnipresent, and pretty uncontrollable. The trick is to determine how to utilize it in the best way – whether you’re a major label, an indie, or an unsigned artist. In part, the real money for artists is coming in from touring and merchandise. With the percentages that get “recouped” by labels/etc. on the actual recorded album, it’s hard to believe artists are making their money largely on recorded product. Money comes in from ticket sales, from t-shirt and sticker sales. I mean, next on the list of things to do is Kaslo-Pogs, and a Kaslo trading card game. I don’t want to give away trade secrets, but we’re gonna make a fortune … maybe.

"Hospital Nights" Kaslo
"Poor Maxwell" Kaslo

Official MySpace Download