Interview: Juanita Stein – No Expectations

Sadly, we’ve just learned that Juanita Stein has cancelled her NZ dates due to a death in the family. We thought we’d share the interview that Marty Duda conducted with Juanita a few weeks ago…

When we last saw Juanita Stein, she was fronting her band Howling Bells at The Tuning Fork.

But since that 2014 concert, Juanita has struck out on her own, releasing two solo albums in rapid succession, America, in 2017 and Until The Lights Fade, in 2018.

Click here to listen to the interview with Juanita Stein:

Or, read a transcription of the interview here:

MD: Last time we spoke you were doing the Howling Bells thing and since then you’ve done two solo albums. Give us a brief kind of upgrade as to what’s happening in your life.

JS: Sure. Well, two solo albums deep. And that follows a good decade plus years with the Howling Bells and, just kind of felt like the right time to fly. I’ve been playing a lot as a solo artist and writing a lot and just forging a different kind of path and exploring a different side of myself musically which has been really intriguing and fun to do. Yeah.

MD: How would you explain that different musical side?

JS: I guess it’s…musically it definitely hops on the more folky Americana side of the coin, which has always been a part of the band and my writing aesthetic, but it’s funny what you take with you as a solo artist. You kind of tend to gravitate towards different things, things you feel more comfortable with alone, rather than with a gang of people. And that tended to feel like the right musical styling for me as a solo artist.

MD: And you recorded the most recent album, deep in the heart of Texas, in Austin, right?

JS: I did. The second one was recorded in yes, in Austin Texas with a bunch of musicians I had met over there. So, it was a very wholesome Texan experience, I guess.

MD: Laughs… A wholesome one?

JS: Ohhhhhhhhhhh….. for the most part!

MD: Yeah. OK. And is that the first time you’d spent any length of time in Austin or are you familiar with the place?

JS: I’m familiar in that I’ve played South by Southwest a couple of times. And spent a little time with a couple of friends I have out there who live, one who lives outside of Austin so I got to experience something a little bit more… authentic maybe? If that’s the right word. That was really interesting.

MD: And was the recording experience itself very different from previous ones you’ve had, say, recording in Australia or UK?

JS: Yeah. I mean, the first album was recorded in LA and that was the most foreign experience I’d had recording simply because I didn’t have a band and I didn’t play any instruments on the record, which I’d never ever done before. And I left a whole lot up to the producer, where I previously had felt a lot more involved to an extent. And it felt like I needed to have a different experience and I put a lot of faith in the producer and the musicians. And the second one I was a little bit more involved, so it was kind of a mid-point between the band and myself as a solo artist.

MD: Right. I’ve read somewhere that you kind of look at those two albums as two sides of the same coin. Is that accurate? And maybe you could elaborate if it is.

JS: Yes. I feel like that. I feel like that in the sense that the first one was a lot, you know, kind of like the ‘road trip.’ And the second part was me landing in whichever city I was aiming to pop in upon and experiencing some really intriguing encounters with people. The first one felt a lot more, I felt a lot more solitude, or construction. The second one was just a little bit more upfront.

MD: And do you find your writing is affected by the fact that you’re now writing for yourself as a solo artist rather than a member of a band?

JS: Yeah. I guess so. I mean when you are writing with a bunch of people for a bunch of people, you are factoring in the dynamics of those people and the energy that you know that the four of you are going to conjure together. When it’s just yourself, you are leaving a lot up to chance, you know? I assume at some point I’ll make a third record and I have no idea who that will be with, where it will be, what it will be and so, all I can do is write to the best of my ability and see where that takes me.

MD: And are you writing kind of constantly, or do you wait until you find that you need to write something and then start cranking them out.

JS: Yeah. It’s more like that. It’s, it’s… I’ve never ever been a methodical writer. I could never sit down from 9 to 5 although I know a lot of songwriters do approach it like that. I admire that a lot, but I just can’t do that. I have to wait for something pretty extraordinary to get inspired, so…

MD: I think it’s Nick Cave who is notorious for writing 9 to 5.

JS: He is.

MD: Doesn’t he live in Brighton as well?

JS: Yeah. Occasionally we see him walking around and I think he also lives, maybe in LA, somewhere else. But he’s here sometimes.

MD: Interesting. And just overall, have you found carving a career out as a solo artist kind of what you expected as compared to being in a band? Were there any surprises, more pressures or any of that kind of stuff.

JS: No. When you’ve been doing it for a while, the surprises become less and less surprising.

MD: Right.

JS: I don’t really have any expectations. I mean, I’m happy that the music’s being met with positive reception and there are people who really seem to connect with the very specific type of sound I’m doing and I’m happy about that. And as long as I can keep doing that, that’s really all I can ask for at this point.

MD: Sure. And when you come to New Zealand and you’re doing your shows are you solo or with a band or… how’s that working.

JS: With a band. Yeah, I’m coming over with – I have a bunch of guys I play with who live in Brighton. We’ve been playing quite a bit lately so I’m happy that they’re able to make it. Yeah.

MD: You’ve been touring around the UK recently. How have those shows been going?

JS: They’re good, yeah. Did a couple shows the other night. And the longer I let them go sink in and people start to familiarise themselves with the intricacies of the songs, the more I’m able to connect audience to artist and I’m really enjoying that process. Cos everything…I released the first record and went on the road and the second was really quickly after that first one. There hasn’t been a great deal of time for people to really get to know the music. But I can see that starting to happen now which is very pleasing.

MD: Ah… So do you plan on giving it a little more time before the third one?

JS: I think so. Yeah. Yeah. I have some ideas for some other projects in the meantime, so I’m very happy to keep busy and keep making music. But I think a third solo album, I might leave a bit of space in between.

MD: Right. And those other projects – I know you were interested in doing film scores and things like that. Is that part of what you into?

JS: Yeah… That’s NOT. Although I would definitely love to be involved in something like that, I’ve yet to find the right opportunity but that would definitely be a dream come true to score a soundtrack for a film. Yeah.

MD: And I’m curious – the Grammys just happened earlier this week. did you watch those? Is that something you follow?

JS: I love that stuff. I did not get to watch one minute. I don’t even know who won anything. I saw Lady Gaga‘s outfit. That’s it. That’s the extent of my knowledge of the Grammys.

MD: laughs. I think Childish Gambino did well as did Cardi B, if I’m not mistaken.

JS: There you go. I like Childish Gambino.

MD: Yeah, yeah… So… Do you follow pop music in general?

JS: I do. Yeah, yeah, I think there’s a lot a super super brilliant stuff and I have been really enjoying… I don’t know how to say her name, S-Z-A? Sizza? I don’t know how to say it. Really great. And surprisingly, Ariana Grande – I’m really intrigued with her record and the production is incredible. Um, I really enjoy listening to Kendall Koulade… A lot of R&B – Frank Ocean, yeah, I really like R&B.

MD: Yeah. And do you think that kind of thing will ever seep into what you do?

JS: I don’t know how that would work. Between you and me, I don’t really, I don’t know how that would work. It took me a long time to kind of, um, acknowledge and accept that just because I really like something, it doesn’t mean that I have to do that thing, if that makes sense.

MD: Oh yeah, right right.

JS: There was a while there where I felt compelled to try and make every kind of music in the world that there was from disco to pop to ambient electronica. I’m okay with doing what I do best and what I feel suits me the best. But I really like listening to so much music – R&B, trance, soul, all that stuff.

MD: And speaking of pop and mainstream music, you did a collaboration with Brandon Flowers. You wrote that song, ‘Forgiver‘ with him. How did that work out?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zncTiafe3Y0

JS: Yeah. That was very very impromptu. We were on tour, I was supporting them on tour and I had an unfinished song and I flagged it with him, as if, to kind of see if he’d be interested in the idea of helping me finish. And he was. And he was very enthusiastic. And it came together very quickly. And the only chance we kind of had to record it was backstage. They had a mobile studio set-up. So um, we just did it. We just threw ourselves into it and the guys played all the parts and we got it done and then mastered it when I was back in England.

MD: Any other people you’d think about collaborating with or have a hankering for, for working with?

JS: Um…. Having said what I did about R&B etcetera, I still think it would be really amazing and interesting to collaborate with someone of that genre.

MD: Can you rap?

JS: (long pause…)    Hell no.

MD: laughs. All right.

JS: I wouldn’t even try. I have to be a half bottle of Mezcal deep to try that.

MD: OK,well, we look forward to seeing you when you come down here to Auckland. I think you’re opening for Bryan Ferry and then doing your own show. Is that right?

JS: Yeah, yeah. So, we’re going to do four, four shows with him and then play our own show in Auckland and Melbourne and Sydney.

MD: All right. Good times! We’ll see you when get down here. Thank you very much.

JS: Thanks for talking. Bye.

MD: Bye-bye.