POP GODDESS Shalini
May 31, 2011
Following a breakup, a brilliant EP and a relocation to Chicago, the distaff rocker is gradually getting her groove back.
BY FRED MILLS
It's risky to presume autobiography on the part of songwriters who routinely employ metaphor and character sketches. Still, listening to Shalini Chatterjee's fourth solo release, the 6-song EP Magnetic North (Paisley Pop), the inevitable conclusion is that someone's gotten their heart broken, what with such lines as "I sense a change," "you don't want me around" and - most pointedly - "betrayal... desertion... heartache set in motion."
Point of fact, someone did get their heart broken; Magnetic North is a chronicle, if at times more veiled than those lyrics just quoted would suggest, of the dissolution of Shalini's marriage to North Carolina producer-musician Mitch Easter. Judging from her comments over the course of a couple of interviews, it wasn't an easy breakup; in addition to the domestic union, the two of them had performed with each other onstage for years, and the musical union apparently got severed with an abrupt degree of finality. She ultimately decided to cut her losses: in a followup email recently, Shalini wrote, "I moved to Chicago a few months ago. Things got even weirder and worse. I had to get out of the South."
The indictment laid down in the first paragraph, above, comes from the tune "Walking Ghost of Death," a rip-snorting slice of power pop that sounds like a sweaty collision between the Breeders and the Plimsouls, and it's emblematic of how exposed-nerve emotion can elevate a song from just "good" to "great." Elsewhere the Shalini band conjures distaff images of classic Dream Syndicate ("One of One") and psychedelic Cheap Trick ("Echo"). Translation: kickass music - or music to kick someone's ass with.
Meanwhile, Shalini seems to be adjusting to life in the Windy City, where she's already begun performing solo (the photo above was taken at a recent Red Line Tap gig) and recording new material. "Things have kind of slowed down again," she noted. "I am working on new songs for a new full length I want to call Cake + Flames. Just have one demo recorded so far, but it is a start." Pop fans, you have been notified.
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BLURT: It's been over three years since your last record The Surface and the Shine - and I know that there has been a lot going on in your personal life as well...
SHALINI CHATTERJEE: A lot! Three things in particular. I started a non-profit called Revolve Film + Music Festival. It was a tremendous amount of work, to start a non-profit and festival. It came together really well, and of course I had some help. Unfortunately, we received official non-profit 501 (c) (3) status from the IRS just as the economy toppled. So Revolve can't be my official job. Maybe one day.
Second one: I was trying to deal with the death of my father in law, my friend and advocate Ken Easter. He died on May 8, 2007. I got to be with him at hospice when he passed away. He knew he was dying, I could tell, and knew what was going on around him, although he was checking out. It was a particularly slow death. He was kind of hanging on but I felt like I was really with him. During the week he was dying, we opted to go play a show in Richmond. We just knew he wasn't going to die quite then.
Then my marriage with Mitch fell apart as he became disinterested but would not talk to me - only act out. The sadness and frustration, and anger, fueled the songs for Magnetic North.
Magnetic North has a decidedly tougher edge than much of your previous stuff, both musically and lyrically, with some pretty raw emotions on display - including some very pointed lyrics.
Maybe I have taken a turn and am writing more autobiographically. A lot of my songs before this were fiction, even written from different points of views that would come into my head through dreams or whatever. This EP reflects the fact that some people wrecked my life and had fun doing it, showing off for each other and using the studio as a stage for their machinations. "Walking Ghost" tells the story of how deeply painful betrayal is. The lyrics are pretty plain. It refers to life being physically painful and hardly bearable so that I didn't feel alive exactly.
It appears you whipped the record together pretty swiftly - true?
Yes! Thanks to Chris Garges, who really should have been credited as the producer. He brought some items with him from Old House, in Charlotte, and got things rolling really fast. We cut basic tracks to all the songs in a few hours. We three played live. Jane Francis hadn't joined yet [so] Shawn Lynch was on bass and did guitar overdubs - he did all the lead guitar except for Tim Lee's excellent guest guitar on "Echo." What a guitar player Tim is. Unbelievable. The Tim Lee 3 were on tour, and he just stopped by while Mitch was mixing, got out his red Telecaster, and put that part down. It makes the song!
Anyway, no reviewer yet has pointed out there is no Mitch lead guitar on this record. Mitch played no guitar. That is significant. He wasn't on the recording session and I had no idea if he'd have anything to do with the record at that time, October of ‘09. He has said he would record it on analog 8-track, but when I booked time, he would have his assistant Sidney Dixon call to cancel. It happened so many times, I asked Chris and Shawn if they wouldn't mind going to another studio, and they were agreeable.
To backtrack a moment, following the release of The Surface and the Shine as well as Mitch's Dynamico the two of you did a good bit of touring, often as each other's opening act. How did that arrangement work out and evolve?
That arrangement worked fine because we kept a few things straight. Mainly, I knew he was the main draw. I almost always opened for the M.E. combo and I would intentionally keep my set short, 6-9 songs. People seemed to enjoy these shows. There was some magic and momentum in the fact we had completed records in the same year, 2007. Both records had been worked on for years. I started mine in 2005 and Mitch included songs he wrote and recorded in 1991 at the Drive-In. I was aware his record was much more anticipated, but I still appreciated the fact that there were still some people who were interested in my music and songwriting. One day I got an email from Jamie Hoover [producer, and member of NC band The Spongetones] congratulating me on my songwriting and harmonies on the record. I wrote most of the backing singing parts so a compliment like that from Jamie made me feel like less of an amateur and more of a pro.
When the EP came out, there was less playing together as Mitch had kicked me out of the band on Jan. 23, 2010 via text message, three days before a Tuesday night show at the Garage [Winston-Salem] on Jan. 26. I thought it was so preposterous that after 10+ years I was dismissed for no good reason, I went to the show and saw them play as a 3-piece. It took the drama and the heaviness out of the situation.
How about the Shalini band? I assume Mitch is not involved...
Mitch is not in the touring band. Last summer after the EP, it was mainly me, Chris, Shawn and the Fabulous Jane Francis on bass. I really liked Shawn's lead guitar playing. That was my favorite version of any band I ever had. They sounded so pro and were so much fun to hang out with, all of them. We had a couple guests on the July Athens/Atlanta shows: Chris's intern, Daniel Grimmett on lead guitar who was great, and Scott Craggs from Boston on bass, also Chris' friend. Scott mastered the EP and liked the songs so much, he learned them. I was flattered he liked my music so much! Daniel was in his twenties but not annoying. Quite the opposite, and a good traveler and live player. I am going to post some DVDs of us playing that Erock Drewes took, and you can see both Daniel's and Scott's natural stage presences. And Chris is always a top-notch pro. That was a good band.
Crystal ball question: what does the future hold for you? Touring and recording plans?
I wish I had a crystal ball! Do you have one? [For my next record] I am playing everything but drums, and have yet to get a new touring band together. I plan to go out and play as much as I can, as always.
You're on the Paisley Pop label, out of Portland, now - by my way of thinking, one of the pre-eminent indiepop labels on the planet.
As with all my releases, I asked Jim Huie if he'd be interested and he was. I really like everything Jim has out, and we have the same sensibilities. If I lived in Portland, we would be bar buddies swapping Big Star bootlegs.
On a different note: you're approaching your 20th anniversary as a recording artist, and you've been playing since the mid ‘80s. Has the motivation, songwriting, etc., changed for you over the years?
My college band Kissyfish in Madison, Wisconsin, did some worthwhile recordings on 4-track from 1987-1990 which were sold on cassette in the ‘80s, but we didn't try to get reviews or have a real career or anything. My commercial career would have started with Vinyl Devotion in 1992. So you are right, it is almost 20 years. I wanted to play rock music since the age of three. I really didn't have an interest in anything but music.
Writing songs comes easily only occasionally. It is so hard right now with all the upheaval and disorientation, post-divorce and moving to a huge new city in a different part of the country, negotiating dog visitation, etc. It was always hard work for me. I write a lot of really bad songs no one hears, to get a few good ones that have something to them. I don't put any "filler" out.
What do you do when you're not making music? What kind of advice would you give someone just starting up a band?
I have a background in business writing, project management, that sort of thing. I sometimes work as a technical marketing writer on the side. I think it is just as hard to be a working musician as when I started out because I have remained largely unknown. If I had a breakthrough of any kind, it would be easier now. The climate has always been tough. I get booked now because I have been at it for so long, and at least have critical, if not commercial, success. People seem to like the songs.
If someone were just starting a band, I would tell them to stay focused on what they want to achieve and not listen to everyone else. Also to not get too embroiled in people who generate drama, because then there will be no music. Keep your mind on your songs and practicing, and it will be easy and fun when you play out. Do not waste time on internet lists or made up charts. That has nothing to do with music.
Know that you are not going to make money at this. If you want to make money, go be an investment banker.
[Photo Credit: Daniel Locke]
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