Gimme Splash (Latchkey Recordings) reflects much of what fans loved about Luscious Jackson, while revealing more of Glaser's personal musical direction. Kicking off with the undulating 70s funk of "Spirit of Long Island," the album features drifting Sunday afternoon reveries, fuzzed-out guitar jams, dark, eclectic dance rhythms and Glaser's strange, cooler-than-you vocal delivery. We recently sent Glaser our questions via email, and present her answers here as they were written, save a comma or two. She came across much the way we imagined - forthcoming, unusual and enthusiastic about music and life.
Keenly Observed: What have you been up to since Luscious Jackson dissolved?
Gabby Glaser: Well, I never stopped writing songs, menial labor, got hitched to a big hunk o'Englishman, and a friend asked me to do this comedy thing which was real fun and the crowd loved it. (We played Siamese twin sisters entering a contest to get separated, played guitar and sang perverted spoof songs.)
K.O.: How and when did you decide that you wanted to record another album?
G.G.: I can't remember ever not wanting to record an album. But yeah, I guess you could say the day we broke up it was definitely the plan. I had so many songs already written that were so different stylistically that it was hard picking which ones to record. I had a fantasy of starting a label called EP Records and putting out EPs with 5 to 7 songs each. Then I could put out all my own shit out on it too. One record of the mellow stuff, one hillbilly, one loud, one soundtrack instrumentals, one dirty, one dance stuff, etc. But in the end I recorded stuff that I thought would be fun to play live. That's why the record's kinda loud.
K.O.: What did you learn about the music business while you were in Luscious Jackson that you can apply to your career now? Do you have any advice for up-and-coming musicians?
G.G.: Well, I kinda blocked the whole music business part out; don't have the best memories of it, a lotta double talk. My advice is basically just to work hard and keep at it no matter what. Not everyone's gonna like your music, but if it really comes from your heart and you're not just trying to ride on some musical bandwagon, people will probably come around and respond to it.
K.O.: Both Luscious Jackson's music and Gimme Splash have the distinct mark of New York City on them. Tell me what NYC means to you and how it inspires you.
G.G.: NYC was such a great place to grow up, and I got to see so much at such a young age. Being raised on St. Marks Place was pretty wild, freaks everywhere back then. We also had the best block parties. Musically, I suppose the most inspiring time was when I was around 13 and started going to nightclubs and music venues. To be able to see PIL, Kurtis Blow, the Bad Brains AND go dancing til dawn at a nightclub all in one week was such a gas! You couldn't help but be inspired by it all. And there wasn't really a class system or anything like that. It was just people of all different races and ages coming together through the love of music and dancing. I'm still inspired by the city, but I think Brooklyn's way closer to the feel that Manhattan was in the best way. It still has pockets of neighborhoods that haven't been totally taken over and more of a community feel; not as crowded and hustle bustle. And I love that the buildings aren't as high so you can see more sky.
K.O.: How would you spend a perfect summer day in the city?
G.G.: I love just chillin on the grass in the park with a good book and my Walkman (no Ipod yet). Also, having lunch with my friends at an outdoor spot and a bottle of white. And there are loads of free outdoor music shows that happen all summer. McCarren Pool in Brooklyn has great live bands every Sunday. Last year I got to see Deerhoof there and it was tooo fun!
K.O.: What's the status of the Luscious Jackson children's album? What was it like working on that project?
G.G.: The record's been done for over a year and it was really fun making it, laughing fits constantly. Jill (Cunniff) and I recorded most of it at her home studio and we also did a bunch at this great producer/musician's studio by the name of Nathan Rosenberg. Since Kate (Schellenbach) lives in L.A., we'd send her the music and she'd play drums to it and send back the tracks. Making it reminded me of when we first got together and everything was way more lighthearted. And you get to be REALLY silly when you make music for kids. I could do it forever.
K.O.: What is your writing process like?
G.G.: I usually do the music first, starting with guitar or keys, then do the lyrics. I also love piecing live instrumentation with samples, but I haven't done that in a while. I'm sure I'll get back into that soon.
K.O.: Did you know when you started what you wanted Gimme Splash to be like?
G.G.: Not really. Well, somewhat...I really love the way records sounded in the 70s, especially a lot of the punk bands from England, but also bands like the Stones, Funkadelic, even the easy listening stuff sounded good. I also really like a lot of the songs and slide guitar playing on George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, and I wanted a lot of slide on the record. The transition a song goes through from writing at home to rehearsing with a band to recording is so vast. You don't always get your intended sound, but you might get something cool you wouldn't have expected.
K.O.: Is it just coincidence that your solo album and Jill's were released so close to one another after all this time? (Jill Cunniff's solo debut, City Beach, was released in February 2007.)
G.G.: Pretty much. Both our records had been done for quite a while, it just took forever to get 'em out.
K.O.: Are there any artists that you're really excited about right now?
G.G.: I saw an amazing show that my friend Tia Sprocket did when I was in L.A. (Incidentally, she plays bass with me in my band now.) When she plays out it's just her, an acoustic guitar that she plugs into an amp to get it sounding dirty, and she connects a drum pedal into the amp that she accompanies her music to like a bass drum. I can't really do it justice trying to explain her, you just gotta see her live. She's really incredible and I'm dang lucky to have her playing with me now!
K.O.: What are your plans and expectations for this album? How do you plan to spend the summer?
G.G.: Just wanna get the hells out on tour!!
Gimme Splash is out now on Latchkey Recordings. You can catch Gabby live on Monday, August 6 at Cakeshop in NYC.
Gabby Glaser
Latchkey Recordings