MUSIC

Between mirthful and mournful

The usually self-deprecating Chesnutt likes what he hears

By Patrick Caldwell
AMERICAN-STATESMAN MUSIC WRITER
Thursday, December 03, 2009

Vic Chesnutt gets around.

The 45-year-old folk rock singer-songwriter from Athens, Ga., started penning songs at the age of 5, but he truly got inspired after a severe car crash at age 19 left him paralyzed from the waist down. Chesnutt channeled his sorrow into a career as a prolific artist — with 17 albums released since 1990's 'Little' — whose fiercely personal songs attracted admirers such as Michael Stipe of R.E.M.

One of Chesnutt's most devoted followers, Guy Picciotto of seminal punk rock band Fugazi, joined him for 2007's highly acclaimed 'North Star Deserter,' alongside members of Godspeed You!, Black Emperor and Thee Silver Mt. Zion. The collaboration proved so successful that the same lineup returned for another album, this year's rich and powerful 'At The Cut,' as well as a tour that swings through Austin's Central Presbyterian Church on Saturday. Chesnutt spoke with the American-Statesman about his enthusiasm for his current bandmates, his personal lyricism and the importance of humor to his music.

American-Statesman: You seem really enthusiastic and really pleased with both the record and this lineup of the band this time around — are they having as much fun on the tour as you seem to be?

Vic Chesnutt: I think so, I really do. We're having a great time. We have fun on stage, we laugh on stage even though we play kind of dark music. The show oscillates between kind of mirthful and mournful. It's very fulfilling. I think we're all digging it. And I know it sounds funny, but I really think sometimes during the set every night some of the best rock 'n' roll ever is being made. I know that sounds funny coming from me because I always think I suck and I hate myself, but the band is just incredible.

When you recorded 'North Star Deserter' in 2007, did you have any expectation that you would team up with the same group of musicians for another album?

No, I didn't. I didn't know any of them, except for Guy, from Fugazi, who I've known for over 20 years. So everyone else I didn't know, and I was nervous because I'm a big fan of their music, I'm a big fan of Godspeed and Silver Mt. Zion. I was a little nervous because I didn't know what kind of chemistry we would have. But it was pretty evident immediately that we had chemistry. And then when we toured together it was a whole new thing, and we felt like a real band. So we decided pretty quickly we wanted to make a band album, meaning that everyone had equal input and that's pretty much how it happened.

Much of 'At The Cut' is jarringly personal and confessional — is it a challenge to get to where you can play those sorts of songs live?

This record is very personal, but over time it gets easier. When I was playing 'Flirted With You All My Life' for the band for the first time I had to stop, because I became too emotional. And it's still emotional, you know. But I'm a professional. I do sometimes get a little choked up on stage, but I give it my all. But, I mean, I'm a funny guy, and I'm very funny on stage, and that helps. I mean, as far as the band goes, sometimes my banter overshadows the songs. And I think that's what makes the show so powerful, the way it swings from this bawdy humor to this very serious introspection. It's a kind of unique thing. I don't know if I've ever seen such a wide pendulum swing in a show.

The album closer, 'Granny,' is an interesting song. It's written from the perspective of a child. How did the idea come to you?

I dreamed it in its entirety, so that's straight out of my subconscious. I woke up in a hotel room in Toronto, and in my dream I was looking up at my Granny from the perspective of a child and singing this song to her, and I was crying. And I woke up, and my pillow was soaking wet. And I was like, 'Wow, that's a really good song.' So I reached over and got the hotel stationery and pen and wrote the words. And I jumped up and got my guitar and worked out the chords immediately. And I sang it for an hour, over and over and over so I wouldn't forget it. That's never happened to me before.

You talked about oscillating between light and dark, and that song is a good example — it's a sad song, but there's humorous lines about watching your grandmother make pimento cheese.

Right. There's also the line about picking the seeds out of your dentures. People laugh at that line. That is very much my philosophy and an extension of my personality. I have a dark world view, but humor is very much a part of it. I see humor everywhere, and I relish it.

Vic Chesnutt Bandperforms at 8 p.m. Saturday at Central Presbyterian Church, 200 E. Eighth St. $15. transmission.frontgatetickets.com.