Jonathan Rundman has a new album coming out! WAVES will have its world release on April 11 with a hometown release show at the Parkway Theater on April 23. The tempo of the music is relaxing and familiar with new twists. It could be just what the doctor ordered in this “interesting” time.
Please tell us about how you got started with music.
As a kid I was raised on the FM radio of the 1970s and 80s. I started piano lessons in 4th grade, and by 10th grade I was teaching myself guitar. My cousin and I started singing and performing together, in sort of a Everly Brothers kind of duo, and by the time I was in 11th grade we got our first gig, opening for Midwestern songwriting legend Greg Brown at a folk festival. After graduating from high school I hit the road as a full-time touring musician for the next three decades.
The new album WAVES sounds great. What is the inspiration of Let’s Put on an Opera? It’s so uplifting.
The song has a figurative and literal meaning. Figuratively, it’s about artistic inspiration… when something in life is so moving or inspiring that you’re immediately driven to write a poem, make a painting, dance around the room, break into song. “Let’s Put On An Opera” has literal roots, too… there were some people in my homeland of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula who heard a very dramatic story of a tragic shooting during a miner’s strike near Ontonagon, MI, in 1906. These people thought that this historic event would make a good stage production, and eventually it evolved into a real opera, The Rockland Opera, which has since been performed in Finland and America. I was in the audience for the American premiere in 2011! It’s good to remember… sometimes one little moment of inspiration can result in a novel, or a movie, or an opera!
The Overture and the Terminal are such departures from the other songs. Both are instrumentals (as is Atonement Breakdown) but they have a less folk, more subdued or staid vibes. I like them. How do they live with the other songs? Are these different sides to your music? Different at different times? Intentional different or just ended up that way?
When I initially traveled to Nashville to record the album, the plan was to create a typical rock album formatted for vinyl… ten songs total, five per side. After the recording session, my producer Ron Gomez suggested “You should record some interstitial music, instrumental pieces that weave in between the songs.” We talked about albums we liked, featuring these kinds of moments, like the acoustic transition after the song “Nights of Mystery” by the Georgia Satellites. Many of the albums I loved as a kid had instrumental songs, such as “Reverend’s Revenge” by the Housemartins, “Aku Aku” by Styx, and “Musicatto” by Kansas. It’s quite common in prog rock! “Overture” is a string quartet recording that I arranged, based on the chorus of “Let’s Put On An Opera” played in 6/8 time. “Terminal” was an improvisation I recorded on a vintage keyboard called a Chamberlin, which I then arranged for duetting mandola and mandolin. I had so much fun creating these interstitial pieces of instrumental music, that we ended up including four of them on the album. These kinds of tracks also reflect my interest in liturgical composition and Nordic folk tunes.
Tell us a little about The Silos. How does your solo career feed into and off The Silos and vice versa?
I’ve been a huge fan of The Silos since 1987 when their classic album Cuba was released. In 2004 I had the great opportunity to record a solo album called Public Library produced by Silos’ bandleader Walter Salas-Humara. In 2014, Walter invited me to come on tour, providing keyboards and harmony vocals. Touring with The Silos has been a thrill, and I’ve had incredible opportunities to play with them across the country, at amazing venues and festivals, and in the studio. This past decade of working with The Silos has connected me to a wide community of collaborators, including the players on my new album Waves. Electric guitarist Eric Kassel, drummer Gerald Dowd, and bassist/producer Ron Gomez were all introduced to me thanks to Silos gigs around the country, and it was so fun to reunite with them all in Nashville to make this record.
Please tell us about the release show.
My hometown album release concert will be on Wednesday, April 23rd, at the Parkway Theater in Minneapolis. I’ll open the show, backed up by the players from my new album. Then, the Silos will headline the show, and I’ll join them on stage as keyboardist. After this Minneapolis gig, we’ll embark on a Midwest tour in celebration of The Silos 40th Anniversary, and I’ll be the opening act for all the dates. We’ll play Milwaukee, Chicagoland, Madison, and Green Bay. It’s been ten years since my last solo album, so I’m really excited to perform my new songs along with such stellar musicians!
Mostly Minnesota 