Sleepercar

By: Debbie Gebert

popYOUlarity: How do you feel you have changed since the beginning of the creation of “West Texas”?
Jim:It has been seven years, so I grew up quite a bit. I started writing this record when I was twenty-four. I have gotten married since then, and bought a house, had a whole other band. A lot of growing up, probably.

popYOUlarity: With all the thought that went into the album, how much do you want people to absorb the message? What is that message?
Jim:There is not a specific message. It is just more of a reflection of where I am from. I just want people to be able to sit down and imagine this different place and it is the place I am from and love. I hope that people find some kind of joy in the record and it fits into their life somehow.

popYOUlarity: Can you talk about the highs and lows you experienced while recording?
Jim:The fun part was the challenge of doing most of it alone, being that my life is usually always social, whether it is a dressing room, a stage, a bus or van. I spent a lot of time by myself in my studio by myself. It was a nice way of learning about yourself. The downside is that you can get lonely, go crazy, and lose your total perspective of what you’re doing. It is frustrating sometimes to not have someone to lean on. I found new parts of myself and I found some people that I like playing with as well, so that is the good part too.

popYOUlarity: Where does your motivation come from now? What is the thought or image that pops into your head and keeps you going?
Jim:My motivation is that I like to play music for people. I have since I was young, and that is sort of the funnest part to me, the social aspect of music. I like to make records, but I love to share the music, and share the experiences with people.

popYOUlarity: When are you most creative—on tour, in the studio, or at home?
Jim:It is hard to say. I don’t think that I have a specific place. On tour, you have a lot of time to sit around, but sometimes I would rather walk around and see something that I have never seen. At home is probably when I write the most, because that is where I feel most comfortable. Sometimes though, it is not the best place to write, because sometimes you should write outside of your comfortable place. My home is my studio and my studio is my home, so it is kind of one of the same.

popYOUlarity: Did the songs have to be written in a specific way or pieced together so they made a cohesive whole?
Jim:No, not necessarily. I just wrote, and wrote. Since it took a lot of years to finish, there is a lot of themes on the record. Some songs are really old, some songs are really new. At the end of the day, I just wanted a cohesive album. Those are what you hear on the album.

popYOUlarity: Do you always keep writing?
Jim:I write all the time. I have what I call the vault, with a ton of songs.

popYOUlarity: Does it bug you to leave some songs orphaned?
Jim:Sometimes it does when there is something that I really love. Sometimes it hurts to have to amputate that part of you. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out. Maybe half of the song you’re stoked on, but the other half sucks. Sometimes those songs just have to go back into the vault and come out, get a new part, and they will then be alright. I never really throw anything away.

popYOUlarity: Is there was a song on the album that you enjoyed most or even one that you enjoy playing live a lot?
Jim: “Wednesday Nights” is a beautiful song. It is the good and bad part of doing what I do, and being in love with who I am in love with. Sometimes it is hard to maintain that, doing what I do, but it is still totally worth it. It is like a bitter-sweet love song.

popYOUlarity: When you are going between cities what keeps you occupied?
Jim:Sometimes we listen to records and show each other stuff we have not heard before. That can be the funnest part for me, hearing records of bands that I know, or don’t know that record. We also like to play Scrabble and read; on the geekier side of rock and roll probably.

popYOUlarity: You’ve achieved things millions dream about-what do you dream about now? What do you hope for in the future?
Jim:To just be able to live making music, and to be a part of making music. I have been very blessed and lucky to be able to do this for as long as I have. I know I am lucky and don’t take it for granted at all. At some point, I would like to move on and do other things than music as well. I would love to make music for movies and someday have a place for kids to be able to experiment with music, and not have to be rich or anything like that. Some sort of community place is something I would love to be a part of. I just want to explore life, and the world, and be stressed out all the time.

popYOUlarity: What are you looking forward to for the rest of the year?
Jim:A lot of what I am doing right now, playing shows.

popYOUlarity: Do you have anything you would like to say to the readers of popYOUlarity?
Jim:Thanks for reading this, and I hope they like the record.

+ May 1, 2008
Photo: Official Photo

Links:
Official Site