10/15/2006

Blast From The Past: Nina Gordon





I caught her in New York City before she went on the Conan O'Brien show. Nina Gordon seemed excited about her new solo career. She also talked about doing some stuff for VH1. Her new album is called Tonight and The Rest of My Life. It's great and you've probably heard some songs already or saw the video. Nina is from Chicago. She is blonde and thin. She wears fashionable clothes. This is her first solo album. She used to be in Veruca Salt. She wrote all their cool songs. She will be on tour in your neighborhood this fall. Her songs like "Now I Can Die" and "Hold On To Me" are bound to be classics. I remember a time when if you had a Pixies record you were cool. Now that the Indie world is dead. I am glad that the real songwriters are shining right now. I am tired of being told what to listen to. It's okay to have talent ...
AL: Are you going to do a Behind The Music for VH1?
NG: I don't think that I have gotten to that point where I am worthy of a Behind The Music. But someday. We can only hope.
AL: I saw you on the Tonight Show. You said you were a big Scott Baio fan? Was it weird finally to meet him?
NG: Did you watch it? When I was little, I have a huge crush on Scott Baio. I sent my picture of myself to me, care of Teen Beat Magazine. Of course, I never heard back. The Tonight Show found out about this. They found the picture of me on the internet. They decided to unite me with my childhood crush on the show. I talked to him briefly.
AL: Is Veruca Salt still going on? They replaced you?
NG: I guess so. I'm irreplaceable. One person from the band continued on as Veruca Salt but with a totally different lineup.
AL: Have you heard their new record?
NG: Yeah I have. I think that it's pretty good. I don't think that it's a Veruca Salt record. I don't know why she continues to call herself that, but I have no problem with that.
AL: When you were writing songs for the new record, how was it different than it was when you were in Veruca Salt?
NG: It was very different because I wasn't writing my songs for anybody. I was just writing my songs on my own and for myself. There was no editing process in terms of "What will these other people in the band like?" It was more about are these songs meaningful to me, and if so, then I want to record them. So it was freer, more open, and limitless.
AL: There are all these references to finality and the end in a few of the songs?
NG: I don't know. I think the album does deal with endings but also new beginnings. It's more of a forward-looking, open-ended future feeling for me. Certain chapters are closed but a new chapter begins.
AL: Are you going to tour soon, and will some of the people who played on the album be in your band?
NG: I'm going on tour in October and through Christmas. Some of the people who played on the album will be with me. Then there are some other people. Hopefully the band will be permanent. I hope that we will all be happy touring together and it will all work out. I would be nice to have a group of people who I can play with for a long time.
AL: Are there any interesting books that you have read?
NG: Actually, the last book that I was inspired by was The Good Apprentice by Iris Murdoch. It's one of my favorite books. It's about learning to be good. How to be good and what a pointless occupation that is.
AL: Do you have any advice for young girls who want to start their own bands?
NG: The only advice I can give is keeping doing it, and keep playing for as many people. Hopefully many people will listen to you, and the right person will listen, and you can move on from there. The whole point is not to shut up and keep bugging people with your music.
AL: You have a few songs about relationships. Do you think it's good to wear your heart on your sleeve, and deal with emotions in a public way?
NG: I don't really know how else to write songs. If I could write songs about other people I would. But somehow it doesn't work out for me. So I write songs about my own feelings, and therefore much of it is autobiographical.
AL: Was this the first time you worked with Bob Rock?
NG: This is the second time. It was great. He and I just connect musically and have a good time. I wanted to work with him again. We had done the last Veruca Salt record together, and once I had a bunch of songs together, I sent them to him. He just loved them and wanted to start working right away and we did.
AL: Are there any records that you liked recently?
NG: I really loved the Macy Gray record. I like the new Travis record. I like Aimee Mann. There's at least three records a year that I like.
****** Check out her website and sign up: www.ninagordon.com

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