Skysaw - No One Can Tell - Video

For those of you who can watch, tis blocked here in the UK for some reason.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U74gy_a4Bic

Jimmy Chamberlin - Songwriter

Putting the Sophistication back into Society

Check out the full interview, over at Songwriters on Process,  right >here<

Selected morsels >below<

On Skysaw; With a song like "Sad Reasons" on this record, I sat down in my office and just played the song from start from start to finish on my guitar... It didn't involve a lot of process other than making myself available to what was going on around me. That song in particular was a telling exercise because I was interested in how it would change over time after I recorded it and again after I delivered it to the band.  But the first version I laid down in my studio in the basement is the one that made it to the record."

On Tonight Tonight; "...the muse can take many different forms. Ideally, the greatest gift it to be hand-delivered a song from the cosmos and have it be the version. Billy Corgan often writes the same way. Like with "Tonight Tonight," he said he just woke up one morning, went down to the piano, and played it. And much like with a lot of those drum parts that happened in the Pumpkins, the first time he played it for me, the drum part you hear is the first drum part I thought of."

On playing the guitar; "I'm not that sophisticated of a guitar player to be able to come up with ... the riff of the century."

On Tolkien, Thelonious Monk and Mark Twain; In the arranging and production of songs, when I'm building them from the chords up and putting layerings of production in a song, I want to feel like I'm building this Tolkienesque world of music that's available to people on many layers... Thelonius Monk was always good at playing something that on the surface appeared simple, but as you delved deeper you realized that the chord structure on which the melody was based was so complex.. The idea behind playing the drums is to play something simple enough so that people can rhythmically attach to it, but as an artist my job is also to satisfy myself with a sophistication that exists within the music.  Mark Twain invites you into his world with seeming simplicity, but once you get into his writing, you realize how complex it is.

 On Zeitgeist; When I was with the Pumpkins and we did  Zeitgeist, it had been almost seven years since we made the album before it.  So having to go and play that style of drumming again, I was often I was at loggerheads with myself because I was saying, "I don't really play like this anymore..."  It became difficult to mine that stuff from 1996 and relearn how to play like that.  It would be like writing in the style you did when you were a sophomore in college.  That would be difficult since you've moved on...

Again, go check out the full thing. It's rather insightful indeed.

The Answer to Your Question, the Answer to Your Guess...

Jimmy Chamberlin and Mike Reina talk SKYSAW, Smashing Pumpkins, Jimmy Chamberlin Complex, SP Archives and... Mike Byrne

Special thanks to John Prinzo we've got a couple of your questions answered below.
Check out his site or the suburbanapologist.com for the full interview. The whole thing is most definitely worth a read.

The typical trajectory of a band starting off is to tour then record – how does it feel to turn that concept on its head?

MR: It’s interesting to construct tightly wound songs and then go looking for the places where they can stretch out a bit live.

Who put together the orchestral arrangement on “Am I Second?”

MR: Jimmy wrote the orchestral arrangement, Anthony transcribed it and we recorded it at my place.

How many songs have you recorded as SkySaw?
MR: Eleven – I think and demoed probably 12-15 others.

What was Roy Thomas Baker’s involvement with the record?

JC: We worked with Roy early on.  Jimmy sent him “No One Can Tell” and asked if he wanted to be involved.  He loved the song and came out to my place to work with us for two weeks.  After the first two weeks we decided to remain insular and produce the record ourselves.  We started from scratch and continued working together as we had previous to our stint with Roy.  He was hilarious, by the way.

Have you changed up your kit for SkySaw? I noticed a few pictures that didn’t seem to have the left mounted 14” tom or quite as many cymbals. If so, is this a reflection of your approach to this sound or brand of music?

JC: I moved things around for one show. My configuration is the same.

(DP: The drummer for the Constellations, who are joining Minus the Bear and Skysaw on tour tweets: "Wanted 2 clarify-he's still using yellow Yamahas while his DW kit is being made."

What is the name of this song…

…and will it see a release?

JC: “Cathedral.” It is fairly new, not yet recorded and will be on the next release following Great Civilizations

Rumors are that the Jimmy Chamberlin Complex had a couple of tracks in the works, details?

JC: The complex lives and will rise up again at some point. Mohler and I started working on stuff before I left the Pumpkins and we continue to do so.  It’s really just a time issue. We are both very busy these days.

What, if anything, can you say about the upcoming Smashing Pumpkin re-masters and re-releases?

JC: I am very excited.  Those records are sacred to me and I’m thrilled that they will be Repackaged and marketed to another generation. The Pumpkins still have a lot to offer, old and new I’m sure.

As a respected musician and accomplished drummer, what is your summation of Mike Byrne? Ya know, if you were evaluating him or grading him or just your opinion.

JC: I think Mike is perfect for what Billy is doing now; a great drummer with an extremely bright future.

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 Again, check out the full interview right, here

Woah - SKYSAW Serrated

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