Damien Verrett is level 78 dark mage from the halls of Davis. He mostly harbors his magic into his various musical efforts; The Speed Of Sound In Seawater, So Much Light and upcoming Miracle Cure. In his free time he also does some other stuff. WHAT A GUY. He shares with us some shit about music and some other stuff he’s got going on. 10/10 must read. This is important.
Hey Damien! Thanks for taking time out of your busy days full of spell churning and incantation casting to talk a little bit about the music stuff you’ve got going on. You contribute vocals for three projects. All of them contain really intriguing lyrics, usually either full of the supernatural or are storytelling pieces. What are some subjects you like to discuss in your lyrics, does it differ from the band and your solo stuff to Mansion Closets? Also how did the solo stuff come about? Do you just really love hearing your own voice?
I’ve always had trouble writing lyrics about the “real world.” “Reality” is here to stay and it doesn’t need any contribution from me to maintain its control over our “bodies.” With that being said, I’ve always cast my vote in favor of the supernatural. Writing songs about the supernatural allows me to enter another world. I’m interested in the way that the supernatural simultaneously mirrors and distorts reality. Fantasy is rooted in metaphor. Every mythical creature is a hyperbole of a real world equivalent, so writing about them creates multiple layers of meaning. Similarly, writing in this way makes living in reality more entertaining because you can see who the wraiths and nymphs are among us.
The lyrics I write for The Speed of Sound in Seawater most completely embody this supernatural aesthetic. Over time I’ve shifted my more personal and confessional lyrics over to So Much Light. The lyrics I write for Mansion Closets (which is now dead and has been replaced by Miracle Cure, gosh get with the program, Joel) have a more tongue in cheek tone. I love pop music and R&B, but these genres are not without their own absurdities. The pop song structures of Miracle Cure are a nice venue for social commentary, something that So Much Light and TSOSIS can’t really offer. It’s a new frontier for me that I’ve been having a lot of fun with.
I was recently possessed by a manipulation spell of yours while I was trying to sleep. I awoke in the morning to an email confirming the purchase of some sacred, dark artifact from a storenvy domain registered to your name. I have no recollection of the night before, and I’m not sure if I would have made the buy with my own free will, but I guess I’m excited to receive the parcel and examine its content. What made you start selling sweaters? Does owning a clothing line complete your stereotypical egotistical band member evolution? What stats does this enchanted garment raise?
Joel, let me start by reminding you that your will is anything but free, with or without the influence of my manipulation spells. Our fates are written. That sweater was going to find its way onto your body one way or another.
It sounds like you’re referring to gothsrule.storenvy.com, where fashion conscious consumers can purchase a lovely black sweater with the words “GOTHS RULE” printed across the chest in white ink. My buddy Kyle and I printed a handful of these sweaters a couple years ago and gave them to all of our friends. The idea came from us talking about those shirts you can find at Forever 21 with declamatory and meaningless phrases printed in block letters like “BREAK THE RULES” and “SWAG.” We started tossing around ideas and decided that “GOTHS RULE” was this perfect statement that completely defies the ideology of the subculture it references. People would ask about the sweaters and where we got them so finally I’ve started selling them.
I love clothes and I love confusing people so doing both at the same time gives me valuable free time to write songs and touch guitars. The sweaters have been well received and I’m excited to print some new designs. Soon I’ll be the hip hop mogul I’ve always dreamed of becoming.
Wearing these garments will give a +1 to your “Swag” stat and a +666 to your “Make Out” meter.
TSOSIS’ new album is a million times less noodly and “math-rocky” than other stuff that you have released. I know you guys have gotten a lot of shit about it before and you’ve probably talked about it a bunch prior to this, but hey. Do you think it is important for musicians to keep it fresh with each release?
I’ve never understood people who complain about a band changing their sound. It’s not as though the band is trying to renounce their old style. Sometimes it gets boring using the same creative palette again and again. When bands I listen to decide to stir things up for new releases I think it’s awesome. You get to hear all of the things you loved about the band in a new context.
It’s like the same boring sex with the partner you’ve had for years. She’s the love of your life and you know that’s true, but sometimes you need to break out the gimp suit and the handcuffs before you can see in her eyes the same passion you always knew was there. (I have a weird memory of reading this analogy somewhere else so I refuse to claim credit for it and, thus, you can’t blame me for the imagery either)
This argument gets complicated in regards to Math Rock because people have this preconception that Math Rock is complicated and technical and *toot toot toot.* Genres are stupid and confining and anybody who’s worth listening to isn’t going out of their way to slap a label on their art.
Don’t get me wrong, Math Rock is a cool genre and a lot of my favorite bands fall under the banner of “Math” music. However, when I hear wanky open tuning two hand tapping riffage I just tune it out. Like any genre, Math Rock is not without its clichés and I think It’s silly when bands get ragged on for not writing the record people are expecting to hear.
You live in Davis, that’s pretty cool I guess. But, all of your projects associate with Sacramento because of the proximity, so you can answer for either town. What kind of music stuff goes on there (venues, locals etc.)? How has your location affected your taste in music? Do you like living where you do?
The Sacramento music scene is interesting. I’ve talked to people in other states who have an idea of Sacramento as this hub for creative music and, while we are the hometown of some awesome bands (Tera Melos, Hella, A Lot Like Birds), the trickle down from these heavy hitters is pretty modest. Right now we don’t have a huge peer group in the local scene.
I mentioned Tera Melos above and those guys (particularly Nick Reinhart) have had a tremendous influence on me as a musician. Growing up watching them come out of a weirdo Sacramento suburb just like me has been hugely inspirational.
I like being from Sacramento in the sense that it has given me a clean slate to work with. There’s something completely unassuming about Sacramento as compared to other California cities like San Francisco or Los Angeles. There are no preconceptions that come with being from Sacramento and, as a result, people tend to be pretty modest. I’d never brag about my hometown but at the same time I’d never bash it for being what it is. Neutrality wins every time.
Why are there so many videos of you on youtube? Is this something that you planned on or was it just natural? John Howe’s lyric video for you guys is my favorite out of all of his. How did you guys end up working with him?
I think it’s important to document my live performances. It really helps me strive to become a better performer. I’ll go back and watch something from 6 months ago and go “Oh yuck, I fucking sucked,” and it’ll motivate me to pick up my guitar and work on improving. I feel like performing is the most beautiful thing about music as an art form. Recordings are static, but every performance is unique and there’s this electricity in the air when you fill a room with people that can’t be reproduced in any other medium.
We hooked up with John Howe after he produced a lyric video for our friends in A Lot Like Birds. John is so talented and is a pleasure to work with. He’s full of ideas and has the technical know-how to make anything work. Really glad we have him as a contact going forward.
Are you afraid of ghosts? Are you afraid of that guy? Are you actually afraid of anything?
I’m actually not afraid of ghosts anymore. I believe in ghosts but I don’t think they’re anything worth being afraid of in the same way that you shouldn’t be afraid of getting into a plane crash because no matter what happens there’s nothing you can do about it so what’s the point of being scared? I am terrified of “that guy.”
I’m a little bit scared of my own brain. Sometimes I’ll freak myself out thinking I might be able to make my own heart stop beating by accessing a part of my brain that I’m not supposed to be in touch with.
Damien is the name of that kid creepy kid in the omen. That’s fucking scary. Are you that kid? Is that why you’re not afraid of anything?
I am the antichrist. God is dead. The year is one.
What BIG THINGS do you have planned for the future with TSOSIS, Miracle Cure and So Much Light?
Miracle Cure is next on my list. I have a 4 song EP in the works that should be done early 2014. I’m very very excited about this new EP. It’s pure pop, which is new territory for me. I’m eager to share these fresh club jams.
I’ve put songs from Finals Week on mixtapes for girls that I really, really dig. How does that make you feel that there is probably a girl out there right now crying to your voice? Did you expect for So Much Light to pick up the way it did? What has the reception been like?
Making girls cry is one of the many perks of playing confessional acoustic music. I can’t express how powerful that makes me feel. On the real though, I played a show on one of my tours this summer where a girl right in front started crying. It really meant a lot to me being someone who has also been moved to tears at concerts. I saw toe last fall and bawled my eyes out when they played “Goodbye.” The idea that I could affect someone in that same way is wonderful.
When I started So Much Light I had no intention of referring to it as a “side project.” I don’t think of any of the bands I’m in as being secondary to one another. Seeing people react in such a positive way to my tours with So Much Light means a lot to me and is very encouraging.
If you could tour anywhere in the world with anyone, who/where would it be?
I would tour to the Bermuda Triangle with Joanna Newsom.
What’s the creepiest/ most supernatural thing that’s happened to you?
Last year my friends and I had an experience with a Ouija board which ended with us chopping up an old footlocker and burning it in the fireplace in order to free the spirit of a dead soldier named Eliot. I wish I was kidding.
In “90’s High School Party” it sounds like you chilled at some depressing ass parties. Let’s party next time you’re in town and maybe you can write a song that’s a little more cheery eh?
Hell yeah, bro. I’ll bring the Capri Sun, you bring the Slip-N-Slide!
What inspiring words do you want to say to people that think that you’re cool? Make it a cool like send offy kind of thing.
Your body is just meat. Eat all of it.
You can check out Damien’s music as well as some of his favorite stuff below;
SOON YOU WILL FIND YOUR DARKNESS
http://gothsrule.storenvy.com
SOON WE WILL ALL ROT
http://thespeedofsoundinseawater.bandcamp.com(Magic/Sparkle/Enchanting)
http://somuchlight.bandcamp.com (Contemplative/Beautiful/Acoustic)
http://mansionclosets.bandcamp.com (Have You Ever Made Love In The Club)
http://townhall.bandcamp.com (Orchestra Nerds/Cute)
http://paperpistols.bandcamp.com (Wobblies/ Folk-Hop)
http://feedmejack.com (All Your Body Parts Dancing At Once/Your Brain Kissing The Back Of Your Eyes)
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