Jason Cain
A Denver songwriter lists some favorite acoustic works
Not only does Astrophagus frontman Jason Cain serve a mean cup of joe at Pablo’s Coffee on Capitol Hill, he enjoys a bit of brew in the morning before work. It was over a such a cup of caffeinated stimulus that the songwriter’s new solo EP, Endless Rolling Sea, was born. Cain spent many of the wee, post-dawn hours of the last few months armed with nothing but a hot mug and an acoustic guitar—the latter being a bit of a far cry from Astrophagus’ layered, electronic indie-rock. With the release party for his unplugged disc going down Friday at the Meadowlark, Cain spoke with The A.V. Club about some of his favorite acoustic recordings by other artists: new, old, local, and universal.
Pink Moon by Nick Drake
Jason Cain: It’s to the point. It’s short. It’s beautiful sounding. It’s not really produced a lot. It feels really natural. I think when it comes to acoustic recordings, people in the modern age are terrified that they’re going to be too quiet. Pink Moon has a real natural quality. It’s not over-compressed like a lot of the acoustic recordings, even the ones you hear today. It feels really natural to me. I don’t know if it’s my favorite acoustic album. I’m not very good at “favorite,” but since we’re on that scenario, it’s really grabbed me since the first time I heard it.
Jason Cain: It’s to the point. It’s short. It’s beautiful sounding. It’s not really produced a lot. It feels really natural. I think when it comes to acoustic recordings, people in the modern age are terrified that they’re going to be too quiet. Pink Moon has a real natural quality. It’s not over-compressed like a lot of the acoustic recordings, even the ones you hear today. It feels really natural to me. I don’t know if it’s my favorite acoustic album. I’m not very good at “favorite,” but since we’re on that scenario, it’s really grabbed me since the first time I heard it.
Early Morning Hymns by Old Canes
JC: It’s the defeatist nature of the lyrics that does it for me. At the same time it’s defeatist, it’s defiant. A lot of the songs sound upbeat, but they have a really sort of sad content to them. It feels really natural, really real. It doesn’t feel forced at all. I saw these guys live when they played in Denver at the Hi-Dive, and I just fell in love with them.
JC: It’s the defeatist nature of the lyrics that does it for me. At the same time it’s defeatist, it’s defiant. A lot of the songs sound upbeat, but they have a really sort of sad content to them. It feels really natural, really real. It doesn’t feel forced at all. I saw these guys live when they played in Denver at the Hi-Dive, and I just fell in love with them.
Early John Denver albums
JC: I grew up listening to John Denver. When I became a teenager—and even now—everyone was like, “Oh, that’s totally uncool.” None of my friends like John Denver, even now. When you’re not a kid, though, you can really like whatever you like. I’m not saying I like every song John Denver made, but there was a time when he was doing some pretty cool things. He was an honest guy, kind of dorky, but he’s cool. I think that there’s a definite trend in the 21st century toward irony as a form of discourse. I personally have never found that terribly appealing as a go-to attitude. I find irony to be a defense mechanism to defend yourself from reality. I’ve always favored the other artists, the ones that were honest or earnest. That’s not to say that some things that are ironic aren’t great, but we’re getting to this point where people should actually start liking stuff because they like it.
JC: I grew up listening to John Denver. When I became a teenager—and even now—everyone was like, “Oh, that’s totally uncool.” None of my friends like John Denver, even now. When you’re not a kid, though, you can really like whatever you like. I’m not saying I like every song John Denver made, but there was a time when he was doing some pretty cool things. He was an honest guy, kind of dorky, but he’s cool. I think that there’s a definite trend in the 21st century toward irony as a form of discourse. I personally have never found that terribly appealing as a go-to attitude. I find irony to be a defense mechanism to defend yourself from reality. I’ve always favored the other artists, the ones that were honest or earnest. That’s not to say that some things that are ironic aren’t great, but we’re getting to this point where people should actually start liking stuff because they like it.
XO by Elliott Smith
JC: Everybody’s heard this record. I think I’ve written a lot of songs that were similar to it. In the past I really relied on that negative outlook, more lyrically than sonically. I really appreciate music that has good lyrics and some subtlety in the writing. I think subconsciously I try to emulate that. There’s a certain sensibility Elliott Smith that resonates with me, and I’ve never gotten out of that.
JC: Everybody’s heard this record. I think I’ve written a lot of songs that were similar to it. In the past I really relied on that negative outlook, more lyrically than sonically. I really appreciate music that has good lyrics and some subtlety in the writing. I think subconsciously I try to emulate that. There’s a certain sensibility Elliott Smith that resonates with me, and I’ve never gotten out of that.
Scott Brabson
JC: Denver has a lot of great songwriters. I just found this guy, Scott Brabson. I don’t even know if he plays any shows or anything. He has this song up online that I listened to recently, and I was like, “Damn, this guy’s got skills!”
JC: Denver has a lot of great songwriters. I just found this guy, Scott Brabson. I don’t even know if he plays any shows or anything. He has this song up online that I listened to recently, and I was like, “Damn, this guy’s got skills!”
