28 September 2006 -

EXCLUSIVE Interview: Cassettes Won't Listen
Chuck Norton, DeadJournalist.com

Emerging on the national music scene this summer was Cassettes Won’t Listen, a one-man project of New York City's Jason Drake. Although frequently mistaken for a band, Drake actually plays, records and mixes all of the tracks himself.

Although he performed in bands while in high school, Drake spent most of his musical career as producer in the hip hop and electronic genres. A co-founder of the Dope Lotus crew, he has remixed songs for Dr. Octagon, Morcheeba, Brookville and Midlake.

Drake, as Cassettes Won’t Listen, released the Nobody’s Moving EP earlier this year. Along with Cassettes Won’t Listen, he is currently working on a handful of other musical projects including a complete cover of the 1993 No Alternative album.

For more information on Cassettes Won’t Listen, visit www.cassetteswontlisten.com or his MySpace.com page www.myspace.com/cassetteswontlisten

DeadJournalist.com recently caught up with Jason Drake of Cassettes Won’t Listen for this exclusive interview.

Have people been surprised to find out that Cassettes Won’t Listen isn’t a multi-piece band, but a solo project?

I think some people have embraced it and some people have completely ignored it with thoughts that it’s still a full band. Announcements have been made through reviews, blogs, press releases, and people still e-mail me telling how much they love “us”. Those most surprised are the promoters and bookers at the venues I perform. They seem to think my other “band members” are late for the show.

What made you decide to go from producer to performer?

It was 50% natural progression and 50% being absolutely forced into it. I had just finished up Nobody’s Moving and knew that the next logical step was to start getting the music out by way of shows.

My plan was to set up some smaller shows to get the music to people’s ears. WOXY radio had a copy of Nobody’s Moving and the first single “Cutting Balloons” sat at the top of the charts for a while so before I knew it I was being asked to do shows.

The booker for a well known Lower East Side venue, Pianos, stepped to me and asked me to headline one night. I didn’t really think my first show would be to headline but rule #1 is that you never turn down a headlining spot. So I agreed, put a show together, and the rest is history.

Are you still doing production?

I am definitely still producing like a madman. I’m working on an instrumental album, a follow up to Nobody’s Moving, a new remix for Midlake and Dragons of Zynth, and various other projects.

What did you want to achieve when you started Cassettes Won’t Listen?

I didn’t really have a set goal in mind when CWL came along. I was doing tons of hip hop and electronic production and was signed to a label in Europe that went down the tubes before my album came out.

Around that time I was gravitating more towards my guitar and keys and away from sampling. Next thing I knew I was writing songs again and had a collection of a couple songs that motivated me to keep writing.

I think the goal is the same for everyone out there when it comes to being a musician, the ability to pay rent, put food on the table, and have endless supplies of strippers and weed.

Oh, and having a flying car and a robot maid would be dope, too.

How long did it take for you to record Nobody’s Moving?

From start to finish it took around six months - which is pretty fast for me. When it comes to writing songs, I work at snails pace. Not a very good combination for someone who is extremely impatient.

I would have a couple full lengths out right now if I didn’t have to write and rework my songs as much as I do.

Is it challenging to take your sound from the studio to a live performance?

I thought it would be but after seeing tons of people rocking back up tracks with their ipods I figured I would be able to pull something off.

It takes a good amount of planning for a show, I can’t really show up with an acoustic guitar as a backup plan in case the electricity goes out. Basically, I break down the songs and mix them live on turntables while bouncing back and forth from keys to guitar.

I also like to bring up musicians that I’m currently working with to change up the dynamic a bit. I would say it’s more time consuming to plan a show out then it is challenging. The challenging part is trying to remember everything that is happening on stage while I’m up there.

What is your favorite part of playing a live show?

I enjoy being on stage with those who I respect in music today. I like the change in feeling and response from the crowd when I can break from an electronic indie pop song and bring up an MC to get people’s heads nodding.

Are you in the process of recording a full-length album? When do you expect it to be released?

I’m working on a couple projects right now. One is an instrumental album that includes some of my older work along with reworked instrumentals from the remixes I’ve been working on. I’m looking at having this finished around the time CMJ hits. I’ll be using some of these instrumentals in my upcoming shows this month.

Next, I’m working on a follow up to Nobody’s Moving. I’ve started chronicling the progress on cassetteswontlisten.com, which I’ve found to be very difficult to keep doing everyday. I feel guilty if I don’t update for a day but fuck it. So far I have about 4 songs towards the album. I’m looking at a Spring 2007 release, partly because the music caters more to warm weather and party because I need a good amount of time to finish.

Finally, I’m starting work on a covers album where I’ll be covering the whole No Alternative compilation that was put out back in 1993. It’s called One Alternative and should be finished fairly soon.

The original was put out by the Red Hot Organization, which is dedicated to fighting AIDS so I’m thinking about starting talks with them once the album is complete.

Will you be touring in support of any of the releases?

I’d love to set something up but am more focused on finishing up these projects first. I’ll probably get on the road mid-next year.

You’ve covered several songs, like Pavement’s “Cut Your Hair”, are these songs that you were fond of or were they songs you wanted to tackle musically?

Both “Cut Your Hair” by Pavement and “The Freed Pig” by Sebadoh were songs that defined my years growing up. As, I’m sure, they did for a big percentage of our generation. I was more interested in the result of how they would sound once I put my fingerprint on them. It was also the fact that I could keep recording and singing without spending a month writing a song, the song was there, all I had to do was add myself to it. Recording covers are very exciting in that way.

What do you enjoy most about remixing songs by other artists?

It’s the same enjoyment that I get out of covering a song. One element already exists and it is up to you to create the rest. I like to take the artist’s acappella without getting too deep into the original music and then create a brand new track from scratch. It’s like a musical puzzle where you have to unlock the underlying tune to help fit the melody and lyrics. You’d be surprised how many different types of songs you can produce once you dive deep into the vocals of a song.

Who influenced you as an artist?

That’s a short question with a long answer. Off of the top of my head I would have to list DJ Shadow, Built To Spill, Sebadoh, The Pharcyde, The Shins, Wu Tang, The Doors, El-P, Nine Inch Nails, Fatboy Slim, Sean Lennon, Money Mark, Smashing Pumpkins. The list goes on and on.

In 1996, what were you listening to?

Pavement’s Wowee Zowee, Beck’s Odelay and Old Dirty Bastard’s Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version.

Cassettes Won't Listen