DeadJournalist.com Exclusive Interviews
Dirty on Purpose
EXCLUSIVE Interview: Dirty on Purpose
Chuck Norton, DeadJournalist.com
12.29.06
Dirty on Purpose spent a good portion of 2006 receiving praise from the press following the release of their album, Hallelujah Sirens, in June.
The Brooklyn-based band, comprised of Doug Marvin, George Wilson, Joe Jurewicz and D.J. Boudreau, has drawn comparisions to Yo La Tengo and the early days of Death Cab for Cutie because of their ability to write thoughtful lyrics and their mix of early-indie/shoegaze sound.
The band will be playing a handful of shows in January 2007, before heading to Europe to kick off a mini-tour in London on February 8, 2007.
For more information on Dirty on Purpose, visit their MySpace.com page: www.myspace.com/dirtyonpurpose or their page on their Web site: www.dirtyonpurpose.com.
DeadJournalist.com brings you this exclusive interview with Joe Jurewicz of Dirty on Purpose.
How did Dirty on Purpose form? And how long have you been playing together?
JJ: We've been together for a little over 4 years, and we formed when George and I decided to start a band when we found space to rehearse in.
Was there a moment when you knew you had something special?
JJ: We're still waiting for that I think. This whole thing has been very slow and methodical. We're on a logical arc, there are steps you have to go through to get to the next point, and then you take it from there. Being in a band is like anything else, you have to do certain things to get what you want out of it.
I am sure there are people who start a band thinking it's going to be this magical journey of la-di-da, but it's a job like anything else, it has it's high points and low points, and if you get through the low ones, the high ones are pretty sweet. But at the end of the day, you are creating a product to be sold, you're a business. If you don't want that, and you're wanting something special, stay in your room, and don't let anyone hear what you are doing. Be an artist or whatever.
We're just a bunch of musicians, trying to make some records that we like, and maybe sell a few of them. Pretty simple.
Your debut album as been a critical success, even drawing a nomination for album of the year. How long did it take to record the album? Where there specific influences behind it?
JJ: It took about six months or so from the initial tracking to the final mix. We didn't set out to make it sound like anything other than us.
That said, we all have a range of influences that I am sure crept in, sometimes in a not very hidden way.
The band just completed an extensive tour that included six shows at CMJ. What were some of the most memorable parts of the tour?
JJ: Touring with the Album Leaf, Lymbyc Systym, and Margot and the Nuclear So and So's was amazing. All of the people in those bands were fun to hang out with, and I think the best part of the tour was making new friends with those people. It's nice to have other people to hang out with on tour, it keeps the fighting to a minimum.
Besides going home, what's the best part of finally wrapping up the tour?
JJ: That's about it, though coming home wakes you up and makes you realize you have a week to come up with a month's rent. Good times.
Are you working on a new album? If so, when do you expect it to be released?
JJ: We are in the process of writing new material and working on older stuff we never got a chance to finish because of all the touring we've done. I have no idea when we'll even start recording, but hopefully by next summer, we'll have something out.
The band recently hosted MTV2's Subterranean, how'd that come about?
JJ: I think that came from the relentless Chris Howerton at North Street Records, our label. He is like a phone pit bull, and usually can talk people into anything. I also think that the booker for that show was a fan. She and all the rest of the MTV people we met were super nice, and we had a good time doing that show.
Who were some of the biggest musical influences on the band?
JJ: In the beginning, George and I wanted to sound like a more country-ish version of the band Bedhead, but that got all fucked up and now I have no clue what it is we're going for.
What were you listening to in 1996?
JJ: In 1996, I am pretty sure I was still listening to Soundgarden. Then my roomate gave me Drive Like Jehu's Yank Crime. I think that's all I listened to for the rest of the year.