ANDREW SAVAGE

An endless journey. That would best summarise the eternal creative pursuit of Parquet Courts frontman and soloist Andrew Savage. His musical explorations have taken him across the world to where he now resides in France. From his beginnings in the state of Texas, to his extensive relocation to New York and recent migration to Paris, there is a sense of impermanence within permanence. The common denominator and unifying factor throughout his career has been his immutable drive and unrelenting artistic desire. Steadfast and unshakable, it propels him ever forward.
.

Many of the fundamentals consistently running throughout Savage’s life such as music, art, and literature, are in themselves transient and in a state of flux. The once solid bedrock of predictability and familiarity, uprooted as the situational cornerstones of identity become tattered platforms erected on shifting sands. How his creative life responded to transition and change is the true measure of his character and talent as his ceaseless ability extracts new artistic inspirations from the surrounds of his abode.

One such outcome of his chosen relocation has been his latest record Several Songs About Fire. A point he makes when bringing us up to speed where he has been and where he is now based, “I actually live in the south of France now, I was somewhat transient in Paris. I’ve finally set up a studio here and started creating work, which was in itself a lot of work. Basically, I moved my entire studio from New York to here. It was timely and expensive. But I’m here now and work is coming out, in both visual and musical forms. I’m proud to be a New Yorker, which is the place I consider home, but I don’t live there anymore and very likely never will again, or anywhere else in the states for that matter, so home becomes a different thing. In the song ‘Elvis in the Army’ I mention Joyce living in Trieste, which is where he wrote a large bulk of Ulysses. A bit of a highbrow reference for a rock song I guess but for him Dublin was always home, though nearly his entire career and adult life was spent away from it. I think that should tell you everything you need to know about art and geography.” A typical Savage response in using literary works to best describe a time and experience. His unquenchable thirst for the written word is indeed the lubricant that keeps his creative machine nourished and forever stimulated. Not least because his broad literary awareness permeates his lyricism, seeping into the wording contained within Several Songs About Fire as well as his many other albums.

With a deep love of the written word and an affinity for literature, Savage’s lyricism is nothing short of exceptional. No small surprise given the biting wit and observational astuteness that is on full display in the near-poetic lyrics he produces across all his works. Reminiscent of so many iconic writers/poets/musicians, such as Gil Scott-Heron, Bob Dylan, and Leonard Cohen some of whom wrote autobiographically, others vicariously, and some through abstraction. Understanding where Savage’s style falls along those lines is best illustrated when he addresses the topic of what tends to be the wick that ignites his creative fires. “I guess everything is somewhat autobiographical in that it’s based in experience, but perhaps the way I communicate experience could be considered abstracted. I don’t really think about it as I’m writing. I just try to say what I’m trying to say in a way that is both direct and interesting and uses the words most fitting of what I want to convey emotionally.” A blindingly obvious point perhaps but one that is easier said than done. As any writer will immediately empathize with, experiencing an emotion and succinctly expressing it verbally can be two very different things, and at the very least a psychological and analytical arm wrestle often fought over a laboriously long time.

In drilling down a little further, Savage explains the moment he knows when he has a good line and what his mindset is often like amid a creative burst when fleshing out a lyric as he goes on to say, “I try to write each line three or four times and pick the version that sort of hits the emotional nail on the head. Writing is easy, it’s figuring out what you want to say that’s difficult. I think that goes for any type of art. The creation comes with ease once you know what you are saying, but getting to that point for me has always been the challenge.” A clear case of it is easy when you know how. Controlling the flow of creativeness is manageable, it is locating the well from which to tap into in the first place that is the hard part. It is an illuminating point that Savage makes regarding writing, yet the written word is but one aspect within his vast creative realm.

Having built up an artistic framework over the years, hung from its supportive structure are adornments and embellishments of his many creative expressions and pursuits. Putting down the pen in favour of the brush, another constant throughout Savage’s artistic career is his work as a painter and visual artist. Painting first and foremost as a creative outlet and for personal enjoyment, his work has garnered the attention of fellow artists and the wider community. One doesn’t have to look too far to see such work as a semi-recent commission to furnish the walls of a newly renovated venue in Los Angeles attests. A regular source of inspiration as much as a source of income, Savage’s distinctive style is instantly recognisable and quintessentially his own. Whether it is art for an institution, cover art for records, product labels, or the design work for tour posters, a revolving palette keeps the juices flowing.

Describing the interplay between the various visual art mediums, where his artistic worlds overlap and where those worlds diverge, Savage elaborates by simply saying, “I guess they overlap in obvious ways, like the art I do for my music such as record packaging, merch, tour posters, etc. In practice, both require a sort of daily attention, even if it’s just strumming a guitar or doodling, just to stay in practice. Typically, I’ll focus on one more than the other for a period of time before switching and I find that helpful. Sometimes both are demanded, and it’s fine if it’s for the same thing, say something visual I apply to music, but it can be hard to fully concentrate on two disparate things. Both are creative processes but different, it’s hard to describe quite how they are different but maybe it’s better to consider how it is consumed than how it’s created. Music typically begins and ends — an album or song have a start and finish. Whereas a painting or a piece of visual art, it’s up to the viewer to decide when to walk away, and when to disengage. I think because of that they are just different languages and it’s not always so easy to be bilingual.” A humble and modest assessment but one language with which Savage is completely fluent is the language of music.

An incredible musician in his own right Savage came to prominence along with brother Max Savage (drums), Austin Brown (vocals, guitar, keyboard), and Sean Yeaton (bass, vocals), when the Texian quartet delivered to the world their phenomenal record Light Up Gold. The album was the follow-up to their debut American Specialties but it was arguably the piece that started their stratospheric rise and emergence into the global music consciousnesses. Since that time, Savage has gone on to produce a further five studio albums with Parquet Courts and toured relentlessly. Having laid down multiple albums with his band, a simmering solo career had been percolating for some time.

The quiet repose away from the band and rigors of touring is a departure from the norm, providing a fertile ground where solo work can be conjured and finessed. It begs the question, did Savage feel that there comes a time in every artist’s life when a solo career is a call that must be answered? It is an indecisive response by Savage but a call he nonetheless answered in the form of his incredible 2017 solo debut Thawing Dawn’. “I don’t know if there does come a time in every artist’s life, but I guess that time came in my own life. Parquet Courts is something I’m very proud of, and it’s almost certainly the thing I’ve done that people are most familiar with, but it’s not the only thing I do or have done.” The additional freedoms that come with being unfettered by band restraints, touring schedules, and label requirements do as Savage details, guide the solo process quite a bit. “The label requirements aren’t much different since I’m with the same record company as Parquet Courts — Rough Trade Records. But by very nature the A. Savage project is me, and whoever musicians I can play with at that time. In Parquet Courts I am but one member of the band, and it’s a band that really tries to be a democracy. I honestly can say I like making music both ways and don’t really prefer one to the other, each way has its pros and cons. I think I’ll always want to do both.” A diplomatic response and one that continues to serve Savage well as his latest album Several Songs About Fire demonstrates.

As his musical endeavours continued unabated, no longer stemmed by band constraints, the constant accruements of new experiences and change of address became outpourings fuelled by change and funnelled into new musical pieces distilled by personal experience. The embodiment of the new solo record bookended his time between New York and Paris as Savage neatly says, when referring to the commencement of the album, “it began when I realized I needed to leave New York, and it was released once I had, so it really is about the end of that journey.” A mirror to what was and what now is.

Drawing some amazing artists into his orbit with which to work on his latest solo album, Savage is in two minds as to whether the album has more subtle instrumentation considering it was primarily written and recorded on acoustic, and if a paired-back style was the most fitting approach to echo the sentiments he was trying to convey. “I’m not sure if the instrumentation is really all that more subtle, considering the band on this album consists of seven people playing a wide range of instruments. Some tracks feature multiple wind instruments, multiple percussion instruments, violin and multiple voices, as well as the traditional rock band ensemble. But I think the point is that these songs can be paired down, and that really any song could be if its going to stand up on its own as a song.” A statement that speaks broadly about Savage’s approach not just in regard to the tracks off Several Songs About Fire, but to a greater extend that all of his works are able to stand alone and such a methodology is applicable to virtually everything his deft hand touches.

Where this leaves him and the where the current album falls along the spectrum of his creative energies is a place of constant movement and motivation. There is little time to rest on his laurels and even less time to ponder which of all his creations, he is most proud of, let alone the notion of what indelible mark he has etched into world of sound and vision as he explains. “I’m pretty self-critical and for that reason I tend to want to focus on the thing I’m onto next. Several Songs About Fire would definitely be something I’m quite proud of. I did a painting recently, of which a cropped version for the 45 single of ‘Black Holes the Stars and You’. It’s called “Introducing Valerie”. That’s one of the best paintings I’ve ever done. But with both, there is a lot of room for improvement so I tend to not take victory laps.” A refreshing and honest reply which can be in short supply when asking artists about their successes.

A fitting time to ask Savage, where his prospective interests lie and what he sees himself producing in five, ten years from now? “I think it’s safe to say that people can expect me to be always doing what I’m doing. What I love most is painting and playing music. I’d like to have a painting show, I haven’t’ had one in years. I’d absolutely like to do another Parquet Courts record. Surely there will be more music I make as a solo artist that may or may not be called A. Savage, I’m just not sure. Beyond that? I’m open to anything really. Making music for a film could be cool, I’m not sure I’ve really never done it. Sometimes I want to write things that aren’t lyrics but I find it difficult. I’m not sure really, I just really like what I do and want to keep doing that. I can’t imagine a life where I don’t create things. Well I guess I can because I have a good imagination, but when I do it seems really depressing.” A life without art and artistic expression is indeed a dull one but for individuals such as Savage who thrive and survive on their artistic exploits, it is unimaginable to cease producing and to no longer been inspired or compelled to create. A fortunate outcome for the greater community as Savage and his creative collective, continue to bequeath to the world an array of amazing art. Be it, visual, musical or otherwise, the tireless urge to create is perhaps the single greatest gift that can be given, both to self and the wider world.

As for right here and right now, Savage will be performing Several Songs About Fire later this month and he is ready “Now is one of those transitionary times, I’ve been painting all summer long, and now I’m going to spend the next few months focusing on music.”