Fiona Apple and her new album's co-producer Charley Drayon open up recently about how they got together and about the creative process, they're search for a new sound.
Fiona said:
"He (Charley Drayton) is my partner now in music. We're working together producing my next album, and the way that I feel with him has influenced the way I write. I've written things that are a little more challenging for me to play and a little more challenging for me to sing because I know that he's going to be with me and that I'm going to get that feeling of focus and dedication to every single thing that I get when I'm around him.”
And then Charley added:
“A little over a year ago I did a gig with Fiona and [keyboardist] Dave Palmer, just a trio. For some time she'd been looking to perform her music in a different way than the original formula, which I believe may have been research toward a new path for ideas to flow musically. And during that phase I felt she'd soon find new territory to explore and create.
Not long after, she called and asked if I would listen to some new songs and ideas she'd been working on. The song treatments were piano and vocal only and on my first listen, I not only thought they were amazing, but also that they could have been released just as they were. I thought her fans would love that as well. Needless to say, I was overwhelmed to be one of the first to hear the body of work, although once I landed back on my feet, I realized the challenge in front of me.
Fiona expressed wanting to incorporate minimal instrumentation to the new material. She asked me how I would join rhythm to the pieces and if any ideas came to me, would I share them with her? She was already in producer mode.
A few weeks later I told her I had some ideas to investigate, so we went into the studio and it all began to unfold. In two weeks we'd pretty much built strong treatments for half of the songs. The feeling I had was like being on a great first date, one night after the next. She liked the character and space we were constructing. Eventually, I began to wonder when we would hit a bump, but some universal force left the path wide open for us to grow deeper into the journey.
At the end of two straight weeks, we looked at each other, exhausted but buzzing on something we'd never been on before, and she said she wanted to continue working on the project together.
Fiona and the material have exposed a much wider spectrum of my musical vocabulary, even to my surprise at times. Seldom does a musical experience reach my soul in the way Fiona's has. I'm blessed to have this chapter in my life."
Spring 2011!
The wait is almost over!!!!!
