Happy Sunday, dear readers. My weekend is being spent in transit—lots of breezy, windows-down driving, hiking, and dreaming out loud to the tune of one goddamn great album. Last Tuesday, Menomena's Brent Knopf released his first solo record,
Intuit, under the name of Ramona Falls. Frankly, I've been unable to listen to anything else for several days. Intuit is stunning from start to finish—it's daring, quirky, and uniquely complex. The tempo changes, the layers, the peaks & valleys of melodic momentum, the captivating interplay between Brent's vocals and the bevy of instruments the album employs .... oh dear, I love it so!!!
I nearly poked out one of my co-worker's eyes while talking about Intuit with great animation last week. This inventive, weirdly handsome album has made my eyes well up more than once—yeah, several tracks' vulnerability get to me, but I am such a heart-clenching music super fan, guys. Whenever someone asks me to describe my blog, I say that it is my love letter, my kissing booth for music. And it's true, this whole blogging thing is much bigger than a casual hobby for me. Music is a creative, intellectual, analytical, and social endeavor in my life. Musicians like Brent Knopf and albums like Intuit reaffirm why I spend so much time on music. It's the stuff that makes me stop in my tracks and holler, "hurray!" mid-song. Intuit is a tremendous accomplishment—a high art, a bounteous garden of musical stems & seeds. It is beloved.
I Say Fever - Ramona Falls | 
Check out one of my favorite songs from the album (above, though it's meant to be heard within the context of the full album), followed with my interview with Brent Knopf (below). I was in touch with Brent before the album dropped, so my queries focus on the recording process—Intuit features many guest contributors, including members of The Helio Sequence and Loch Lomond. Even though I had to restrain myself from peppering Brent with several more questions, this interview is my favorite one to date!
Hi, Brent! Congratulations on your new album and thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions. Getting right to it, I was initially very surprised to read about this release. I know that Menomena has been at work on a new album, and you fellas have been touring a bit as well. When was Intuit recorded?
The recording of Intuit began in earnest in January 2009, and was finished by early May.
I've only heard two of your tracks, "Russia" and "Salt Sack" and I absolutely love them. Your aesthetic doesn't seem to veer too far away from what Menomena produces, but there's something a bit more introspective and organic about these particular tunes ... yet they're still gorgeously complex and exciting and wholly addictive. My mind takes flight in happy wonderment! What made you decide to pursue your solo project, Ramona Falls?
I decided to pursue recording Ramona Falls once it became clear that the writing of the Menomena record was going to take much longer than we had anticipated. I craved forward motion of some kind, and Ramona Falls provided the outlet.
So do you feel that Intuit is a great departure from your work with Menomena?
The recording techniques were the same. The guest appearances and strict deadlines were where the experience differed most profoundly.
Right—the guest appearances! Your album has over 30 guest contributors. That's effing amazing. Um, you are the type of guy that talks to everyone at parties, aren't you?
It depends on what kind of party it is. I'm definitely terrible at schmoozing or trying to hype anything, but I'm curious about people. Quite honestly, I default towards shyness, introspection and "sorry, I gotta go home and keep working" excuses. I'm excited to tour, because it draws me out of my shell. Collaborating with these folks was such a delight, and it helped balance me out, and saved me from feeling isolated like the Unabomber or something. Looking back, I feel so thankful to be part of such a community of musicians.
So how did these muscians shape Intuit? Did you already have the songs' frameworks in place or was the process much more collaborative? And did you have any preconceived ideas of how you wanted the writing and recording process to go?
I'm interested in where unpredictability intersects careful planning. General structures and layers for the songs were already established. But I often asked to record the collaborators as they improvised along to the song the very first time they ever heard it. Assumptions form and calcify so quickly once you know where a song is going. Because I feel that naivete is more precious than virtuosity, I wished to capture those spontaneous performances. We'd record the first hour this way, without much direction from me. But the final hour we'd shift gears—I'd have examples prepared and very specific requests. Later, I would have both kinds of takes to draw from when gluing the performances together. For example, on the song "Salt Sack," Michael Papillo improvised the bowed upright bass-line for the verses, but I had planned the plucked bass-lines for the choruses in advance.
So you must have done quite a bit of tinkering with each song. How do you know when a song has reached its final, meant-to-be state?
I view the writing of a song as a kind of puzzle. And once continued efforts working on the puzzle stop solving it further, I force myself to let go. Then the recording's done. It's a struggle to finalize a song, because I'm more in love with puzzles than solutions. I resist reducing infinite possibility—a song—down to a single outcome, a recording. I almost have to trick myself into finishing something.
You might really hate this question, but do you have a favorite song from the album?
My favorite parts of the record are those that I feel work without my knowing why they work. The guitar noise section in the middle of "Salt Sack," the choir arrangement in "Bellyfulla," and the groove at the end of "I Say Fever" come to mind.
Why the nom de band, Ramona Falls? Google tells me that it's a very lovely hike just outside of Portland. Was that the inspiration?
As a kid, Ramona Falls was the place I imagined I could run away to if I ever needed a safe haven. I chose it as a band name because it evokes unambiguously positive memories and associations for me.
I've read that you play a lot of instruments, Brent. You are a clever, talented musician and the blisslist wants to know what you suck at. Please share.
I feel like I only play keyboard and guitar. Maybe I suck at taking a compliment. Other weaknesses include shopping at grocery stores—how can anyone decide between 100 salad dressings? Also, I may never find any stage banter wit. I was so nervous at last night's show, I couldn't think of anything to say. Sigh.
Ok, something I love to ask because I write a music-minded blog and I'm fascinated by the ways in which people discover and obtain music—with file-sharing and the accessibility of mp3s, do you think is it harder to make a living in a band these days?
It's complex. I'm very appreciative of music blogs that spread the word about Menomena. And I'm extremely grateful for people who buy our music. Because of this, I've been able to get fired from waiting tables and redirect my focus to making more music. I'd love to see even better mechanisms established for music fans to support their favorite artists.
I definitely agree—it's important for folks to support the bands that they like, and I think the mechanisms in place will continue to evolve—hopefully in the favor of musicians! With that said, I think that's it. Thanks so much for answering my queries, Brent. I'm looking forward to your upcoming performance in San Francisco and our city is so happy to have you back! Cafe du Nord is one of my favorite venues in San Francisco, and I am sure you'll love playing there.
Yes, I love Cafe du Nord as well. I'm very excited for the show!
Ramona Falls is scheduled to perform at Cafe du Nord this Tuesday, August 25. Snatch up tickets right here, right now and see you there!
(top graphic's photographer unknown)
