| Help us out and click all three buttons below. | |
| This Session | |
| Violitionist Sessions | |
| Follow @violitionist | |
Session Date: March 11, 2011
Posting Date: May 30, 2011
Artist Hometown: Chicago, IL
Links: InTallBuildings.com, Twitter, Facebook
Recorded by: Michael Briggs
3 QUESTIONS
ONE: How did you come up with the name In Tall Buildings?
Erik Hall: I stole it from John Hartford. He has a song called ‘In Tall Buildings.’
MB: What is that song about?
Erik: The song is a sad one. It’s about a man who can’t make any money anymore as a farmer, so he has to cut off his long hair and move to the city and work in an office. It’s kind of a lament for country life. That doesn’t necessarily directly apply to me…I also just like the name. I thought it felt sort of reminiscent of my home. I grew up in downtown Chicago, and it kind of felt good. I also just like the name.
MB: What is that song about?
Erik: The song is a sad one. It’s about a man who can’t make any money anymore as a farmer, so he has to cut off his long hair and move to the city and work in an office. It’s kind of a lament for country life. That doesn’t necessarily directly apply to me…I also just like the name. I thought it felt sort of reminiscent of my home. I grew up in downtown Chicago, and it kind of felt good. I also just like the name.
TWO: What made you go solo after being in NOMO and His Name Is Alive, and what did you learn from being in those bands?
Erik Hall: In those bands, I learned how to be a band—how to tour, how to actually do music professionally. There wasn’t any direct reason behind my going solo, it’s just that I had my own music as well that I was always working on at home, so, when I finished up the record, I had to figure out what to do with it, and ended up creating a band and going that route.
THREE: What was it like recording your most recent album yourself?
Erik Hall: There are pros and cons to being able to do it yourself. The advantage is that the music is like a sketch pad—you can kind of come and go to it as you feel, there’s no deadline or anything. That’s also a detriment as well. There are no deadlines, and you don’t have to limit yourself in any way. You don’t have to commit to any idea—you can always go back and tweak it. That can be good and bad. The second record I’m recording myself as well, but I’m trying to be more deliberate and more efficient with the time I’m actually spending working on it.