CMJ 2012 Issue! - The Deli

“getting caught working on music is ‘worse than
getting caught jerking off’”
2004, band member Jeff Rosenstock started Bomb the
Music Industry! (BtMI!), and turned to Stevenson for
keyboards. Laura - who as most rockers wasn’t exactly a
model student - had just gotten kicked out of school when
approached with the offer, so the decision was practically
made for her: “It was kind of perfect timing. I picked up
and went on my first tour.”
Her new found role in the Long Island and national music
scenes didn’t prevent Laura from feeling curious about
the artists that were making waves in the neighboring
New York City scene. The über-cool bands of that time,
including more notably The Strokes, had a significant
impact on the burgeoning songwriter, which is still
apparent in her work today.
Stevenson still lists Is This It as one of her favorite albums
of all time, even though she found the band’s shows
a little “strange” because of their overt trend factor.
“Coming from someone who went to a lot of ska shows,
we did not dress cool,” she noted. Though those Long
Island bands may not have had the “Downtown New York
style,” their music had - to Laura’s ears - the same edge
and alternative aesthetic.
While playing in BtMI! in her early music career,
Stevenson started writing her own songs and performing
solo in between gigs. Her supporting band grew
organically around these shows when she asked a few of
her bandmates to start joining her on stage, later dubbing
them The Cans. The group was shortly settled with Mike
Campbell on bass, Alex Billing on trumpet, Peter Naddeo
on guitar, and Dave Garwack on drums.
Her work with The Cans is firmly grounded in rootsy pop
territory, from her debut album A Record, to last year’s
Still Resist, and though her soft, feminine vocals may
resonate with a wide audience, her punk cred opens her
to more niche listeners, just as much as her personal,
remorseless melodies do.
When not working on her own material, Stevenson still
spreads herself across her friends’ bands, playing with
everyone from Andrew Jackson Jihad, to Maps and
Atlases, to her continued collaborations with BtMI!
Her rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle causes her to uproot often, but
Stevenson’s favorite place to write music is still in her
bedroom, wherever that happens to be at the time. The
singer even compares her songwriting experience to
the intimacy of self-pleasure, saying that getting caught
working on music is “worse than getting caught jerking
off,” a fair description for music so personal and distinct as
the woman who writes them.
In between an East Coast tour throughout fall and
appearances at various festivals and CMJ showcases,
Laura Stevenson and The Cans will be locked away in a
barn in upstate New York, working on the band’s third
full-length album, bound to be released on New Jerseybased
Don Giovanni Records, who put out records by The
Ergs! and Screaming Females. But for Stevenson, one
of the biggest things that she has to look forward to is
seeing different bands performing live along the way, and
of course, getting to see her favorite bands and friends
from the road.
With her perfect mix of fervent, satisfying pop melodies
and unpredictable sense of surprise, Laura Stevenson has
gone in a few years from NYC scene spectator to NYC
scene hero, headlining Bowery Ballroom and other major
local venues.
How much this process was triggered by the influence the
music of the Big Apple had on her songwriting, or by the
fact that her wardrobe has in the meantime gotten more
in line to the NYC “standard,” is hard to know.
Artist Equipment box
2007 Apple MacBook’s Mic
For recording I often use a 2007 MacBook
with garage band and no external mics.
We have used some of those recordings
on full lengths and 7”s because the
internal mic on that model is so awesome.
It distorts sometimes but it’s nice and
warm. I love it so much that my computer
has been on the outs for over 2 years and I
just keep getting it fixed rather than buying
a new one. The newer models aren’t as
good - there’s this weird decay that I hate.
the deli Fall 2012 41