Call & Response: Abby Jeanne

 

(10 min read)

Songwriter and singer extraordinaire Abby Jeanne has a voice that makes you pay attention. Her powerful and expressive soul comes through in every note, helping her audience on their own cosmic journey. While Abby is a friend of the studio and staple here in Milwaukee, she’s traveled the world sharing her music with others, taking in new experiences, and putting more love in the collective jukebox of the world. Read about how she created her record Music Box Dancer at our studios, her future recording plans, and how musicians are actually magicians.

Photo Courtesy of Abby Jeanne

Photo Courtesy of Abby Jeanne

LAB NOTES (LN): If you had to boil your musical journey into one sentence, what would it be? (Run-on sentences accepted and encouraged.)

Abby Jeanne (AJ): My musical journey is a reflection of the ups and downs of life and a constant unfolding of a grand adventure full of wonder, opportunity, creativity, surprises, growth, relationships, synchronicities, and challenges.

LN: For those unfamiliar with your music, how do you describe your sound?

AJ: I describe my sound as something familiar yet new. I aim for "timeless"… as in you can't tell if it was recorded in another era or if it was recorded today. It sometimes sounds like a blend of Dirty-Garage-Psych-Soul and other times sounds like jazzy-60's-girl-pop. When I write a song it is never as simple picking a genre or cutting and pasting what you think something should sound like. It's my natural blend of ideas which makes one of my songs impossible to become a cliche. Ultimately it's just music from the heart, which subconsciously reflects my broad range of influences.

A musician can almost be like a magician who uses the unseen power of sound to connect not only emotionally but within the deeper subconscious places in the human mind.

LN: You recorded your album Music Box Dancer at our studios with Daniel behind the board. Can you tell us a bit about how that came about and what that experience was like?

AJ: Daniel saw me perform at a Local Live event at Turner Hall in Milwaukee and I had heard about him through a few different people. At the time I was working on writing what eventually became Music Box Dancer and I had a few demos ready. Once we started to get to know each other, we both realized working together would be an exciting opportunity. He immediately saw the potential in my artistic vision and working with him felt right. He has the ability to cater to the artists ideas while also adding suggestions without pushing his own agenda (which is something many musicians are afraid of). Being at Wire & Vice was ALWAYS a great day and felt like home. Aside from the studio having all the equipment and space one would want, Daniel also allows the atmosphere to be molded as needed. Whatever you need to submerge yourself into the session, he is ready and willing to make happen. He will do whatever is necessary to get the best out of you. My favorite part of working with him aside from his knowledgeable technical abilities is his very playful and passionate style. He truly cares and believes in the art that he is a part of while getting the job done. For me this is the most meaningful and priceless quality and discerns a great producer a good one.

LN: In your bio you mention “Love is the key and music is my language. With this tool I hope to heal and translate the traumas of our lives.” This resonates with us. What’s an example of a time when you witnessed the healing power of music, either for yourself or others.

AJ: I experience and witness the healing power of music anytime I play for myself or hear someone else play. When I'm feeling stuck in anyway I can pick up a guitar or sing a song and the vibrations release something in me. Many times I cry and feel relieved. This is my understanding of the secret powers of sound when it comes to affecting others. Music is its own language and is also a portal to many places inside of one’s mind and outside of one’s body. A musician can use lyrics/words to communicate but can also use vibration. Writing a song is manifesting and manipulating energy which then flows through the human body. When it hits a person the sound usually first translates itself as emotion. While that is the most obvious form of effecting someone there is also something that happens beyond this. What I've experienced from "the artist’s perspective" is that when writing music with genuine intent it can ultimately release or unlock something deeper from inside the listener. A musician can almost be like a magician who uses the unseen power of sound to connect not only emotionally but within the deeper subconscious places in the human mind. I personally use myself as vessel to mirror our human experience. My voice and the instruments are tools to create the conversation which is being felt physically then psychically. It’s like a doorbell on one’s heart and no matter what song you listen to, the deeper subconscious message is almost always the same (despite the infinite range of emotions one can feel). The message is saying "Hey person I see your spirit and now you can see or feel mine! You aren't alone. You have feelings, thoughts, and frustrations and I'm here to remind you that in the end we are the same sharing this life and world together." That secret message hidden in the tunes is healing people even if they don't know it at the time. In our day to day human form we mostly believe in "I" or the idea that we are separate, when truthfully science tells us we are actually all one thing. Listening to music opens us and bonds us without the raw and embarrassing pains of having to get too close for comfort. It also becomes a support system and is always actively moving someone or something. Its pro-active and progressive. In many ways it can unconsciously unravel anything that is blocking someone internally. This is the most important part of why I do what I do. It's basically a more creative and expressive form of inner therapy work. It takes a musician and a listener to create the therapy session. We reflect like mirrors on another and epiphanies occur during this experience for both parties. An accidental collaboration with out all the fuss. I'm here to do it for myself and for you. We both benefit from this. You don't have to say anything or get on a stage. I will handle that part and all you have to do is listen and experience. It’s so mind blowing when you realize how deep this tool goes. It is infinitely alive! The vibration doesn't stop when the song is over neither does the healing. The sound is a ripple and that can change the world. Very powerful.

LN: Any plans for a new record in 2020? Can you give us any teasers about what it will sound like?

AJ: YES! It's being written right now and will most likely be recorded here in NYC at the beginning of the year. I have the entire concept for the record mapped out and it will be a very intricate and intentional piece of work. All I can really say right now without giving too much away is that it's going to be big, beautiful, and colorful. Every song and idea associated with the record has a specific place and purpose and I am so so so excited for this new music!

The moment one convinces themself they should be serving the "business of music" rather than the art itself, is the moment in which the spirit of the artist dies.

LN: What inspires you?

AJ: The ride of life as an artist inspires me the most. It's such a dreamy adventure full of truth, beauty, love and the unknown. People who aim to live their dreams and haven't been jaded by the pressures of society, money, or success also inspire me. I surround myself with only those whose main goal is creating and caring for the art. The moment one convinces themself they should be serving the "business of music" rather than the art itself, is the moment in which the spirit of the artist dies. I never intend for that to happen and I will consistency be inspired and ok knowing that in the end I don't really need money or popularity to create and do good work. Those things are extra tools but are not essential.

LN: What music are you listening to right now?

AJ: I have a playlist called Ab Fab that I listen to almost everyday. I also add to it constantly when I hear something new or inspiring somewhere. It’s a cornucopia of things I love. Mainly lots of weird underground records, early glam music, 1960's girl pop, punk rock up until like 1985, 80's new wave and industrial, psychedelic funk, lots of new-ish psyche rock bands from LA, 1st and 2nd wave ska, garage rock, early recorded blues music, 60's country, doo-wop the list goes on and on and on and on. If not listening to that music on shuffle I'm laying the same stuff but on vinyl.

LN: What do you do when you’re not creating music?

AJ: When Im not creating music I am most likely rehearsing or playing a show. If thats not happening I am working on my other artistic endeavors which accompany the music. That list includes: working on my photography, writing poetry, plotting/story boarding music videos and skits, exploring aesthetic ideas, designing posters, plotting out art for future records, planning events, booking a tour, mapping out sets and props for certain shows, and helping my fellow artists who are associated with Hi-Fi Records and the Hi-Fi Art collective. If I'm not doing any of those things I am most likely day dreaming, walking around a new city, trying to learn something new, reading, watching old videos of my favorite bands, or seeking out weird art films.

LN: If you were trapped on a desert island, what 5 albums could you not live without?

AJ: This question is basically impossible to answer so this is just a list of 5 records that pop into my head first:

LN: What are three things about you that wouldn’t want left out of your Wikipedia page?

AJ: Hmm interesting…I would hope it would mention that I was indoctrinated into the arts via MPS art schools from K5-12th grade, that I then discovered the Hi-Fi Cafe as a pre-teen where I was truly introduced to underground music, community, the importance of vinyl and Rock N' Roll, and then something about moving out of Milwaukee in my car when I was 17. These are key ingredients to my character and staple moments in my life that give people clues to the spirit in which I create and why I am who I am.

 
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