The Chris Dorn/
Beatifics
Interview:
September,
2002

The Beatifics are a Minneapolis, Minnesota band led by Chris Dorn. Combining stunning lyrical imagery and huge guitar based melody, The Beatifics are an essential band if your passion is great songwriting in the Chris Bell, Alex Chilton and Paul Westerburg vein. The band's first release, How I Learned to Stop Worrying (No Alternative/Twin Tone), was received to nearly universal critical acclaim. Their new CD, The Way We Never Were, will be released September 17. The CD is a melodic tour-de-force and is destined to make numerous Top Ten lists for 2002. I had a great conversation with Chris about his songwriting, his formal educational background in writing and English and a myriad of subjects that portray Chris as a real thinking man's musician.

The Beatifics: L to R: Eric Kassel, Jacques Wait, Chris Dorn, Sean Hoffman
(Band Photo by Holly Streekstra. Chris Dorn Photo by Crab Kitty.)

DF: I really love the new CD, The Way We Never Were. I'm particularly moved by some of the lyrics.

CD: Thanks. I don't think that I've gotten enough credit for the lyric writing a lot of times because the songs are so melody oriented and you have to make the words and the rhythm fit the melody. I've always thrown in lots of things that no one has really caught, like references to Wallace Stevens or outright stolen lines. I have an English degree and I've read lots of poetry and I think that lyrics and poetry are completely different things because lyrics have to fit the voice. By voice, I don't necessarily mean the singing voice, but the persona and the rhythm of the song and the moods. You can do different things with lyrics that you can't with poetry, and poetry can be a little less structured. Some of the constraints are still there. Thanks for liking it.

DF: How do The Beatifics fit in with the pop landscape?

CD: After seeing a lot of bands at Poptopia and IPO, some of which are really great, there seems to be a formula to being in a power pop band these days and the subculture is growing so big that there is a cottage industry. I really don't know how the purists are gonna take this record because I just tried to be all over the map and tried to stray from the more ebullient melodic stuff and tried to stretch out a little bit.

DF: I don't consider you to be a classic power pop artist. I consider you to be merely a very, very good songwriter who understands melody and who understands how to write a song. I think that the best power pop bands do that. Your new CD has been years in the making. How is this CD an extension of what you did on How I Learned to Stop Worrying and how is it different?

CD: The extension is in that the song is king. To give it what it needs, you arrange it until it's done. You pack as much stuff into it. I don't think my songwriting style has changed that much. In fact, "In The Meantime" has been around as long as How I Learned to Stop Worrying. The only reason it didn't make in on that record is because I'd had a recorded version that was pretty good that I thought was going to make the record and then we went in and did more sessions and it just organically didn't fit. So, we left it off and it was always kind of my ace in the hole.

DF: You mentioned that you have an English degree. As a person with a formal education in English and in writing, how did that influence this record? Are some of the songs exercises in writing lyrics to create images, or are they derived from personal experiences or both?

CD: Both. Really, it's kind of about the mood. I think with a pop song or recorded music, once again, it's different from poetry in that you put across the mood. I feel a little more vague with lyrics because it's not exactly how you're saying it on paper; it's how you're saying it as it sounds. You can evoke a mood through just singing that you can't evoke necessarily through word choice. Sometimes, I let the subconscious write and I'll just record words and try to figure it out later. Other times I'll consciously have something that I'm trying to put across. I consider myself a post-post-modernist. I don't know if anyone really uses that term and, if they do, it is that I'm not so worried about taking apart everything that has come before me and putting it back together, reconstructing it in a way that makes it strange. I'm more interested in doing what feels good, and I take things apart. Anyone who is dealing with song writing has to be influenced by other songs, otherwise it wouldn't sound like a song; it would sound like something else. In the end, it has to have some harmonious constitution, otherwise, to me, it's unlistenable.

DF: I think that, certainly, on this record, there is a harmonious constitution. I do believe that the combination of melody, harmony and lyrical imagery on the new CD is very striking. One lyric that I liked a lot is "February". You describe something about "…it's snowing and it was going…to snow".

CD: That's actually a cop. That's a quote directly from a Wallace Stevens poem.

DF: I really felt this cold feeling of isolation when I heard it and it was interesting. It really, for me, had a lot of impact.

CD: I was just making it fit. I thought it worked.

DF: Has there anything specific that inspired some of the songs on the record?

CD: The themes really are the inability of people to connect. And also to be connected within a time. It's reflective and that's what a lot of good song writing is I think, in that you have these experiences and then they come back to haunt you. You ask what could I have done differently or what went wrong there. I've always said that a lot of what I write about is moments in time and it is that reflection. It's like being in the present and past and future tense all at the same time. "February" specifically was influenced by this really weird French movie from 1961 called Last Year at Marienbad. It's this crazy movie where a guy tries to convince a girl that he met a year ago at a resort that she agreed to go away with him if he waited a year and met her at the same place. She insisted that that was not the case, and he just went on and on, recalling all the things that had happened. Meanwhile, the actual camera narrations don't match up with the voice narrations and her story doesn't match with his and it's never resolved. The whole movie has a feel of how do people connect. It made you feel alone. That's where I get the line, "…Remember how it went, like it all never happened." It happened, but the other person doesn't remember it and you're alone, thinking about what happened and the other person is somewhere else and can't even remember the event.

DF: Yes, that particular passage in "February" is particularly poignant to me. One person can perceive a moment in time as life changing and important; the other person can forget that moment to the extent that the other person forgets the person and the event as meaningless and unimportant. I find that you do the verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, modulation structure as well as anybody. You are a master at composing bridges.

CD: Writing a bridge is the easiest thing from me. Once I have an idea, I go off. It's a fun thing to give a contrast and try to make the song start over again.

DF: You just don't take the easy way out and go to a relative minor chord. You really take it to a different level. If you're saying it's a natural thing, then that's extraordinary.

DF: You live in Minnesota. Being from Minneapolis, the home of the Replacements, were you influenced by the whole Replacements vibe up there?

CD: Oh absolutely. That's one of the reasons I got into anything. I used to listen to nothing but '60s records and mostly garage rock. Then, at a certain point I discovered The Replacements and Husker Du. One band that is woefully underappreciated is the dB's. They were so cool and universal but yet so artistically creative in terms of melodies and arrangements. Even their lyrics were talking about universal subjects. They were always really, really smart.

DF: The dB's are composed of intelligent, sophisticated musicians as well as lyricists. Chris and Peter are excellent song writers.

CD: The dB's really did it for me in all aspects.

DF: The dB's are the link between most of the power pop of today and Big Star for a lot of people.

CD: A lot of the stuff that came out at the time of the dB's was rather good, but I'm not into the Shoes and some of the other bands. I was into Dwight Twilley for a while but I saw him play a couple of weeks ago and he's just kind of a rock star. He's more bubble gum. It's more formulaic. It's good, I like it and I can see how the songs are well written, but that stuff doesn't move me anymore.

DF: Sometimes artists get into very trite themes and don't push a little bit farther. Going back to your lyrics, you're writing something that people can actually try to interpret or try to inside of and really feel. I just don't think that you can do that if you are writing simple and general lyrics. There is a place for it, but it's been done and it's been done very well.

CD: The Strokes is a good record in a garbagey way like that. Those are kids talking about the same adolescent frame of mind. You can't understand the lyrics either when you strip it away. It's kind of meaningless, garbage, junky, but it's great rock and roll.

DF: Who are your main musical influences as a writer?

CD: A lot of it comes from growing up listening to Beatles records and the ‘60s British Invasion stuff like the Kinks and the Who. Mostly, Big Star really hits me hard. The Byrds are huge. Also, Love. The dB's. Lately, I've been into Burt Bacharach as well as Paul Williams.

DF: I recently rescued a Laura Nyro CD out of a bargain bin, took it home and couldn't believe that 12 out of 13 of these songs were Top 10 hits. Just incredible songs.

CD: I need to get that stuff. I just know a few of her songs.

DF: Describe your song writing process? Do you write on the guitar first, do you come up with the melody in your head and then pick up the guitar? What do you do?

CD: Generally, it's usually an idea that comes from playing the guitar. Two chords will fit together and you will go, oh that's interesting, and that spark will lead to structure of at least the first chorus. Just walking around my neighborhood I'll come up with some sort of line that means that the song can be written. It's not until a hook line that lyrically there's enough of a spark for me to take a chance on it and start recording it. I'll figure out what the bridge is supposed to be so the structure will be intact. There will be just a few lyrics, at least an idea for lyrics and then I'll start recording. I'll let the subconscious take over and do some rough vocals with basic gibberish. Some of it will be usable and some of it won't. Finishing it is the pain staking process.

DF: What did you use on the first song, "Sorry Yesterdays"? What guitar did you play, what amp did you play through, and what did you use for a mic?

CD: That tune was a Mosrite. The thing just sounds sweet. The place I recorded the CD at has a lot of cool amps and for some reason I just pulled out this big Soldano which is more of a heavy metal amp and I just literally plugged it in. He had hundreds of amps to choose from and I just wanted to play a big amp. The room there sounds really great. I think the mic was a U87, but I can't remember exactly. It was a condenser. It was either the U67 or the U87. A Neumann. It was probably about 3-4 feet from the cabinet and that room sounds just sweet. The other thing that is on it is an MXR Doppler chorus. It's on Badfinger records and "September Gurls". It's a rack unit that was used in the ‘70s.

DF: What about the current music scene in Minnesota. What's going on up there? Are you guys pretty popular?

CD: We do alright, we still headline on weekends and still get played on the college radio station. At one point, we were pretty popular when the first record came out because that was full on commercial radio getting four spins a day for about five months. I think shows are more for fun and I'm more interested in making records.

DF: I'm curious in terms of what you have been listening to lately. Is there anything that you think is important from a musical standpoint this year?

CD: I keep asking people what they like. I used to be more current but I'd like to listen to more stuff. I have the new Wilco record. They are definitely an interesting band and it's always worth checking their stuff out. I think that is an important record for sure. I liked the last Pernice Brothers CD. There's not really much else that I've been into. I've just been rediscovering my roots lately.

DF: Are you interested in breaking through to the mainstream?

CD: It's weird, you mention the mainstream, and we briefly flirted with that with the first record on the radio. I kind of didn't like it. It kind of worried me when it was on the radio, like did I do something wrong here? Because nothing that I have ever liked has ever been popular. There are people that get into music because they are into the cars or to be cool and want to be a huge rock star. I just want to make records that people listen to in their bedrooms and in times of dire need. It sure as hell has helped me get through a lot of tough times listening to Big Star or whatever. The other thing is that I learned early on when I was in school was that none of the really great writers that I admired and studied ever had any commercial success. Emily Dickinson wrote 6 poems in her life. She had an audience, she had someone that she could send her stuff to so that she could get feedback, but she wrote only for herself and for that one person. A fire destroyed Herman Melville's Moby Dick manuscript 5-7 years after it was released and it was never published again in his lifetime. It wasn't discovered until years later. It's okay not to be mainstream.

DF: How did you wind up with The Bus Stop Label?

CD: Brian is just someone that I've always known, I like his aesthetic, I like his vibe, I like what he puts out and it's a good situation. I had a terrible time with No Alternative/Twin Tone. Basically, we were their best selling artist and when it came time to record another record, they were too busy.

DF: Describe the greatest moment of your musical career?

CD: Once, my boss's husband organized this marijuana rally called the Cannabis Jam and he's friends with Cheap Trick. We got up and played all these songs. It was 6 guitar players, a bass player and Bun E. Carlos playing drums. We did "Sweet Leaf" by Black Sabbath. Grant Hart came up and sang. So, here I was playing on stage with Bun E. Carlos and Grant Hart with my cheesy Danelectro guitar for a Cannabis Jam. It was at a hard rock club too. It was one of the most ridiculous things ever, but fun.

DF: With the new record, are you going to be doing any touring?

CD: That remains to be seen and in what form. I'm not so fixated on touring unless it becomes really apparent that it is something that is going to help out greatly.

DF: Where can we purchase the new CD?

CD: I don't know how much it is going to hit stores. I don't understand the retail end of anything these days because it is different than it was 5-6 years ago. Not Lame (www.notlame.com), Miles of Music (www.milesofmusic.com) and Parasol (www.parasol.com) will have it sometime around September 17. It can probably be pre-ordered.

As of publication, no websites are indicating that the CD is in stock. the CD will be formally available September 17. My understanding is that each will be carrying it shortly and the CD can be pre-ordered. Click here or on the above cover to buy directly from the band's label. For further information, e-mail Brian at thebusstoplabel@yahoo.com

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