 "Photo: May-Ying Lam")
Cincinnati's Over The Rhine is not your average folk-pop-country-jazz band. Comprised of husband and wife duo Linford Detweiler and Karen Bergquist, the group produces a blend of mellow indie-art that resonates with the listener and begs for repeated listens. After completing a tour for their Christmas album Snow Angels, the group is now preparing to embark on a trek across the states in support of their most recent release, The Trumpet Child. The Daily Texan spoke with Detweiler while he was enjoying the break between tours.
Daily Texan: Let's talk about The Trumpet Child. What was the inspiration for the record and what was the plan going into the studio?
Linford Detweiler: We wanted to reference the pre-rock era of American music, and we wanted the arrangements to reflect that era. Also, Karen talked about how she felt we had cornered the market on melancholy and she wanted to see if we could bottle some joy. [laughs] Joy can be elusive for songwriters; it often comes across flat and forced. Sadness and melancholy comes easier than laughs and feels a little more authentic than writing a happy song.
DT: A great song from the new album is "If a Song Could be President." Tell me a little bit about that.
LD: Believe it or not, Karen and I were invited to the White House. They asked us what we hoped to accomplish with our music. We mentioned that one thing we hoped was that it gave people permission to not live in fear. It was disappointing to us that fear is such a manipulative force used when it comes to making policy. We tried to find some common ground, and before we knew it, we were having a real conversation even though we were coming from different sides of the political divide. After that, we got to thinking that it was the music that made that possible. Music can just obliterate these self-imposed boundaries that we tend to place on each other. We came out thinking of all the music that could only happen in a messy experiment like America.
DT: You're a phenomenal songwriter. When did you start writing songs and what got you into it?
LD: Some friends of mine in a band invited me to tag along and play bass on a tour in New Zealand, not too long after I graduated college. It was in the mountains and there were 400 people that showed up, mostly college kids. It was pouring rain, and I was waiting for this crowd to throw in the towel and leave, and they didn't. I was looking out at these rain-drenched people who wanted to feel something and experience something, and I got to thinking about how important music and songs had been to me. I thought, 'wouldn't this be amazing if this was my music, something connected to me and that had come from me.'
DT: Is there any special reason Austin is getting two back-to-back shows this tour, whereas no other city will receive that same
privilege?
LD: It's been awhile. Austin is an amazing music town so any excuse for us to hang out there is cool with us.
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