The Arizona band decker. is something of a mixed bag. Its members live in Flagstaff, Sedona and the Phoenix area.
Stylistically, frontman Brandon Decker describes the music as "psychedelic desert folk" — but when you listen, its reminiscent of lots of different genres, everything from Pink Floyd to Mumford & Sons.
The band just released a new album on Tuesday, titled "Patsy." The Show invited Brandon Decker in studio to talk with us about the new record. Two of his bandmates, Amber Johnson and Matt Newcomb, also came to play a Tiny Desert Concert for The Show.
Full conversation
BRANDON DECKER: I would say the biggest influences on this record are Portishead, the Portishead live album, and PJ Harvey's record “To Bring You My Love.” And both of those are, like, early ‘90s things. A. A. Bondy, who's kind of a modern folky guy. And he's not, he's awesome. Like, I don't mean that despair, like he's sure he did some folk music, but he does a lot of really spacey, slow, patient stuff. And then Quentin Tarantino soundtracks.
MARK BRODIE: Wow.
DECKER: I feel like that is what was drawn upon, largely on there, on this record we want. I wanted a lot of tremolo, and I wanted these kind of noise freak outs. But I also, like, I've always, like, kind of just felt like I made modern gospel music, you know.
BRODIE: I want to ask you about the title track, “Patsy.” I'm curious what compelled you to write a song, like this about the person that it's about?
DECKER: Well, I'm assuming you mean Lee Harvey Oswald?
BRODIE: Yes.
DECKER: The album I had decided was going to be named Patsy, and there was certainly like a, to me, I mean, the obvious imagery there was Lee Harvey Oswald. I dabble in conspiracy theories. I dabble. I'm not obsessed with them. I'm not particularly concerned with them. I think it's interesting to think, here's one thing I'll say about Lee Harvey Oswald, whether he killed Kennedy or not, the Warren Commission's finding that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, and I don't think that's even remotely possible.
So what does that mean for us as a person, you know, as an individual and a society like, what does it mean that we live in a place where that sort of thing happens? You know, and going down that road, I was thinking, “OK, well, then what was driving a guy like Lee Harvey Oswald, what's going through his head, you know?” Like, I'm certainly not championing.
BRODIE: You're not sticking up with a guy here.
DECKER: Yeah, I think, without sounding trite, I think what I felt, what I wrote, it was, I mean, there's a little bit of that in everybody, in terms there's a little bit, obviously, we're not all lunatics, but, I mean, there is a little bit of this, you know, we all get played a fool here and there, you know.
BRODIE: So can you guys play for us? The title track, “Patsy”?
DECKER: I think we could do that.
(Music)
BRODIE: Why is Sedona the right place for you? I mean, it's not, I don't think there is a huge music scene up there. It's clearly not right in the Valley. It's a bit away from the Flagstaff music and clearly far away from the Valley and Tucson. So why is that the right place?
DECKER: Right. It is a beautiful place. I like the high desert and the mountain kind of combination. I've written five albums since I've lived there, but I think the side point to living there is what it did was it forced me to never really try to be a part of some local popularity contest. The goal, the necessity, was always to get it out there all over.
BRODIE: Does it help you sort of set your own course to not maybe be influenced by some of the other bands that you would inevitably come upon in a bigger music scene?
DECKER: Well I think I'm influenced by everybody you know, like I'm influenced by bands in Phoenix and Tucson and Denver and San Francisco, Portland, Maine and Little Rock, Arkansas, and lots of places. I love the fact that one month we will play in Denver, and the next month we'll play in San Francisco, and the next month we'll play in Tucson and the next month in Phoenix, and sometimes all in the same month. I would not trade that to be super prevalent in any one location.
BRODIE: So can you guys play us out with another track from the album?
DECKER: Yes, this is “Spades” from our new record “Patsy.”
(Music)
BRODIE: We're hearing from Amber Johnson on keyboard, Matt Newcomb on light percussion, Brandon Decker on guitar.
If you’re in a band or know of one you’d like to hear on air, send us a note at [email protected].
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