Sister trio performs at Iron City on the heels of new release, Stay Awake
By Brent Thompson
Photo Credit: Chloe Horseman
To say that the past three years have been a whirlwind for Joseph is an understatement. Since self-releasing its debut album Native Dreamer Kin in 2014, the trio – sisters Natalie Closner Schepman, Allison Closner and Meegan Closner – has performed at festivals including Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Newport Folk Festival and Glastonbury in addition to TV appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, NBC’s Today and Later…with Jools Holland. Earlier this month, Joseph – named as a tribute to the town of Joseph, Oregon and the trio’s grandfather, Jo – released Stay Awake (ATO Records). The seven-track EP addresses the current political and cultural climate with a blend of new songs, remixes of old songs and a cover of Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants To Rule The World.” Currently, the band is on a headlining tour that brings them to Iron City on Friday, September 29. The all-ages show is presented by Birmingham Mountain Radio. Recently, we spoke with Schepman by phone from Washington, D.C. on opening day of the Stay Awake tour.
Birmingham Stages: Natalie, thanks for your time. If you will, talk about the creation of Stay Awake.
Natalie Closner Schepman: It’s so fun to get to talk about this – I haven’t had any interviews yet. The songs for this EP have really just happened in the last couple of months with the exceptions of “Planets” and “Lifted Away” – those are both remixes of older songs from other albums. There’s a lot to feel in the current state of things and it really made us write. These songs are a response to everything.
Birmingham Stages: Did you feel any extra pressure in making this album given the success of [2016 release] I’m Alone, No You’re Not?
NCS: It’s a great question. I’m not ready to stop growing yet – you have to make the thing that is the truest and if that resonates with an audience, then great. If it doesn’t, hopefully you’ll at least believe in it yourself because that’s the important thing.
Birmingham Stages: Do your songs continue to evolve even after you take them into the recording studio? For example, do they sometimes come out brighter or darker than you had originally envisioned?
NCS: Yeah, absolutely. For these songs, we didn’t do a lot of pre-production for them. Meegan and Ally weren’t around for the preparation of it – it was just me and our producer, Andrew [Stonestreet]. We brought them in and really didn’t know what it was going to be until we got into the studio. Once we did, we made a lot of different decisions. You start by being in control of the song and, by the end of things, the song kind of tells you how it needs to be addressed and what it’s trying to say. It’s changed a little bit since setting it up for the live show as well.
Birmingham Stages: Are you still writing as we speak? How does your process tend to work?
NCS: It’s just such a spark – you can’t plan it necessarily. A lot of people do sit down and say, “I’m going to write a song today,” but we are writing all the time. In the last year we hadn’t stumbled upon anything that felt great until recently and then all of the sudden those songs were coming.
Birmingham Stages: How do you feel about forging your career in the era of Youtube, satellite radio and iTunes? Do any pros or cons of the current climate jump out at you?
NCS: It’s worked in our favor as a brand new band. Previously, we would have needed to be championed by an A&R person at a record label and radio stations. But the way things are now, it feels a lot more democratic. I like that it’s up to us to cut through.
Birmingham Mountain Radio presents Joseph at Iron City on Friday, September 29. Liza Anne will open the 8 p.m. all-ages show. Advance tickets are $20 and can be purchased at www.ironcitybham.com.