Fresh off the back of some notable buzz last year with their debut EP ‘No. 1’, Pottery are back with debut album ‘Welcome to Bobby’s Motel’, described as a “celebration of rhythm and groove”. Well, Dear Reader – we like rhythm, and it’s always nice to have a bit of groove, so we’ve pinned down Paul Jacobs for a catch up. Here it is.
Congrats on reaching your debut album, what an exciting time. Has it been a long time in the works? What was your starting point?
Thank you. It was definitely not as long of a process as getting the EP out. About half of the LP was written and performed live for a little over a year, so we are all excited to show the world that and move onto the next chapter of writing new stuff.
Tell us about your Bobby concept – he’s you, but also everyone? What’s that about.
Well, the concept came out more during the album art process. While doing the artwork and video stuff, I was feeling that David Lynch vibe. It’s really just trying to pass that feeling you get from a reoccurring dream. A place you’ve been to all your life and know so well, though you’re not sure it’s real.
Does the idea pre-date starting the album? To what extent did it help shape the record?
I think it really wrapped the album up for us. Sometimes you’re left with a collection of songs, but we were able to turn it all into one piece. With a bit of hard work, I feel it all came together naturally.
How did you find your time writing and recording, were there any unexpected challenges?
We’re all best friends, and there’s nothing we like more than jamming. Writing music is just an extension of us having fun. There’s always a point in writing when there’s some struggle to turn an idea into a complete song, but I’d say 90% of what we got just flowed out of us naturally.
What’s your songwriting process like?
Sometimes it’s a riff someone brings, sometimes it’s putting a melody onto a beat that’s fun, and others it’s an extension of a jam. There are a few that come from full demos, but most are just us working out our ideas in our jam space. If we get hyped on what we do then we know others will feel the same.
It sounds like the record delves into some very hefty subjects, are all the topics you touch on personal to you in some way? Or are they more external observations?
I think there’s a few that were pretty close to the guys, the stuff I wrote was again pushing the feeling of the album art. I think you can see the difference in everyone’s writing in the album. But for sure it’s all coming from the heart.
How did you approach curating the album’s tracklisting?
A lot of that credit goes out to John Schenke. I think it helped to have an outside opinion for that process. His ears were a little more fresh than ours by that point. Everyone had their notes on transitions between songs, but for sure, his input was key.
How would you most like the album to make listeners feel?
I’d like everyone to feel good, think we all would. We’re not trying to push a message or alter anyone’s mind, just sharing the music we like to make. Hopefully, we can inspire some people to pick up an instrument and make their own music.
Is there anything else we should know?
We’re still working on more music, we won’t stop, and we appreciate everyone that enjoys what we do, and that is giving us the opportunity to continue to do what we love.
Taken from the April issue of Dork. Pottery’s album ‘Welcome to Bobby’s Motel’ is out 10th April.
