5 Questions: Luego's Patrick Phelan

For the past year, Durham’s Luego has been busy.  The pop-rock band established its big, retro-infused sound on its first record, Taped-together Stories, but adds even more warmth and creative juice to the upcoming Ocho. Full of unified backing vocals and foot stomping fun, Ocho continues in the same story-telling troubadour spirit. As Luego prepares for a quick tour and the album’s release party at the Nightlight on Saturday, staff writer Elizabeth Byrum sat down with frontman Patrick Phelan at Cosmic Cantina in Durham to chat about the upcoming album, the local music scene, and Herbie, the legendary number 53, over some chicken burritos. 

Diversions:  What has it been like releasing two albums in 8 months?  Are you tired yet?

Patrick Phelan: Sometimes I feel a bit worn out, a bit worried because I am doing everything, working my ass off.  But like that’s my role, is running things, booking us, shopping us, paying for everything, writing out songs, making sure everyone’s happy, staying on top that, staying on top of the bands everyone else is in, staying on top of the bands in the scene, the Pitchfork scene.  I’m working, I have a dog, I write songs, and I constantly feel the need to create. This album Ocho, kind of represents a period in my life just like the last album did, they are very different from each other.  I think to be an artist you have to be changing, and I feel insane because I am just compelled to write, to produce, and to perfect and to get better. I feel like I am getting better and we are getting better as a band. The records are becoming more careful and expressive.

Dive: What were the major differences in recording compared with the first album?

PP:  In terms of recording techniques, it was a smaller, more involved group of people. We basically only used Gibson and Fender guitars. We concentrated on warmth and texture and weirdness.  The songs I think are better, although the first record I think I was focusing on pop and hits and guitar solos, the second I was more concerned about craft and weirdness and texture and cohesiveness as an album.  The other albums are cohesive, but this one really from start to finish, is a statement and runs into each other really well.  I focused a lot on sincerity with this record, not that I didn’t on the first one, but I think the sincerity comes out really clearly on this record.  We did a lot of background vocals on this record, which we did on the first record as well, but it was a big part of the arrangement.  During the overdub meetings, we had a lot of studio camaraderie happening.  I wanted Ocho to be a whole universe, a whole family, a whole world and that is the vibe that is constant throughout the record. 

Dive: I understand you are screening Herbie Goes Bananas at the release show.  How did this film influence the album and why did you choose it?

You know the album is called Ocho.  Jeff Crawford, my bassist, producer, and shepherd has a relationship with Disney.  He worked at Disney; his brother has a blog for Disney. Walt Disney is a fascinating character and Jeff must recognize that.  As you know Herbie’s number is ‘53’—if you look in the artwork there is a ‘53’ in there.  His nickname in the movie is ‘Ocho’.  The artwork on the cover of the movie, there are a lot of things, but there is a matador and a bull, you look on the inside of the record there is a matador and a bull, not the same, but our own.  So, that’s not where the title of the album came from, but that is how it did have an influence on the artwork. And we are going to screen it because it is going to be screened over a dance party, you won’t be able to hear anything.  We want it to be a crazy celebration of weirdness, of hipsters, and cool people, the embracing of anybody who has been rejected by anything.  All the freaks and geeks and cool dudes, all there to rock out and dance.  You know how they say “Dance like nobody’s watching”?  Well you actually shouldn’t do that because lots of people are going to watch.  You should just have a good time and be embraced.

Dive:  Is Spanish a big influence overall?

PP:  In the Latin American, I find there is more juice, it’s a juicer culture, you know what I am saying.  I love more juice.  It is very family-centered, a lot of love in that culture.  One of my favorite cultures that is close to my heart is Mexican because I am from Texas and I lived in Chile for 7 months, I lived in Mexico for 3 months, I lived in Spain for a month.  For some reason, I am attracted to that imagery, but that’s it.  We are an American rock band, but as you look at the artwork and the nomenclature, you’ll see it’s an influence on me.  It’s just passion, juice, color, love, but then I also like this rogue rebellion, cowboy aspect to it.  I came up with the name Ocho when I was in Wyoming. I love southwestern, and it’s that pressing on, westward home.  I saw seven horses in a pasture at a friend’s house, and then I saw an eighth horse sprint past the seven and thought “Ocho, cool.”  Then when I got back from there I demoed a bunch of songs with Jeff, and Jeff said “You should call your next record Ocho” and I thought it was a good idea.  And then as we were making the record, we realized is a lot more than the word now, it’s a brand. It’s my favorite album title that I have come up with, but Jeff came up with that title. 

Dive:  I understand you’ve added to your Luego repertoire, particularly for live shows.  How did that come about?

PP:  Well, as much as I want my own band, everybody is in lots of bands, because nobody’s band is making money.  If you are not making money, then why not be in other bands.   To some degree, it is kind of annoying, you wish you could only be in one band, but that is not how this climate is.  There is an amazing music scene, but it actually seems like the talent pool is quite small, at least for the type of music that we are making, which is something that we agree on — “we” being Bright Young Things, Brett Harris, Caitlin Cary, Drughorse [Collective].  That’s the seventies rock sort of, some sort of renaissance revival is going on.  But also there is a lot modern things are happening.  I think Ocho is a modern record, I think The Light Pines are quite modern, I think The Love Language is quite modern, I think we are all modern but there a lot of different things going on.  Basically, people couldn’t make certain gigs, so you find somebody that believes in your message and will help you deliver your message, and you agree on what’s good.  I think that what started all of this, I came out of nowhere two years ago, was Peter Holsapple. People saw that Peter Holsapple was siding with me and said, “Wow, maybe this kid has something to say.” And I do.  I have a story to tell and I am never going to be satisfied until my story is told and its never going to be told.  Just like the Ancient Mariner.  I wanted to be called the Ancient Mariners, but that’s already a band name, and truthfully, I am Luego.  I love the band and I love these guys that I have been playing with for two years, but fortunately and unfortunately I make Luego happen. I think I will make a record with a whole new band backing me sometime.  But I have such chemistry with the guys now, that being Charles Cleaver, Nick Jaeger, Rib Dimauro, my drummer, then there is Peter [Holsapple] and Jeff [Crawford].

Dive: So, it’s becoming like a local music super group?

PP: It's a local music super group — yes, it is that. But there are lots of those. But this is one of those because of Peter Holsapple.