Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Calvin Johnson 'documents' the decades through music

Originally published January 27, 2009 in The Daily Democrat.

In many indie rock and punk music circles, Calvin Johnson is known as a musician, producer and founder of the influential, independent record label K Records. However, a better word to describe Johnson is documentarian.

As a teenager in the late ’70s, Johnson became involved with the underground art culture in Olympia, Wash., and has been documenting his community ever since. Through such outlets as, independent zines, community radio shows, cassettes, vinyl records, CDs and digital music, his experiences and creative endeavors of others have been cemented into history.

In addition to spotlighting his community, Johnson said that he has been playing music as a member of numerous bands and a solo artist for a few decades. He will be performing his solo work on Tuesday at Delta of Venus in Davis.

Johnson said that not only does the process of documenting one’s community allow for others to learn about different parts of the world, but it also equips people with knowledge, creativity and technological skills. He became engaged with events in his community while being a volunteer and DJ at Olympia’s community radio station, KAOS-FM.

“It trains people from consumers to producers,” he said.

Looking at all the things that Johnson has been involved with, whether it be writing for a music zine or starting K Records, which began as a cassette-only label in 1982, it is evident that he values creativity over following the latest fad.

“How relevant any of those mediums (community radio, cassettes, vinyl records) are, depends on how they are used,” Johnson said.

Just like the variety of mediums to express creativity, there is a lot of diversity in the K Records catalog and in Johnson’s own music projects. While the focus was on Olympia bands during the first years of K Records, the label has grown to include international bands of different genres.

By exploring the list of current and former K Records artists, examples of what one will find includes punk bands like Bikini Kill, noise rock bands like Old Time Relijun, singer songwriters like Mirah and Kimya Dawson and indie pop bands like Saturday Looks Good to Me.

Ranging from Beat Happening’s sweet indie pop in the ’80s to the funkier beats of Dub Narcotic Sound System, formed in ’93, Johnson’s music is just as varied as his label’s roster. Even his solo work has transformed from album to album.

Johnson said that his first solo album, “What Was Me,” was released in 2002 and it was very basic, only incorporating his voice and guitar. Some tracks were recorded accapella and others featured duets with K Records artist Mirah.

The following album, “Before the Dream Faded,” was released in 2005 and was a collaboration of several producers, Johnson said. The songs were expanded with the use of electronic beats.

With his third solo album, “Calvin Johnson and the Sons of the Soil,” Calvin took yet another direction by adding a full band. The album also featured a different take on some songs from the stripped-down album, “What Was Me.”

“It seemed like that they had different perspectives,” he said.

While the sound of each album is different, the passion for music remains consistent. Johnson seems to have an endless amount of ideas and he is not afraid to act on them, regardless of how strange they may seem. His droning, baritone voice calls for an acquired taste. However, the ease and honesty in his lyrics and music may help listeners overcome doubts.

Johnson has worked on music as a solo artist and as part of a collaboration with many people, but he said that he does not prefer one more than the other. As a solo artist he is able to concentrate more on his music. As a member of a group, arrangements of songs are more spontaneous and people feed off each other’s energy.

“People can influence each other in terms of the feeling,” he said.

Even when Johnson is working with bands on his record label, the spontaneous, collaborative feeling is present, Johnson said. Whether he is working with a veteran musician or a new, up-and-coming band, Johnson learns something new from every project.

“I feel like I’m their student,” he said.

Johnson said that during recent recording sessions with Chain and the Gang, he was very inspired because everyone was contributing ideas, which would lead to a string of more suggestions.

“The feeling was so good and positive,” Johnson said.

He was also in the studio recently recording his own music, he said. Fourteen tracks were recorded for a new project called the Hive Dwellers, which he projects will be released in the fall.

While many veteran musicians like Johnson often put down new music and reminisce about the “good times” of their childhoods, Johnson said that he is optimistic about the future. Music scenes are growing and improving as more people start bands and open live music venues. Johnson is just happy to continue his involvement with music.

“I’m glad that I have the privilege to work with so many creative people.”