Sarabeth Tucek

Greg W. Locke: I’ve read that your original intention was to act, but then you met Anton Newcombe and changed your focus to music. How true is that and can you tell me  a little bit about your early days as a musician?

Sarabeth Tucek: I had wanted to act. I enjoyed the escapism and I loved doing theatre … but the business of acting was something I couldn’t manage. At that time I was hanging around a lot of musicians and the making of music became sort of demystified for me. I realized that anyone could make music. Not necessarily good music, but music.

GWL: Your eponymous solo debut was released in 2006. You worked with Ethan Johns on that record, correct? Can you tell me about your first album and your first big tours?

ST: Yes, my first record was co-produced by Ethan and Luther Russell. I was very nervous making that record. I had not spent a lot of time in a studio, except on other people’s music, so I was unsure of myself a lot of the time. But Ethan’s studio was beautiful and full of great vintage gear. I felt really fortunate. I toured with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, which was fun. They have a good crowd. Also, I opened for Bob Dylan, which was a mind-bending experience. Ray Lamontagne was a good tour in the UK for three weeks. We played all the most beautiful old theaters, including the Royal Albert Hall.

GWL: I have a rule: whenever I interview someone who has been close to Bob, I ask them if they met him and, if they did, if they have a funny Bob story. So, did you meet Bob and, if so, how did it go?

ST: Yeah, I met Bob. I was on my way back from the ladies room and had to pass his bus to get back to my backstage area. He was leaning against his bus and asked me what the most exciting thing I had going on was, so I said “probably you,” and then we had a little talk and he told me I should get a drummer. Then I gave him a hug and a little kiss. Telling the story in the first person is funnier because I can bust out my Dylan impersonation. It was definitely an out-of-body type of an experience. He had twinkly eyes and was very charming.

GWL: The new record, “Get Well Soon,” is pretty phenomenal. You recorded this one with Luther Russell in Philadelphia, correct? Can you tell me about recording these new songs?

ST: We had 15 days to make this record. I couldn’t take off from work more than that. Also, I think for someone like myself, having less time is maybe better. Every decision tends to feel like a matter of life or death for me, so when you have no time, you just go with your gut instinct. I think it lends the music an immediacy or potency that endless amounts of time would maybe dilute. It was a good experience. Hard but good. We recorded the record in a basement studio that belonged to a friend of Black Rebel’s – out in Philadelphia. The Nicgorski family took us in and let us stay at their house. It was sweet. They had killer gear and an old Ampex tape machine that we recorded on.

GWL: What do you have planned for the rest of the year? Tours? Any festivals?

ST: Right now I am in the UK touring for a month. Then I go back to California to tour a bit … then back to the UK for The End of the Road Festival. I’m very excited about that; it’s in the English countryside.

GWL: Your music seems to ignore all trends. I like that. The new record just feels so timeless and solid – which just flat out isn’t a common trait amongst artists of this current generation. Where does that come from?

ST: Yeah, I know. It sort of works against me in some ways, not sitting squarely in any group. I think for business people it’s hard in terms of marketing and finding the target audience to try to sell it to. I also have a hard time allowing myself to identify with anything too much. I think it’s a by-product of having moved a lot as a child and never having a sense of belonging. Not sure. I also don’t listen to contemporary music very much. Sometimes I don’t even really feel like I am making music. I’m only interested in emotions and trouble-shooting them. I think there’s just a part of me that doesn’t want to be identified or marked.

GWL: Some of these songs start out so delicately before blowing up into powerful rock tunes. I was impressed by how well you handled your vocals on these songs. What is your background with singing?

ST: I’ve always liked singing. As a child I spent a lot of time singing along with my records. I guess we all do that. So I consider myself to be a singer more than anything else. I like guitar but I’m not a great player. Singing and writing are what I like most. When I sing I can feel the notes resonate internally and it’s comforting to play around with that. Also, I can assume different characters by changing register.

GWL: It seems like a lot of your fans are from outside the U.S., and I believe that Get Well Soon came out overseas before landing in the U.S.? Am I onto something here? Are you bigger overseas? If so, any theories or explanations?

ST: Yes, I am SO famous overseas!! Um, no, I’m not. Well, I’m bigger abroad, but it’s easy to be bigger abroad when I sorta don’t exist here in the U.S. My first record never came out in the U.S., even. The problem of not being a niche artist or a commercial artist is more challenging for U.S. labels, I guess. You gotta wear your genre badge in the U.S. You gotta have the uniform so labels know how to sell you and listeners know how to contextualize you. I do well in the UK … but “Get Well Soon” is now out in the U.S., too. So we’ll see what happens.

GWL: Are you working on anything new right now? Any collaborations or EPs or DVDs?

ST: I contributed several songs to a film called “Shit Year” by Cam Archer. I went to Cannes last year and may be coming out soon. I hope. It’s a beautiful film that defies genre. In other words, it’s also tough to sell. I may also be doing some work with Mark Gardener and maybe Ulrich Schnauss.

GWL: Speaking of film, have you done any acting since music has taken off? If not, has anyone approached you and do you think it’s something you enjoy enough to return to?

ST: I never think about pursuing acting as a career anymore. I sometimes think about doing some theater … maybe when I’m older. The roles for young women always bore me. I would like to play Amanda Wingfield in Glass Menagerie someday. or Martha in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The older roles are the ones that I really want. I may act in a Cam Archer film. He wrote a film called “Pull” about a woman who suffers from Trichotillomania. We’ll see.

Below you’ll find two videos from Sarabeth’s excellent new record. Go HERE for more.