Kata Rokkar Kata Rokkar – A Bay Area based blog about music, life and stuff by Shawn Robbins.

Kuestionnaire (Bumbershoot Series): The Constellations

Bumbershoot 2010, Kuestionnaires, Music

08/31/2010

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Upon listening to The Constellations, you may have a hard time finding a band so saturated with influences like LCD Soundsystem and Chemical Brothers, while remaining catchy and original. However, the main influence of the band isn’t necessarily a musical artist, it’s their hometown of Atlanta. The essence of The Constellations is capturing the unpredictability, culture, and energy of Atlanta’s late night. And so their latest album, Southern Gothic was created to represent the town that molded the band’s funky and danceable sound. Once Southern Gothic was released, The Constellations hit the road. So far the band has snagged a tour with Detroit’s Electric Six including spots on this year’s Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, and now this Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival.

You can catch The Constellations at Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival this Saturday at the State Farm Stage from 2pm to 3pm.

Check out the tour dates and pick up their new album Southern Gothic here.

So here’s our first Bumbershoot Series Kuestionnaire; kicking off with the talented Jamie Gordon from The Constellations.

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1. Could you state your name and what you do in the band?
My name is Jamie Gordon. I play keys and bang on the cowbell.

2. How would you describe your sound?
Southern psychedelic soul hop. It’s definitely different and hard to put in a specific genre.

3. What is your favorite local band?
The Soulphonics with Ruby Velle. She has one of the most beautiful and strong voices I’ve ever heard. They achieve an old soul sound that would make James Brown proud.

4. Any concerts that blew your mind recently?
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros at Lollapalooza. The crowd at the stage reached capacity so they had to close the street off to keep people out. Kids were hanging from trees to see the show! That band is so tight live and very interesting to watch.

5. Any non-musical influences you would like to mention?
Our home town, Atlanta. We like to call Atlanta the 9th member of the band.

6. If your music was to be the theme of a film/TV show, what would it be?
In a film, Blow. For a tv show, Eastbound & Down. That is the funniest show I’ve ever seen!

7. What musician/artist would you like to collaborate with for a day?
I’d love to work with Jay-Z. That man is so talented and smart about the music industry. We could do a track and then he could teach me the biz over a bottle of Cristal!

8. What is the album you listen to on a cold rainy day?
The National – Boxer

9. List four songs you would listen to on a roadtrip?
1. The Allman Brothers – Midnight Rider
2. The Black Keys – Everlasting Light
3. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros – Home
4. Bob Dylan – Isis

10. Where do you see yourselves in 7 years?
Celebrating the 7 year anniversary of you asking me this question. (bad Mitch Hedberg reference). Hopefully, we will still be making music and touring. If we aren’t, I still plan to be involved in the music business in some capacity.

11. What is the last book you read?
I just re-read Please Kill Me – The Oral History of Punk.

12. Is image a factor in music or is it a waste of time?
It definitely is. Even if your not going over the top like Lady Gaga, you have an image. We like to keep true to ourselves and have a good time. We now have an image of being a party band. Having an image isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as long as it doesn’t take focus off of the music.

13. Any embarrassing moments on stage you would like to share?
Haha almost every night something embarrassing happens. I did rip my pants and underwear jumping from the stage to the crowd in London. Luckily, nobody saw the goods. At least I don’t think they did!

14. Any favorite tour locations?
Milwaukee is always awesome when we play there! The people there really love and support us. Also, Portland is one of the most beautiful cities I’ve seen.

15. Lastly, what is your present state of mind?
Right now a little hazy. We just spent two nights in Las Vegas! I have seen the sun rise the past two mornings! Made $200 and now trying to recover!

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[mp3] The Constellations – Setback from Southern Gothic (2008)

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[mp3] Soulphonics and Ruby Velle – Your Head Will Get There (2010)