We Can't All Join Hands and Sing Hallelujah

You might be tempted to think of the pAperchAse as a seriously scary bunch of guys. Epic, scary, and intoxicatingly ugly, their music seems to come from a part of consciousness that a lot of people try to deny. However, upon closer listening, there's something very subtle and powerful going on -- the ability, through cohesive and vulnerable statements of emotion, to channel anger and discontent into purer forms, making things a little easier to take.

On their new record, God Bless Your Black Heart, deceptively upbeat melodies give way to the razor whip of guitar strings stretched past the breaking point over plodding, ominous drum and bass lines. Despite the Congleton's raptor grin and the brooding and hirsute presence of Weaver, it turns out that both are fairly soft-spoken, intelligent, down-to-earth guys who are happy to discuss (among other things), the growing presence of Steak n' Shake in Texas and the merits of their chili and fish sandwiches.

Interview conducted in person by Chris Worth with Congleton and Weaver of the pAperchAse. Photos by Allison Weis.

Band: The pAperchAse
Names: John Cogleton (vocals, guitar and electronics), Bob Weaver (bass)

BW: When did you guys get together and what did you start off trying to accomplish, musically?

C: There wasn't really an agenda or anything like that.

W: It seemed to take a while to figure out where we were coming from, as far as the sound and stuff. It was always there, but...

C: Basically, I was looking for some guys to record some songs that I had written. They were in a real primordial stage and I knew Bobby through a mutual friend and I knew Aaron because I'd played in a band with him before, but we weren't really close. I'd just played a few shows with that band. I just liked the way they played so we got together, recorded some songs, and decided to play some shows.

BW: Your music is pretty dark. As far as the lyrical content goes... is it more personal or more general and abstract?

C: More recently, it's more... not abstract, but about bigger things, and not so egomaniacal and egocentric. But, everything's personal, because it's filtered through my mind when I write it, so I take it personally, and that's how I write.

BW: One of the things that's always impressed me about the pAperchAse is how thematically unified each record is... between the samples, liner notes, and constant self-reference (musically and lyrically), you guys manage to construct these tangled little almost concept albums. Do you generally keep a theme or concept in mind when you're writing or do they emerge as you go?
C: A little bit of both, but mainly it's all premeditated. I mean, like most people, I don't feel like I write in terms of conscious thought, I just sort of write, and then maybe a month later, I'll be like, "oh, so that's what I was trying to say.” I usually just start writing songs and they just naturally go together, that's the way I work.

BW: Then the rest of the construction process happens while you're recording and producing?

C: Like I said, most of it's premeditated, I know these songs go together, I know these songs work together in a certain way. And then there are certain things later in the production where I'm like "oh it's kind of neat if these two things kind of work together,” but not usually, there's not a lot of experimentation as far as that goes.

BW: The new record has a lot more of a pop soul than the other ones. Was this intentional or was it an accidental part of the writing process?

C: There was never a "let's make this a more pop album" conversation.

W: No.

C: Certainly not. If it's more digestible... I guess the only thing to me about it that's more pop is that it's more lyric-based or melody-based in the vocals.

W: It's more songs than crazy parts.

C: Most of it I could sit there and play with an acoustic guitar and you wouldn't have to have all the other mess in there. The song would stand alone by itself. That was a goal.

BW: That the song is the most important thing?

C: Yeah, well, I wouldn't say that it's never been that way for us, but I would say that in general there aren't very many songs on the first album that you could play with an acoustic guitar, based on orchestration. And on this album, literally all the songs started with a melody, with a vocal line that I'd written, and we built around that. Which is obvious on the album, I think. But no, from the beginning, I wanted this album to be more about the piano and other things. I wanted to be able to play guitar less, so when the guitar came in, it was refreshing, as opposed to something that just existed the whole time.

BW: Explain all the missing heads.

C: You explain the missing heads. What does it mean to you?

BW: It could mean a lot of things. I think between the artist and the audience, each person's bringing half to the table... I was just curious what your intentions were.

C: Oh yeah, my idea came from how many people walk around on this planet that just seem to be piles of clothing. They don't really seem to feel or think in any sort of way that I can relate to.

BW: That there's no communication or connection between people?

C: Yeah but there is at the same time... that's what makes it so bizarre. Like how you can feel so connected to somebody that you have no connection to. It's just ironic to me. It's "beautifully ironic" (makes grandiose hand motions and gets sarcastic). I mean I truly believe that we're all one, but at the same time, I'm a misanthropic bastard and I hate everybody, you know, so...

W: There's also so many people that you'd never ever encounter... John and I were talking about this the other day, like the kind of person who'd want to be a judge, or a police officer, or something like that, that I'd just never be able to relate to, but they're right there. They've got a heart, and it beats like everyone else's. But they'd never understand where we're coming from. It's just a completely different breed... I mean, they'd look at us the same way.

BW: How long do you typically spend recording a record?

C: This one started around Halloween and finished in January, it wasn't like any day, it was just piecemeal. It took a little longer than I expected. A couple months, working maybe once a week.

BW: Funniest or most bizarre thing you've seen so far?

C: Wow. Bobby's best at this.

W: I don't know man. It's been tame. There's so much stuff that should be bizarre, but I can't think of anything right now. (dead silence as Bob thinks) I know I've seen some things... it'll come to me.

C: Probably watching Mike Lust (Lustre King, Tight Phantomz) every night is a spectacle itself. We were on tour with Tight Phantomz...

BW: What's next after tour, after you guys get home and sleep?

C: We're going back to Europe, playing more shows here, and once I collect my thoughts we'll start thinking about another recording. I like to stay ahead of the game when it comes to that stuff.

BW: Are you guys doing more video stuff for this record?

W: Yeah, the video for this album turned out really well, we're really proud of it.

C: Yeah it's great. It's for the first song on the album ("said the spider to the fly").

W: It was done by a real good friend of ours, Kris Youmans... he did the last one too, so it's kind of got that look to it, but I think it looks even better. He's really persevered as an artist.

BW: That's all I've got. Do you guys have anything you want to add at the last moment?

C: BOOGIE.

W: I'm still trying to think of something bizarre.