Lisa Jean Lee conducted this interview with Jose Gonzalez over the phone; as a result of the trouble we had understanding some of his answers, combined with his limited English, the responses are here may seem a bit short and blunt.
HSB: A good friend of mine, Dert, recently produced and used several tracks from various hip hop artists and infused them with your tracks from Veneer, did you listen to his mix compilation?
JG: Yes, I loved it. I met him twice I think and he’s a nice man.
HSB: Who is your biggest musical influence?
JG: Silvio Rodriguez. I like his instrumentation and fingerpicking. I own his first three records.
HSB: Are you open to the idea of collaborating with any artist, possibly do a side-project?
JG: I’ve worked with a couple in the last album. I’m open to the idea of working with other artists, but I also want to focus on my own work right now.
HSB: I felt that there was a definite connection with your music, if these lyrics are evidence of what you had to face over the years, do you feel that you lost a few pieces of yourself along the way? And if so, would this album be a good testament to leaving all the remaining traces of your past completely behind you?
JG: It’s a mixture of personal and other people’s stories. I don’t want to be specific on certain events or be so obvious. I generally end up writing about how I feel, but I also think that it’s a good way to experience things and then just move on from there.
HSB: Yesterday, I was writing a review for Veneer and at the same time I was reading several quotes from Jack Kerouac, and I discovered that both of you share similar perspectives on life, loss, and love. One of his quotes, he says, “My fault, my failure, is not in the passions I have, but in my lack of control of them.†Do you believe that sometimes we can’t really prevent our impulses and realize that we’re hurting ourselves, yet feel that we still need to experience and endure whatever we’re going through as a life-learning experience? Or feel that we need to fill that empty void with something we can actually feel?
JG: It’s important to go through painful experiences to learn more about yourself. It’s important to face them rather than ignore them.
HSB: In Veneer, I feel that the lyrics seem to be faintly masked by the guitar-strumming solo, where the words aren’t as relevant as the reverberations. It seems like you want to tone down what you’re sing, do you feel that is that case? Are you doing that in purpose?
JG: Definitely. I like the guitar and melody; I like the feeling you get from the song. Personally, I don’t like it when the vocals are so prominent. It seems like the vocals grab the attention, I like it when it’s lower in the mix. I like to focus on the whole experience.
HSB: What do you hope to gain from your successful music career? Is there a certain goal you would like to achieve? Because I know there are fans out there who respect your music and would like to know what you would like to achieve?
JG: I like to have the freedom to work and rest. It’s nice.
HSB: Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?
In 10 years, I want to release and make more albums. And also work more with my band.
HSB: Are you currently working on your next album? Or are you just mainly focusing on your tour right now?
JG: I always have the next album and songs in mind when I record. I work while I’m on tour. But when I get off tour, I plan to start recording.
HSB: How was your experience in the United States? Do you plan to perform in LA again? Yes, I will be performing at the Hollywood Bowl in August with another artist. And I plan on doing a solo tour in October.
HSB: Thank you so much for your time; I appreciate it! I will definitely go to your next show.
JG: Yes! Thank you.
by Lisa Jean Lee
