Damon Castillo: The Laurel Lane Interview

Californian Band’s Frontman Talks About New Studio Album

Jan 19, 2009

Suite 101 talks motivation, meaning and music with the man behind DCB's new album Laurel Lane, Damon Castillo, in this exclusive interview.

The warm summery feel of Damon Castillo Band’s fourth album, the genre-defying Laurel Lane, was almost enough to take the chill out of the air this winter. Damon’s rich vocals and classy arrangements were sophisticated, though never lacking the human touch and the vulnerability that gives the record its charm. Following its review of the album Suite 101 paid a virtual visit to the man himself and took the opportunity to put Laurel Lane under the spotlight.

Manufactured Pop and Same Old Sounds

Suite 101: On ‘Claim to Fame’, you almost sing directly to one of those dime a dozen manufactured pop acts that seem to flood the charts every week. What is it about that kind of act that really annoys you?

Damon: I’m not annoyed by that kind of music, I’m immune to it. It’s not music for music’s sake, it’s music for business sake and you can hear it. It sounds kind of hollow to me. I don’t mean to imply that great music can’t be hugely popular or successful. It’s wonderful when that happens! One time I was in a club playing a show with my brother’s band when this dude from another group on the bill came up to me and said, “I figure in a month I’ll have to change the sound of my band up again”. I was stunned by that comment. I didn’t even ask him why, but he explained to me (in a tone that said, “you should know this shit”) that the scene was changing all the time, and that he was planning on “making it”. It was so ridiculously funny. I thought, “For who?” Is music just a costume for you? I wished him luck, and faced the possibility of playing my same old sound for the rest of my life.

Bedroom Encores and Close Calls

Suite 101: I hear that ‘Encore’ is not just about coming back on stage to whoops and cheers; anything you want to share?!

Damon: It is about coming back on stage to whoops and cheers… metaphorically speaking, but I should leave the sexy talk to the tantricly capable Gordon Sumner.

Suite 101: Just to get serious for a little while, there are some much more difficult experiences informing the album, aren’t there? ‘Close Call’ was about a serious crash you and the band had on the road, which, thankfully, you all walked away unharmed from, but the track is really upbeat and has such a life affirming message. Was that experience the life changing event it comes across as?

Damon: I remember a moment of deafness right after I heard the tire blow. The overwhelming motion of the van rolling, and then the riot of dirt and glass. The van settled and I could feel the ground where one of the windows used to be. Then we helped each other climb out to a quiet, blue California sky. I was high on adrenaline walking around the side of the road taking in all the beauty and picking up band equipment. I found my microphone out in the middle of the freeway. The moment felt like waking up and like solving a puzzle. Art can make me feel that way too. That microphone still works, and I sing on it every show. The crash didn’t change the way I approach music, it just firmed things up. I was still trying to figure out a way to make it to that night’s gig until the tow-truck driver talked us out of it. He was right. Two hours after he hauled our wreck away, the adrenaline wore off and we were hurting.

Music as a Destination

Suite 101: Another track, ‘I Know You Know’, was about the loss of your close friend and founding bassist, Matt Taylor, to cancer in 2002. Was the writing of that song as a dialogue helpful to your processing of that experience?

Damon: I don’t use music to get over or past my life experiences. Music takes me to a different place. The song is a destination. Matt was, is and will always be an extremely important part of our lives. This song lets us connect with him in a way.

Honesty and Vulnerability

Suite 101: One thing about the album that I find really refreshing and endearing is that you have a great sense of humour about the little things in life. Like in the gorgeous ‘One Life Stand’ you apologise to your girl for leaving the toilet seat up. I think it marks you out as being very real, very human and very relevant. Care to comment?

Damon: I’ve never been a songwriter that attempts to write about big ideas. Not overtly. I find myself attracted to the details, the small things. Those things speak to me and wind up hinting at or even revealing bigger things. I like honesty in a song, and vulnerability. Those are things I can connect with.