Austinist Interview: Red Hunter of Peter and the Wolf

Where does your songwriting inspiration stem from?

Sometimes I'm convinced it's the occipital lobe but then other times it feels more like the cerebrum.

Maybe I'm completely off-base, but I have to ask: are you, or have you ever been, a religious person? A spiritual person?

Yeah, I'm an ordained Shaker priest. I'll probably get certified as a Unitarian minister, too, because there's a lot of rad gay people out there and I want to marry them all. In general, Shakerism is the religion I relate to the most because they wore drab clothing and freaking danced like insane jittering ecstatic sex fiends.

I noticed that you've started a blog where you're reviewing or featuring a lot of music from all around. Where do you find this stuff?

I just like weirdos and crazies. When I meet a weirdo or a crazy, I confess my undying loyalty to them. And somehow everyone seems to have my mailing address.

Is there a big, overarching theme to your new album, Experiments in Junk? Tell us about this new album.

Mostly it's recordings of collaborations with large groups, junk orchestras and singers, although there's some random stuff thrown in there. Like this song "Jaywalkin" is actually a cell-phone recording of me and my friend Eric Shaw crossing the street in Manhattan while he had his ukelele. We just made it up as we walked and it came out pretty cool.

What's your next project going to be? Will it involve as many instruments as your previous works? Will you be collaborating with anyone on it?

The next record is called Lightness and it's almost done. Dana Falconberry is adding some vocals, Nick Hennies of the Weird Weeds is playing some percussion, and Josh Duke of Bougie has been locked up with me recording the damn thing. It's the best thing I've ever done, a lot of simple songs and some stuff about my brother going to Africa as we chase after the great revolutionary Dan Eldon, and it comes out this fall on the Worker's Institute label.

Tell us about the book that you're holding in your recent press photo. Also, why does everyone look so ... weathered?

Ha ha. The book is a riddle, it's our generation's bible, and you have to guess the title with one clue: After photoshop was used only to remove certain letters, what remained were the words FACT and CON. Everyone looks weathered because we'd just gotten off a plane that accidentally landed at the Old Airport in Austin. It was a crash-style landing but luckily everyone survived except this one guy Buford Van Sweet. He got hung like a Singaporean spitter by his own duffel bag straps. It's okay though because Jared Van Fleet looks just like him, so if you ever miss old Buford, just call Jared!

Last year, you released Whiskey & Apples Compilation - Winter 2005, a two-disc digital selection of some fantastic tracks from across the internet, many from Austin bands. Can you share with us a few that you've recently come across?

Well, W-S Burn just sent me their newest and it's amazing, the record is called "Birdsong in Stereo" although I don't have the song titles handy. The last track on Jolie Holland's new record "Springtime Can Kill You" is very epic, it's called "Mexican Blue." And I have to admit I'm kind of liking Destroyer's recordings right now, a good example is "Trembling Peacock" which you can find all over the internet probly.

Who would you consider to be the best songwriters of our time?

I really hope Keith Zarriello of The Shivers will get the credit he deserves one day. He has written some of the most amazing love and heartbreak songs I've ever heard. And Viking Moses is writing the kinds of songs you can imagine listening to in 50 years and still marveling at. And my girl Jolie, too, I'm gonna sing with her someday.

For the first part of your tour, I hear you're traveling solo and playing with a variety of musicians in each city. How are you planning on assembling this motley crew and, more importantly, making sure they all show up at the venues?

I got lotsa friends around the states, and a lot of them are musicians. Been traveling a lot the last couple years, and I try to keep close with everyone.

During your "Order of the Owl" performances last year, you played in places like graveyards, abandoned buses, under bridges, and even an island that the audience could only reach by canoe. For this tour, we've heard that several shows will be held at "non-traditional venues off the beaten path." Any hints as to where these might be?

No hints, sucka. We're bringing back rave culture, with maps and last-minute checkpoints and hoodies.

Tell us about how you came up with the idea to travel by sailboat for part of this tour.

Hemmingway. That's all I have to say.

What should happen if your captain falls ill or, god forbid, gets devoured by a sea lion? Are you prepared to take command of the vessel? Have you ever actually been on a boat?

If it goes down, I'm ready, man. I got a speedo and a harpoon. A love harpoon.

What are you bringing along with you to record your sea voyage?

I am bringing a Kenny. He worked on the Invisible Children documentary, and he's bringing some of their fine equipment to film a documentary about the whole thing. And his name is Kenny, which is just awesome.

How about sending us some video footage and/or tour diary entries?

Asthmatic Kitty has offered to release the DVD, and so will Whiskey and Apples.

What are you going to miss most about Austin while you're away?

Frost Tower. It's just sooo big. Mmmmm.