Seattle's Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter drew raves in alt.country circles for their 2004 album Oh, My Girl. They opened gigs for similar artists like Neko Case and Richard Buckner and seemed to have found a niche. That made listening to Sykes' newest Barsuk album Life, Love, Lust & The Open Halls Of The Soul awfully surprising. The twang is mostly gone, replaced by grittier singing, a dark but loose vibe reminiscent of Neil Young, and a more rock-oriented sensibility.

After a recent trek across the US with Sparklehorse, Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter return to Austin next week for several SXSW-related shows. We spoke with Sykes this week about the Godfather of Grunge, music execs, and keeping the magic alive.

Your new record seems to have more folk and rock influences than Oh, My Girl, which felt like more of an alt.country album. Was the change intentional?

I never had any conscious idea about this record on the front end in terms of how it was going to pan out. I just tried to pay attention and allow myself to follow through with what was coming from me at the time. It wasn't until I was in the thick of the writing process that I started to realize that it was going to be quite a departure from the others. I’m glad, because as a band I think we would have dried up if we hadn’t attempted to leave our comfort zone.

It also seems that your vocal style changed somewhat, with more whispered vocals and a traditional folk-type sound. It's 'roughed up' a bit. Why?

As far as my vocals changing, I think it’s mostly just what happens to some people as time goes on and voices age and weather. In my case, I have smoked for many years which has obviously done some damage. But I also think what people are noticing is a tension that was created on this album, because I decided to keep the songs in whatever key they were in when they first came out of me. Therefore, some are a bit too high and some too low and I was sort of allowing myself to sing out of my comfort zone, creating a tension and emotional urgency that I personally felt challenged by and inspired by.

How did your recent tour with Sparklehorse come about? Were you familiar with them before this tour?

I had always been intrigued by Mark Linkous, and am certainly now a fan. As far as how it came about, I'm not really sure. I think it's one of those unmysterious things, such as having the same booking agent and someone simply asking.

Did most of your current fans find you through (former bands) Whiskeytown and Hominy, or do you feel you mostly started fresh with this project?

I feel like we pretty much had to start from square one. I think Phil’s part in Whiskeytown initially opened a few doors for us in terms of press, but mostly we had to start from scratch in terms of all the other stuff. My former band was completely obscure and I'm glad for that as I’m kind of embarrassed by it at this point...but Phil's work in Whiskeytown was something I hope he is very proud of.

Are you fans of Neil Young? It's indirect, but we feel some kinship with him on Life, Love, Lust's material.

Yes, we are huge Neil Young fans. Tonight's the Night is probably my all-time favorite record.

Have you spent much time here in Austin? We have our fair share of people who would appreciate your music.

We have played a few shows over the years in Austin, but we have yet to headline our own show.

Is SXSW fun for bands, or do you dread the grind of it?

The first time felt really magical, which probably had a lot to do with where we were "at"
as a band. Everything was being unveiled and there was a lot of innocence...at least for me. Now it has lost some magic, but I try and just focus on the fun stuff - playing and seeing friends from all over the world in one setting - which is really nice.

Is it tough to get motivated for a gig full of industry people?

I like to look at people as individuals. I’m not one of those musicians that has a chip on my shoulder about the industry. I like who I like and I try not to think of it in those terms - otherwise the whole thing would completely lose its' magic for me and it would be too painful to carry on.

As a band, do you have time to catch a show or two from others while at South By?

Generally I like to not spread myself too thin, and I just hang out wherever the energy takes me. I’m not one of those people who is willing to stand in line for too many things and then not get in after standing in line for an hour. If Townes Van Zandt was still alive, I would wait in line for him, but not too many others!

Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter play SXSW 2007 on Thursday at Bufallo Billiards (11pm), on Friday at the No Depression day party at Habana Calle 6 (3:30pm), and on Saturday 3/17 at The Mohawk Patio (midnight).

[Jesse Sykes MySpace]
[Listen to the new album via the Jesse Sykes e-card]

Image via the Jesse Sykes MySpace page. Photographer uncredited.