Getting Local

The ladies from Birdcloud are stopping by Chattanooga’s JJ’s Bohemia TONIGHT for a special Valentine’s Day show and we had the honor to interview the Nashville duo about new music, videos and more:

A lot of big things have happened since Birdcloud’s last visit to Chattanooga in September. Between 2 official music videos, studio time at Battle Tapes Recording and a Three’s Company theme song collaboration to promote one of your latest shows in Nashville with Ri¢hie and D. Striker

. What’s next for the Birdcloud team in 2012? More tunes from the studio?

Makenzie: “Duh. Yeah, we are in the process of recording our second EP. Super excited about the direction of our songwriting. The response to the ‘Warshin’ video has been BADASS. We’ve had the best time writing and thinking of new concepts for videos and party tricks. Our new hit ‘FUK U COP’ is a line dance… it’s gonna be super produced and real nineties pop country soundin’. Just retarded. The joy of my life.”

Jasmin:  “Yeah, and more merch and more records this year. Hopefully in 2012 can do some shows where we can fly through the air at venues like Garth Brooks and have wireless headsets instead of mouth microphones.”

Birdcloud were first known for their YouTube videos featuring live performances of songs from your debut self-titled EP… the most recent for the single ‘Springwater’ that features a brief interview with David Cloud. Are there any new video projects in the works?

Jasmin: “We did make out with our friend Day’s dog at a party and filmed it in slow motion. We will be putting out a call to friends of Birdcloud for videos of them making out with their own dogs, so we can make a compilation video for ‘Bandit.’  But just good clean slow-mo fun, nothing weird. Also gonna get together and make something new with the Duensing brothers at 80JD.net who did our ‘Warshin’ video. They’re the best. And we’re in the choreography process for a new video with a line dance that sort of goes with the sobriety test. It’s for a new song about cops.”

Makenzie: “We’re shooting at the end of the month with an amazing director. He just did the newest Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard video for a song called ‘Willie’s Guitar.’ Real pro stuff.”

When you played Chattanooga’s Lindsey Street Hall last Fall, we couldn’t help but notice your harmonic playing and stage presence. When did this style of playing first start and what other tricks do you have up your sleeves… or should we say skirts?

Makenzie: “We were drunk at a BBQ and I had recently started doing stupid improv songs about friends physical qualities. Like ‘Big Eyed Megan’ or ‘Tracy You Freak Me Out In Real Life.’ Anyway, me n’ Jas just started doing it to each other in each others faces, gettin’ wild and the energy was out of control. It was definitely more for each other at that point. Our friend Jordan Lehning booked us a show at the Mercy Lounge like a week later. It was crazy. The party tricks and bullshit is kinda a more recent thing. We have a deaf interpreter that does American sign language for ‘Warshin.’ Shes amazing! We’ve had Ri¢hie from Ghostfinger solo all over springwater, a man with a bucket on his head beatin’ the hell outta himself during ‘Indianer’ and the wonderful crotch harmonica solo orgasm that rules. Jasmin gets in there.”

Regardless of the topics in your lyrics, we can hear a huge musical background behind your harmonies and melodies. We are familiar with Jasmin’s solo project, but can you fill us in with the true history behind the pre-‘Indianer’ Birdcloud?

Jasmin: “Me and Mak both grew up listening to country music, and my mom wrote for country music for a living. Our exposure levels were both pretty high, even though my solo music isn’t country influenced. Makenzie has a photographic memory for songs. She knows all the words to all country songs I think, especially from the 90’s. So she’s got ears and mouth for country music, and we like all the same things, like when a song ends with the part at the beginning and dumb pauses before words for emphasis. We’re at the same level on guitar, so she thinks my shitty solos are badass. We just keep tearing it up and having fun.”

We our honored to have you both back in town to grace our stage for Valentine’s Day at JJ’s Bohemia. Can you tell us what Chattanooga has in-store?

Makenzie: “Nope.”

Jasmin: “It’s gonna be like Titanic in 3-D.”