“I always loved going to my Gammy and Papa’s (my father’s parents) 75 acres with a beautiful lake and hills out in Carbondale, Illinois. There is a college there (SIU) and it was a big deal to go in this rad place called Plaza Wuxtry and get CDs and patchouli oil, but I didn’t actually start collecting vinyl until later in my life.”
“Growing up, I was influenced by a lot of albums, including the first and second Blind Melon albums, Rap Beginnings Volume One, a Yes Fragile tape with no cover that my mom had for some reason, a Metallica Black Album with no cover that my mom had for some reason, a whole bunch of classic ’90s alternative stuff, folk style music like John Denver, Weezer, Beck—my sister listened to a bunch of awesome ’90s singing groups like Boyz II Men, Shai, Color Me Bad, etc.
At the time, I acted like I didn’t like it but now when I reflect on it, I think it had a positive effect for helping me be comfortable to make emotional songs. My parents don’t really listen to jazz at all and one day I found a Chick Corea live acoustic band tape with Dave Weckl on drums and I had never really heard someone play drums like that.
My mom and dad listened to folk stuff like John Denver and peaceful new age tapes which I think added to my obsessive bout with Red House Painters. Then around 2001, my friends Monte and Zach (we had a band called Princess Sweepstakes and it was amazing in my subjective opinion) showed me all kinds of new music on vinyl and showed me that it was ok to like all kinds of genres of music as well.
They opened me up to the R.I.O movement (Rock In Opposition) with releases on RER (Recommended Records) and I started hunting down stuff from that era of time and bands on that label—’til this day most of that music sounds fresh and inventive.
Making New Once, I was inspired by a lot of things, to just records: I was inspired by Alak’s Guardian Petted, Doxa Sinistra’s Conveyor Belt, Bourbonese Qualk ’s Preparing For Power, XTC—all albums including the amazing Mr. Partridge solo album, Mother Mallard’s Portable Masterpiece Co.—‘Like a duck to water’, Het – ‘let’s het’, everything by The Work, early Family Fodder, Laraaji Essence / Universe, tons of listens to my favorite 10-inch by Daniel Lentz, After Image, Danielle Dax Jesus Egg That Wept, anything and everything from Africa and India, Made to Measure original vinyl series on Crammed Discs, and sitting outside and listening to animals and human animals and our human technology play its unintentional orchestra together.”
Zac Nelson’s New Once is available now via Brooklyn’s Styles Upon Styles. On vinyl.
