The Eastern Seaboard
by Cory Card


Compromised of percussionist Seth Nanaa, bassist Jordon Shranz and reed player Brent Bagwell; The Eastern Seaboard have been laying down their own brand of ecstatic jazz for over five years. Musically they invoke the ghosts of the 60's, while managing to keep their sounds fresh and avoid any form of retro rehash, by incorporating subtle elements of post-punk, soundscaping and the occasional dash of electronics.

The trio have just completed their fourth album entitled The Sound Power and are about to head out on the road for a few weeks of touring in early November mainly across the Eastern States.

I had a chance to talk with Brent Bagwell, over the past week, regarding his role in and views on the Eastern Seaboard's approach to music making.


What are some of the influences that made you want to start doing music?
Tough to say, and speaking only personally, I can't rule out much of anything. Can't rule anything out: from relatives who play instruments to hearing some ear-catching, time-suspending tune like something by, say, Little Anthony and the Imperials on the right shitty stereo, maybe even AM? And then, you know, when does 'music' drift into 'sound' and on toward becoming just memory or nostalgia? Plus, I like the part when you're playing and it feels like you're falling down a well with glass sides and you begin to reinterpret the bumps and skips of your unending fall as a series of controlled leaps and, suddenly, the previously vertical 'well' becomes a horizontal 'tunnel' and you're running, or flying.


When and how did the band come together? Was there a real specific impetus behind starting the Eastern Seaboard or was it more of a natural thing?
Brooklyn in 2002. Seth and I heard about Jordon, got him to come to practice and we all knew we were a sympathetic trio. Very natural. Do you have a bass? Are you big on drinking in the afternoon? You don't believe in God(s) or anything, do you? And you, too, long to destroy the capitalist virus that slips into the core of People everywhere, extracting and ruining our essential humanity?


Improvisation is a big part of your practice; what drew you toward improvisation over the intentional creation of structure?
Well, improvisation is way more natural, as a means of communication. I think Pharaoh Sanders once said something like, "you don't walk around the room and talk to people in 4/4 time." So many structures, while beautiful to hear (the sonata-rondo form, or orthodox bebop changes) and/or worthy of great respect (the work of many serial composers, for instance), are not the most direct routes for communication with other People these days.

We are concerned with structure in our tunes, but try to find different solutions to those puzzles or whole-heartedly embrace structural frameworks simple enough to become transparent. We like both ends of the spectrum. But most importantly, we won't let it feel forced or superimposed.


Have you developed specific themes that you tend to revisit when playing?
Yes, but, you know, we really don't talk about it at all. And I know that sounds like some Miles-Davis-rip-off shit, but it's true. We communicate new musical ideas to each other with the barest of instruction (a demonstration or a crazed rant). Then we allow it to congeal without further discussion. I believe it keeps things intuitive and forces us to listen and communicate along purer, musical pathways. It's hardly a rule, though; it just arose naturally.


Are there ever any pitfalls that you run into while improvising? Do you have anything that you try to do to keep things really fresh?
That's a good question. The only pitfalls, really, are external troubles – those anyone might face. Problems of fatigue and injury. The growing 'trouble' with the 'government.' But the Electricity, once located, can be accessed at will, with practice. Really, if everyone's listening, it works out.


Your musical approach seems to rely heavily on the creation of tension and texture, is this something you aimed to create, or is it something that has developed naturally over the years?
I would say the textural elements developed naturally. As a result of our relative disinterest in the more harmonic solutions to the organization of sound, the tonal and the textural take on greater weight. As for the tension, I would say that all music, at its heart, is articulated in tension. Whether notable by its absence or found along traditional paths of regular release, the tension - the swagger - is found in all music, regardless of genre, that casts a spell. That was in place from the beginning. We seem to have similar feelings about when Things should Happen.


Do any of you have any formal musical training?
Collectively: yes and no. I am glad to have studied privately with a number of great reed players, most notably Bob Feldman – a teacher who introduces fresh ears to Coleman Hawkins and Albert Ayler at the first lesson.


Most of your work, that I've heard leans more towards straight up sixties-style free jazz, while I've noticed on your website you tend to include a good dose of electronic sounds and even samples. Are these elements new to the project, or have they been a continuous factor of your sound?
The inclusion of Elements of the Electronic is newer (and secondary) to our Mission. I think it's a potentiality/actuality type thing: those sounds that we've heard in modern music and made ourselves with other instruments affect the way we play on our purely acoustic instruments. And then the warmth that inhabits the acoustic instruments affects the way we deploy those electronic elements in recorded situations. It would be disingenuous of us to ignore these sounds that are at our disposal – and in our heads. But, at the bottom of it all, we're an unadorned tenor-bass-drums trio.



You refer to one of your releases as an experimental collage, how did your approach for this record differ from that of previous and post efforts?
That CD, Ghosts, is a collection of unreleased studio recordings, some live tracks, and some radio performances. Practice space, one-mic recordings. The fidelity is all over the place in a delicious, delirious way. And then some of the tracks are, uh, fucked with. That was Jordon's baby, so I don't know the formula. [Speaking of formulae … I don't recommend getting a flu shot this year. Do you know what's in that suspension? Me either? I'd rather have the flu.]


Speaking of your recordings, you have a new album entitled The Sound Power on Black Saint, which will be released in early 2008, could you tell us a bit about the record, and how you began working with Black Saint?
I feel good about The Sound Power because it's our fourth full-length release and we continue to try to refine our sound(s), get at different feelings, and do so with greater precision. We got a great studio sound on it, too, thanks to Jon Rosenberg. All live to 2" tape.

Black Saint have been a treat to work with. You know, we sent our first effort to them and basically said, hey, do you like this shit? And they did. They are practically unique in that they have a real commitment to artists. They are interested in helping a band develop. They're helping us with our first European tour in March. Plus, all of their releases are always available (at least directly from them). And their records and CDs have those sweet rainbow spines.

On this upcoming tour, we'll have copies of our most recent effort, Relapse, a limited vinyl-only release. It's sort of the "dark twin" to The Sound Power. Recorded at Emandee with Mark Ospavot (who has worked with the Magik Markers, Parts & Labor, etc.), it's a more extroverted look at many of the same tunes as appear on The Sound Power. And it's granted a rawer, jittery sound - can't say enough good things about our man Mark and the atmosphere he creates. This is our second LP-only release on Tigerasylum Records. We're all unapologetic needledroppers who live for that wax.


You'll be on tour in early October, could you tell us what to expect from a live performance by The Eastern Seaboard?
We'll mean what we play and lay it all out every night. Living, breathing free jazz - edgy and real.


Is this your first extended road excursion?
We once played 30 shows in 31 nights. Like in the golden days … We tour three or four times a year. This music is like running for office (I guess) or preaching on the street – you want to see eyes, shake hands.


Are there things your particularly looking forward to over those two weeks?
I'll enjoy seeing how my newest projections will fare. You see, we always have an iffy show on a certain night (in a given string) that I can usually predict. It's a point of pride for me to be correct. And I'm fully aware that I could influence the outcome by my own actions (even subconsciously). It's something I live with. In fact, you wouldn't believe the intersection of mathematics and The Eastern Seaboard. Do you know what our birthdates are? They graph as a parabola. It's crazy.



What have you been listening to lately? And what sounds will you be taking out on the road with you?
I've been regulating my listening by enjoying vinyl only. So, lots of Led Zeppelin. And, really, that's about it. And the Jungle Book soundtrack (it has killer alto flute or some shit). Oh, and a really weird "oldies" station where every song seems to have lots of backup singers and/or handclaps. It's happening right now. Right now I'm hearing 'The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance' – no shit. Damn, is Liberty Valance the outlaw? Heroic name for an outlaw. I gotta see that Jimmy Stewart shit again …

For the road, I learned a long time ago not to bring along any pretentious, "out" music. I mean, I'm trying to stay the fuck awake. So, lots of Stones and whatnot. I made the perfect Tom Petty mix once and then lost it, [Yeah, I said Tom Petty, motherfuckers.] and Sandinista. I made my own 2-disc compilation of all the choicest cuts from the entire Wu canon. You can't beat 'Incarcerated Scarfaces' on some same-same turnpike in the best/worst light. I've got big shades. Oh, and both Twin Peaks soundtracks. Once, when one of our number 'exceeded the recommended dosage' of a popular brand of cough syrup in order to "sleep," I waited until I was the only one awake in the van and played "The Black Dog Runs at Night" on repeat while manually panning it this way and that with wild abandon. This went on for nearly an hour. The 'subject' was confused - pissed even - but the Conditioning proved "good" for him. See, we do have fun!