interview: the whispering tree
On Sunday, November 7, 2010, I met with Eleanor Kleiner and Elie Brangbour, better known as The Whispering Tree for a short interview. The Whispering Tree is a singer-songwriter duo that capitalizes equally on Eleanor’s classically trained, powerful voice and Elie’s instrumental expertise and technical ear. This killer combination results in an organic sound that has been polished, but not overproduced.
Keeping things organic seemed to be a big thing with The Whispering Tree, whose meeting, music, and even name all emerged naturally as they were crafting their art. We covered everything from how the two met five years ago up through to the production of their most recent album Go Call the Captain, and everything in between. The duo was so friendly and down to earth that it seemed more like a conversation with old friends than an interview, but then again that could be related to my perpetual “newbie” status in this world.
I’m not the world’s best interviewer. This was reaffirmed to me the second after I asked the first “question” on Sunday, but Eleanor and Elie were great sports. I was trying to ask about their ideas or perspectives on the media. Their website is a really good resource to learn more about them as people, hear their entire first album The Whispering Tree and most of Go Call the Captain for free, find out when they’re playing and read Eleanor’s blog. They’re a classic singer-songwriter duo, but totally understand the advantages to having a significant online presence, and this really intrigued me because most of the time people can’t seem to strike such a good balance.
Forgive me for nerding out for a second, but in most of my reviews I usually make a comment about digitalization’s effects on music. Good music is able to use technological advances and production effects to its advantage instead of allowing things like autotune or a drum machine ruin a good song, and this issue is something that constantly comes up when I’m evaluating a new album.
When I asked the band about this idea, Elie’s response was not at all what I was expecting, but it made sense. He said “I don’t think the media should be relevant to the music you make. I don’t see why there would be a link, you know? They are totally independent… just because you have a blog, that doesn’t mean your music should be like house and electronic. It’s not because you’re indie or DIY that you have to sound like you’re a beginner.”
This perceptive quality demonstrates The Whispering Tree’s commitment to keeping their music as natural as possible because they view music as something special enough to stand on its own. I know that doesn’t seem like some big revelation, but when you think about how many musicians (everyone from John Legend to Lady Gaga) rely on the use of Twitter and Facebook to get their message out, it’s refreshing that this truly talented duo understands the importance of media but respects music enough to not let it get in the way.
I was curious to know if any major philosophy was a conscious part of Go Call the Captain because so much of the album explores the human experience in the reoccurring image or theme of the sea as it symbolizes growth. Matching their emphasis on the organic, Eleanor and Elie explained that it wasn’t so much philosophy that went into the album, but rather this theme came as a result from their everyday discussions.
“We talk about kind of what it is to be human, how people perceive the world. How everyone sees their own experience, the nature of reality, and the quest of who we are.” Elie elaborated with “We also think that when we play music we actually communicate something that is not verbally communicated, but something more, you know?”
Oh, do I know. What they’re talking about here is communicating the experience of being alive. All good music does it, and these two have been able to casually tap into that.
The Whispering Tree already has a lot of new material that they’ve been performing around New York City recently, and in the spring they’re gearing up to take an RV across the country and go touring “really grassroots style” throughout the United States. It makes perfect sense that a band this naturally talented and concerned with the truth and beauty of music would take the next step of their career this natural way. They told me that they had recorded The Whispering Tree live, all in one day, without any mastering or mixing. And it was that good. I look forward to seeing how their next album incorporates this new travel and their foray into a more instrumentally driven style.
If the shift of The Whispering Tree to Go Call the Captain is any indication of how much their sound will develop, I’ll be first in line for the next album.
