INTERVIEW : 2001-02-09 Joseph Arthur Avoids Comforts on Road Up (by Lynne Margolis)
New York singer-songwriter Joseph Arthur might strike some listeners as a worn-out, post-punk fatalist delivering Beck-worthy acoustic-electronic collages. But rather than blasé cynicism, the up-and-coming 29-year-old transplant from Akron, Ohio, is more likely to convey the pain and wisdom of a love-wounded, deep-souled philosopher.
He can be a blasé cynic, however; it's part of his sarcastic side, which emerges in conversation and occasionally in his beautifully poetic road diary entries, posted regularly on his Web site. But mostly, those sound like the words of someone who observes life through a haze of depression.
"Some of that stuff is not intended to be deathly serious," Arthur clarifies. "I try to have an element of humor in that. But usually when I write I'm sort of somewhat uncomfortable. Because when I'm comfortable, I'm not as motivated to write. When you're on the road, you're forced into a lot of uncomfortable situations."
It's a classic poet-lyricist's trap: Pain is much more inspiring than happiness; if you're happy, introspection, reflection and self-pity aren't priorities. But then all your work sounds like you live under a constant rain cloud. (Think Morrissey, a k a Morose-y.) Still, in Arthur's case, misery breeds eloquence, not whining.
"We said our goodbye with tears/ And promised to not let the years get away/ But that's something you just have to say," he sings in "Tattoo." In "Ashes Everywhere," Arthur mourns, "I'll be silent in my solitude/ Can't find my smile or my gratitude/ I'm afraid of what I might do/ Because there's no me/ If there's no me and you."
Even Arthur's artwork, which decorates his CD package, has a haunting, spectral look. He says he has no idea where it comes from. But his untrained style is so impressive, it earned him a Grammy nomination last year for Best Recording Package (for his Vacancy EP).
He's aware of the irony involved, but, he sighs, he wouldn't have minded getting that nomination again this year -- just so he could go to the parties. Maybe the next album, on which he's just begun work in his apartment studio, will net him a musical nomination.
He's got different accolades to celebrate at the moment. In its year-end best of issue, Entertainment Weekly magazine placed Come to Where I'm From on its Top 10 album list. At No.1.
Critic David Browne applauded Peter Gabriel for having the insight to sign "this sulker-songwriter" to his Real World label and praised, "Arthur sings in the bedraggled voice of a weary busker. But his shambolic melodies and piercing lyrics are as gripping as any this year."
But if anyone's wondering whether Arthur's about to melt into a puddle of sorrow, he assures that's not the case. He'd also like to clarify something about road life. "It's fun," he admits. "Like right now, I'm off the road and I totally miss it. ... In a way, writing about it was an act of honoring the experience, because I realized how special it was. But at the same time, I wanted to not hide the grueling aspect of it, because it is grueling for real and it does actually eat through a lot of people."
The tour in question, during which he opened in Europe for Ben Harper and Stateside for The The and David Gray , he dubbed the If We Weren't on the Road We'd be in an Institution Tour 2000.
"Writing about it helped me survive it in a big way," he says.
Hey, whatever gets you through the night.
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