Well, my digital voice recorder decided not to work and I couldn't find my pen, but I did still manage to have my conversation with Langhorne Slim, in a sliver of shade outside the Dell Dome: an interactive experience where you can play with laptops, get a fake tattoo, or get your CD signed, among other distractions.
After watching some interview trainwrecks yesterday, I made a point of keeping our chat brief, and my questions coherent, which I think Langhorne (and his burly, goateed road manager Dixie) appreciated.
So, here goes another Cocktail Convo from memory. Langhorne wore a porkpie hat, tanktop, shorts, and black cowboy boots. And, although there weren't any real cocktails involved, the mid-afternoon sun left me feeling just as lightheaded.
On life on the road: "I'm from Pennsylvania originally, about 20 minutes north of Philadelphia. I moved to New York, lived there about a year, then moved to northern California, lived there about a year. I've been on the road since April, so that's really been my home. We're headed to Europe next month, and then we're going back into the studio to record. I enjoy it, but it gets old sometimes."
On songwriting: "It's definitely cathartic to be able to write out the stuff that's in my head and play it for people. It's not all from personal experience, but it all comes from my personal point of view."
On being a musician: "I wouldn't know how to do anything else."
On his sound: "I think it's presumptuous of me to put what I do in any particular category. I don't ever want to feel restricted by having someone say I'm a folk artist, or a singer-songwriter. I love all kinds of music: blues, rock, gospel. It all informs what I do."
On the ACL Festival: "This is the first time I've played here, and I love it. Definitely one of the best festivals I've ever played: really fun, really well organized. And, we had such a great crowd this morning – never would have expected that. I've had a blast."
On other ACL artists: "I'm playing Denton tomorrow, but I'll have some time to check out some shows later today. I'll be at Fogerty, definitely. He's one of the greats."
After Langhorne left, I finally found my pen, and handed it to him so he could sign my copy of his self-titled debut LP. It's a real barn-burner, Langhorne's voice ripped with raw emotion.
Yeah, I think I will visit that Media Margarita bar now…