Austin Sound

“I’m talking to you in a rainstorm.”

The first words from Danny Malone’s mouth are strangely obvious as I can hear the hiss of inclement weather on the line, but he manages to give it a name, a definition as a sort of enigmatic, chance poet. It’s the kind of dry lyricism coloring the earthy tones of last year’s release, Cuddlebug, that also pervade his conversation. Not much is certain about Danny Malone — even he can attest to that. He has curious bios online, claiming he’s a number of fantastical things, but these all seem fabrications of Malone’s overactive imagination, and almost diversions from the heartfelt songwriter that listeners find in his music. What we do know is that July 29th has been officially declared Danny Malone Day here in Austin, and Malone himself remains humble and politely reticent of his local fame. Austin Sound sat down with the twenty-something songsmith to chat about his commemoration, his seemingly endless ambition as a musician, his forthcoming album, and the Parkside vs. Best Wurst controversy, about which he cares so deeply.

Austin Sound: I don’t know if a lot of people can boast this, but you now have a day named after yourself. July 29th, 2010 has been officially called Danny Malone Day in the city of Austin. How did this whole idea come about?

Danny Malone: Honestly, I have no idea how it started. I think the mayor of Austin is a big fan.

AS: I heard a rumor from an undisclosed source that you’re going to receive a key to the city.

DM: I’m not sure exactly what’s going to happen. It’s all going to start with a city hall address at five where the Mayor is going to introduce me and, I guess, give me a big chocolate key [laughs]. In my speech I’m going to mention the controversy between Parkside and Best Wurst and how the Parkside ownership is systematically trying to run the Best Wurst out from in front of their building and out of town. I’m going to say “it’s capitalism at its worst worst”. Then anyone who wants to march can meet us at Shang-ri-la at 7:00, where we’ll march to Stubb’s at 7:30 with drums and percussion.

AS: Is Danny Malone Day in the books for good?

DM: I don’t think so. I think this is just going to be a one-time thing - just this year, but I’ll still consider it a tradition [laughs].

AS: The city of Austin has obviously chosen you as one of its favorite sons. What exactly is your relationship to the city?

DM: I basically moved to Austin to drop out of school and play music. I grew up in Dallas, as far as I can remember, and then went to college in New Jersey. I wanted to be close to New York, but when I got there I realized it wasn’t for me. I don’t know why — I guess I’m just southern in my bones. My sister lived down here so I came back to Texas when I was 20 and moved to Austin. I suppose it’s nice to be close to my family. When I got here, I opened up a studio, Hot Tracks, with Matt Smith, who is also my producer. He’s a brilliant producer and my best friend in town. When we recorded Cuddlebug, I played most of the instruments myself and he engineered all the songs.

AS: I noticed that you used downtown Austin as the backdrop for your video for “Baby Bleu”. Has living as a musician in this town had an impact on your writing?

DM: I wouldn’t say that I’m exactly inspired by Austin — at least not directly. With the “Baby Bleu” video, the director chose that to be the background and I said, “Okay, cool.” I got a free video out of it. I’m not out there trying to rep the city.

AS: Are elements of the city finding its way into your music?

DM: It’s more like my music is finding its way into Austin.

AS: You just recently returned from an East Coast tour and a small stint up into Canada with the Sessions. How were people responding to your music out there?

DM: We killed. There were a couple of flop cities where no one showed up, but they were all cities that none of us had been to and people didn’t really know about it. Did some great shows in NYC. Canada was awesome. You kind of have to sneak in under the radar in Canada because they don’t like Americans coming in there and taking Canadian money. You have to tell them that everything is for promotional use. We played an in-store in Montreal, literally within hours of crossing the border and I completely sold out of inventory. I think everyone in the store bought a CD. They ate it up!

AS: Sorry to do this, but I feel compelled to ask you about an incident involving a trashy strip club in Hot Springs, AK and your phone.

DM: [Laughs] Oh no. Okay. First off, I am not a proponent of strip clubs at all. But [C.J.] Vinson, one of the guys on the tour, led the charge and we ended up going in there and getting a bucket of beers. We were in one of the trashiest towns, in the trashiest strip club, and that, in turn, sort of made us the trashiest people in the strip club. None of the strippers liked us, none of the locals liked us. We eventually got accused of stealing money from the stage, so we left. The next day we hit the road and I couldn’t find my phone. The strip club had it and someone who works there — who may or may not be a stripper — mailed it back and forth all over the country while I was on tour, trying to get my phone back to me. She was very nice. I eventually got it when I got back to Austin. The Sessions is going to send her a gift basket.

AS: Debauchery aside, Thursday’s show at Stubb’s isn’t just for Danny Malone Day, it’s also a release party for a 6-song split EP on Township Records with James Levy. How did you get involved in this project?

DM: Township wanted me to record some songs, so when some space opened up in Hot Tracks, Matt [producer] and I went in and recorded three new tracks really quickly, just busting them out. We didn’t really know what they were going to be for at first, we just got in there and did them. The EP is called Verses. The songs are kind of a departure from what I did with Cuddlebug — they’re still me, still in the same vein, but a slight departure. We took a more lo-fi approach. I recorded the drums on the songs and did them one drum at a time.

AS: This will be your first release since Cuddlebug, which is almost a year old now. Do you have any more material in the works for another LP?

DM: I guess it has almost been a year now. At the moment, I’m just touring and then we did this EP for Township, but whenever I get enough money, I have another album’s worth of material ready to go. It will be different doing all of the songs at once. Whereas Cuddlebug was sort of a process, and realistic, this next full-length will have nothing to do with reality. The songs are there. I have a good feeling that it’s going to be big, like “change something in the world” big. I just know it. In my head, it’s going to be global.

Danny Malone Day is happening Thursday July 29th. The official pre-vinyl release for the 6-song split EP “Verses” featuring Danny Malone and James Levy is at Stubb’s Inside Stage. Opening are the Steps, The Window Theatre, and The House of Songs. Doors open at 8pm. The official Danny Malone Day Parade meets at Shang-ri-la at 7PM and departs for Stubb’s at 7:30PM, and yes, Malone will actually address city hall at 5PM.

Websites:
http://dannymalone.blogspot.com
Myspace