Scott Hirsch - Hiss Golden Messenger Interview
Born in Hackensack, New Jersey to his native New York family, the Hirsch family decided to relocate to California when he was a young, finding out quickly that he was not a “beach kid”. Hirsch new he had a passion for music though and at the age of 13 he saw an insane lineup up at Irvine Meadows: The Ramones, Debbie Harry and Tom-Tom Club! As Hirsch got older and went off to college, he gravitated towards the hardcore scene that was going on at the time. Pparticipating in bands such as Ex-Ignota, Boxharp and The Court and Spark, he eventually met his longtime friend and bandmate, Mike Taylor. Together they started Hiss Golden Messenger before Hirsch began to venture out as a solo artists in years to come. Still heavily involved with HGM, Hirsch has been channeling his own material with 2021’s release of “Windless Day”, its sister album “Ghost of Windless Day” and most recently his Lagniappe Session for Aquarium Drunkard! It was great chatting with Hirsch about his life, how he got into music, meeting MT, kicking off an incredible solo career and much more!
When and where were you born? What was your childhood like? When did you first begin to fall in love with music? Was this something that was relevant around your household growing up? What is it about the pedal steel that fascinates you the most?
I was born in Hackensack, New Jersey to my New York-bred family. 3 generations back coming from Brooklyn and Queens by way of Eastern Europe. But my parents got to California dreaming after my father drove from San Diego to LA on a work trip. We moved to Laguna Beach when I was 5. I wrote a song on my record Lost Time Behind the Moon called "When You Were Old" about moving West, specifically, my parents' journey. Southern California was culture shock for me, and I never felt like I fit in with the toe-head surfer children. Now I realize that's why I was drawn to playing music. I was not a beach kid. Pedal steel is a magical instrument. I bought one from a great player from Red Hook, Brooklyn who's name I have since forgotten. She told me that the pedal steel is the most awkward, clacky, non-intuitive instrument on earth, but the payoff is that it makes the most beautiful sound. I agree. I studied for a while, but I am at the base level. Luckily, I have some great players close to me, like Jesse Siebenberg.
Do you have any siblings? What would you and your friends do for fun growing up? Who were some of your earliest influences in your more formative years? When and where did you see your first show and when did it dawn on you that you wanted to be a musician yourself?
Now that I disclosed that I wasn't a beach kid (I love the beach now), my friends and I were into music from a young age. Before we were old enough to seriously play instruments, we took our piano lesson knowledge and made fake bands. I had one called the "Broken Death Cult", or "BDC" with two friends. We made a tape on our boombox consisting of casio-centric songs about the mall, giggling, and cameos from my baby sister at the time. I know this sounds kinda hip now or something but I assure you at the age of 11, or 12, it was very, very, geeky. Later, when we were in college, the same three friends re-learned how to play some of these songs as a punk rock band. Only slightly less geeky! It was clear to me from an early age that music was essential and fun. My parents were not musicians, but my dad in particular loved music and played me many great records growing up, showing me the power of music. As far as first concerts I recall seeing Randy Newman at the Hollywood bowl with my parents when I was about 10. Man, would I like to see that now! My first non-parental concert was the The Ramones, Debbie Harry, and Tom-Tom Club at Irvine Meadows. I was probably 13 and went with my friend's way cooler older brother. Pretty insane lineup! I remember smelling weed in the crowd and feeling kinda scared.
Projects prior to setting off as a solo artist, you participated in groups such as Ex-Ignota, Boxharp and The Court and Spark. Can you tell me about these outfits? Tell me about writing and recording your debut album “Blue Rider Songs.” in 2016 on Aycock’s label, Scissor Tail. What was the overall vision for the album and what did you want to achieve and express with this work?.
Ex-Ignota was a hardcore punk band I had with Michael Taylor in college. The terms hardcore and punk have morphed in their meaning over the years, but let's just say we were loud, heavy, and rather experimental. Or at least we thought we were being pretty crafty. Really, we didn't know how to play too well yet, but that issue was overcome with earnest willpower and raw emotion, which is how I'd describe the sound and vibe of bands and communities we played in and around during those years. It was a magical time. We put an ad in the hardcore zine, booked shows by the US Mail (pre internet). We bought a gold Chevy Van-Dura with no windows and hit the road. To this day I meet people from that time who are still active in music, many high achievers. It's no accident. That scene was fertile and the small but tight knit community of people involved got the bug, just like me and Mike did those few crucial summers out on the road.
As we got slightly more sophisticated in our musical taste, we knew we had to learn how to play our instruments better. Bands like Tortoise and Slint came on our radar and we just couldn't play like this without learning and caring more about our craft, mellowing a bit. I traded my Marshall for a Fender Twin, still loud as hell, but more reverb and tremolo! We went to music school in the fruitful dollar bins of California record stores of the 1990s. We learned about country music largely through the lens of 2nd generation bands like the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers. But we were savvy and you can connect some pretty serious dots through those records to the real shit. The Court & Spark was kind of a cross between those 1970s California country bands and slow, methodical indie bands we liked at the time like Low and Souled American- at least in our minds. We hailed from San Francisco and learned to live and love as adults during this time, hitting the road pretty hard all the while. We had a big show booked at the old Knitting Factory in lower Manhattan on 9/11/2001.
After watching the towers fall we didn't get to play that one. I bring this up because in many ways the cards seemed stacked against that band for some reason. I still love some of the records we made, and I learned how to record and engineer music in this band. Our last year in San Francisco, Mike Taylor and I started a new musical journey he called Hiss Golden Messenger. I was burnt on guitar and switched to bass. We were (and still are) obsessed with rhythm and Jamaican music. We made one record and then split town for the East Coast. Mike went to North Carolina and I moved to NY. I actually thought music was over for me. A year or so in, the itch returned. Mike had made what is now known as Bad Debt (a cassette tape document of some seriously intense songwriting) and he wanted my help recording some of them with a band. We made the Poor Moon record in Brooklyn and launched the beginning of the Hiss Golden Messenger we know now.
I recorded and played bass for many years in the band until the road and distance became too cumbersome for me to do the live thing. I still am heavily involved with recording and mixing most Hiss Golden Messenger records, in fact I recently spent two glorious weeks in Texas making the next one. Stepping off the live Hiss train enabled me to control the narrative in terms of my own music making, which I had neglected. I started recording Blue Rider Songs right before I left NY to come back to California (the going West theme returns). Somehow (via Hayden Pedigo of all people) it caught the ear of Dylan Aycock, whose label Scissortail I knew from the glorious Hired Hand Reissue. I love the vibe of Blue Rider Songs, in fact, it's kind of all vibe. It's the sound of me learning how to write and sing a song, after being a side guy for so long. My solo records started as a way to flex my more creative studio ideas, and it has evolved into a similar exercise for my songwriting, which I enjoy.
How did you initially meet Steve Gunn and later form the smokin’ Golden Gunn project? You guys released your explosive debut on Three Lobed Recordings in 2013. Can you tell me about writing and recording that album and what you guys want to express? What is the chemistry like between you guys when you're creating together?
I had seen the Gunn-Truscinski Duo a few times in Brooklyn and really liked Steve's musicality. We didn't meet until Steve, Mike, and myself shared a long car ride to a friend's destination wedding. Cory from Three Lobed floated the idea of collaboration and when we got the car together we hit it off. The concept of Golden Gunn was formed, along with some pretty fantastic inspirations to make a record about. There's a whole story we invented about a character named Dickie Silk. A loser-rebel who makes ringtones to get enough cash to party on down the line. His "office" is a dive bar in an old strip mall called "Bloopers." I wrote a lot of the music, and Steve and Mike lent lyrics and energy to the record. This project preceded my first recordBlue Rider Songs.Watching and learning these two guys craft songs from my music ideas was extremely inspirational for me, resulting in me writing my own first solo record. Making the Golden Gunn record was an absolute joy, and a highlight for me. Maybe we'll make another one sometime.
How did you meet M.C Taylor and join in on Hiss Golden Messenger? You’ve participated on albums such as “Lateness Of Dancers”, “London Exodus”, “Haw” “Hallelujah Anyhow” and many more. You’ve contributed music to the band, but you’ve also mixed and engineered some of those records. What is the approach of performing compared to the professional/engineering side of making those albums like for you?
It is the same making the records for me as being in the band. Mike and I have known each other so long, we have a shorthand communication with music that we can lean into. A look, or a word, or two can move us to where we need to go quickly. I dearly love the band and crew Mike has assembled, and working with them in the studio is a dream. For example watching Alex Bingham craft his bass-lines and even play some of my old ones live fills me with such joy. You gotta give it to the young turks- they're taking over and it's so good!
2021 saw your third release “Windless Day”. Tell me about that album and how you wanted to approach these songs that differ from your previous works. How did the deal with Echo Magic come about? I’d love to know about songs such as “Dreamer”, “Spirit True”, “Redstone” and “Big Passenger”.
On Windless Day I leaned more into my studio process and how it informed the song-writing. Having endless hours during lockdown was helpful, not because I could obsess or perfect, but more because there was no pressure. I simply worked on the songs until I was happy with them. I also had the confidence to work with some amazing vocalists on songs like "Dreamer," Kelly McFarling did a kind of duet with me and also Jade Hendrix, Sharon Hendrix, and Carolyne Dennis-Dylan sang as well. "Redstone" is a driving song, late into the purple night. I see and hear a certain darkness of Windless Day I touched on as I reflect on it now. Even a bouncy song like "Big Passenger" has a seedy underbelly I tapped into subconsciously. Maybe the windless-ness of it all was the calm before the storm we're all in now. One of my favorite songs on the record, "Wolves" talks about overcoming your darkness and fears. Echo Magic, the label, came into existence out of necessity. Echo Magic is also a four man production team here in Ojai, CA. We write together, record and produce records, and we are a house band. We needed a label simply to release all of our work, much of which is to come. I am trepidatiously excited to have a label, for the exact reason why I never wanted to have one. I mean, in this day and age, what do record labels even do? With ours, the answer is simple, we release and cultivate the music that moves us, and no other party, or business entity has to get between us to make that happen. That feels pretty good to me.
What have you been up to more recently? Anything else happening for Spring/Summer with your solo work, or with HGM? Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?
I've been keeping busy. I made a companion album to Windless Day called Ghost of Windless Day which is out now on streaming, but the limited run of vinyl is about to hit the streets and mailboxes. Besides recording the next Hiss record (due out next fall) I've also been producing. I made a record with a brilliant singer and guitarist named Mia Dyson. I produced my second Greg Loiacono record last year- a soul record that I adore. I'm putting the final touches now on a concept record by an amazing band called Radio Skies. I'm also keeping busy mixing ambient new age music in Dolby Atmos, and I've been doing some film-sound work, a vocation I love as well. When I get the time, I'm writing and recording a fourth record of my own. Just chooglin' along here! The next thing dropping on the streaming services this week is my second Lagniappe Session I did for Aquarium Drunkard. It’s three Steve Miller Band songs and I had a blast recording them!
