MICHAEL McDERMOTT
continued from page 20
be a cucumber again.' That was 1996.
That's when I had a moment of shame.
That is a lot of time."
The mental part of being a musician
trying to give up the sauce was hardest on
him. "It's the only job in the world where
you're encouraged to be a fuck up!" he
laughingly admits. "It's the only job where
you go to work, and they give you booze!
'Here's your desk and here's your bottle of
Jack!' You're encouraged to be a mess. And
there are great moments in chaos, in being
inebriated. There were some great musical
moments for me then because you totally
abandon your sense of self. There's some
beauty in that."
Thankfully the absence of alcohol did-
n't affect his songwriting. He was never in
the habit of writing while intoxicated. "I
thought of it as a sanctity," he says. "I did-
n't want to tread on that. I try not to think
when I write; I try to stay out of the way of
it. And the response to Willow Springs -
people like to root for people, so maybe
they like the story that I was sober?
Although, I don't feel the work was all that
different. People would say, 'Did you
know you put out such a great record?' I'd
be like, 'No, man. I thought the last ten
records I put out were great!' I don’t know
why people are paying attention now.
Maybe there's more of an authentic point
of view? I don't know. I'm not going to
dwell on it.
"I've always likened my career to
there's a party going on, and after my first
record I went outside to have a smoke, and
they locked the door! They just want me to
leave! Eventually, most people do. All the
people I started [out] with are all gone, but
I'm in the backyard, waiting for a bath-
room window to open so I can climb back
in! I think if you stick around long enough
while doing anything, you will get back
into that party."
McDermott explained that his side proj-
ect, The Westies, came about partially
because his manager got some feedback
from some "tastemakers" and their
response was, "Ugh. Michael McDermott?
Is he still really making records?" Even a
veteran Chicago radio DJ was blunt, say-
ing that they wouldn't play his new songs.
"'If you're over 35, it's not going to hap-
pen,'" he was told. "It's a different world. If
I had been starting out now, I'd be over-
whelmed. There is just so much noise."
It seems as though his comical party
analogy may be accurate. He waited in that
backyard long enough, and someone final-
ly opened a window. Hence the attention
to Willow Springs and the warm reception
so far for Out From Under. Although there
is no significant departure from what fans
expect, it's more of the continuation of an
artist – a painter, say – realizing which
brushes and paints and colors he works
best with to create his best pieces. Lyrics
have always been his strong suit, whether
he's telling a story or sharing something
personal or both. On this record
McDermott continues to explore the most
profound depths of his soul, addressing
his demons (alcohol) and his constant bat-
tles ("Knocked Down," "Out From Under,"
"Never Going Down Again"). He continues
to explore faith and God and how he feels
about it all ("Sad Songs," "This World Will
Break Your Heart," "God Help Us"); and
the ever-popular topic of love ("Celtic Sea,"
"Rubber Band Ring," "Sideways").
It's the opening track, "Cal-Sag Road,"
however, that is arguably McDermott's
most substantial work to date - a tough call
with a catalog as vast as his). Whereas
most songwriters write to enhance a par-
ticular scene or solidify a whole film in
moviegoers' minds, this song does the
opposite. It is a tour-de-force that begs for
the perfect cinematic realization – a biopic
exaggerated ala dusty spaghetti western,
deconstructed into a denouement showing
McDermott crawling back through that
bathroom window.
Appearing 5/10 Old Town School of Folk
Music, Chicago.
may
2018
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