On More Happyness, perhaps the most varied album the Aluminum Group has ever released, gay brothers John Navin and Frank Navin glide from the ethereal to the brutal, from the carefree to the erotic, and from light to dark in what seems like the blink of a teary eye or the beat of a broken heart. 'Mister Butterfly' leaves the ground and floats above the listeners' heads on more than one occasion, while 'Youth Is Wasted On Nothing' is a musical statement that is hard to rebut. The deceptive 'Snowflake,' with lines such as 'the notion itself is rather crude/like a convict choking on her food,' has such an insistent dance beat that the lyrics take on a subliminal quality. Equally persuasive in the dance department, 'Motorcycles,' is also one of the most effective songs written about Matthew Shepard that I've had the privilege to hear. With its Devo beat, 'W/out The Erte' is the Aluminum Group's sexiest song since 'Tom Of Finland (An Homage)' from 2000's Pelo and the stunning 'Wheat And Tare' sounds like the Navin brothers' first official cabaret tune.
Gregg Shapiro: Aluminum Group did a live performance at the Apple Store in Chicago in December 2003. How did that come about and how did the performance go?
John Navin: We were approached originally by Pete (Toalson) at the (Chicago live music club) Empty Bottle. Apple had contacted him and other local club owners/bookers and Pete suggested us, having seen our iPod performances (Poor Pete! Poor sweet Pete!). Anyway, of course Frank and I were kind of thrilled to do the show there. I love the store and the direction they are going. It's very positive and chic and very consumer, which helps us avoid or forget all our troubles, in the big world as well as small. The show or space, I should say, was awesome. We projected our Web site on the big screen behind us in the ample theater area of the store and had our graphic designer/friend, Jason, navigate through the Web site, exploring all the interactive features on the site. Who could ask for a more wonderful backdrop? And you know, Gregg, Frankie and I are all about backdrops. We sat there on stools and sang our little songs and, of course, between songs, I wanted to discuss the Web site, which we christened or launched at Apple, really. It was like an Aluminum Group self-help seminar. I loved every second of it. We'll perform there again in March.
Frank Navin: I just went along for the ride. Luckily, I thought to bring a mixing board. I'm really not very good at the connections stuff.
GS: More Happyness is the second installment in a trilogy. Do you consider the three albums whose titles began with the letter P—Plano, Pedals and Pelo—to also be part of a trilogy?
JN: Good question. In hind sight, yes, and maybe subconsciously they were at the time. Yes, we work in series, or love the concept of series. We're certainly not the only ones. Mister Matthew Barney! But in the pop music scene, we just might be the only ones today, except, of course, the (Magnetic) Fields 69 Love Songs (a treasure trove), but that was really a three CD idea. Ours is more of a thematic evolution over the course of years and projects, Happyness, More Happyness and now Little Happyness, which we're recording as we speak. The finale, after Little Happyness is an idea of Frank's. We're going to pick our favorite songs from the three, remix them and do them in Spanish. We're asking Juana Molina (from Argentina) to hop aboard. We recently met her, performed alongside, and she's a living doll, our modern day Astrud Gilberto I think, but Joni Mitchell and Cat Power thrown in for good measure.
FN: Yes. I came to see the transformation in my mind's eye; each one of the 'P's getting more esoteric. Well, that's what I hoped for anyway. With the 'Happyness'es, I think of them as a collection of songs, with the esoteric-ness built into them.
GS: What distinguishes the 'Happyness' trilogy from your previous releases?
JN: Probably a more concentrated approach to the 'series' idea. Every song was written with that in mind, a theme, questions, concerns about happiness, the state of, what is it when we ask ourselves, or others, 'are you happy?' It seems like it's 'are you sad? is something wrong?' and of course, it allows us to examine our lives and how we make our way, our struggles, successes and possible demise.
FN: I think that they are all (and/or will be) engineered by John MacEntire, giving them all the same kind of sound. Lyrically, there isn't much difference. I only hope we are getting better as we continue to explore different topics.
GS: 'Motorcycles' is dedicated to the late Matthew Shepard and contains the chorus 'Blood, gunpowder and sunshine.' It is one of the most powerful musical tributes to Shepard that I've ever heard. Please say something about that song.
JN: Actually, it isn't really dedicated to Matthew Shepard, but Frank can elaborate on this, it's his song. But we put his name down and the years he lived, like on his tombstone, poor kid. We can never forget this kid, now, can we? He's our Anne Frank, I think.
FN: Actually, it is dedicated to Matthew Shepard. And it's funny that you should mention those three words, because those are the only ones that relate directly to him. By 'blood,' I meant the suffering of an individual. By 'gunpowder,' I meant the being tied to a stockade fence by ones that truly hate and wish you harm. By 'sunshine,' I meant exposure. Both the freezing cold and the being brought out into clear daylight so that everyone can see. The rest of the song is really my view on a rigid and cruel world. Something that Matthew must have felt right at that moment, just before they started to drag him away.
GS: 'Youth Is Wasted On Nothing' is an interesting way to look at the old adage. Would you say that your youths were well-spent or squandered?
JN: Mine was both, of course, it was both, and it's because of the splendor and the squandered nature I am here, doing what I do, thinking how I think.
FN: I wrote that song about 20 years ago, when I was young. I don't think I ever felt young. Maybe when I was a kid and we'd all smoke pot and go pool-hopping. That song is intended for those other people. The ones that are young. The song is really a 'more power to them.'
GS: In what way did Phil Ochs inspire the song 'Colored Town'?
JN: I loved Phil Ochs so much, so very much. I listened to him over and over. One CD I found had his song 'Colored Town' on it and I was so moved and shocked by it. It all seems so behind us now, but back in the '60s, how strange. Of course, I believe what William Faulkner said, as his work testifies, the race problem will exist for 500 years or more. We'll never get it out of our system completely. It's like a cancer which you carry, however small, so that you're on chemo your whole life through, but never cured really. Gosh, I think about growing up a kid in Detroit, a sweet kid who loved the world, his little world, but we were already isolated in the suburbs, not knowing any better, well, perhaps our parents did, but so it goes. And so that was my inspiration for the song. It's a sad song, really. More about my own inner personal journey, but the bigger world is reflected in the chorus, the lament of 'color, color, colored in colored town.' I loved singing that line. I remember we recorded the vocals at home and Frankie was lying on the couch, coaching me, encouraging me, listening and guiding me to that special place where I needed to be, almost a Zen state of sadness and longing if that's possible. It's my tribute to Mr. Ochs and all the terrible things he wrote about, another suburban boy. Just like me, I guess.
GS: 'W/o the Erte' is as sexy as it is haunting. What was the inspiration for that song?
JN: Since this is a homosexual publication, I'll tell you. It's just as the song says. I cruised or was cruised by this freakish youth in a thrift store who, it turned out, was covered in the most unusual tattoos, the weirdest ones I've ever seen in my life. And his skin was all white. Erte is a poetic device. It represents something cliché and funny, but of course the true art was not the Erte, but the replacement of the Erte with something really snazzy, this boy's unbelievable tattoos. I like how the song builds thematically, but of course, it doesn't rhyme. Oh well.
GS: What do you think Erte would make of having his named dropped in a song?
JN: As per my last remark, I don't think he would appreciate it. But would he appreciate his 'art' on every fag's wall? Probably, as I would appreciate an Aluminum Group CD (all six) in every household. It's not a critique of Erte, because I don't care about Erte, I mean his drawings were sweet, I guess, but it's not my thing. I simply used it because, one, it's true. Have you ever been in a thrift store? You'll find Carpenter's albums and Erte prints. Two, it was strictly a device to enhance the theme or tension of the story. Sorry Erte.
GS: Aluminum Group has earned a reputation for having cool guest artists on their CDs and More Happyness is no exception. Uber-groupie and visual artist Cynthia Plaster Caster provides spoken vocals on 'Mister Butterfly.' Please say something about that.
FN: I recorded her with a portable Boss sampler in Jason Pickelman's office one day. Jason and I were doing music for this MCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) thing and I needed some sound bites. I held on to it because I loved it so much. When I built the song in my computer it was my favorite part.
JN: Well, what can you say? She's absolutely divine! A national treasure. I adore her and we always seem to have some fun, no matter what. She's very serious, too, and we just wouldn't be happy without her by our side. I mean she comes to every show and we're not even rockers. She has blessed us with her presence and talent and we're the better for it. It just worked out perfectly. Usually we have female singers, our Amy Warren, Sally Timms and Rebecca Gates, but More Happyness is devoid, probably not a good thing, with the exception of Plaster. We laughed because after finishing More Happyness, Frank remarked, 'Hey, there are no women singing on it?' Hello! We've only spent two months recording this sucker and you finally realize that? So I go, 'No sweetie, Plaster's on it!' Frank looked at me and said, 'Oh yeah, PLASTER'S on it!'
GS: Did Cynthia make plaster casts of both of you?
JN: Oh no! No. No. No. No. Out of the question, although I've assisted her in the past. I'm kind of as obsessed with cock as our girl, Plaster. It's something, a big thing, we have in common. She's so gentle about it, she's like, 'Oh! This one is darling. He couldn't quite get it up, or did, but couldn't hold it, so it's like a little curly-q.' I'm like, 'Show me Hendrix! (Jon) Langford! That freakish dentist from Nowhereville who sent you his prized possession, his veiny 11-inch cock replica' (his dental assistant did the casting I believe). I'm not a size queen, I'm just easily impressed. And also, Cynthia is an artist, thinks like one, has dedicated her life to art. I respect and love her dearly.
