Alan Chang – Check Please

By starrymag | October 16, 2023

By: Lisa Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) Someone recently called it “Indie-Jazz” which feels right to me.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Brad Mehldau, Oscar Peterson, John Coltrane, Elliott Smith, Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright, Father John Misty.

 

Q) What is it about jazz music that continues to move you as an artist?

 

A) It’s maybe one of the last styles of music that still counts on capturing a good day/performance in the studio. It also has a richness and depth in harmonic structure that continues to inspire.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Natalie Explain.” I hear it arose from a songwriting exercise you undertook. 

 

A) I was inspired by a Jake Sherman song called “Isabelle” and challenged myself to use a name in the title of a song.

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

 

A) It’s an incredibly simple song in terms of form and harmonically. But people seem to respond to it. So, that’s bad news.

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

 

A) The video is a very literal translation of the song. Hopefully, it shows a very naive man in love who just can’t take a hint. Hopefully, the lyrics of the song and the scenes of the video seem ridiculous enough to garner a chuckle.

 

Q) What are some themes you explore on your upcoming album Check Please?

 

A) All of these songs were written around the time of telling one person in my life that my loyalty had come to an end while simultaneously falling in love with someone else.  Though it’s not a case of infidelity!

 

Q) You noted that it took you a long time to find a sound that fit so many of your influences and strengths. Which song(s) challenged you the most creatively for the album?

 

A)  I don’t know if the challenge was with a particular song on the album. The challenge was finding the sound of this album through enough writing. For much of the pandemic I wrote a song a week. But it took many, many of those weeks to purge myself of a different approach to song writing. I had to get myself out of the mindset of writing songs for others and really figure out what would a song for me include – how can I use my jazz influence to still craft songs that I could sing and play over.

 

Q) What song(s) on the album hold a special significance for you and what makes them so personal for you?

 

A) “Love As a Weapon” is one of my favorite tracks I’ve ever made. And it was written after a really big decision in my life. It has a sense of freedom, and the song is the first person that let me get some things off my chest.

 

Q) What do you hope lingers with listeners – either emotionally or message wise – from exploring Check Please?

 

A) I just hope there’s a song in there they want to hear again.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) For me, music always comes first. The lyrics are always a bit of a battle.

 

Q) As a (former) musical director, how much of hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

A) Yeah, I co-produced the second half of the album. I don’t know if my experience as a musical director has helped with making albums, but I got to spend a lot of time in the studio with guys like Bob Rock and David Foster over the years that have taught me a lot.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) I think music is best in a small room. I’ve gotten to play some big venues while playing with other artists. I’ve never felt less significant than playing in a stadium for 75,000 people. The sound is chaos. You can shower the songs with mistakes, and I just don’t think it’s noticed. It doesn’t feel like making music.

 

Q) What artist/musician are you currently listening to and why do you dig them? 

 

A) I’ve been listening to Father John Misty and Ben Jaffe a lot. Two incredible songwriters who have their own unique sound that can croon a tune better than anybody. Also, Alex Lilly, who has been one of my favorite songwriters for fifteen years.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

 

A) I’m a part of it because there seems to be no choice. Sometimes it feels like you put out an album and the only thing you can instantly feel are a certain amount of likes. It makes you feel like spending years making an album is just another way to make content. And perhaps you would have been better off getting breast enhancement surgery.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) Reveal thy self.