Tilly and the Wall Play the PAPER Kitchen
Tilly and the Wall came by to play "Hey Rainbow" and "Static Expressions" in the PAPER kitchen.
In the decade since indie band Tilly and the Wall formed in Omaha, the five band members -- Jamie and Derek Pressnall, Kianna Alarid, Neely Jenkins, and Nick White -- have grown up, gotten married (some to each other), had a few kids and drifted to other cities. Now, four years since their last album, 2008's O, the band has reunited and produced Heavy Mood, their fourth full-length record to date. On the heels of the album's release earlier this month, the group stopped by our kitchen to treat us to toe-tapping (literally!) renditions of "Hey Rainbow" and "Static Expressions" -- two tracks off the new LP -- and chat with us about how their musical reunion's been going.
What can you share with us about the new album?
Derek It rules. We're very proud of it.
Kianna: It feels like there's some sort of theme. It's hard to put your finger on it. The lyrics "We have to try and lift up the weight" hold the power, as if there's a heavy mood out there and nobody can deny that. The message of the album seems to be "let's all together now lift up that weight." You can't just will something away, it's more about transcending through and going into the experience, working through it on individual levels.
How was the recording process this time around? You've had a big break since the your last album came out.
Nick: It was a big break. And we've kind of all split apart. Neely and I live in LA now, Kianna lives in Missouri, and [we have] kids and the whole thing...life. So we took a little time off and it just felt like the right time for everyone and we were all in contact.
Derek: This time it was a lot of songwriting and crafting in the studio because we all live in different cities and a lot of it was done with Mike Mogus. He really produced this record and had a heavy hand in it.
How has it been seeing one another so much all of a sudden?
Neely: I think we've all talked about how when we're together it doesn't feel like anything has changed, even though our lives are so different. We're still total bros and everything is the same as far as friendship goes.
Jamie: And I feel like we appreciate the time we have together more because we all have really busy lives. And for us to schedule a tour with children and everything we have going on [makes us] appreciate the time we have together.
Kianna: Tilly was our entire life for such a long time and to come back together and know that the unit is still just as concrete as before really shows that if a band really works from the beginning, it's never changed.
Derek: It's just like [being in a] family.
Kianne: I feel like 20 years later if we said, "Do you guys feel like doing another Tilly album?" we'd be like "Sure!" And it wouldn't be weird at all, besides the fact that we'd be like 50 or something.
Kianna: I'll also say that this tour, since we've been away so long, it's sort of blown my eyes that the kids are coming back and they're all fans from before. It's showing how long we've been around and the loyalty that [the fans] are giving to us when we're on stage. It's inspiring.
Interview by Abby Schreiber
What can you share with us about the new album?
Derek It rules. We're very proud of it.
Kianna: It feels like there's some sort of theme. It's hard to put your finger on it. The lyrics "We have to try and lift up the weight" hold the power, as if there's a heavy mood out there and nobody can deny that. The message of the album seems to be "let's all together now lift up that weight." You can't just will something away, it's more about transcending through and going into the experience, working through it on individual levels.
How was the recording process this time around? You've had a big break since the your last album came out.
Nick: It was a big break. And we've kind of all split apart. Neely and I live in LA now, Kianna lives in Missouri, and [we have] kids and the whole thing...life. So we took a little time off and it just felt like the right time for everyone and we were all in contact.
Derek: This time it was a lot of songwriting and crafting in the studio because we all live in different cities and a lot of it was done with Mike Mogus. He really produced this record and had a heavy hand in it.
How has it been seeing one another so much all of a sudden?
Neely: I think we've all talked about how when we're together it doesn't feel like anything has changed, even though our lives are so different. We're still total bros and everything is the same as far as friendship goes.
Jamie: And I feel like we appreciate the time we have together more because we all have really busy lives. And for us to schedule a tour with children and everything we have going on [makes us] appreciate the time we have together.
Kianna: Tilly was our entire life for such a long time and to come back together and know that the unit is still just as concrete as before really shows that if a band really works from the beginning, it's never changed.
Derek: It's just like [being in a] family.
Kianne: I feel like 20 years later if we said, "Do you guys feel like doing another Tilly album?" we'd be like "Sure!" And it wouldn't be weird at all, besides the fact that we'd be like 50 or something.
Kianna: I'll also say that this tour, since we've been away so long, it's sort of blown my eyes that the kids are coming back and they're all fans from before. It's showing how long we've been around and the loyalty that [the fans] are giving to us when we're on stage. It's inspiring.
Interview by Abby Schreiber
This story was published on Nov. 20, 2012
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