By Phil DiPietro
CMJ says of Happy Apple, "This outfit continues down its shining path on it's fourth release "Please Refrain From Fronting" making its music awkward, interesting and inquisitive rather than simply laying down a groove", while Downbeat says, "Intelligent, freewheeling fusion with rock energy", and Jazziz calls them an, "extraordinary new talent." More important than all that--they're like...my fave new band! Many thanks to reviews by our own Glenn Astarita and David Adler for spurring my interest in this unit. I love 'em foremost because they're so much fun and even more because they so seriously do not take themselves seriously, or as The Minnesota Daily posited, "Happy Apple pushes the envelope albeit in a humble way, in an effort to turn jazz's art gallery syndrome on its ear."
The band features multi-reedman Michael Lewis, drummer David King and electric bassist Erik Fratzke. This unit, who mischievously takes their name from a vintage children's toy, are as likely to explore microtonality, free-jazz, hard funk, free bop or groove music while evoking words like "rollicking", "explosive", "telepathic", "boisterous", "unruly", "irreverent" and "subversive". David King is a prodigious, cannily astute drummer who simply sounds more rock or prog-rock than jazz most of the time, with a readily identifiable style employing what certainly sounds to be a tuned kit. While capable-of-anything saxman Michael Lewis is generally at the forefront over the excitingly pulsating bottom, it's bassman Erik Fratzke that is the band's second line melodist, always surprising with his choppingly staccato powerful runs. A multi ÃÂinstrumentalist himself, including piano and guitar, it's surprising that Fratz stays away from the current crop of axes having more than four strings, but he's old-school that way, as with his tone, which he keeps on the pure, unaffected side the vast majority of the time.
Punk jazz? Definitely! Anyone remotely interested in crossing over the punk aesthetic into jazzier realms should pick up any of their recorded offerings. Another exemplary quote from the Chicago New City paper sums it up for us with, "Those of y'all out there whose interest isn't even nudged by jazz would do well to check out Happy Apple; high-octane jazz with rock-even thrash-intensity might bring you over." Far from the world's jazz epicenters out in Minneapolis, Happy Apple have created their bizarro musicworld in their own universe, on their own terms. In that respect, they certainly have benefited from being the big fish in a small, but vibrant, artistic pond. What can they do to expand their reach? Do they really have to be in New York, Chicago or LA? Should they even be allowed out of their rehearsal space? These and more questions have been generously fielded, below, by the non-slapping-slaphappy-apple bassman- who proves that he indeed practices what he preaches on the title of his band's latest offering, "Please Refrain From Fronting".
AAJ: Hey man, sorry for the bass-ics, but how old are you and where did you grow up?
Erik Fratzke: I am 30 years old. I grew up in Winona, MN.
AAJ: How did you get into music?
EF: It's kind of strange, I can remember the exact day I first really discovered music. One day in the third grade I just decided to stay home from school, and I remembered that I still had a decimated toy drum set on my back porch. For some reason, I grabbed the snare drum and a pair of sticks that had been sitting dormant for months, and attempted to play along with my Elvis "Blue Christmas" 45. As the hours went by, I realized I was having a lot of fun, and that was it!
I continued to play drums for another year, then started playing upright bass in the school orchestra in fourth grade. I seem to remember being attracted to the bass when the orchestra director played the theme to "Jaws" on it. I also knew that the bass was used in rock bands, so that sealed the deal for me right there!
AAJ: Who were your influences, as a musician, and more specifically, on
bass?
EF: When I began, my influence was my mother's record collection. She had a pretty eclectic collection, including Ravi Shankar, Charles Mingus, Beatles, King Crimson, and Funkadelic. But it was funny- she wasn't a hard-core obscure music fanatic, these were just records that had somehow found their way into her collection. It took me a while to figure out that most of my friend's parents didn't have record collections like this! My mom also took me to the public library a lot. So naturally I would dig through their record collection. Most of the time I would grab something that looked weird, or had a strange name. I heard some pretty avant stuff this way. For instance, I had checked out Bartok's string quartets and some of Harry Partch's music before I was in junior high! My ears were definitely stretched early on thanks to Mom.
I would also have to say early MTV was a also an early influence. We could see videos by a very diverse range of bands in those days, and the format wasn't so rigid back then. I would always watch for the obscure bands that I'd never heard of. There was no way I was going to hear a band like Roxy Music or David Bowie on the radio where I grew up.
As you can see I'm a person with a ton of influences. I think one last influence was my elementary school string teacher. She played cello in a string quartet at the local university, so she would invite me to their concerts. My parents were great- they would let me go by myself to these concerts. I was 10, 11, 12 years old, and I would ride my bike down to the university recital hall on a Sunday afternoon. I was really taken by the sound of a string quartet. I thought it was the coolest thing that adults would get together and play music like this. It was then I realized that people devoted their lives to making music. That made a huge impact on me!
As far as bass players, some of the first influences were Paul McCartney, Geddy Lee, Chris Squire, and Billy Sheehan. A bit later I got into Stanley Clarke, Jeff Berlin and Jaco. When I really began to mature, it was less about bass players and more about other instrumentalists and composers. (I do have a more detailed list of my favorite bassists available at our site click here to get there)
AAJ: Tell us about those periods of what you feel, were of most intense
growth as a musician.
EF: My senior year of high school I would get up in the morning, practice a little bit, go to school and play upright with the orchestra. That afternoon I would play for a couple of hours with a college jazz ensemble, rehearse with my cover band that evening, and finally finish the day transcribing Miles, Coltrane, and Bird. By the end of that year, I noticed a big leap in my abilities.
The period of growth following that was spent studying song writing, and was the classic "rejection of chops" period. I became fascinated with songwriters who changed peoples lives by writing music that was simple and direct I was learning to make music for everyone to enjoy, not just musicians. Basically, I wanted to become a more rounded musician, not just a bass player. Since then I have gone back and forth revisiting both those periods, attempting to create a curious hybrid of the two. I love astounding technique and impossible simplicity.
AAJ: To my mind, Happy Apple are as good a small combo operating within the genre within you operate, which may or may not become more fleshed out with this interview. Plus you've gotten many, many great reviews, as good as anyone. What do you feel needs to happen to give you a bit more name recognition?
EF: The thing that needs to happen is for us to play in Europe. I'm not whining here, but we've been mostly ignored by American record labels and have had a difficult time putting decent tours together here in the U.S. That's just reality for most American musicians. If Europe is giving us opportunities that are mostly eluding us at home, then we will gladly go there. It's no secret that many American jazz musicians make most of their income from playing & recording outside of the U.S. these musicians have told us that we'd do very well in Europe. Lo and behold, it is a French, not an American label that offers us a record deal! Basically things are starting to happen for us in Europe, so let's go play there and see what happens. That will begin to happen now that we signed a deal with Universal France/nato. I think that will help us attain "the next level". We have a new record coming out in November. We will tour the U.S. and Europe in earnest for the first time. I think that will go a long way in spreading the gospel that is Happy Apple.
AAJ: I know I'm dying to see you guys live. What were the earliest recording or gigging projects you did? Did you start off as a "jazz" guy?
EF: No, I really didn't start off as a jazz guy. I was definitely more of a Billy Sheehan/Yngwie (ed. note: that's Yngwie Malmsteem, not that other Yngwie) metal head early on. Some of my earliest recording projects were playing bass and drums on some metal instrumentals. But during that same period, I recorded an album with a Christian country rock group and also a jazz record with my professor from the jazz ensemble that I played in. So, like my mom's record collection, I was pursuing different styles simultaneously.
AAJ: Hip us to some of your sideman work
EF: I've never really done anything as a sideman, always as part of a group. I think that is a natural outgrowth from playing in rock bands, as opposed to the sideman thing that is more prevalent in jazz, at least from my experience. Being a part of a group has really shaped my view on making music. Happy Apple works to create a group sound...we're not just the drummer and the bassist backing the big bad-ass soloist. We strive as a group to communicate as a single entity, not just laying back until it's time to solo. In my experience, that is something that can be a bit more difficult to attain if you're a sideman, always playing with a different set of musicians.
AAJ: Tell us about the compositional process for the band? Do technical elements take a role in that process? Do you personally compose on bass? With the band, is it always a collaborative effort? How much of the music is written out versus coming out of jams?
EF: Each of us will bring in a fully composed piece of music. It is almost never a collaborative effort for composition. Basically, we never "jam". The only collaboration we do is on the arrangement of the tune. We work hard on creating interesting forms. Before bringing it to the band, the composer will have a fully completed "head", but not necessarily a form to blow over or a fully completed arrangement. As we play a new piece as a group, those details come into focus.
Personally, I compose on the bass, on the guitar and on piano. Any given song might be composed on any one or combination of those three instruments.
AAJ: Do you compose for your side projects?
EF: Yes, I have an instrumental metal band that I compose for. It's kind of sounds like Blue Cheer meets "Red"-era King Crimson. I play guitar in this group. The band doesn't have a name yet.
AAJ: Please tell us a bit about the evolution of the musical and artistic concept for Happy Apple.
EF:I would have to say that we've been sharpening our sense of dynamics as a band. We've learned to lay back and keep things uncluttered, instead of just pounding your face into the ground the whole time. I don't know how describe it, but we've truly developed our own sound. It's almost clichéd to say, but it's the truth. That kind of thing only happens for a group after it's been playing together for a long time, and we're now entering that realm.
One thing we have been evolving, that I can describe, is our approach to form.
We've been working at developing new- for us at least- "blowing" forms. We work on that as much as the music we compose. We fine tune it to the point where the songs that actually have a highly structured "blowing" forms sound completely "free", and tunes that sound "free" are actually highly structured!
As far as each of us individually as composers, I would describe David's concept as achingly beautiful and introspective and/or high energy and very catchy with a very personal combination of tonal and "snakey" chromaticism. And also a very natural and swinging use of polyrhythm and odd meters.
I would describe my compositional style a convoluted cross-pollination of angular "Dolphy-esque" lines, blatantly chromatic harmony, and rural blues. Our drummer has called me " A Russian composer riding a tractor". If that's of any help to you!
Saxist Michael Lewis' style is wonderfully melodic, exquisitely swinging and way more complex than it sounds. To me, he's very "classic" and subtle with his writing.
So put the three of us together and you get...
AAJ: Yes! Now that helps! Can you hip the new listeners to what you feel are some of your best tunes compositionally, and why? Then, can you hip them to some of your best work on the low end in particular?
EF: My Favorite Happy Apple tunes are "The world begins and ends in your combover", "Tang: the astronauts drink of desire", and "Buffalo '98". My best compositions for Happy Apple might be "Commercial Ascension", "The express lane really isn't all that fast", "Acknowledge the ascot", "Koala bear wearing a t-shirt with your corporate logo" and "Long live rock & roll".
And I think some of my best playing is on "The world begins and end in your combover", "Tang: the astronauts drink of desire", "Wishing book" & "Long live rock & roll".
AAJ: Can you point us toward what source material- books, study or analysis of recordings- which has proven rich for you in terms of composition/harmony?
EF: "The Charlie Parker Omnibook", "20th Century Harmony" by Vincent Perischetti "New Musical Resources" by Henry Cowell, and "Contemporary Composers on Contemporary Music" by Elliot Schwartz & Barney Childs.
Some scores/recordings I've studied that gave me some true insight were:" Tallest Trees" by Miles Davis (a Prestige compilation), "Four Piano Blues", "Music for Theatre" and "Two pieces for String Quartet" by Aaron Copland, "Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten" by Arvo Part, "Aeolean Harp" by Henry Cowell, and... "Katy Lied" by Steely Dan !
AAJ: Tell us about the challenges of being based in Minneapolis and breaking into the scene nationally. It seems like all the hip young jazz guys move to New York or LA, but you've managed to stay away from that.
EF: Much of the time people don't believe that vital world-class music can come from "fly over" country. To be honest, I like being underestimated. When we tour we can appear in N.Y. or wherever from "out of nowhere" and really astound and move people. Then we're gone- back to the Midwest- and people will scratching their heads asking themselves, "Who are these guys, and where did they come from?" I like that David and Goliath-type scenario.
I've never felt the need to move to the "major music centers". Minneapolis has a thriving arts scene, and it's always kept me inspired and energized. In addition, it's cheaper and cleaner than N.Y & L.A. so there are also "quality of life" issues.
After awhile I noticed that I wasn't always impressed by so-called "national" acts. Just because someone is based out of one of the coasts doesn't automatically make them above you creatively. It took me a long time to realize that, but then I started to value and nurture my own voice much more. A person may "make it" (or at least attempt to) out of N.Y. or L.A., but often they find or develop their voice "back home".
AAJ: Following on that track, where do you feel your most receptive audience
is? Still locally? Have the New York dates been well attended? Have you ever
gigged in Europe?
EF: We've had receptive audiences everywhere. Our local audiences our tremendously receptive, and we're extremely thankful for that! It's given us the push to take it across America. Our last New York show was well attended. We've only played one show in Europe thus far, so I don't yet feel qualified to compare it to the scene here.
AAJ: Please explain the connection of some other musicians, Ethan Iverson, Reid Anderson and Bill Carrothers to the Happy Apple universe. Perhaps you would like to comment on their work. I am particularly impressed by the records Reid's put out Why
did Carrothers play on one of your records but not subsequent releases?
EF: Reid and David King (Happy Apple drummer) went to high school together here in Minneapolis. Reid met Ethan (who is from Wisconsin) in college. So they've known and played with each other for quite sometime now. Keyboardist Bill Carrothers is from Minneapolis, so it was only a matter of time before we bumped into him. Reid and Ethan's recordings for the Fresh Sound New Talent label are among my favorites. They are some mind bending players and composers!
Bill Carrothers also has a couple of records that are incredible. He has an album of Civil War songs called "The Blues and the Greys", and a record with vocalist/composer Wendy Lewis called "The Language of Crows". Truly amazing stuff!
My first year in Happy Apple (1998), we had many guests perform with us live. During that time, we did some tunes with Bill that we felt should be documented (ed. noteÃÂ they are, on 1998's splendid "part of the solutionproblem"). After my first year, Happy Apple really found and developed ourselves as a trio, so the guest appearances began to fade as a result. Oh yeah- Bill also moved to Michigan, so that made collaboration a bit more difficult!
AAJ: Tell us about the special relationship between you and Dave King. I mean, what a challenge it must be for a bassist to play with Dave. Reckless abandonment appears to be a positive element of his style. Jazz-rock, rockin' jazz, polyrhythmic madness..it's all in there. How have you developed the ability to react/not react so well?
EF: Before we even met, Dave and I had worked very hard to be sensitive musicians. So by the time we started playing together, we noticed that we're both so responsive, that we really didn't have to force the rhythm section telepathy thing. It happened very naturally. There also seems to be an element of faith at work sometimes. I'll let him guide me, even if I can't decipher what the hell he's doing (or what I'm doing for that matter). There's always a destination and a reason for the "reckless abandonment" you described. I trust his pushing and prodding (rhythmically speaking), and I don't always worry about landing on the "one". He's taught me to be more risky and more conservative at the same time. It's such a complex yet intuitive thing, that's quite difficult to describe. We've also developed a thing where it intentionally sounds as if we're not listening to each other at all, then BAM! we land together out of nowhere. You know, just trying mess with people. If it doesn't always work, it's O.K... that's part of the journey! It's all about trust and making music as a group.
AAJ: tell us about what you feel are the signature elements of your sound as a bassist, in terms of both the supporting role and the soloing role.
EF: One of my signatures is a warm, dark sound. Almost trying to emulate some aspects of an upright. I'm pretty much anti-active electronics. Let your hands shape the tones. I love chording & chimey open strings. I love string bending. I love unexpected natural distortion when I'm really playing hard during a solo. I love extreme registers and extreme dynamics. Dissonance is consonance. I always try to play lines that are difficult to decipher. Wiping out the high end can really add some mystery to your articulation, and I love that too.
My approach has been described as "symphonic" and "cliché avoiding". That's pretty much it. I try to think beyond the obvious and play like it's anything but a bass. Sometimes, wrestling your instrument and forcing it to sound like a gong the size of Antarctica is where I have the most fun.
AAJ: Are there any special right or left hand techniques that factor into your sound? Any special elements of your rig or axe? I guess you could rundown your gear.
EF: My special hand techniques are : any & everything goes. you have to use it all. There is no technique too far out. Every time I hear Jaco, that's what I hear him doing. If you think it's too weird, then you haveto use it.
I think the special elements of my rig is that it's pretty simple. I don't want to rely on my gear for my sound. I want my gear to be almost neutral, to not color my sound too much.
I use an 80's Japanese Fender Jazz Bass with Seymour Duncan Antiquity pick-ups and GHS boomers medium light strings. For an amp, a David Eden WT-400 head with a Bag End S15-D cabinet.
AAJ: tell us about the role of electric bass in this band. There is a sort of bias towards acoustic bass in acoustic jazz, even when it's out or high energy. Did the band consciously want electric bass or did they consciously want Y-O-U and you happen play electric bass? Regardless, you must sleep well at night knowing you are helping eliminate the doghouse bias in this type of music.
EF: Happy Apple did start off with an acoustic player named Cully Swanson before I was in the band. After a while I think they realized they needed an electric bass because of how loud and aggressive the band can get. After gigging for a bit, I think they felt that the acoustic was getting drowned out when they would get louder. They also wanted a certain kind of tone that would bring more clarity to some of the more nimble runs that those guys write. They felt that the electric would cut through better, yet still maintain full control over dynamics. I also play a lot of double & triple stops in many of the tunes. I think Dave and Michael wanted to have the option of a bassist who can play chords as a pianist or guitarist would. Much of the time I see myself as a piano because of the amount of chording I do!
I think you're correct about the acoustic bass bias, but it's for a good reason: the acoustic bass is a beautiful sounding instrument. Often I prefer it over the sound of the electric. To my mind, with the lack of frets and the use of the bow, the acoustic lends itself to playing "out" much more than the electric. Generally, it seems as though most acoustic bassists are fairly aware and adept at extended techniques compared with their electric counterparts. But I also think extended techniques are less defined on the electric. One has to be pretty savvy to play "out" on a fretted electric without resorting to modifying the signal or the bass itself. That being said, I think there is plenty of uncharted territory for the electric in the "out" realm. It's something I would like to do more of in the future. We electric players need to expand from the chops-showcasing jazz-fusion realm that we often bow ourselves into. That's the other thing that keeps the "acoustic bias" alive and well. I would love to be in a position to show that the electric would be perfect, for, let's say, Bill Dixon's music.
AAJ: Are you guys totally independent as a band, in terms of the business end? Do you have any assistance or are you doing everything yourself? Do you have management? Are you all fulltime musicians? Do any of you have day gigs. Have you signed on with an American or European distributor?
EF: Happy Apple will always be independent to certain point. Now though, we do have a recording contract and a manager. But we will always accept doing things for ourselves, because it's how we can maintain control. There's a lot of people in this business who don't know what to do with a band like us. At a certain point career-wise, most musicians have to bring outside people to take care of their interests. It's just reality. It can be difficult for a fiercely independent group like us, because we have to know for certain that whoever works with us "gets" us and really cares about what we do. We are all fortunate enough to be full time musicians now, though we've all had day jobs for long periods of time in the past.
As far as distribution goes, our new record will be released by Universal/nato in Europe in November. We are working on U.S. distribution as we speak And you can always get the discs through our website, or the usual other online stores.
AAJ: Tell us about who you feel makes up your audience?
EF: People who want more than just entertainment. People who need art to move, change, inspire and motive them.
AAJ: What kind of recording technology are you using on your dates? Hard disc or analog? Are the players all in the same room? Which do you prefer? Do you edit the tracks yourself?
EF: We record analog. Most of the time we are in the same room. I rarely use headphones. We try to retain the set-up of a live show. We keep the tracks as we recorded them, so we eliminate the need for editing.
AAJ: How long is the recording process for your records? I'll bet extremely short. How much rehearsal occurs beforehand?
EF: Our first three albums were recorded, mixed and mastered in 3 or 4 days. That pace was pretty hectic. For our forthcoming release, which was recorded in March, we had about 8 to 10 days. The extra time didn't make recording itself any easier, the pace was just less hurried. Most of the time we've played the new songs live for a few months before recording, so we're pretty well prepared for the studio. We also spend a good deal of effort selecting tunes that will flow together and make a true "album", and also developing concepts for the sounds and tones we want to capture for each track.
AAJ: Where does the band see itself on the musical map?
EF: Somewhere between Ted Nugent, Keith Jarrett and Sun Ra.
AAJ: What music holds your most extreme interest these days, and what of it may influence your next project or recording? Please give us ten cds you are listening to now for our monthly feature. In a similar vein, are there any musicians, famous or not so famous, you would love to work with?
EF: I love 20th century classical and underground metal these days. Then out of nowhere I'll listen to Andy Gibb and Thomas Dolby for awhile. My tastes are quite random sometimes. It all influences directly or indirectly what I play and write.
10 CD's I've been listening to recently would include: Ferrucio Busoni's opera "Doktor Faust", "Make it easy on yourself" by Burt Bacharach, the new Anthony Braxton reissue on Fuel 2000 (BYG/ Actuel 6), "Remission" by Mastodon, "More Moondog/The Story of Moondog" by-you guessed it- Moondog, "Ming" by the David Murray Octet", Visionary Landscapes--piano music of Alan Hovhaness" Sahan Arzruni, piano (Hearts of Space 11024), "Transcendence" by Alice Coltrane, "Universal Consciousness" by Alice Coltrane, Giya Kanchelli "Styx"/ Sofia Gubaidulina "Viola Concerto" (Deutsche Gramophone 289 471 494)
EF: I would love to work with- in no particular order- Joe Morris-which needs to happen!- Borah Bergman, Leslie West, Chicago-based pianist Jim Baker, guitarist Dean Granros, Cooper-Moore, Cecil Taylor, guitarist Scott Weinrich, Joe Maneri, Andrew Hill and Tony Iommi.
AAJ: Do you guys plan on touring more or touring less in the future and why?
EF: Definitely touring more. We're just getting started!!! We gotta take it to the people, man!
AAJ: To wrap up, please tell us your musical plans, or projects in the
pipeline, for 2002.
EF: Record a metallic instrumental guitar album. (No joke!!!)
Check out Happy Apple's website at happyapplegroup.com
