A Chat with Seth Kauffman From Floating Action
There's no doubt that Seth Kauffman is a musical pioneer, one of those rare types whose music reflects directly what he is thinking, feeling, in that moment. He follows no trends, fashion does not dictate his path. He is a man of moments and those moments he captures in song.
I had a chance to talk to Seth as Floating Action was gearing up for SXSW. At the time we spoke the band was literally moments away from hitting the stage in Tempe, Arizona. When I say band, I mean the touring version of Floating Action. The studio version is Seth Kauffman alone.
Seth's latest Floating Action album, Desert Etiquette, released on February 22, 2011 on Park the Van Records, is a pared down masterpiece of understated retro pop music. Truly a brilliant piece of work, Desert Etiquette showcases Seth Kauffman's talent as a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. The retro-bluesy pop feel of the album is punctuated by the raw dressing-down given it by Seth Kauffman and the album's producer, Band of Horses bassist Bill Reynolds.
Floating Action Interview - Seth Kauffman
As I mentioned to Seth in our interview, Desert Etiquette reminds me of some of my favorite work by former White Stripe Jack White, "sort of, play your guitar and stomp your foot and just get down." The comparison isn't really much of a stretch considering that both men are deeply rooted in un-embellished, organic music; they hear the musical potential in the sounds and objects that most of us take for granted daily and they're able to turn that potential into an aurally pleasing reality.
During our interview Seth and I discussed his long friendship with Bill Reynolds and his connection with Band of Horses as well as playing SXSW--Seth is a veteran of the Austin based music festival. We also found ourselves having an interesting discussion about who he's run into on the road, Matthew McConaughey on the red carpet and new friend Phil Chen who played the bass line on Rod Stewart's "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" and now plays with the remaining members of the Doors. Of course we also had a talk about Big Foot, because what's a music interview without at least one mention of Big Foot--or his plural... Big Foot.
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