In Conversation: CORY HANSON

Summary

Jokermen Podcast: In Conversation with Corey Hansen

Release Date: July 28, 2025
Host: Jokermen
Guest: Corey Hansen, Singer, Songwriter, and Author

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Introduction

In this engaging episode of the Jokermen Podcast titled "In Conversation: Corey Hansen," host Jokermen delves deep into the creative journey of Corey Hansen, exploring his latest record, "I Love People," released under Drag City Records. The conversation spans Corey’s songwriting process, musical influences, production philosophies, and upcoming tours, providing listeners with an intimate look into his artistic evolution.

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Creating "I Love People"

Corey Hansen begins by sharing his enthusiasm for his latest record:

[01:05] Corey Hansen: "Well, this record, for me, it's the best of the best of the best of the last five years of songs that I've written. And there were hundreds of songs..."

Corey explains the meticulous process of selecting songs from a vast pool, emphasizing the collaborative effort with his producer. Instead of solely engineering the sound, the producer played a pivotal role in curating and developing the best tracks from Corey’s extensive repertoire. Ultimately, eleven songs made their way onto the final release.

Song Selection and Development

[01:05] Corey Hansen: "...I had no idea how to break them down into a record or how to pick which ones were good and which ones were not as good. And I got him to produce this time instead of just engineer."

The collaboration involved trimming down from approximately 40 promising tracks to 20 for recording, and finally releasing 11 standout songs. This selective process ensured that only the most refined and impactful songs graced the album.

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Evolution of Musical Style

The host observes a noticeable shift in Corey’s musical direction compared to his previous work:

[03:32] Host: "This record sounds as different from the last one as a record could sound in a lot of ways, it's much more to my ear like a singer-songwriter type of record..."

Corey acknowledges this evolution, highlighting his preference for collaboration to overcome creative blocks:

[04:17] Corey Hansen: "Well, it's hard for me to do music alone completely, you know, and without getting any feedback..."

By involving others, especially his wife, Corey finds clarity and confidence in his songwriting choices, ensuring the album’s cohesiveness and emotional resonance.

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Influences and Musical Inspirations

A significant portion of the conversation delves into musical influences, particularly drawing parallels between Corey’s work and that of iconic artists like Jimmy Buffett and Steely Dan.

Jimmy Buffett and Parrot Heads

[07:01] Corey Hansen: "There's some Parrot Head cues in that one."

While Corey himself doesn’t identify as a Parrot Head, he expresses admiration for Jimmy Buffett’s approachable persona and enduring appeal. The discussion hints at a potential resurgence of the Parrot Head community, drawing comparisons to the Grateful Dead’s revival.

[08:00] Corey Hansen: "...there will be a massive Parrot Head pivot at some point."

Lou Reed’s Profound Impact

A deep appreciation for Lou Reed permeates the conversation. Corey recounts a personal anecdote about meeting Lou Reed during his time at CalArts, providing a behind-the-scenes glimpse into Reed’s dedication to audio fidelity and artistic integrity.

[32:41] Corey Hansen: "...he was just saying, like, this is the real Berlin. This is the way you're supposed to hear Berlin..."

Corey reflects on Lou Reed’s tumultuous career, particularly highlighting "Lulu" as a challenging project both technically and artistically. Despite its mixed reception, Corey defends its production quality, drawing parallels to high-fidelity recordings.

[26:13] Corey Hansen: "But Lulu was one of the only records that sounded perfect."

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Production Philosophy

Corey emphasizes a no-nonsense approach to production for "I Love People," aiming for authenticity and organic soundscapes.

[38:03] Corey Hansen: "I wanted this record to be like no bullshit, no studio tinkering or, you know, processing. Just it's all live takes..."

This philosophy led to minimal overdubs, preserving the raw essence of his performances while incorporating subtle string arrangements and choral vocals to enhance the musical depth.

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Song Inspirations and Themes

The conversation explores various inspirations behind Corey’s songwriting, ranging from personal experiences to broader cultural references.

Rodney Dangerfield and Humor

Inspired by Rodney Dangerfield’s autobiography, Corey incorporates themes of respect and personal struggle into his lyrics.

[44:11] Corey Hansen: "...there's that lyric about not getting no respect or getting no respect."

Texas Weather and Road Stories

Drawing from his experiences as a touring musician, Corey reflects on the perilous stretches of highway in Texas, infusing his songs with vivid imagery of natural disasters and roadside encounters.

[46:03] Corey Hansen: "From El Paso to Austin, Texas, that stretch... it's terrifying."

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Touring and Live Performances

Corey outlines his upcoming tour plans, highlighting a dual approach of performing with his band, Wand, and embarking on solo acoustic sets. This strategy allows him to showcase both collaborative and individual aspects of his artistry.

[42:00] Corey Hansen: "I'm doing a tour as a three-piece with me on, like, switching from piano and guitar..."

He playfully discusses the idea of a multi-faceted performance setup, likening it to having "three Coreys" to accommodate different musical styles and arrangements.

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Future Directions and Closing Thoughts

As the conversation nears its end, Corey contemplates future projects, including the possibility of exploring alter-egos similar to Garth Brooks' and Chris Gaines’ ventures.

[48:29] Corey Hansen: "I should just maybe I'll write a song called Chris Gaines and see where that goes."

The episode concludes with Corey sharing tour dates and expressing gratitude for the support, leaving listeners eagerly anticipating his upcoming performances and new musical endeavors.

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Notable Quotes

• Corey Hansen: "I love people. Yeah, whatever that means."
  [00:00]

• Corey Hansen: "Sometimes people are just like, this short one is amazing. And then the really long thing is it just doesn't hit..."
  [05:42]

• Host: "There is a website where you can buy Circus Money for very cheap for like $9.99..."
  [09:18]

• Host: "I haven't really talked about this on the POD before, but a few months ago there was an event that happens every year in New York for Lou Reed's birthday..."
  [28:31]

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Conclusion

This episode of the Jokermen Podcast offers a comprehensive exploration of Corey Hansen’s latest work and artistic mindset. Through candid discussions and insightful anecdotes, listeners gain a deeper understanding of Corey’s dedication to authenticity, his reverence for musical legends like Lou Reed, and his relentless pursuit of creative excellence. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to his music, this conversation provides valuable perspectives on the making of "I Love People" and what lies ahead for Corey Hansen.

Transcript

[Corey Hansen]

I love people I think they are works of art I love people I know they're animals at heart I love people with incurable disease. Yeah, I love people. Yeah, whatever that means. Yeah. I love people oh, yeah. I love people.

[Host]

Welcome back, everyone. Welcome to Joker Men Podcast, our in Conversation series. Today joined by Mr. Corey Hansen, singer, songwriter, and author of the latest record by Corey Hansen, I Love People, on Drag City Records. Welcome, Corey. Welcome to Jokerman.

[Corey Hansen]

Thank you.

[Host]

Can you tell me a bit about this record?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, this record, for me, it's the best of the best of the best of the last five years of songs that I've written. And there were hundreds of songs. I had no idea how to break them down into a record or how to pick which ones were good and which ones were not as good. And. And I got him to produce this time instead of just engineer. And I said, just please take all this music. There's like hundreds of songs. And just, you know, without even thinking about it, just. Just pick the best ones. And he picked around 40 songs out of what I gave him and said, these are. These are good. Develop these. And so I went and finished writing and demoed all of those songs, and then I gave them to him and he's like, okay, these 20 are what we should record. And then we recorded the 20 and then I ended up releasing 11 songs.

[Host]

What was like the range of time these songs were initially from? Like, was there old material and relatively new stuff all mixed together in this piece of huge batch?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, it's. It's sort of. It's hard for me to be aware of the amount of time that's sort of compressed into these songs because I started writing them during quarantine. And so right there is like this amnesia of. Of like time blindness and. Or one of those things or both of those things. So it feels like the period for which I wrote these songs is like, very short in my mind. It did. Like, the way that time is compressing now is just different than it was pre Covid for me, like in the way I perceive it. But yeah, so it's been, I guess, since 2020, like mid-2020, that I was start. That I started working on these songs. And some of the songs like Final Frontier and On the Rocks and Bird on a Swing Date back to that period, but in very different forms. Like, they all came together in the span of like 6 months, you know, when I really concentrated on putting the record together. Before that, they were just melodies, loose lyrics, and other things.

[Host]

This record sounds as different from the Last one as a record could sound in a lot of ways, it's much more to my ear like a singer, songwriter type of record. Whereas the last one, I think, is definitely that in a way too. But much more guitar, forward riff based. A lot of kind of muscular and really, really great playing. Being kind of like at the. The forefront of the last album. And this one feels a lot more. I. I guess, yeah, just oriented around your voice. How do you feel about the finished product having had it be sort of molded by a collaborator?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, it's hard for me to do music alone completely, you know, and without. Without getting any feedback. And that was sort of the problem with this record while I was working on it, was that there was no. I was in a feedback loop, you know, with myself, and was constantly just referencing other things that were incomplete, you know, and as I was working on other things and being like, what. In the end, it's like, what is all this? It's sort of like an anxiety attack that just keeps mounting. The more music that I write, it starts to feel. I start to get the fear being that, like, oh, I have too much music. And I don't know what any of this is. And so I usually like to have someone step in and. Whether it's someone at Drag City or a friend, you know, and usually also my wife, God bless her soul for having to deal with this. This constant creative crisis or whatever. It's always good to have somebody step in and be like, well, I'm hearing this and, oh, this is cool. And I'm like, oh, I. You like this song that I wrote in three minutes and you don't like the song that I spent two years writing. And it's good to know that, you know.

[Host]

Yeah, same with poetry, too. Like, sometimes people are just like, this short one is amazing. And then the really long thing is it just doesn't hit, as the children say these days. There's definitely some songs on here that feel like, stylistically, like in a certain mode on the rocks. To me, the closer to Jump Around A Bit feels kind of like a Jimmy Buffett song. Am I onto something there?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, I gotta ditch this one. Star Town where I tried to be Drown my whole club I was drinking with the Ku Klux Klan Now I'm three sheets to the wind But I'll find a sunrise that I can jump.

Into.

And I found you.

There's. There's some Parrot Head cues in that one.

[Host]

Because I love Jimmy Buffett. I mean, I really like him.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, I'm not a Fan, but I like him, you know, and I like, I like a lot of his songs, but I wouldn't say, like, I'm a Parrot Head or something. And I love going to Margaritaville and, and getting a cheeseburger in paradise.

[Host]

Don't we all?

[Corey Hansen]

A lot of people don't. Don't like that. And they don't. They. They see Jimmy as like a red line. Absolutely not. You know, And I'm like, well, why not? He's just having things like a cool guy.

[Host]

You're very much ahead of things, I think. I think that we're going to see a Parrot Head resurgence like we saw with like, the Dead in the last decade. I guess, like Zoomer is going to be wearing like, Parrot Head merch that they find on ebay and people are going to be breaking it out.

[Corey Hansen]

I have been saying this and Robbie from, from Wand has been saying this for years. There will be a massive Parrot Head pivot at some point.

[Host]

I think we're so close because that's.

[Corey Hansen]

The way our parents were, right? Like, we probably all had parents. I mean, I maybe to a lesser degree, like, like my mom was like, really into Garth Brooks and CMT country and stuff, but like Robbie's parents, they went Grateful Dead, you know, they were in the Bay area in the 70s. Grateful Dead, then Steely Dan and then, boom, Parrot Head.

[Host]

I don't know that it's always those three in that order, but I think those three have some kind of connection that is cosmic. You could go from Parrot Head to Dead to Dan, but I don't know that you'd go to. From Dan to Parrot Head. That sounds kind of like a leap, but it could happen.

[Corey Hansen]

Well, I mean, this is like a passive, like a music experience that you can engage with but also be passive and like just, you know, vibe. And the Dan, you can absolutely do that. You can also be very technical and, you know, get into that whole aspect of the Dan that they're like, anal retentive and like a no fun band or whatever in that way.

[Host]

I don't think that they're ever given as much credit as they ought to be about how funny and interesting they are as lyricists. Are you into them?

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, I'm a huge, huge fan. Huge fan.

[Host]

I happen to have gotten really into listening to Circus Money, the second of the two Walter Becker solo albums. And I just have to point out that there's a website where you can buy Circus Money for very cheap for like 9.99. And it's like a sealed copy of A relatively rare cd. And I found out that the website that this is where I purchased my brand new copy of Circus Money is Jimmy Buffett's label website.

[Corey Hansen]

There you go.

[Host]

Apparently, Mailboat Records.

[Corey Hansen]

All right.

[Host]

Put out this album.

[Corey Hansen]

Case closed.

[Host]

Itty bitty gal sipping grenadine. Look who's talking to Selfish Gene. Yeah, so there we go.

[Corey Hansen]

There's the Dan. Well, I mean, you. The goodbye look, you know, like.

[Host]

Yeah, definitely.

[Corey Hansen]

Like Donald Fagan on vacation as a kid, As a child.

[Host]

As a man child as well. In many songs.

[Corey Hansen]

Haitian divorce. I mean, there's a lot of different songs that. That sort of cross that line into Buffett or Pre Buffett or Proto Buffett territory.

[Host]

To me, I think that they're also like, in. In Fagan and Becker's stuff and as Steely Dan together. There's a lot of, like, really high concept and novel esque songs which I actually see in your songwriting. Walter Becker has that song that's entirely about, like, an alien trying to seem human. And it's like, written in, like, alien broken English.

[Corey Hansen]

I haven't heard that.

[Host]

It's called hat 2 flat from 11 tracks of wack.

[Corey Hansen]

Okay, I have heard that. Then.

[Host]

It's a bizarre song. But yeah, all this is to say that, yeah, I think that in. In your songs, it seems like there's a sense of freedom of, like, letting things kind of spill into surreal narrative.

[Corey Hansen]

I'm definitely inspired by. By the Becker Fagan. They do this great thing where they have a character who keeps saying, like, you do this to me. Like, you are doing this to me and why are you doing this? And like. And like, they think that they're like the normal, straight, like, black cow or something or. Or Gaucho or. Yeah, I'm kind of into that.

[Host]

Accusatory.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, yeah. Like. Like it. It feels like every accusation is. Is, you know, just this mere re. Revelation about the character themselves. And you never actually find out who the person is that they're talking to. That.

[Host]

That device, whoever he's talking about in Gaucho. Talking to in Gaucho. Like, who is that?

[Corey Hansen]

Does anyone actually know?

[Host]

I don't know that anyone actually knows. This is part of what makes that kind of thing so compelling. You have to fill in so many gaps about what these things mean. Like the Custer Dome. Like, where is that? What is that? Who's in the car and glamour profession? Like, who is this character dragging around town making these deals with him? Or is he just talking himself alone?

[Corey Hansen]

It's pretty open to interpretation, which I really like. About their, their lyrics. And I think, yeah, like a song like Joker is kind of exactly like that, but maybe even more cartoonish because there's. I like doing that, but then bringing in kind of like a folk character. So it's not like an invisible character that you're just like, who is this Gaucho guy? This is like, oh, this is the joker. It could be a bunch of different kinds of joker. It could also be Steve Miller's joker. It could also be Bob Dylan's joker. I don't know. There's this shape shifting and time shifting quality to it for me.

You've gotta be joking. You do not have the right. You're gonna punch away right out of the sweat in the night. Every window has broken. Even the cold air ain't right. You're about to get knocked out and covered in blood. They're gonna take out your eyes. I just wanna leave this town say so long fool. I just need a steering wheel to hold on to. All the stand up comics burn out on the even tray. All the jokers on their horses laughing in the rain.

[Host]

Yeah, I was gonna ask if. If we're talking about the Joker or which joker? There is a. The Joker, as in the Heath Ledger joker reference lyrically in that song.

[Corey Hansen]

It's a quote.

[Host]

It's one of his most famous quotes.

[Corey Hansen]

Well, it's from the poster. It's from the movie poster.

[Host]

Why so Serious?

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, it's a weird thing to say, isn't it? It's kind of a cool phrase. Why so serious? I love those short questions. It's like, got Milk?

[Host]

You know, Got Milk and why so serious?

[Corey Hansen]

I've been thinking about Got Milk a lot recently. You know, it's something that was just in my brain as a child and it's such a weird phrase. Like these questions.

[Host]

I remember the Got Milk thing, that's like, that's completely gone. It seems like, like there's no Got Milk anymore. We have milk.

[Corey Hansen]

I guess I thought that too. But I saw an ad for it the other day. It was on like the truck, like tire flaps, like they had Got Milk tire flaps. I was like, holy shit, Got Milk is still here.

[Host]

Well, I don't know. I mean, I don't know how often they're changing out promotional tire flaps. Like, yeah, yeah, this truck hasn't carried milk in 20 years. I don't know what you're talking. On the other hand, maybe they're bringing it back. They're teasing it with a. A rollout, a soft launch of. On a tire Flap level. Maybe you should do that for the album or another album you make. Maybe start doing truck tire flaps.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, yeah. Truck advertisements. I mean, that's. That's a great thing to do because people. They get around. And people will see it.

[Host]

They certainly do.

[Corey Hansen]

All over the country.

[Host]

I had an idea once when I was in a group with my friend, like 10 years ago, and we almost had it happen where we wanted the guy who does the art on the U Haul trucks to do the album cover.

[Corey Hansen]

That's a great idea.

[Host]

And we actually got in touch with him. Please think about doing that, because I want someone to do that. He was like, responding to our emails, so that's awesome.

[Corey Hansen]

That's a great idea. I mean, what. What stopped you? It just. The. The chain ran cold.

[Host]

I think the fact that our album sold four copies internationally probably was the. The thing you should do it is what I'm saying.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah.

[Host]

What. I guess I have to ask you about just the song Lou Reed. It would have been funny if you called the album Lou Reed. I understand why you didn't do that, but I think it's a very beautiful song.

[Corey Hansen]

Thank you.

All your fairy tales have fallen on bad times. The dreariness in maidens hearts. The fear in the young hero's eyes. You were a prince and a fighter. And you were a tai chi master. Yeah, you touchy master.

[Host]

I assume you're a big Lou Reed fan, but what's your. At least maybe what your current Lou Reed favorites.

[Corey Hansen]

Oh, man. Lately I've had this realization about Lou's records because I've always had trouble moving through his discography. You start with the first record. You know, he's just. He's sort of like, bad good, bad good. Or like, so so. Or, you know, they're kind of all over the place. And they'll make something like Sally Can't Dance and then follow that up with metal machine music or what? Right. Like that whole. The 70s to me is like a. And the 80s are really weird period for him where he's like, just, you know, his batting average isn't very good to me. Like, some of the records are incredible and some of his best. And then others are like, as rock and roll hard. Okay, Like. But then you get Blue Mask and it's like, what? Where? Why aren't they all like this? You know? So then he hooks up with Hal Wilner. That. That run from New York all the way to Lulu is flawless. And I think there's no songwriter that's ever had a better run. New York Magic and loss.

[Host]

So you're a Lulu guy, dude, you're a supporter?

[Corey Hansen]

Absolutely. Absolutely.

[Host]

This is great to hear. And I'm very happy that somebody who made a song about Lou Reed is a fan of Lulu. Because I've run into this in the past, like to your point about the inconsistency of lou in the 70s and 80s, like, there's people, I think, who, when they. I guess I know that some people, like, they encounter that rough water and they can't square it. That like the guy that they had this like crystal clear image of as being like young and hot and impossibly cool could ever seem kind of like corny or kind of fumbling through his career and they just give up. And then they don't reap the rewards of sticking with him.

[Corey Hansen]

I think that people, People get really hung up on like leather junkie New York guy and that that whole like mythology that he created out of his own, like, self sabotage in the 70s. And then when he like comes back, gets sober, he starts doing tai chi, which is an art of like perfecting form. And he has these two forms in his, in his life that are sort of balancing his life, which are rock and roll. The form of rock and roll, three chord rock and Tai chi. Then he starts making these records that feel like really pure, developed expressions of like exactly what he wants. They sound incredible. I mean, he's like a high fidelity guy. Like he had. He had a speaker column in a hi fi magazine in the 80s. And so they sound incredible as records. But the songs and the way that he's writing it just feels like he's accepted like a part of himself and let go of that old, you know, whatever that guy, that stranger was from the 70s. And he's like, I'm actually Lou Reed now and I'm like writing these songs and they're the best songs of his career. And then you get to Lulu and it's just like, yeah, it's like, I mean, Junior dad is maybe the best. I can't think of a better way to go out. And, you know, after that, such an incredible career and then Junior dad is your last thing.

[Host]

It's an amazing record. Seems like he's so firmly planted with his. His style, his abilities, and then the last thing he does is to decide to upend it completely and drag along Metallica to also be completely out of their element. So they're all out of their element. And yet, like, his determination, his intensity, his ambition isn't hedged by that. In fact, it like is fully torqued. Like, it goes further than ever. It's a very brave move.

[Corey Hansen]

Well, yeah, it's like a. It's a record about his spirit reject. Like, not rejecting, but sort of ejecting from his body. The lyrics are just so violent and, like, there's, like, sexual violence and. And like, all of this stuff that feels like he. I mean, when he was recording it, he could barely stand up, you know, he was jaundiced and, like, had a napping corner in the studio, you know, so that he could, like, sleep while Metallica did. I don't know what they did. It just feels like that. Like he. This. This, like, anger that his body is failing, and then ultimately this kind of acceptance in, like, the disappointment of life that it's come full circle and that you have to move on with the. With Junior dad, which lyrically and spiritually sort of feels connected. Why I think the. How Wilner records are so important is because it feels like that weaves right back into Harry's circumcision.

[Host]

The greatest disappointment. Yeah.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, exactly. So those. That refrain sort of connects back to that and it feels like, boom, book closed. And it's perfect. It's really great. I have a pretty good story about Lulu, actually, on the technical side. I was visiting a friend working on a record at Sunset Sound, the Hollywood studio where, like, the Doors and the Stones and all those bands recorded Van Halen. And we got sushi with the engineers, and it was these two engineers. And I asked him, like, what was the worst record you ever worked on? And they were like, oh, hands down, Lulu. It was horrible. And I was like, what was so bad? He's like, well, we were mixing the record and it took, like, eight months because nobody was in the studio with us. And we kept having to send out mixes to the band and to Louis and the Metallica guys didn't have a lot of notes, but Lou, I guess, had bought a. Like, one of those Sharper Image speakers that you can put on any surface. You know, those that, like. Like you put it on a flat surface and it turns it into a cone and it makes sound. It was like a novel thing in. In the early aughts.

[Host]

I just love the idea of him shopping in Sharper Image, which I'm sure he did. Like a lot.

[Corey Hansen]

I'm sure he did. So, yes, it was like a novel speaker that. That you could, like, buy out of, like, a TV from a TV advertisement or whatever, or get a Sharper Image. And so he was giving notes, like, really detailed notes on the mix, but on every surface in his house. And so he would put it on like his coffee table. He'd be like, oh, the guitars aren't loud enough. Then he would put it on his dining table. He'd be like, ah. The vocals are just kind of shrill. And so he had to have it. He thought this speaker was the future. So it had to sound good on every surface of his house in order for him to approve the mix. And so they just were pulling their hair out at Sunset Sound trying to get what Lou wanted. And I will say a lot of people think that record sounds terrible for some reason. But I've abed it with like lots of different shit that's supposed to be good sounding and it usually wins.

[Host]

I'm not a hi fi expert, so I do take your word though.

[Corey Hansen]

We did a shootout when Wand was recording at Sonic Ranch. There were these big like. They were like, what, like tannoy mains that just were so mid range revealing. And they were just really harsh. And so if something wasn't totally flat, it would just sound really harsh in the room. And Lulu was one of the only records that sounded perfect.

[Host]

I love the idea of testing it in like every room in your house. As if like this is how everyone's. You know, most people, they're going to be listening to this all the time. And they're going to be listening to this in the bathroom, they're going to be listening to this in the shower. They're going to be listening to this at the coffee table, on the carpet, on their porch. We're letting them down. If we don't take advantage of the possibilities of this conical speaker from Sharper Image.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, I mean, I think he thought speakers were going to be in everything in his world. Speakers would be in every single thing in your life.

[Host]

It's not far off. There is kind of more and more of that, but maybe it's more like microphones are everywhere now more than speakers. They're just hearing everything.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah.

[Host]

The Alexas and series of the. Of the world.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah. That's not good. We don't like that.

[Host]

Not a huge. I don't like that. Not. Not so great. When did you write the Lou Reed song?

[Corey Hansen]

I wrote it a couple years ago. Yeah, I was just reading Laurie Anderson's obituary that she wrote in the. I forget the paper. It's like a Long island paper and it's just. Yeah, I just read it and heard the refrain in those lines. You were a prince and a fighter. You were a tai chi master and Then just went to the piano and just wrote it in like five minutes. I toyed around with different verses and like, you know, the idea of writing like a biographical song about somebody wasn't really. I wasn't really interested in doing that. It's sort of like more about how mystified I am by him and how little I understand about him, even though I know so much about his music.

[Host]

I guess I can mention I haven't really talked about this on the POD before, but a few months ago there was an event that happens every year in New York for Lou Reed's birthday. And it also happens on the day of his passing that there's a gathering at his house in Manhattan. And there was an event that day at the Lincoln center. Like a kind of for like real heads only, but, you know, open to the public. Like an exhibition of very rare materials, some of which were like, just like hyper obscure and like, to the point of like almost being like, boring, but still glad I saw it. Like like a 38 minute home movie that's just kind of like random snippets that like, Lou is barely in. It's like shakily going around like an apartment in 1978. But afterwards I was through just like divine providence and the kindness of some people able to go to the. The thing at Lou and Lori's house. It was like a mixer where all these people that knew him were there and. And also me just like walking around sheepishly. And then Laurie asked me to hold this gong and I held this massive gong. And then this gong was struck and it was like the loudest thing ever. And then everyone sat down and shared stories about Lou and their times with him and what he meant to the people who knew him. And afterwards, Master Ren and Laurie were on the roof doing Tai Chi at sunset.

[Corey Hansen]

Wow, that's incredible.

[Host]

It was crazy. It was very special. And it's just to say that there's so much continued love and reverence for him. And everyone in that room understands that that stuff about Lulu and about like, what that represents in his late career and that he was someone who increasingly got more connected to himself and to his art. So I was. I think that your song about him and choosing to really focus in on the Tai Chi aspect is like. And Laurie's words is as good as it gets in terms of honor to the guy through song. Because that was such a huge part of his life. It's still a part. Like the Tai chi is part of his life after he's not even there anymore.

[Corey Hansen]

Oh, yeah, yeah. And the rock and roll, I mean, it's all still. The form is still there. I mean, the thing that I like about Lou, as opposed to someone like Bob Dylan or these other, like, massive pillars of American song, these American songwriters or like Neil Young or something, like, those guys seem completely subtracted from reality. Like, they sort of live in places where they're not from. You know, like, Dylan lives in Malibu. Neil lives also in Malibu or something. Or. Or Telluride or whatever. Moves around, and they're not really, like, interfacing with regular people. Whereas Lou, you would just see him in Manhattan, or you could go to a tai chi class, and he would be, like, in the class, and he was just like. Or he would be at a diner, you know, he wasn't someone who was untouchable in that way. Like, I even got to meet him when I was super young.

[Host]

Oh, really? Where? Where. How did that happen?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, I was in this. I was in. I was going to CalArts, and I was in this metal orchestra that was run by this guy, Ulrich Krieger, who is like.

[Host]

Yeah, we've had him on the program.

[Corey Hansen]

Oh, okay, cool. Yeah, he was my teacher, and he also taught, like, acoustics and a bunch of other classes at CalArts. And I was just an art student. I didn't. I wasn't in the music school, but I would, like, get into the music classes and got into this metal orchestra that he had, and he was doing the Metal Machine Trio and then had this project with, like, an improv project with Lou and one other guy, and they did a show at redcat and then did a lecture, or he did a lecture mostly at CalArts. It was the Q and A section of the. Of the lecture. I stood up and asked a question, and it just shut down, the lecture. He was like, we're done. It was sort of. It was a long thing anyway. But he was going on and on about the Julian Schnabel Berlin movie.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Corey Hansen]

That he'd been working on and. And the musical that he was doing, I think, in Australia and. Or the rock opera, whatever. And he was just saying, like, this is the real Berlin. This is the way you're supposed to hear Berlin. Like, the record that I made is, like, not as good. This is, like, the best sounding thing. And was just going on and on, like, about how you have to have the best sounding records. They have to sound perfect. And, you know, I was a young kid with the gumption to ask, you know, a kind of, like, pointed question about fidelity. I was Making a bunch of records in my studio and recording all the CalArts bands on a reel to reel. And I was like, I do this, I record people's music because they need. They have records to make and they want to get them made. They're not the highest fidelity thing, but they, we make them in my studio and you know, and I play DIY shows and none of these are under like the best circumstances acoustically or anything. And I was like, but I mean, that's okay to me because I'm inspired by records that you made in the 60s and 70s, like white light, White Heat that don't sound conventionally good. And they inspired all these other bands that did away with these like, concerns of fidelity. And so like, what, what do you have to say for like people that are inspired by you because of the exact opposite of what you're of your. Of what you desire now, you know, or something like that. I have to find this tape so I could actually see what the fuck I said. Because I'm trying to remember something that I said like 15 years ago. And then he got really like, you know, flustered and. But gave like a very Lou answer. He said, like, I'm not saying you shouldn't make records like that. That's not what I'm saying at all. He's like, look, all I'm saying is that things have to have a progression. Like you have to start somewhere, but then eventually you're going to make the good sounding records. Like no matter what, that's what you're going to want to do. If you're interested in fidelity, that's just what. And making records, they're going to get better sounding as you get better at it or whatever. Then he said that when he was. He's like, when I was a kid, I used to take a stack of records and I would go to the hi Fi store and you know, I'd take like Al Green or Chuck Berry or you know, whatever he had in the stack that he was listening to at home on a little portable receiver. And I would. And he's like, I would put it on a Wilson audio system and I would listen to it exactly as it was intended to be heard, you know, in the best possible acoustic environment with the best hardware that you could have. And I promised myself that I would buy this system whenever I could possibly do it. And he's like, 10 years ago I bought the system and I own it. It's in my house now. He's like, you have to have goals, fidelity goals. These are like, you know, it's a part of getting better. So. And then he, and then he ended it with unless you want to be poor your whole life. And that was where the lecture ended.

[Host]

Wow. I mean, it's funny.

[Corey Hansen]

Long winded story, but great.

[Host]

I, I, it's just funny to me that, like, I don't know, I feel like if he heard this record that you just made, he would be like, all right, see what I mean? You, you wanted to make a nice sounding album and now you've done it.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, yeah.

[Host]

Because the production on this record is quite clear and crisp and it seems to me that is something that feels intentional about it, that it has a kind of balanced and direct approach.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah. I mean, this record, I wanted it to be like no bullshit, no studio tinkering or, you know, processing. Just it's all live takes. It's all just me, bass player, drumme, me on piano or guitar. And then singing all the songs live. And I wanted it to feel totally as, as organic as possible. Then we had to overdub the strings and stuff, but that's the only real overdubs. And the, and the kind of choral vocals, that was it. Other than that, there's like no studio magic stuff except to make it sound, you know, better than it was when it was recorded.

[Host]

Are there songs on this record that, you know, you said this is the best of the best of songs that you had.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah.

[Host]

I'm curious about, like, if what ended up being the feel and the kind of territory, if that was something that you knew would be how it is or had goals about, I think, I.

[Corey Hansen]

Mean, with this record I had a pretty strong idea of what I wanted before the record was made. I sort of made a promise to myself. I was like, I want this record to be done in my mind, finished before I enter the studio. Sort of like the Bob Dylan, like what he did with Lenoir for Time out of Mind, where he's like, it doesn't matter what the fucking production is. The record's done. And that was before they even started tracking. Even though he would later regret that immensely.

[Host]

Well, then he'd totally undo it too, with the re release of it. The de swamped version from 2020.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, but this record, I mean, I was working with Robbie, I was like, robbie, I want this to be as just clear, you know, just the songs. I just want it to be about the songs, not any fancy, like production things or, or whatever. Like there's no, I don't know, quantization or auto tune or processing in that.

[Host]

Way, do you feel like the themes of this record differ or have, like, a specific shift away from the last one?

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, I mean, I was working on this record and Western come, like, in parallel and was totally, like, designating, you know, or delineating my songwriting, you know, to these two sort of poles of mostly, like, curiosity for me, like, how can I keep writing songs in this style and fleshing it out and expanding on this thing till it feels like kind of an immersion of songwriting as a record? And so it was easy to be like, these are obviously guitar songs that I wrote on guitar that I'm sort of, you know, using my melodic sensibility to. And. And devoting it specifically to guitar craft. And then with this record, it's like spreading that out to strings and horns and also transposing it on piano and. And vocals. And so, yeah, it's easy for me to work with that kind of separation and be like, these two records are separate entities and there's not any crossover. I mean, maybe one day I will make a record where I'll just fucking, like, put it all together. But for me, in my mind, it's always best to let them. They. They're stronger separately.

[Host]

When will you be touring this one in, like, a different configuration than you have with the last material or the last tour?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, I'm doing a tour as a three piece with me on, like, switching from piano and guitar. And it's kind of like the. All the Corey music, you know, it's not just specific to this record, but, like, figuring out how to. To. To bring these songs, all these different songs I've written together throughout all my records. And then I'm doing a solo tour where I'm sort of just. I'm opening for Wand, I'm opening for myself and. And doing, like, an acoustic thing and piano thing. It's more specific to this record.

[Host]

An evening with Corey, like, featuring Corey. That's like three Coreys. That's like two or two and a half Corey's worth of music in there.

[Corey Hansen]

Yep.

[Host]

What's the relationship like with, you know, working with a group, the group and doing your solo stuff? Like, do you write differently for that?

[Corey Hansen]

Well, the group is way more collaborative. Like. Like we're fully equally collaborating, and none of us are bringing in outside music. We just show up and start playing. That's how we write all the Wand stuff. And with my solo stuff, it's the complete opposite, where I write most everything and then bring it, usually to the members of Wand and say, hey, let's Make a record that's just me. And it's clearly not a Wand record. It's sort of like a, you know, Tom Petty, Heartbreakers. Tom Petty, Same people, Free Fallen versus Into the Great Wide Open.

[Host]

Is there any stuff that you've kind of been reading or watching, like other outside art materials that you found crept into this album or inspired things, aside from Lou Reed, that led to the shape this record took?

[Corey Hansen]

Oh, man. What I was reading at the time. Oh, I was reading Rodney Dangerfield's biography.

[Host]

Oh, that makes sense. Because on account of there's a lyric about not getting no respect or getting no respect.

[Corey Hansen]

Yep. So there's that. Yeah. I was reading Rodney Dangerfield's autobiography, and I felt inspired by. By the. By his line about getting no respect. And so I put that in a song. I need to do more obvious things like that. Like, I was. I was watching. My wife got tickets to see the Foo Fighters, and I was like, oh, I'm gonna go. I'll go to that. Yeah. Hell, yeah. And they were really good tickets, and she got them through her work. She just. We're not. We don't like that band, really. We don't play their records in the house. But he came up and he was like, I wrote this song after hearing a quote by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. And I was like, man, that is fucking cool that you can just hear a quote by Neil DeGrasse Tyson and get inspired to write a song. I would never think that. And the song was called the sky is a Neighborhood.

[Host]

I was thinking the song would be like, actually, that's not. That doesn't exist. He's always, like, more of, like, a buzz kill, like, when it comes to those guys. Like, I got the opposite of Inspired by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. But I guess the. The universe is a neighborhood is like, where he's like that. That. That one's allowed. You're allowed to think about how that's true.

[Corey Hansen]

The sky is a neighborhood. So.

[Host]

Texas weather. You're a Los Angeles. Well, you're a California boy. California man. What do you have to say about Texas weather? I'm just curious about where this comes from, this song about Texas weather.

[Corey Hansen]

It's like a folk device, you know, it's like Texas Flood. There's a song from, like, 1984 called Texas Flood by Stevie Ray Vaughan. I don't know. There's. There's. Or Thunder Rolls by Garth Brooks.

[Host]

Yeah, I've heard of that one.

[Corey Hansen]

So I. I was sort of inspired to. To write a song and. And I also, to be fair, I'm a touring musician. I have done many stretches of dangerous road throughout the United States and. And in Europe. But the most dangerous stretch of highway that I've ever encountered, and it seems like two out of three times that I'm driving down this road, like we almost die, is. Yeah. From El Paso to Austin, Texas, that stretch, there's crazy windstorms, there's like sandstorms, there's thunder, there's lightning and there's floods. There's all kinds of shit. And it's like. It's like cartoonish, you know, like end of time style. And it'll come out of nowhere. I've been trapped at a gas station at like 3am because all the gas stations, like, the whole town's like, all blacked out. You know, there's no power.

[Host]

I only toured twice, but this happened to me once. We're driving through that area and it was like beginning or end of horror movie. Like completely black lightning in the distance and like a tiny, dilapidated gas station with like the halogen orange lights with like, flies buzzing around.

[Corey Hansen]

Exactly. It's just a real thing. And it's weird. It's. It's. I don't know why that stretch of highway is so fucking dangerous, but it's terrifying.

Texas weather is on my mind. I've been stupid, curious and kind like a crib question back to the night. I keep crawling. I feel bad I keep crawling but I feel fine.

[Host]

Last question. The last record or your new one between the two. Which one is like Garth Brooks and which one is more like your Chris Gaines?

[Corey Hansen]

I don't know if I've done my Chris Gaines yet. I've actually, I've had a couple Chris Gaines ideas, but I would say Pale Horse Rider is more. My Chris Gaines was wearing makeup and stuff. It was like looking like a weird pink alien or something. What was his record called?

[Host]

Garth Brooks in the Life of Chris Gaines.

[Corey Hansen]

Didn't someone else just did this? Sturgill Simpson.

[Host]

Oh, he's Chris Gaines now.

[Corey Hansen]

I should just. Maybe I'll write a song called Chris Gaines and see where that goes.

[Host]

I am Chris Gaines.

[Corey Hansen]

I'll look for some Neil DeGrasse Tyson quotes to get the song cooking.

[Host]

I look forward to it eagerly. Thank you so much, Corey. The record I love People should be out by the time this comes out. It's on Drag City Records. Where can the people go? See you on the road. On the desolate Texas road.

[Corey Hansen]

Yeah, we're not. We're not doing that stretch on these runs. But I'm playing Pickathon and Oregon. I'm doing a West coast run starting in San Francisco on July 29 and then going up to Seattle and back down, ending in Los Angeles on August 8th at Zebulon.

[Host]

Beautiful. Well, I'll be there.

[Corey Hansen]

Oh, dude, great. Love to see you there. And then I'm going to Chicago at the empty bottle on September 10th. Tenth, I think. And then doing going out to New York City and ending the tour in Raleigh, North Carolina, at Kings on September 21st.

[Host]

Run don't walk.

[Corey Hansen]

God, I may have. I probably fucked up all those dates.

[Host]

I'll jump in and correct you in post if you did.

[Corey Hansen]

Thank you.

[Host]

Correction Sept. 20 at Kings.

[Corey Hansen]

Sam.