Just like any 25-year-old male, mandolin player Chris Thile loves South Park, has no clue how to cook and would watch sports over the news any day. The only difference? Thile is nominated for a Grammy this year, and if he wins, can put it on the shelf next to his first one.
“I really loved college. I would’ve liked to stay, but I think I made the right decision. Academia is not kind to the folk musician,” Thile says, who attended college for a year or so before he dropped out to pursue his music career. Considering the rave reviews of his latest album, How to Grow a Woman from the Ground, most people think he made the right decision.
Fans can see Thile in action Jan. 13 at George Mason University Center for the Arts Concert Hall, where he will undoubtedly play songs off of How to Grow a Woman from the Ground and perhaps perform tracks from earlier solo albums Deceiver (2004), Not All Who Wonder Are Lost (2001), Stealing Second (1997) and Leading Off (1994).
Thile was playing the mandolin when most were still playing with their rattles – and it shows. His first solo album, Leading Off, was released when he was just 12, and mostly consisted of his own compositions. And though his fifth solo album has received critical praise and just scored him a second Grammy nomination (his first was with his band, Nickel Creek), Thile only dubs himself as an “OK” artist.
“First you need to make yourself happy, then you need to worry about what your musical friends think about it [your music},” he says. “But it’s definitely more sincere than it used to be.”
Thile is back to his bluegrass roots after a few experimental solo adventures, and now realizes that it just so happens to be what he does best.
“It’s par for the course really, this album,” he says.
Thile’s innovative spin on the folk genre draws inspiration from many types of music, regardless of what kind.
“I’ve listened to Béla Fleck, Radiohead, Wilco, The Strokes, a lot of Brahams, Bach,” he says. “I’ve been writing a lot though, so I’ve been listening more to the ideas in my head.”
But that doesn’t mean Thile can’t have some fun. How to Grow a Woman from the Ground includes covers from The White Stripes, Willie Dixon and Jimmie Rodgers.
“I never go into any situation thinking I have to cast my bluegrass shadow over whatever it is I’m gonna do,” Thile says. “It’s all the same shit, that’s what people forget. It’s notes! It’s just notes!”
And music isn’t the only medium through which he finds inspiration, Thile adds.
“I’ve been reading a lot lately; I’ve broken out the Calvin and Hobbes again – I think Bill Watterson is a genius. I’ve gotten a lot of inspiration from that,” Thile explains, whose third solo record featured a song called “Club G.R.O.S.S.,” a reference to the comic strip. “It’s something that really sort of made my childhood better, and makes my adulthood better. As an artist, you’re trying to make expression entertaining, so that’s something I’m looking for. Neither goal is compromised in pursuit of the other and Bill Watterson is a perfect example of that. To me, music is all the same stuff, and art in general is all the same stuff so it’s not a hard transition to make.”
Thile recognizes that his life is “pretty ideal,” because he gets to make music for a living but he is still – for the most part – unrecognized on the street, he says.
“I’m an attention whore,” he admits. “But I don’t do something where fame is a by-product. I’m moving further away from the kind of music that could make me famous. I don’t do it well, the pop thing. … I’ll do my thing and do it as well as I can. If a certain amount of notoriety is produced, that’s great. I’ll lap it up. But it’s icing on the cake. You can’t have your icing and eat it too.”
Perhaps Thile’s love of attention is why he has such a great affection for an appreciative crowd.
“I like an audience that seems to be having a good time or an audience that’s really focused, as long as everybody really listens,” he says. “[My fans] seem really spread out right now, which is what I’ve always wanted. You get the old folks in there and baby boomers and their kids and their kids. I just want everyone to like it.”
Thile points out Washington as a favorite place to play.
“D.C. is a good listening area; it’s all about the people, not the venue,” he says. “If people are into it, if they’re listening, it could be the best venue you’ve ever had. … And the crowd that’s there is always listening.”
To see Thile play live is not only a rare musical and instrumental treat, but an experience custom made to your liking.
“[I don’t] have any preconceptions [about my audiences],” Thile says. “I try to approach each audience differently so the experience is unique. I feel like it’s very important to tailor to your audience.”
And although the young musician can’t cook, only “assemble the hell out of a sandwich,” Thile sure can play the hell out of his instrument.
Chris Thile will be playing at George Mason University Center for the Arts Concert Hall on Jan. 13. Tickets are on sale now and range from $22 to $44.
Contact reporter Courtney Pomeroy at diversions@dbk.umd.edu.
