The Nautilus Studio M31 Files interview singer-songwriter Marilyn Kroeker (part 2)

Studio owners Yves LF Giraud (Studio M31) and Mr Bill (Nautilus Studio) interview singer-songwriter Marilyn Kroeker (part 2).

Find out more on Marilyn here:
https://marilynkroeker.com/

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:23

Flowers of the night gleaming from the moisture and the morning light. What about him?

SPEAKER_02 0:31

Well, you recorded quite a few, right?

SPEAKER_00 0:33

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02 0:34

What what was the first experience you've had in in recording a song of yours?

SPEAKER_00 0:39

Um, extremely pleasant, actually. Extremely pleasant. I was with um old Durango, Doug. Doug uh Doug Eagle. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 0:49

Had a real good recording studio. The one that was in the cellar, kinda. Uh-huh. I think so. Where was that? Durango? Yeah, right down in Durango by the railroad tracks. I think he's still up by I think he's up by the old Humane Society.

SPEAKER_00 1:02

In that building, I think so too. He's I would go with him.

SPEAKER_03 1:06

Doug. Yeah, what was his last Doug Eagle? Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:09

101010.

SPEAKER_02 1:10

And what's the name of the uh Eagle Sound. Eagle Sound. Okay. Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_03 1:14

Little advertisement for Dougie bought. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:17

Hey, that's what community, man. Everybody deserves some advertisement, yeah. Yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:22

And that uh is on a tape. That's how old comfortable life is. Yeah. On a cassette, yeah. Oops. 92, 93, something like that.

SPEAKER_02 1:35

Yeah, that sounds okay. Um before uh yeah, the CDs and Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:40

And in terms of I don't know, you've you've been lots of places and done lots of stuff, and I've been pretty darn focused in staying right here. So it's been harder to get the word out. But with computers and online presence, um things have changed in terms of awareness. People can do things online, which is not necessarily a strong suit of mind.

SPEAKER_02 2:03

Now it's like every single person that really wants to be an artist be on your own, Betty.

SPEAKER_00 2:09

Gotta wear all the hats.

SPEAKER_02 2:11

All of them. And a lot of them are not fun for people that are artistic, you know, that are not that's not where our brains We we had a deal when we got married.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

He was the car guy, and I was the the food guy. Okay. And we've stuck to that tradition. I like to cook very much. It's another art form for me, but um what I'm getting at is I I like the hats that I'm wearing. I chose them. I got to be a parent. That was huge for me. It still is. Um and exploring all the different art forms that I like, and it's it's a little insane, and I know it, but I don't care. I'm doing it, it's yours. Sure, sure. And I won't be judged on how much money I made.

SPEAKER_03 3:01

It's not a money thing at all, Marilyn. But you are awesome. You are an awesome creator, and uh success is nothing. Yeah, uh, and money's got nothing to do with it. You know, it really doesn't.

SPEAKER_00 3:13

So I will honestly say though, I'm at that point of life where don't laugh, it's paid for.

SPEAKER_03 3:18

Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_00 3:19

Yeah, no, that's it. That's it. That's it. We're good.

SPEAKER_02 3:22

Yeah, we're good. So uh can you tell me the name of that first album?

SPEAKER_00 3:26

Comfortable Life.

SPEAKER_02 3:28

Okay. Was that a solo thing, a band thing?

SPEAKER_00 3:31

It really was a solo thing.

SPEAKER_02 3:33

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 3:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:34

How many songs do you do you remember?

SPEAKER_00 3:35

Oh, there's close to a dozen. Okay. Pretty darn close.

SPEAKER_02 3:40

Do you still do any of those?

SPEAKER_00 3:42

What an interesting question. I think I'll circle around to some of them.

SPEAKER_02 3:47

You might be surprised. I've discovered sometimes you go back and you're like, oh yeah, these were like oh wait a minute. Oh, oh, that was cool.

SPEAKER_00 3:56

Well that that album does include some of the ones from high school that my sisters enjoyed so much. So there you go. And they might translate well into country. Uh would be told. Yeah, truth be told. Yeah, I know that.

SPEAKER_03 4:11

Have you heard any of uh I don't know if I have, I don't think so. Um, but I even think about songs you wrote when you were like fourteen and fifteen or songs you're playing again.

SPEAKER_02 4:22

Yeah, we have that song second floor. I wrote in eighty-eight or something, and it's it's everybody's singing along.

SPEAKER_03 4:28

I'm like, yeah, because there was well there was a simplicity of the early songs that you write that sometimes is uh the gotchiness and the simplicity. Yeah, and that's sometimes that's better than getting too darn complicated.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

And and the three verses, a chorus and a bridge. Can we do that? Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Should we every time? No.

SPEAKER_02 4:50

You don't have to. It's but it's a good formula that that becomes uh a natural one. It's uh you know, i that's the thing. It's it's um it's Baldavel. It's almost an L DNA. We all hear these songs and we we don't even think about it. They do that real scores, real scores, bread.

SPEAKER_00 5:08

Um yeah. I'd like to talk about changes in vocals nowadays. I'm not always happy with what I hear is popular vocally. I had I had real vocal training from really talented teachers. And and breathe. Can you give me an example of what you're what you mean? Uh uh. That's what I don't like. That's what we do like. But you can adjust the volume, of course. I just I don't like the down draft and I don't like the updraft much either.

SPEAKER_03 5:44

But that's uh But but what they're doing now vocally, uh you're talking about the processing and uh No, I think she's talking about the approach. The mo modern ones now?

SPEAKER_00 5:55

I a little of both. Yeah. Yeah, definitely, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:58

Yeah, to me the processing is the one thing. I I I personally don't mind the approach if the approach is works for the song. Uh it's more of the processing. It's kind of sad to see that people as famous and as uh legendary as Paul McCartney or or or Elton John or anybody that has been considered the Eagles, white whoever are considered absolutely the you know the core the what? The peanut pinnacle the pinnacle the panacle the peanut you know I think does sound good. Yeah, you know, and and that's sad they all the tune these people after the fact and they're like they were Freddie Mercury, you're out of tuning f what I know what is wrong with you guys?

SPEAKER_00 6:54

Right, and I believe it is of course all the female artists of that same area era. Yeah uh Carly Simon, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nick, yeah, anybody, you know, all I mean to me those are real vocalists.

SPEAKER_02 7:06

And unfortunately for them, a lot of times now, because it has become in this industry standard, it's being done after they do the performance they don't even know. Oh. And then the production company releases it as there's the song. And you're like, that's not a no. Yeah, yeah. Like uh Joe Walsh, I don't think he knows that all of the vocals are replaced. Live.

SPEAKER_03 7:31

Well, when he sees this podcast, he's gonna know. You messed with my vocal. I'm sure he knows already. You messed with my vocal, but it's too late, it's already you know it's like fifty bucks. I think it's like a tempered piano. Uh the actual vocal, if it's within you know parameters is much better than the corrected. Oh, absolutely. The corrected is very uh sanitary, uh not much warmth or feeling.

SPEAKER_02 8:06

And and in art, uh uh no matter what form, I I believe personally that the imperfections are what makes makes that alt piece actually special.

SPEAKER_03 8:17

Sure.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

Not uh it's made by a machine. I don't let a machine do it, you know. Yeah, if you want perfection, right? But it's not what's in.

SPEAKER_00 8:26

Oh, if you want perfection, buy one of my pots. Right on. I never make any uh mistakes. No, they're all perfect. Actually, I blew a couple up lately. That was kind of fun.

SPEAKER_03 8:38

Yeah, that's what they mean throwing pottery is uh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:42

Look at this piece of shit. What I usually say is they don't call it centering for nothing. That's what I that's where you start. That's how you start all your pieces. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:52

Well, that makes sense because I like that. It's so easy to see that stuff go into the Do you use an electric uh kill uh wheel, yeah, I sure do.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

I do have a kick wheel.

SPEAKER_03 9:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:02

Um, but no, electric's just a quick question.

SPEAKER_03 9:07

I uh uh did you say that you uh uh took some vocal uh lessons and stuff? When did you do that?

SPEAKER_00 9:16

Um was that early? I was my dad was extraordinarily talented vocally. My mom played piano, so as a family we were musically inclined. Dad was in the Cornell Glee Club in college. Yep. So they wouldn't tolerate any flat uh uh uh my sisters and I are all vocally competent and still singing for the most part. Yeah. Um I got accepted to the New York State Summer School of Music and studied under Abraham Kaplan. Um, Google him sometime. Um in some ways I'd already earned it, but we also had classes um that did include vocalization, um langu differ singing in different languages, uh breathing techniques, glottal stroke. Um holy smokes. Yeah, it got very technical and it was an extraordinarily wonderful experience.

SPEAKER_03 10:10

I bet. Well, and it's your foundation for your vocal example. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 10:15

Gosh, I wish I would have had something like that.

unknown 10:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 10:18

I wish lots of people would. Yeah. I think um too musically uh and artistically that um we're losing it in public schools. Um and I'm gonna circle back around to that because the music teacher in Mancus right now is through the roof fantastic, Andrew Sileta. Holy crow, he is terrific.

SPEAKER_03 10:39

And how do you know about him?

SPEAKER_00 10:41

Through the uh um the opera. Um what's the name of the opera? Yeah. That we the uh blacksmith. We uh it was right during COVID, so we held this opera outside. These um real opera singers came from New York and Washington, D.C. through Brian. Um Ryan Brown. Ryan Brown's gank, thank you very much. Ryan Brown organized the opera, the blacksmith opera. Uh we did it outside on a farm just right here in Mancus. I was outside selling pottery at Farmers Market, and I could hear the voices practicing in the opera house in Mancus coming through the windows. Oh my gosh. I had the privilege of playing harmonica, believe it or not. No way. You're playing harmonica. I did. I did. One of the nights I stunk, but the rest of them I I got it. And guitar, and um I got to sing a duo with one of the real opera stars. Wow. Um, so where was I going with that? I'm good at teaching pottery, but there are two rabbits in my studio, as we've already covered. Oh brother. Yeah. We'll get that cleaned up one of these days and get that going. We'll see. It's gonna be a long winter.

SPEAKER_03 12:05

Yeah, is your uh Raven House the only place that you're showing your pottery, or is it uh some other places?

SPEAKER_00 12:12

I'm also showing, thanks for asking, up at Odd Cat Bookstore. It's a new bookstore in Dolores next to Montezuma's restaurant.

SPEAKER_03 12:21

Nice.

SPEAKER_00 12:21

Yep, go check that out. Um right now for just through December, I've been showing in Raiders Ridge Cafe my um etching and my watercolor um on their walls, which has been kind of fun.

SPEAKER_03 12:38

Very cool.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:39

Well, I got a collection of Marilyn Croker uh uh Christmas ornaments that you used to make every year.

SPEAKER_00 12:47

Oddly enough, I did make ornaments this year. You did? Yeah, they're down at Raven House. Well, and they're shaped like chickens. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:59

No, I have those collectors' items. I bet you they're on eBay right now, they probably bring some big bugs.

SPEAKER_00 13:06

Wow.

SPEAKER_03 13:07

Yeah, and you made some this year for the first time in a while, huh?

SPEAKER_00 13:10

Yeah. They're they're nothing like what you're describing, to be honest.

SPEAKER_03 13:14

Yeah. Chickens, hey. All right. Yeah. All right, cool. Um I'm hungry.

SPEAKER_00 13:21

What are you craving?

SPEAKER_02 13:24

Chicken.

SPEAKER_00 13:25

I think it's gonna be wings.

SPEAKER_02 13:28

I go for legs. Um so you you uh you mentioned your first album. You've you how many albums have you?

SPEAKER_00 13:36

Five. Let me just take a quick look. I had to actually write it down. One, two, three, four, five, six.

SPEAKER_02 13:43

Okay, and most of them are about a dozen songs.

SPEAKER_00 13:46

Yes, they are.

SPEAKER_02 13:47

Uh what is the latest album you've recalled to this point? And when did you do that?

SPEAKER_00 13:53

It was Sweetwater Station.

SPEAKER_02 13:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 13:55

Uh, and the title of that is Stories, and that was 2016.

SPEAKER_02 13:59

2016. Oh, so you're the do for Sunday.

SPEAKER_00 14:02

I am.

SPEAKER_02 14:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:03

I am.

SPEAKER_02 14:04

Okay. And so by now you must have so many songs.

SPEAKER_00 14:13

I mean, you gotta Oh, I definitely have a list of favorites. What I want to have happen around them and within them and is still up in the air. Yeah. Rock and roll versus folky. I don't know. It's gotta have some harmony. So Chris is in. Sure.

SPEAKER_03 14:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:36

A work in progress.

SPEAKER_03 14:38

Great. Can't wait to hear the next next edition.

SPEAKER_00 14:42

Well, maybe you may be involved.

SPEAKER_03 14:45

We shall see. I I'm I'm available.

unknown 14:48

Cool.

SPEAKER_00 14:49

Thank you so much for having me.

SPEAKER_03 14:51

Thank you, Marilyn. Thanks, guys. Good to see you again here.

SPEAKER_00 14:56

Thanks.

unknown 14:57

All right.

SPEAKER_02 14:57

Well, you'll be safe, and thank you for watching. And uh uh Marilyn, one one last thing that people would actually probably want to know. A way to find you on the internet, if possible.

SPEAKER_00 15:08

Marilyn Croker Music dot com.

SPEAKER_02 15:11

All right, you heard it first here. No, I'm sure you've said that before.

SPEAKER_00 15:18

Second.