Sitting Down with Beach Fossils

Before their show at Gramps on January 25th, I got the chance to catch up with Dustin Payseur, lead vocalist of Beach Fossils and chat about growing up, new music, touring and much more. 

It’s been about 10 years since Beach Fossils formed in 2009. People have come and gone, of course. How do you feel you’ve changed since then?

Dustin: I mean yeah, (through) the last 10 years of my life, I've gone through so much creatively and personally that it's really interesting coming up on the anniversary of the first record because I was listening to those songs the other day. We were practicing them to just feel them out and get ready for that, the anniversary tour. I was just thinking about the headspace I was in when I wrote those songs and where I was living and what I was going through and all this stuff. Just thinking about how it's almost like a different lifetime, you know? I've learned a lot, like in so many different ways. I manage the band myself, and I've been doing it from the beginning. So I've learned a lot there and I produced the records myself so I've learned a lot about production. I've learned a lot about my personal approach to songwriting and also just, as like a human, I feel like I've changed in so many ways where it's funny, I look back and I thought I was, I thought I was like my final version of myself. Then it's like it's always changing.

Since 2009 you have done so much, like in 2016, you started your own record label and then released Somersault, how is that different being on a record label and doing it yourself.

Dustin: Doing it myself, I'm able to have a lot more freedom and freedom of time is really important to me. Like not having to meet a certain deadline.

Yeah. I saw the anniversary post for Somersault too. It’s been two years, and you said that you like taking your time because the record is permanent.

Dustin: I mean that's really, that's really important because, Somersault wouldn't exist as it is if I wasn't able to have that amount of time with it, you know, because we were able to do so much to make these songs so much larger than they were. We were able to add all the string arrangements and, and have saxophone and , violin, Like all the violin, viola, cello, all that stuff, you know, harpsichord, we got to have all these dream-like instruments, on the record and make it really lush. Whereas, if we didn't have the time to do that, I would've felt rushed to just finish the record and it would've been more just like, you know, our traditional live set up and it pushed me to be more creative because I had to think about what these other instruments are and how they would play into the whole, vibe of the songs. And that goes back to me being able to do it at my own pace and not having to constantly check in with the label.

When you’re looking for new artists for your label. I know you already have Frankie Cosmos and Kevin Krautner and they’re coming out with an album February 28th. So when you are looking for new artists to add, what’s that process like? What are you looking for in a band?

Dustin:  I'm just looking for something that immediately when I hear it makes me do a mental double-take. You know, I want to be surprised by something. I want it to sound just new and different and like someone put effort into crafting their own sound because it's really easy to write songs that sound like other people and it's really hard to make a song that sound like yourself. And I look for people who can make a song that sounds like themselves and sometimes it takes a lot of time for someone to get to that point. But when you hear that it does surprise you because, you want to go to an artist because they're the only one that can sound that way. That's the reason that you want to buy the record because it's, it's unique in this way that if you want to get it you can only get it from them.


What’s your favorite song to play live?

Dustin: That's so funny because Cam our roadie asked me that question earlier today and I was like “Be Nothing” because it goes through everything. It's quiet and it's slow but then it gets loud and  fast. I dunno. It's just really, there's something so satisfying about playing that song and it's also kind of a deep cut. Like it's not one that people are necessarily requesting, you know. But for me it's just like that's one that I get to do for me. 

Speaking of “Be Nothing”, tracks on Somersault like that one and “This Year” are very personal. Where did you draw from that gave you drive to write these songs?

Dustin: Different life experiences really. You know, I try not to pull from things that are like outside of my life. So it's usually stuff that either I'm dealing with or my friends are dealing with something to do with very personal relationships. Most of my songs I feel are me either dealing with myself or dealing with someone that's close to me and it's just kind of like a journal or like a diary in that way because “This Year” was just about me. I mean, you know, kind of straightforward just like you make mistakes and every year you're like, I'm not going to do that again. I'm going to be better this year and then you kind of fall back in your bad habits and “Be Nothing”  was one about like our old drummer was moving to China because he wanted to become a monk and start a new life, and it was a song about him and his personal journey. 

What’s your musical inspiration? 

Dustin: Everything! I guess the same thing is the lyrics, you know? It's just like, just life.

And are there any particular artists that you draw from?

Dustin: Yeah, I mean there's a lot, but I try not to draw from just one. You know, the, the thing is, especially these days, I'm not really pulling from,  It's not like, Oh, I really liked the way this artist does something I'd like to do something like that. It's more, Oh, I really like the guitar in this Isaac Hayes song. And I really like the drums in this like Stereolab song and I really like the bass and this like Lee Hazelwood song or whatever  and it's not even what they're playing or the way they're playing it. It's more just how it sounds. It's funny, I'm only thinking about production techniques or something and I feel like once I dial in that sound in the studio, whatever I want to do just naturally comes out. I try not to think about the influences too much because your subconscious knows what to do.

You recently tweeted that you like songs that take an hour to write rather than ones that take longer. Could you elaborate on that a little bit?

Dustin: They're just more natural. I don't know. I mean I've had songs that take me years to write. I've had, songs that I wrote and I was going back through some old demos recently and old hard drives and there's songs that I feel like I'm still writing that I haven't finished that I started in 2011 or something where I'm like, “Oh that's a song I could still work on cause I never finished it”, and sometimes you just need to step away from some of these and appreciate it. It’s this real process and it can kind of be a struggle but the songs where you can sit down and you just blackout with your creativity and before you know it you're like holy shit there's a finished song here and I didn't even know that was happening.That's the best because I guess like I said before your subconscious knows what to do. So I try to, I try to turn off the voice that's saying yes or no to things when I'm working and just tell myself just to let it flow out, you know, be uncensored, be unfiltered cause that's the only way you're going to get out something that's real. 

With your music videos there are 4 that are posted. They all take place in New York and showcase the city. I just wanted to know your love for the city and why you chose to have your music videos centered this way.

Dustin: I mean, I think New York city has shaped me as a person. I moved there at an age where I was ready to completely change my life and it's like what we were talking about before, like the things that have changed in my life in the past 10 years, New York has been a huge part of that. New York's a big part of who I am. It's a big part of the way that I write. It's a big part of the way that I create. It's a big part of the way that I live my life in general and it's a city that's just like when you're there, it's just so present at all times. It's always in your face if that's where you are. And I love it. I love the city so much. It, it inspires me constantly. So I feel it's only natural for the music videos and the imagery to take place in New York because when I'm writing that's where I and that's where we record. 

So you’ve said that you are in the process of writing new music, and you've teased a little bit about it on Twitter. With that being said, do you think there is a possibility of new music coming out this year?

Dustin: I hope so. I mean, I don't know. It's really hard to say I wish I knew because I feel like a lot of people when they get asked that question actually know the answer but are pretending they don't. But I genuinely have no idea. When I'm working on a record I can't tell where I am. How far I am until I'm actually almost at the end and then I know. So I can say that I'm at least not there yet. 

Following up on that, when you’re at the end of writing a record, how do you feel its fully finished? Is there an “aha” moment?

Dustin:  There kind of is, where like, I can go through the demos and narrow it down to songs where I'm like, all right, these all flow together, these all work well together. They're all different enough to create different moods in a flow when you're listening to the record. There is kind of a moment where you've got it, you know, and I'm always, I'm always changing that all the way up until like right before we turn the record in because like when it gets that late, there are deadlines where I'm booking sessions to mix and master the record and like we’re already getting everything ready to go be pressed at the record plant and I'm literally changing stuff all the way until the second we send it out. And sometimes I'm adding or taking off songs up until that moment too. So there is kind of an aha moment but there also this part where I'm just like scrambling and I'm like, I don't know what the hell is happening.

So you're touring with Wild Nothing and you both are coming up on the 10 year anniversary of your albums, like the Beach Fossils self titled album. There are a lot of songs on the self titled album that you don't get to play a lot. What's going to be your favorite song to play now that you're going to be touring with that album specifically?

Dustin: t's funny cause there's a lot of songs, not a lot, but there's a handful of songs on that record that we've like never played live or we've only played live like maybe once. One that we were practicing the other day that I was really excited about and kind of stuck out at me as one that was kind of special was Window View, which is just such a deep cut as far as that record goes because it's really slow and it's just, it's not one that anyone has ever requested. But it surprised me when I played it I was like, wow, this is really fucking fun to play live because the song sounds really good. Feels really good. Like I can't believe we've never played this. 

Thank you so much for your time! Those are all the questions I have lined up 

Dustin: Cool! Thanks for having me.