Mike Marchant is a music addict. He’s owned by the melodies, harmonies and atmospherics that rule over his brain. Marchant has a sterling voice and an obvious penchant for the psych-pop that once filled out the collective known as Elephant 6.
When Marchant’s band Widowers released its stunning debut in April, critics and fans took notice. The band’s music gave the Denver music community something it sorely needed: glitchy, melodic, fascinating, hummable songs.
Marchant headlines tonight at the Meadowlark in support of his new solo EP, “Outer Space and the Sea,” and fans of Widowers’ music will surely appreciate this new batch of tunes.
We talked with Marchant earlier this week.
Question: Your band Widowers had a great year in 2008. Why release a solo album now?
Answer: I wrote most of these tunes thinking that they would be used by the band. I started recording demos at home and realized that they didn’t quite fit with the songs we’re working on as a band. The demos sounded raw, emotional and exciting to me, so I decided to fix them up and release them as an EP. My bandmates were totally behind it and most of them contributed to the record.
Q: What do you get out of performing solo that you don’t get with the band?
A: My bandmates are all excellent musicians, and when I perform with them I can make mistakes that go unnoticed. When I play solo, I can’t rely on these guys for backup. Playing solo has made me a better singer and a better performer in general, and in turn has made me perform better with the whole band.
Q: There are undeniable similarities between these five songs on your solo EP and the material that makes up the Widowers’ full-length. Will these songs ever become Widowers songs, or are they specific to your solo work?
A: I think a few of them will become Widowers songs. The guys like the tunes, and they’re all playing with me at the release show. I’m sure that we’ll continue to play some of them at Widowers shows and possibly record full-band versions in the future.
Q: I know you guys recorded the Widowers stuff in your basement. Did you do this record the same way?
A: I did it in the basement again and recorded and mixed it myself. That was a big part of why I did it — to challenge myself and see if I was capable of making a decent recording on my own. The bandmates did help out in a huge way. Cory Brown and Mark Shusterman played a bit on it, and everyone else helped out by listening, voicing opinions and just being supportive and helpful.
Q: You’re releasing your five-song EP at the Meadowlark and I’m guessing you’ll play some Widowers songs to fill out the set.
A: We’ll be doing the whole EP, a few Widowers tunes, and I’ll probably end the set with a few solo tunes. It’s become a tradition that whenever I play at the Meadowlark, I cover Daniel Johnston’s “Funeral Home” and the song “In Heaven (The Lady in the Radiator Song)” from the film “Eraserhead.” I’ll probably do one of those.
Q: Give me one-sentence descriptions of each of the bands/artists/DJs playing at your release party — what it is you appreciate about them as musicians?
A: Achille Lauro: These guys make music that is both intelligent and extremely sexy, which is a very rare and admirable combination.
Park Pourbaix: Ellison and Tim both write great tunes, and together they’re unstoppable — plus vibraphonist Mark Clifford will be joining them and will blow minds.
Sunset Curse: They make lovely pop music and their singer has some serious pipes.
DJ CB1: That’s Cory Brown from Widowers — and he will party your face off.
Q: When can we expect another Widowers album?
A: Sometime this year — and it will render our previous effort obsolete. The songs we’re writing right now are a huge step forward for us, which is why we’re going to take our time and do it right.
Ricardo Baca: 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com
Mike Marchant
Pysch pop. Meadowlark Bar with Achille Lauro, Sunset Curse, Park Pourbaix, DJ CB1. Tonight. 9 p.m. $6. Songs: . More: .
