{"id":17829,"date":"2017-12-03T21:29:47","date_gmt":"2017-12-04T04:29:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/?p=17829"},"modified":"2017-12-04T12:27:25","modified_gmt":"2017-12-04T19:27:25","slug":"track-premiere-exclusive-interview-ed-romanoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/2017\/12\/track-premiere-exclusive-interview-ed-romanoff\/","title":{"rendered":"Track Premiere + Exclusive Interview ED ROMANOFF"},"content":{"rendered":"<h4>Track Premiere &amp; Web-Exclusive Interview<\/h4>\n<h1>Musician:\u00a0 <strong>ED ROMANOFF<\/strong><br \/>\nTrack Premiere:\u00a0 \u201c<strong>Less Broken Now<\/strong>\u201d<\/h1>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"300\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/352447160&amp;color=%23ff5500&amp;auto_play=false&amp;hide_related=false&amp;show_comments=true&amp;show_user=true&amp;show_reposts=false&amp;show_teaser=true&amp;visual=true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_17834\" style=\"width: 670px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17834\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17834\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-3-Photo-credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"440\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-3-Photo-credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-3-Photo-credit-Shervin-Lainez-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-17834\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo credit Shervin Lainez<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Ed Romanoff worked alongside producer\u00a0Simone Felice\u00a0(The Lumineers) to record his sophomore album\u00a0<em>The Orphan King\u00a0<\/em>at Felice\u2019s barn studio just miles down the road in Palenville, NY. The pair corralled an impressive roster of collaborators to appear on the album including Romanoff\u2019s longtime friend and touring mate\u00a0Rachael Yamagata,\u00a0Kenneth Pattengale\u00a0of the\u00a0Milk Carton Kids, guitarist\u00a0Cindy Cashdollar\u00a0(Bob Dylan\u2019s\u00a0<em>Time Out of Mind<\/em>), The E Street Band\u2019s\u00a0Cindy Mizelle\u00a0and multi-instrumentalist\u00a0Larry Campbell, along with Campbell\u2019s wife and duo partner,\u00a0Teresa Williams.<\/p>\n<p>Based in Woodstock, NY, Romanoff\u2019s backstory is pretty unique. He\u2019s had a number of jobs\u2014cattle branding in Wyoming, stacking toilets in North Carolina, bartending in Virginia, founding a production firm in New York City\u2014all before beginning his music career in his 40s. His eleven song self-titled debut album was a Roots Radio Top 100 album in 2012, has been played in 13 countries and ranked as high as number 12 on the Euro Americana Chart. Produced by Crit Harmon, that album featured cameo vocal appearances from Josh Ritter, Tift Merritt and Meg Hutchinson.<\/p>\n<p>Romanoff\u2019s songs have won top awards at The International Songwriting Competition, USA Songwriting Competition, The Great American Song Contest and Nashville Songwriters Association International Competition. He was also a New Folk Winner at the Kerrville Folk Festival.<\/p>\n<p>Mmusicmag.com is proud to present the track premiere \u201cLess Broken Now.\u201d We talked with Ed Romanoff about his passion for music, the twist of fate that inspired his new album, and some important lessons about life and music that he\u2019s learned along the way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>ED ROMANOFF <\/strong>Web-Exclusive Interview<br \/>\nwith\u00a0<strong><em>M Music &amp; Musicians<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>magazine publisher,<strong> Merlin David<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>How did the new album <em>The Orphan King<\/em> evolve?\u00a0 <\/strong><br \/>\nIt started with a handful of songs about characters that struck me: The Elephant Man, Willie Sutton, and a ghost from Ireland who pinged me on Twitter. They became like planets that revolved around the main character, The Orphan King. I like outsiders because once you peel back their differences I think we find that everyone is the same in the end, and hopefully still believing in love.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How did the idea of \u201cLess Broken Now\u201d come to you?\u00a0 <\/strong><br \/>\nIt came from seeing how I\u2019d been through so much with my family, learning that I was mistaken as to who my biological father was. There was depression, loneliness, and then after all of it, I\u2019d met someone and am happy, but sometimes I do still cry. While I may still feel broken sometimes, I think I\u2019m less broken than I was.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell us why you are especially glad \u201cThe Elephant Man\u201d made it onto this album.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d written it differently\u2014lyrically and musically, and the producer Simone Felice rejected it, Rick Rubin style. But I was really attached to the story. So, I rewrote it and found I liked the new version better, so I texted Simone, \u201cThe Elephant Man is making a comeback!\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_17836\" style=\"width: 670px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17836\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17836\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-2-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"440\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-2-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-2-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-17836\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo Credit Shervin Lainez<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Who inspired you to write songs?<\/strong><br \/>\nJohn Prine and Josh Ritter. When I first heard a John Prine song, it flew through my ears and went directly to my heart. I really believe he\u2019s among the gods in the realm of songwriting. Then, when I was older, I met Josh Ritter at a house concert and we became friends. That first night I played him some songs I had been thinking about working on\u2014none of which have survived, but he told me some great insights about how to think about the songs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>When you started writing songs, what initially made you <em>want <\/em>to write?<\/strong><br \/>\nTo beat back a feeling of invisibility. I thought that if one word of mine made it into a song, or my voice was heard on the radio somewhere, it could make me somehow more real, or maybe justify my being in the world.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Is there a song of yours that encapsulates that feeling?<\/strong><br \/>\nProbably \u201cOrphan King\u201d\u2014both of my parents knew about my coming into this world\u2014that my father wasn\u2019t my biological father. I was bitter, but I still genuinely believe in love.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell us your creative process.<\/strong><br \/>\nI like to listen for phrases that are a unique way of saying something very true\u2014and universal.\u00a0 Once I have a phrase, then I pick up a guitar, or sit at a piano, and see how the words want to be sung. Or the opposite, I\u2019ll start playing chords and see what words pop out. Both work for me. If you\u2019ve never heard the Peter Gabriel 25<sup>th<\/sup> anniversary release of <em>So<\/em>, check it out. There\u2019s the evolution of each song, which in those tunes started as basically gibberish. My process, I think, is idea first and then craft later, like a pendulum.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How has co-writing informed your music?<\/strong><br \/>\nI\u2019ve learned so much from the people I\u2019ve written with. I\u2019ve done some writing with Josh Ritter and Mary Gauthier, both serious heavyweights. What I learned from Josh was the idea of looking for a twist in a song\u2014the surprise ending you didn\u2019t see coming. He\u2019s a master of that. Mary is the ultimate worker. She\u2019ll do 80 drafts of one song\u2014and then go back, line by line to see what lyrical upgrades are possible. That was a good lesson. It takes a ton of passes to make a song sound like it\u2019s just rolled off your tongue. Unless you are Bob Dylan, which in his case, it does. (<em>Laughs<\/em>)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Is there one cowriter you truly connect with?<\/strong><br \/>\nOne of the best co-writers I know of, that I\u2019ve also written with, is Crit Harmon\u2014a writer\/producer up in the Boston area (Martin Sexton, Lori McKenna). He\u2019s big on POV and he\u2019s super intuitive. I learned from him to let the process roll to you and not always force things. He\u2019s the Zen master song man.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell us one experience where something unique inspired you to write a song.<\/strong><br \/>\n\u201cMiss Worby\u2019s Ghost\u201d was inspired from being at a writing retreat in Annaghmakerrig, Ireland, and I started getting direct messages on Twitter from the famous ghost who is supposed to be living there and haunting writers. She told me I better write her a song or else. That was enough for me. Maybe there are no such things as ghosts, but I wasn\u2019t about to take that chance.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How do songwriting communities help you?<\/strong><br \/>\nKerrville is a magical experience. You\u2019re camping and singing and everyone\u2019s on the same team. There\u2019s this great couple, Lindsey Lee and Deb Rouse. Every year they make everyone feel like they\u2019re one, and they manage to keep everyone in touch over the years. Rocky Mountain Folks Fest is another great community. That\u2019s where I followed country hit writer Steve Seskin around for days\u2014absorbing everything I could from him. His writing seminars, where he breaks down Beatles songs and explains why they work, are among the best I\u2019ve experienced.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What songwriting tip would you like to offer?<\/strong><br \/>\nTwo things: The first, I learned from a poet, Adrian Matejka\u2014I scan every line, and if it\u2019s not quickly visual, or an unusual way of saying a known philosophical truth, or really, really catchy wordplay, I get rid of it. The second, musically\u2014trying melodies that begin at different counts within a measure send you to different places, like pushing paint around. Then you can decide which has the most emotion. Another thing is to try a song on a different instrument, switching from guitar to piano or vice versa, can help to find a cool feel sometimes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you feel it\u2019s important for musicians to write songs that have greater social value?<\/strong><br \/>\nI almost canceled our sessions after the election. I was devastated, not so much about the party clashes, but what felt like the death of decency with a rekindled meanness, not to mention the possibility of increased instability in a nuclear world. Maybe I\u2019m a snowflake, but I sure didn\u2019t feel like doing music. But Simone was adamant about making music as our most important form of resistance. That led to the last song on the record, \u201cCoronation Blues,\u201d a song about a mad king who\u2019s pissed that more people aren\u2019t too keen on coming to his coronation. I was thinking a lot about Leonard Cohen at the time, he\u2019d just passed away, and so I reached for a song like, \u201cFirst We Take Manhattan.\u201d Should everyone tackle songs with heavy social content? Well, I wouldn\u2019t put that on any writer in a prescriptive way. Sometimes we need simple songs. But I do believe one song <em>can <\/em>change the world. All you need for evidence is \u201cAll You Need is Love.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_17835\" style=\"width: 670px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17835\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17835\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-1-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-1-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-1-Photo-Credit-Shervin-Lainez-300x279.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-17835\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo Credit Shervin Lainez<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Was there a specific moment when you realized you were meant to be a musician?<\/strong><br \/>\nI always loved music, and as a kid I drew pictures of instruments. My parents discouraged me from playing. I wasn\u2019t allowed to buy a guitar or touch my mother\u2019s piano. I think looking back it\u2019s because my biological father might have been a musician. When I turned 18, I bought a cheap Yamaha guitar, and have played almost every day. But, I didn\u2019t pursue music seriously until I was in my 40s. I didn\u2019t try to sing until I was much older. I believed I was tone deaf, as my father was. It was only after I learned that he wasn\u2019t my father, when I was almost 50, that I thought maybe I should try to sing.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What instruments can you not live without?<\/strong><br \/>\nI couldn\u2019t survive without a guitar around. I <em>love<\/em> my Gibson Jumbo. The guitar was a little more technically demanding when I first got it, less forgiving than my Martins, but I really love it. I use Martin medium gauge strings on my Martin guitars. I was at 30<sup>th<\/sup> Street Guitars\u2014which is <em>the<\/em> best guitar store with the best logo of any store. Matt Brewster at 30<sup>th<\/sup> Street helped me out when I was going on the road. They recommended John Pearse Strings for my Gibson, and that\u2019s what I now use on my Gibson.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What other gear do you like?<\/strong><br \/>\nI really love the PorchBoard stomp\u2014that thing is light, and sounds like god stepping on a barn, absolutely fills a room. I use a Boss tuner. I like the old school Shubb capo. And my favorite capo\u2014they give you a yellow Kyser when you win the Kerrville Festival, and I really love that one for sentimental reasons.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you remember the first time you heard one of your songs on the radio?<\/strong><br \/>\nThe first time a song I played and sang on was on the radio, I was having dinner in L.A. with a manager who worked with A-list musicians and a big-time music producer. Between them, they\u2019ve probably sold 50 million records. So, I couldn\u2019t tell them about my song playing somewhere in Minnesota. I was so proud though I went into the bathroom and cried. It was Mary Gauthier\u2019s version of the \u201cOrphan King\u201d where I played the acoustic and sang harmony.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Top 5 Musicians\u00a0who inspired you to become a musician?<\/strong><br \/>\nJohn Prine, Josh Ritter, Mark Knopfler, Randy Newman, Roger Waters.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>Top 5 favorite albums of all time?<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Bruised Orange<\/em> (1978) \u2013 John Prine<br \/>\n<em>Oh Mercy<\/em> (1989) \u2013 Bob Dylan<br \/>\n<em>The Animal Years<\/em> (2006) \u2013 Josh Ritter<br \/>\n<em>The Assassination of Jesse James<\/em> (2007) \u2013 Nick Cave and Warren Ellis<br \/>\n<em>The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking<\/em> (1984) \u2013 Roger Waters<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell us a \u201cpinch me\u201d moment when you thought \u201c<em>Wow, this is really happening to me!<\/em>\u201d?<\/strong><br \/>\nPerforming \u201cThe South Wind Blows\u201d (with Philip King) in Dublin on the RTE Radio 1 program. During the show I explained my DNA story, about having learned only recently I was Irish and not Russian as I\u2019d always thought. He stopped the program, walked across the stage, and said, \u201cWelcome Home, Ed. Welcome home to Ireland.\u201d That was a pretty special moment. Also, singing with Josh Ritter in front of 5,000 people in Cork Ireland was pretty amazing. And having Larry Kirwan from Black 47 hear me in a pub in the East Village and then play my song on Sirius Radio was also pretty cool.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What PRO (Performing Rights Organization) are you with?<\/strong><br \/>\nASCAP. My rep at ASCAP, Sue Devine, put me in touch with several of the folks that had the most impact on me so far. Her insight as to who I\u2019d gel with musically and personally made a huge difference.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How have Song Contests helped you?<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen I was first starting out, which is not that long ago\u2014having won a few contests gave me something to talk about. It also felt kind of legitimizing in my own mind that a song I wrote had somehow blindly bubbled up above thousands of other submissions. It was another one of those much-needed \u2018keep going\u2019 moments.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is the best advice someone has given you?<\/strong><br \/>\nI\u2019m pretty nervous when it comes to performing. I\u2019ve suffered from PTSD since I was 28, which is another reason why I waited so long to try it. When my vocal coach Dr. Bill Riley asked me why I was singing so quietly in his studio, I told him I was afraid someone might hear. He looked at me funny and said, \u201cEd, that\u2019s the whole point.\u201d As I was leaving that day, he stopped me and said, \u201cYou\u2019ve got to give yourself permission to sing. No one else will.\u201d I think that\u2019s pretty good advice: Give yourself permission to do whatever the hell you wanna do.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_17833\" style=\"width: 670px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-17833\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17833\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-4-Live-in-Ireland.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"885\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-4-Live-in-Ireland.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-4-Live-in-Ireland-224x300.jpg 224w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-4-Live-in-Ireland-300x402.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-17833\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ed Romanoff &#8211; Live in Ireland<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Best advice you\u2019d like to give upcoming musicians?<\/strong><br \/>\nTalk to yourself as you would your best friend. Our self-talk can be so unforgiving. While we\u2019d allow so much more grace for others than ourselves. So, I tell my younger self not to worry so much and think of life as a ride you can\u2019t control\u2014so you might as well enjoy it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Any advice for songwriters?<\/strong><br \/>\nHowever much energy you\u2019re putting into the writing, it could be more. Go and try to write an undeniably great song. But, don\u2019t expect to right out of the gate. I heard Rick Rubin on a podcast say you should just keep trying to write better than you did yesterday. Don\u2019t try and top the Beatles in your first go \u2019round. Maybe someday, but take some of the pressure off to be the best in the world at every moment.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What\u2019s an important lesson you learned from making music your business?<\/strong><br \/>\nDon\u2019t delegate your art or your business. It\u2019s really important to take the reins of you work and finances, and to understand what deals you\u2019re putting in place. If someone can\u2019t explain to you why something is a good deal for you, then it probably isn\u2019t. And, unless you\u2019re Ingrid Michaelson, put down the ukulele.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What\u2019s next?<\/strong><br \/>\nI\u2019m going to go and try to write a really great song.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Where can your new fans get more info and stay updated?<\/strong><br \/>\nEdRomanoff.com<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ERomanoff\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/ERomanoff<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-17832\" src=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-5-cover.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"660\" height=\"594\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-5-cover.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Ed-Romanoff-5-cover-300x270.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Track Premiere &amp; Web-Exclusive Interview Musician:\u00a0 ED ROMANOFF Track Premiere:\u00a0 \u201cLess Broken Now\u201d Ed Romanoff worked alongside producer\u00a0Simone Felice\u00a0(The Lumineers) to record his sophomore album\u00a0The Orphan King\u00a0at Felice\u2019s barn studio just miles down the road in Palenville, NY. The pair corralled an impressive roster of collaborators to appear on the album including Romanoff\u2019s longtime friend [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1058,7725],"tags":[8956,10363,10364,10365,6271,8655,10366,10367,10368,3592,10369,5804,10370,10371,10372,10373,10374,10375,10376,10179,10377,10378,10379,10380,10381,10382,3114,10383,8035,8259,2260,10384,3646,10039,141,10385,10386,9849,9850,10387,10388,3117,10389,10390,1572,10161,7566,5880,9158,3277,316,3589,10391,8981,10392,3010,10393,7978,9587,10394,2318,10395,8289,10396,292,10397,10398,10399,10400,2828,8480,4310,10401,10402,10403,10404,10405,9869,10406,10407,10408,10409,10410,10411,10412,3818,10413,10414,10415,10416,10417,3662,10418,10419,438,10420,8157,10421,10422,10423,2319,10424,10425,10426],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17829"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17829"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17829\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17839,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17829\/revisions\/17839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmusicmag.com\/m\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}