By: Becky Firesheets

Greg Ginn loves wine.  Dry, red wine to be exact.  As do the members of his latest project, an instrumental trio dubbed Greg Ginn and the Taylor Texas Corrugators.  They all love wine so much that, despite playing 21 gigs in a row on their recent three-month tour, the Corrugators still managed to stop at a winery almost every day.

“More have popped up in the last ten years,” Ginn explained during our phone interview.  “They’re usually located in a real nice place just off the roadway.  They’re really beautiful, you wouldn’t expect to see something like that only two miles off the road.   It’s a great way to see different climates and places in the country.  It’s a real nice break.”

Much of the Corrugators’ collection pleasantly lolls more like days spent drinkin’ whiskey, yet a refined taste in jazz (and wine) heavily influences each song’s direction.  It’s not that any given tune is country, jazz, blues or rock, but rather any given tune is all of the above.  Moody guitar riffs morph into experimental solos, organ melodies swagger from swing to free jazz, Latin rhythms shake their hips across the drum set.   The band shares a soulful, funk breakdown then heavy bass lines rock in and out, pulling songs like “Welcome, Stranger” into a twisty acid world where cowboys and hippies host dance-a-thons with space aliens.  The energy is engulfing, even from just a recording.

“I wrote all the songs on the new CD [Legends From Williamson County, 2010].  I started about 50% of them on bass, but I like to take different approaches when I write.  I’ll start recording an instrument and then add to it from there.”

The lack of lyrics may seem unappealing to some, but don’t be turned off.  “Breakfast at Night” is as upbeat and catchy as any pop song (just with more class and depth) while the drum solo on “Twirly Bird” rocks as hard as Led Zeppeling.  The album, with Ginn on guitar/bass/organ, Gary Piazza on guitar and Sean Hutchinson on drums, also offers some in-the-moment grooves, blending composed and improvised material throughout.  However, the TX Corrugators stepped it up on their past tour and completely improvised every show.

“I improv day to day, have friends over to play.  You find the common denominator with other musicians and work from there.  Others add in their perspective and you find what you can work with.”

While such a thing is unheard of in our Williamsburg bubble of formulaic indie rock, the crowd at Zebulon and Issue Project Room loved the TX Corrugators.

“We were unsure how we’d be received in New York, if people would be into the whole improv thing or not, but they liked it, we had a blast.  Brooklyn has changed a lot, it was really fun.  I love this city.”

Whether speeding from the winery to the club in time for the opener or scoping out a local joint, Ginn regularly makes an effort to see new and unusual music.

“I like jambands and electro and various kinds of dance.  I really like to see live jazz.  Mostly electro and jazz, and rock bands that improv and incorporate electro elements.  I’m just not a big fan of indie hipster rock.  I like things that are more spontaneous.  You can get used to something and get comfortable but I try to get out of my comfort zone and hear stuff that I’m not familiar with.  I don’t want to just see my friends.  There’s a lot of good music at different places, from different cultures.”

While Ginn himself has achieved superstar status, his musical endeavors, past and present, are often labeled as “underground.”  When asked what that word means to him, Ginn replied, “It means mainly bands that are spread by word of mouth and not mass media.  I’m not against groups being successful, of course, but we’re doing something different and challenging and wouldn’t expect traditional media to pick up on it.  Like it or not, we are firmly rooted in the underground.”

What does a long-term undergrounder have to say to the newcomers?

“I guess the main thing is that people get jaded.  Just try to stay tuned in and find music you’re excited about making.  A lot of success is dependent on timing and luck as much as everything else.  You’re better off sustaining something you’re excited about.  If you stop feeling that way then get out of the rut, leave all the other stuff for the media and other people and just make your music, make what you wanna hear.  Don’t cater to someone else, to what you think someone wants to hear.  Then you’ll get cynical and dislike being involved in music.”

Need some inspiration?  Check out their new record at Electric Cowbell Records, a local label run by DJ/drummer Jimmy Thompson who only releases original, limited-run 7”.  Or, stream Legends From Williamson County here and download free copies of the TX Corrugators first two releases here.