Philadelphia Venues and Worldwide Artists Connect
Interview with Donovan Rice
by Billy Kekevian (Philly Venues Contributor)
Donovan Rice is a song artisan, a highly skilled luthier of pop, a studio craftsman who’s unfailing voice soars just as steadily on stage. A student of the power pop movement, Rice came to Philly to work for NFL Films (a company actually located across the Delaware in South Jersey). But since arriving he’s filled a gap in Philly’s singer-songwriter. While the city is bursting with talented folk singers, punks and art rockers, there are few whose songs are centered on winding three-part harmonies and feature traditional, yet unpredictable middle eights. This is where Rice excels and with a growing fanbase, a music video and a new E.P. in the works, sticking to his guns has afforded him prime real estate in the niche he’s carved out.
Philly Venues: Whenever I hear musicians in their 20’s really embrace 60’s pop chord styles, I have to wonder if they came from a musical family. Did you grow up with The Beatles’ Revolver on loop?
Donovan Rice: I did! I grew up with musician parents that had a basement full instruments and gear. Both were in bands during my childhood and my Father still gigs about 4 times a month back in Youngstown, Ohio. My father also had me listen to the Beatles albums in order. I wasn’t allowed to listen to Pepper until I finished Rubber Soul and Revolver.
PV: Your singing style is reminiscent of Fountains of Wayne’s Chris Collingwood. The first time I heard you sing, I thought about their song “Cemetery Guns.” When writing songs do you make intentional musical references in your chords, instrumentation and vocals? I swear I heard “Lovely Rita’s” panting in “Let The Embassy Know.”
DR: Thank you! I have been compared to many singers and I’ll take Fountains of Wayne any day! For a while I would only write songs with odd chord progressions and try to be different. But with The Space Race I attempted to write pop songs. I focused on the hook of the songs with the hope they would be catchy. I walked a fine line on the title track making references to David Bowie’s Space Odyssey.
And yes, the panting on Let the Embassy Know was direct reference to A Day in a Life.
PV: You’re not from Philly originally, how did you find your way out here? Do you feel like there’s a place for your music here?
DR: Born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio. After going to college in Nashville and Orlando I got an unpaid internship at NFL Films in New Jersey. It wasn’t long before I realized there wasn’t much of a music scene in Maple Shade, NJ so I moved to Fishtown in 2006. The Philadelphia music scene is unlike any other I’ve ever experienced. Musicians look out for each other here.
PV: A lot of your lyrics seem to reference travel. Do you feel constantly on the move or are you inspired by the idea of moving on?
DR: After I left high school I lived in 5 states before finding myself in Philadelphia. I enjoyed the idea of landing in a town and building a new life around myself. It is always easy to write about what you know and I try to relive these former lives through my songs.
PV: Your songs sound so carefully orchestrated. What’s the recording process like for you? Are you producing a lot of this music yourself?
DR: The recording process was painful at times but looking back it was the most creative I’ve ever felt. Producing your own music works but having an outside ear is essential. Like any songwriter you become very attached to your songs and having the outside voice can help you think outside your world. My bass player at the time was influenced by jazz and my drummer brought his rock background. All the ideas melted into one and I’m extremely happy with the final product.
PV: So many musicians who are now in their late 20’s/early 30’s started out in, or were surrounded by, punk rock bands. Do you feel like, as a musician starting out, you were alone in your pop sensibilities? Do you think you’ve found allies in the music community since?
DR: Even in my early years I have listened to the bands that were not part of the main stream. I would go to concerts alone or drag a friend with me to see a world of music that wasn’t being played on the radio.
PV: It’s easy to listen to your music and point influences from The Beach Boys, The Kinks, etc… Have any musicians we might not expect influenced you? How so?
DR: Sondre Lerche and Elliott Smith are two huge influences in my songwriting. Sondre’s use of unconventional chords have helped shape the guitar player I am now. Elliott Smith’s ability to rip your heart out in a verse and leave you with no reason take another breath is something I attempt to emulate.
PV: You sound so passionate in some of your songs, I’m particularly thinking of “Stones In A Boat.” Sometimes, that’s the design, but I know occasionally there’s a song a songwriter holds particularly dear. Do you have a song like that?
DR: Let The Embassy Know is a song about one of my best friends I grew up with in Youngstown, Ohio. I enjoyed writing that song mainly because Carl (friend from Ohio) helped write the lyrics in the bridge.Long story short... While in Vegas, Carl meets a woman from Dubai. It was supposed to be a guys weekend but he spent the entire trip with her. Fast forward to today, he now is married to her and lives in Dubai. The song focused on his first trip over there to visit her and him finding out that she was engaged to be married to other guy. There was so much material going on there the song wrote itself.
PV: What was the filming of the video for “The Space Race” like? Was it your concept?
DR: Filming the video was a blast although there were a ton of hang ups. When we discussed shooting a music video we were a 4 piece band. When it was time to start shooting there were only 2 members still standing, myself included… So the day of the shoot I had to call in a favor and have a friend of mine play bass for the Standing Cinema. James Cox, was a great fill in and ended up playing both our CD release parties in Youngstown and Philadelphia. As a failed astronomy student I have always been interested in space exploration. When NASA had its funding cut I couldn’t believe that an American Icon and institution to so many was about to disappear. There is a new space race dawning now and countries around the globe are about to mark their territory and America seems to be content sitting ideal. So the song reflects Cold War Era America and what if the Soviets made it to the Moon first.
Now the concept was life in Cold War America in 1968. My fake wife, play by Allison Dunlap, is heartbroken that I have accepted this mission to space. Billy Rose, amazing drummer and control room operator, is relieved that the space craft had a successful launch. Then something goes terribly wrong… Spoiler Alert!!! The mission fails.
PV: Is there an instrument you don’t play you’d like to pick up?
DR: I’d love to learn how to play the French horn. My favorite Beatles song is “For No One” simply because the French Horn solo. It has such a unique tone that resembles a mellowed out trumpet.
PV: Where do you see Donovan Rice and The Standing Cinema going from here? The festival circuit? Summer tour opening for a national act? Any plans along those lines?
DR: We are planning to record a new EP in spring hope to have it released by June 2012.
PV: I just recently noticed one of Philly’s quirkiest singers, Keyboard Cathy, covered “The Space Race.” What was that about and what did you think of her treatment of it?
DR: This all started back in May when I covered her song Peanut Butter for Philly covers Philly at Triumph. It wasn’t too long after that show that she asked for the lyrics to The Space Race. I really had no idea what to expect but she did a wonderful job. I told her that she might have trouble doing the song because it is a depressing tune and if you know her catalog you know she is very upbeat. So to add her twist on The Space Race she added a happy ending where all the astronauts made it home safely.
Philly Venues: Whenever I hear musicians in their 20’s really embrace 60’s pop chord styles, I have to wonder if they came from a musical family. Did you grow up with The Beatles’ Revolver on loop?
Donovan Rice: I did! I grew up with musician parents that had a basement full instruments and gear. Both were in bands during my childhood and my Father still gigs about 4 times a month back in Youngstown, Ohio. My father also had me listen to the Beatles albums in order. I wasn’t allowed to listen to Pepper until I finished Rubber Soul and Revolver.
PV: Your singing style is reminiscent of Fountains of Wayne’s Chris Collingwood. The first time I heard you sing, I thought about their song “Cemetery Guns.” When writing songs do you make intentional musical references in your chords, instrumentation and vocals? I swear I heard “Lovely Rita’s” panting in “Let The Embassy Know.”
DR: Thank you! I have been compared to many singers and I’ll take Fountains of Wayne any day! For a while I would only write songs with odd chord progressions and try to be different. But with The Space Race I attempted to write pop songs. I focused on the hook of the songs with the hope they would be catchy. I walked a fine line on the title track making references to David Bowie’s Space Odyssey.
And yes, the panting on Let the Embassy Know was direct reference to A Day in a Life.
PV: You’re not from Philly originally, how did you find your way out here? Do you feel like there’s a place for your music here?
DR: Born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio. After going to college in Nashville and Orlando I got an unpaid internship at NFL Films in New Jersey. It wasn’t long before I realized there wasn’t much of a music scene in Maple Shade, NJ so I moved to Fishtown in 2006. The Philadelphia music scene is unlike any other I’ve ever experienced. Musicians look out for each other here.
PV: A lot of your lyrics seem to reference travel. Do you feel constantly on the move or are you inspired by the idea of moving on?
DR: After I left high school I lived in 5 states before finding myself in Philadelphia. I enjoyed the idea of landing in a town and building a new life around myself. It is always easy to write about what you know and I try to relive these former lives through my songs.
PV: Your songs sound so carefully orchestrated. What’s the recording process like for you? Are you producing a lot of this music yourself?
DR: The recording process was painful at times but looking back it was the most creative I’ve ever felt. Producing your own music works but having an outside ear is essential. Like any songwriter you become very attached to your songs and having the outside voice can help you think outside your world. My bass player at the time was influenced by jazz and my drummer brought his rock background. All the ideas melted into one and I’m extremely happy with the final product.
PV: So many musicians who are now in their late 20’s/early 30’s started out in, or were surrounded by, punk rock bands. Do you feel like, as a musician starting out, you were alone in your pop sensibilities? Do you think you’ve found allies in the music community since?
DR: Even in my early years I have listened to the bands that were not part of the main stream. I would go to concerts alone or drag a friend with me to see a world of music that wasn’t being played on the radio.
PV: It’s easy to listen to your music and point influences from The Beach Boys, The Kinks, etc… Have any musicians we might not expect influenced you? How so?
DR: Sondre Lerche and Elliott Smith are two huge influences in my songwriting. Sondre’s use of unconventional chords have helped shape the guitar player I am now. Elliott Smith’s ability to rip your heart out in a verse and leave you with no reason take another breath is something I attempt to emulate.
PV: You sound so passionate in some of your songs, I’m particularly thinking of “Stones In A Boat.” Sometimes, that’s the design, but I know occasionally there’s a song a songwriter holds particularly dear. Do you have a song like that?
DR: Let The Embassy Know is a song about one of my best friends I grew up with in Youngstown, Ohio. I enjoyed writing that song mainly because Carl (friend from Ohio) helped write the lyrics in the bridge.Long story short... While in Vegas, Carl meets a woman from Dubai. It was supposed to be a guys weekend but he spent the entire trip with her. Fast forward to today, he now is married to her and lives in Dubai. The song focused on his first trip over there to visit her and him finding out that she was engaged to be married to other guy. There was so much material going on there the song wrote itself.
PV: What was the filming of the video for “The Space Race” like? Was it your concept?
DR: Filming the video was a blast although there were a ton of hang ups. When we discussed shooting a music video we were a 4 piece band. When it was time to start shooting there were only 2 members still standing, myself included… So the day of the shoot I had to call in a favor and have a friend of mine play bass for the Standing Cinema. James Cox, was a great fill in and ended up playing both our CD release parties in Youngstown and Philadelphia. As a failed astronomy student I have always been interested in space exploration. When NASA had its funding cut I couldn’t believe that an American Icon and institution to so many was about to disappear. There is a new space race dawning now and countries around the globe are about to mark their territory and America seems to be content sitting ideal. So the song reflects Cold War Era America and what if the Soviets made it to the Moon first.
Now the concept was life in Cold War America in 1968. My fake wife, play by Allison Dunlap, is heartbroken that I have accepted this mission to space. Billy Rose, amazing drummer and control room operator, is relieved that the space craft had a successful launch. Then something goes terribly wrong… Spoiler Alert!!! The mission fails.
PV: Is there an instrument you don’t play you’d like to pick up?
DR: I’d love to learn how to play the French horn. My favorite Beatles song is “For No One” simply because the French Horn solo. It has such a unique tone that resembles a mellowed out trumpet.
PV: Where do you see Donovan Rice and The Standing Cinema going from here? The festival circuit? Summer tour opening for a national act? Any plans along those lines?
DR: We are planning to record a new EP in spring hope to have it released by June 2012.
PV: I just recently noticed one of Philly’s quirkiest singers, Keyboard Cathy, covered “The Space Race.” What was that about and what did you think of her treatment of it?
DR: This all started back in May when I covered her song Peanut Butter for Philly covers Philly at Triumph. It wasn’t too long after that show that she asked for the lyrics to The Space Race. I really had no idea what to expect but she did a wonderful job. I told her that she might have trouble doing the song because it is a depressing tune and if you know her catalog you know she is very upbeat. So to add her twist on The Space Race she added a happy ending where all the astronauts made it home safely.
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