Ben Nichols/Lucero

Ben Nichols’ world expands whether he pursues it or not. The Lucero front man’s resumé necessitates more space after the past year, with listings of ‘actor’ and ’solo artist’ taking hold. Yet no matter what subject you bring up, Nichols continues to affirm his passion and commitment to his Memphis bandmates.

Still Nichols’ extracurricular efforts make for interesting conversation. It’s the web-based series with director Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow). It’s the solo album based upon a Cormac McCarthy novel. It’s a Johnny Cash tribute entry due to a fan’s incessant pleading. And it’s the Revival Tour – the first time Nichols was confident enough in his solo acoustic work to take it to the streets with some impressive friends.

We caught Nichols driving home after the 52nd and final date in 52 days. He was tired but gracious, an artist ready to find solace at home and in the comfort of his musical family.

SSv: Do you feel it’s vital for you to have this solo outlet? Does it ease some creative tension?

Ben Nichols: Yeah, it was nice to work outside of the band for just a little bit. Lucero is definitely the main focus of my songwriting and pretty much everything I write goes into the band. These were all based on a novel. I didn’t feel I was taking anything away from the band. But yeah, at the same time, it was nice to do whatever I wanted to do without having to compromise. Basically I had free reign. And in Lucero, everything is a compromise. Sometimes that works out better than you planned and sometimes that can be frustrating. With this, I wanted to keep the instrumentation really simple and it turned out exactly how I wanted. I’m very pleased with it.

SSv: Sometimes a songwriter comes forth with these projects because they have these songs shelved that they can’t use because of the band they are in, but then I read about the Cormac McCarthy influence. So I wondered if you wrote these specifically for a solo project or how that worked?

Ben: Yeah I wrote these songs specifically for this project. The songwriting was really similar to earlier Lucero stuff when we were a little quieter and a little softer maybe than we are today. Over time, we’ve grown into a rock and roll band which is great and it’s what I love playing. But these songs gave me a chance to step back. The whole idea came from the fact that there was a lot in that novel that was really good. It gave me certain phrases and certain words. There was so much in it I wanted to borrow. So I thought, ‘Well, hell, I’ll just steal it outright and do a whole project around it.’

My guitar player, Brian, had a baby about two months ago, so we knew the band would be taking a little bit of time off. So I knew I would have some time to do some solo stuff, so the timing worked out. It seemed the appropriate point to do the solo project. It’s not exactly the start of a solo career in any way, but it’s just a nice experiment.

SSv: Did you ever give thought to a solo project or did you read the book and think, ‘I need to do this?’

Ben: The inspiration from the book came first and then the idea of making it into a solo project was secondary. It could have been something that Lucero could have done, but it seemed like it was better for me to just take a step back and have complete control over something for once in my life. I hadn’t planned on doing a solo project ever, but when this idea came about, it seemed to fit pretty well. It was appropriate. It seemed like something I could do without taking away from the band.

SSv: So the band had no qualms about it?

Ben: No. I’ve been on the road for 52 shows in 52 days with Chuck Regan and Tim Berry playing an acoustic tour and I’m driving home from that right now. So it’s good to have that CD to sell on the road with them. But the band knew we’d have some time off and they know I have to go home and write some Lucero songs and start recording with them, hopefully in January. So nothing has changed and I don’t think anyone is too worried.

SSv: You mentioned the Revival Tour, what immediate reflections do you have as you’re driving home?

Ben: Man, it was a blast. We had a really good time. It was Chuck and Tim and then the last two weeks, we had Tom Gabel from Against Me! Then we had a pedal steel player named Todd Beene and a fiddle player named John Gaunt and an upright bass player Digger Barnes. So outside of Lucero, it became like a second family. That in itself, like the solo record, was a nice change of pace. It was something that brought me out of my comfort zone, because I don’t play acoustic or solo shows. But I’m stretching out a little bit and finding a different angle. It was really fun and I think when I get home, when I get there, I’m ready to write for Lucero. It was inspirational in its own way.

SSv: You’ve had your hand in a few different projects with the Johnny Cash tribute, the solo tour and so on. How’d the Cash tribute happen?

Ben: The kid from Anchorless Records came up to me in Boston and had mentioned it and I kind of off-handedly agreed to it. But I just thought that nothing would ever really come of it. But he stuck to it and kept on me and I might have been one of the last ones to record my song and it came down to a couple songs they were looking for and “Delia’s Gone” was one of them. I did a pretty straight version of it at first and then I did a second version where I simplified it down to two chords and left a lot of reverb on it and it came out pretty nice. That’s the one he ended up using on the CD.

That again was something that I could do really quickly and easily. It was just something that was a change of pace from the other Lucero stuff. So it’s been nice to be able to do other things and get outside of the Lucero framework and it gives me a much fresher perspective when I go back. Hopefully. [Laughs]

SSv: Do you get a lot of that – asking you to be a part of this project or contribute here and there?

Ben: Every now and again, but sometimes it works out and others it doesn’t. The persistence paid off here for sure.

SSv: Tell me about the $5 Cover series.

Ben: Yeah, this director named Craig Brewer who did Black Snake Moan and Hustle & Flow, he’s always been really loyal to the local music scene and always very in touch with local Memphis music. He convinced MTV to give him a little bit of money to do this web series for MTV.com. I think there are 16 episodes that are 8 minutes long, so put them all together and it’s a feature length project, but it will be shown in those episodes online in January. I’m not sure how it will all work out. Lucero was a part of that and I had a… to call it acting would be a stretch. I was playing Ben Nichols from Lucero, so it wasn’t that difficult for me really. But I guess I’m an actor which is not something I ever thought I would do. I think it will be a cool thing when it comes out.

SSv: It seems 2008 has been rather good to you.

Ben: Yeah, it’s been busy, really busy. We’ll see if any of it pays off or makes a difference. Right now, the goal is to go back home and try to write a really good Lucero record. I think all this stuff will come together eventually and I’m looking forward to going back and playing with the boys to tell you the truth.

Related posts:

1. Lucero – 1372 Overton Park
2. Eulogies
3. Bad Veins

Tagged as: Acoustic, Memphis, Rock

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