Growing solo with Tobin Sprout
Ex-Guided by Voices guitarist returns with new album
Tobin Sprout started fresh but still nodded to the past.
The longtime rock musician, formerly of the band Guided By Voices, released his first solo album in seven years with 2017’s “The Universe And Me.” The Burger Records release hearkens back to Sprout’s youth with hard-edge guitar riffs and the tenor voice of a Beatle.
“The Universe And Me” flexes between classic rock-style jams and tender tunes as it describes a life from beginning to end.
“When I Was A Boy” and “Future Boy Today/Man of Tomorrow,” among other tracks, offer childhood reflection before Sprout turns on his heel and looks forward. “Manifest Street” and “Heavenly Bones” follow the passage of time until “Tomorrow From Heaven” delivers listeners to the pearly gates.
This lifelong progression was an unintentional facet to the album, Sprout said. He developed the songs from leftover, unfinished demos while recording in a studio in his Michigan home.
“I never really intended to have a theme to the album, but once I put it together, it just seemed it was sort of a retrospective of my life and looking forward,” he said. “There seemed to be this thread running through all the songs that wasn’t intentional, but it was definitely there.”
Now, the finishing touches on “The Universe And Me” are complete, and Sprout has been touring across the United States with his own band, featuring guitarist Tommy Schichtel, bass player Steve Vermillion and drummer Gary Vermillion.
Sprout to The Oklahoman over the phone about creating “The Universe And Me.”
Q: When did all the pieces start to come together for your new record, and why was this the right time to release “The Universe And Me”?
Tobin Sprout: I had been writing most of the stuff for Guided By Voices, so I had a lot of leftovers and other things I had been working on. Once Guided By Voices ended, I had the chance to go back and start putting what I had left together and start writing some new material. Eventually I had enough, more than enough, to put an album together. So, I wanted to get my band together and go out and do some shows. It just all sort of came together on its own.
Q: Could you talk about the band you recorded the album with and how it was to work with them on this project?
Sprout: Most of it I did myself. The drummer that’s in the band (Gary Vermillion) played on three or four (songs), but for the most part it was mostly done in my studio by myself. I prefer to use the band, but they just weren’t around. … My drummer would come up from Chicago and would play on quite a few of (the songs). But I played with this band before. I did a couple of solo tours with them, and the guitar player (Tommy Schichtel) I met probably 10 years ago at a gallery show I had — I’m an artist, too. I got to know him very well and hit the studio and recorded with him quite a bit. Then when I mentioned that I wanted to tour again, he said he’d like to join. It just seemed like a nice fit because I had a drummer and a bass player (Steve Vermillion). He seems to really fit in as far as playing guitar. So, the band just sort of came together organically, and it seems to be working out really well.
Q: Your recording process was described as having “marvelous imperfections.” Are there any stories behind that from when you were in the studio?
Sprout: A lot of the songs that are on there were demos. I had this whole file full of demos that I had been working on but didn’t really think was finished and maybe was going to record them. I started putting the album together using these demos, and after a while I’d try to re-record them and it just didn’t have the same magic. Eventually, maybe about half the album was demos that I had done earlier, and I could never perfect them any further than the demos, and they stayed the way they were.
Q: These imperfect demos seem to be a predominant part of the album.
Sprout: Yeah, I was willing to put up with the imperfections because I thought the sound and the feeling was there more than if I had rerecorded them and got the imperfections out . ... They’re not big ones, but they’re enough that if you’re a professional trying to do a big, giant album they wouldn’t allow it.
Q: Some of your songs in this album sound almost like they came from a lost, unknown Beatles recording, John Lennon and all. Are The Beatles one of your main influences? Who else is an inspiration for this album?
Sprout: Yeah, I grew up in the ‘60s, so The Beatles were definitely part of my life. And The Who, a lot of those early bands from the ‘60s. Small Faces and The Rolling Stones. You can probably just go through the ‘60s, and most of those bands were what I’ve been influenced by.
Q: You’re coming to The Opolis in Norman on Saturday. There seems to be a strong appreciation in Oklahoma for rock music and Americana. Have you felt that when you’ve performed here?
Sprout: We get a pretty good response from everywhere. The crowds are sometimes bigger than other ones. As far as
I can remember about Oklahoma, yeah. We love playing Oklahoma.
Q: I heard you’re a visual artist. Can we expect any visuals to accompany “The Universe And Me”?
Sprout: My wife did the cover. She’s a visual artist. … I’ve used a lot of my photorealism. I just rereleased (my 1996 album) “Carnival Boy,” and the cover of that is one of my paintings. On the rerelease I put some paintings from that time on the inside, too.
Q: What excites you most about this album and getting to perform it?
Sprout: I think the most exciting part is having to go from studio into live performance. I think the band I have, they really pull the songs together and give it almost a harder edge that I kind of wish I had on the album. The way they approach the songs, they really add a lot to it. It’s just really fun to play these songs out.