The Lucky 13: Q & A with The Timbre Project's Jaime d'Almeida
well, and the Timbre Project was born.
ADAM: Following that up, are you still working with Five Dollar Milkshake?
JAIME: In mind and spirit only. I'm not sure if the band is forever shelved, but for now there are no Sunday afternoon practices and no set lists to put together at the last minute on a paper napkin. I love playing with the guys in FDM though, so I wouldn't be surprised if we put it together again sometime.
ADAM: In the liner notes of Free Souvenirs you list some rules that were broken during the recording of the album. Is there any odd sound effect or engineering feat you're proudest of?
JAIME: Before the 2nd verse of De La Daises, there is a sound that sounds like a Polish ambulance driving by. In fact, I took a soundbite from Final Jeopardy off the internet (step #1), played it through my computer's speakers onto a cassette tape (step #2), sampled it into Dr. Sample (step #3), and then altered the pitch so it fit with the key of the song (step #4). Four steps of proudness.
ADAM: When you're writing, which comes first: the lyrics or the music?
JAIME: I usually come up with a melodic line and some words at the same time. By the time the song is finished the tune is usually a little bit different and the words aren't always the same as when I started. For me it's really important to start with something and then just work off of that. If it goes nowhere, then I drop it. If things go in the right direction then I keep at it until I get something good. Writing songs is sort of like what Woody Allen said about relationships and sharks -- they have to keep moving forward or they die. A bad song is a dead shark.
ADAM: Are your lyrics as autobiographical as they seem? "Shipwrecked" seems like an especially personal plea.
JAIME: Yeah, my lyrics definitely draw heavily from my own life experiences and my own emotions. I mean, I can't imagine writing a song about being a woman in the early 17th century. I'd have no basis for that. That's not to say that the songs are completely autobiographical either. I take poetic license at every opportunity. Shipwrecked is a perfect example - it's definitely from personal experience, but it's also peppered
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