Grammy-nominated artist Leslie Mendelson released her fourth studio album, After the Party, in late June, via Pasadena Records / Royal Potato Family. You may have caught some of her East Coast shows, including her release party in New York, but she also has some shows coming up in California this week on Thursday, July 18th, at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, on Friday, July 19th at Sound Union in Redwood City, and on Saturday, July 20th at McCabe’s Guitar Shop. Then the Brooklyn-based artist will be swinging back around to the East Coast for shows in August.
Leslie Mendelson is known for blending elements of Folk, Rock, Pop, and Americana, based on the needs of the song and the mood that she wishes to convey, and After the Party makes for a particularly interesting combination of more confessional lyrics you might associate with Folk and strong rhythms that you tend to find more in Rock ‘n Roll. The harder edge is something that suits the times we’ve lived through, and the vulnerability of her lyrics and vocals offer us a light at the end of the tunnel. She and her longtime collaborator Steve McEwan are joined by a dream team of Producers and players on this album, including Producers Peter Asher and Tyler Chester, drummer Jim Keltner, guitarist Waddy Wachtel, and more. It was also recorded at Jackson Browne’s studio, Grove Masters, in Santa Monica, CA.
I spoke with Leslie Mendelson about her experiences performing After the Party in full, about working with such excellent collaborators, and about what was on her mind when it came to crafting this batch of songs. We are also delighted to premier Mendelson’s new video for the track “Rock and Roll on the Radio” here at Wildfire today. It’s a song close to her heart and one that conveys an essential “state of mind” for the artist. The video captures the enduring essence of our connection to Rock over time, in our quieter moments, and in our communal lives.
Hannah Means-Shannon: I know you’ve been out playing and have some more coming up. Is that a sense of release, to let the music out into the world live?
Leslie Mendelson: I’m on perpetual tour. I love playing. If the gigs are there, I’ll play. I just did the Northeast, and had my album release party in New York City, which was so much fun. We had a full band and we did the whole record, from front to back. I loved it! Now I have some dates coming up in California.
HMS: Playing the whole album at a show is not as common these days, it’s a real choice, though I think for release shows it happens a little more often. When you played the whole album together, did it give you any new impressions about how the songs work in sequence?
LM: Well, it’s the first time that I had played with a band in a long time for my own stuff, though I’ve sat in with bands on collaborations. I was thinking about this, that I could either play some of the new songs and mix them in with my old songs, or I could just take a chance and do the whole record. This felt like a celebration, so I did it. The songs worked really well, it was a total vibe. I have another show coming up where I’m going to have a band, and I’m wondering, “Do I do the record again?” I’m not sure. It’s still a celebratory period.
HMS: Listening to the album myself, I can say that there’s an energetic, even carefree feeling to the record which I can see would be great in a live show.
LM: I wasn’t sure how it would work, starting off with a ballad?? But that’s another thing I loved about the show. It all felt very meditative. I felt very much in the moment and connected to the band, and the band felt connected to the audience. When those kinds of nights happen, there’s a lot of support and love in the room. We’ll see if I’ll try it again!
HMS: It sounds transcendent.
LM: That is quite a moment, when you can clear your mind and just be in the moment.
HMS: I was wondering about the title, After the Party, though I know that the meanings behind titles can be shifting and have many meanings. But listening to the album, I wondered if it meant that kind of clarity that comes the next morning after some craziness, a certain feeling, that’s a little more peaceful, where thoughts can become clearer and you can be forward-looking.
LM: You hit the nail on the head there. After my 2020 record, If You Can’t Say Anything Nice, came out at the beginning of the pandemic. That, oddly enough, felt like a very appropriate record for the time. The songs had been written the previous year, and dealt with a lot of anxiety coming from the news and the media, including self-doubt. The record was a way of releasing a lot of anxiety and sharing a lot of things that mean a lot to me. I got to share my perspective about a lot of that. Then, when the pandemic did happen, we were in a weird, dark time with unfamiliar territory. It took me a minute to even want to write, but when I started, I felt like we were in the darkness now.
I have a print by Andy Warhol called “After The Party”. It’s the inspiration behind the song. The title came later for the album. But that song was about me dreaming being somewhere else. I feel like a lot of the feeling on the new record is about not dwelling in the present, but thinking about the future, the light at the end of the tunnel. I had dealt with my anxiety on the last record, so I thought maybe this was about what happens after we’ve walked through the fire.
Yes, there’s more peacefulness, and a little bit more joy. Even if I wasn’t experiencing it at the time, I was putting myself in a moment where I believed I could experience joy. It’s self-fulfilling prophecy when you visualize and sing about things. You can embody that. For the album title, I was considering Signs of Life or After the Party, and went with After the Party, though they seemed like similar things. It felt like that, the aftermath. We’re on the other side of it now.
HMS: I know that you and Steve [McEwan] chose to collaborate with a lot of people on this album, including the Producers, which contrasts with your previous one. Did that change up the atmosphere, too, being able to talk with other people about music?
LM: Yes. Steve and I have worked together for years, and he Produced my last record, and for this one, we just thought it would be good to bring other people in. It brings a fresh perspective in, and these are people who have made great records. Working with people who are great helps you be even better. Other people are going to bring things to the table that I would never think about. Tyler Chester, for instance, is such a brilliant musician, and a great Producer. He was playing parts that were blowing me away, and he brought such a richness to the project. Those songs have his bass, his keyboard parts, and his organ parts, and he brought such a spacey kind of, edgy thing to it.
Peter said, “Who do you want to work with?” And I said, “I want to work with the greatest people. All the people who made my favorite records!” That was Jim Keltner, who played on John Lennon’s albums, and Leland Sklar, and Waddy Wachtel, who’s guitar playing is so wonderful, as well as John Jorgensen. To get all these brilliant people together and get their perspective from their great records made things sound great. It was also a great live experience that we had, being in a room and being able to play together.
HMS: Wow! You all were able to get together and play in person, that’s fantastic. With a big team, that’s often not the case.
LM: Yes, though we had some different recording sessions. The Tyler Chester session happened separately and the Peter Asher sessions happened over two sessions. We had Leland and Jim, and John in one, and then the next one was Jim, who got to the play on both sessions, and Waddy got to do this one. He couldn’t do one of the sessions. So everyone that Peter brought in was just fantastic, and we played with some different people over both sessions.
HMS: A lot of these guys have specific experience contributing to this borderland between more folky, confessional music and Rock ‘n Roll. That’s an interesting line, which you’ve followed on all of your music, but especially for this album. You kind of need that sensibility to make those choices.
LM: You’re right. The record I’ve made definitely touched on both, being sensitive when necessary, but also just turning it up and rocking out a little more on some songs. I guess it’s just being able to play what the song speaks to you. These seasoned musicians just know how to do that. Jim Keltner is one of those drummers who, like a Ringo Starr, is just able to play to the song. They all are like that. In the end of the day, they play the right things to the song, whether it’s a Rock ‘n Roll song or a ballad.
HMS: The song “Good Life” really pointed out to me something that I was noticing on the other songs, which is how significant the role of the harmonica is here, too. I don’t know if you planned that or tend to think that way anyway, but it’s not an afterthought. It’s a major element that has an emotional impact.
LM: That instrument came to me out of necessity in the past. I was just doing solo shows and no one was taking solos during certain sections, so I learned how to play harmonica. I didn’t have to play crazy difficult things to make it sound good. I think because of the way that Bob Dylan and Neil Young play, it’s more about emotion and texture than anything else. I ask, “What would they do?” That’s the way I approach the harmonica.
HMS: For that song, was it hard to choose what to include in the lyrics? There are so many different things that might mean “the good life” to various people.
LM: I think we’re so busy looking over our shoulders, and always wanting the next thing, or more, or comparing ourselves to other people. You’re never going to find it that way. As far as cutting yourself some slack, like the song says, there’s the forgiveness aspect, and coming to terms with it, but there’s also just having a good time, and celebrating that, like in the second verse.
HMS: There’s definitely an unreality to always living in some kind of idea of the future rather than just inhabiting your daily life.
LM: I don’t know if that’s something that’s always been true, or a product of where we are in society, with the pressures of needing more. I feel like it’s always about consumption. It makes me feel sick sometimes. So when I see quotes such as “Happiness is enjoying what you have.”, it seems so simple. But sometimes you have to realize that and let it sink in. It’s fine to be driven in life, but not to the point that you’re not enjoying your life. Your energy is being wasted. You don’t have any left for yourself, your family, or your partner.
HMS: I also really enjoyed the song “Rock and Roll on the Radio” and the other Rock elements on the album. I’m a Rock ‘n Roll fan, and am always a little worried by Stevie Van Zandt saying Rock ‘n Roll might die out. I love how, in this song, you essentially say, “This is not nostalgia.” I think this song says that Rock is capable of more than nostalgia and may be again.
LM: I think about Rock as a style of music, but also as a philosophy, and way of living. When something’s cool, it rocks! It’s Rock ‘n Roll! To me, something I love is being able to rail against the system, or hypocrisy. And these are elements of Rock ‘n Roll that I love, going back to John Lennon. Also Neil Young, and Bob Dylan. These are people who have always been able to speak their own mind, condemn hypocrisy, and do it in a way that you can dance and sing along to somehow. It’s a style that I love.
I don’t know if it’s dying out, since plenty of people still make music. But the song is a commentary on the radio, in general, since it was inspired by not being able to find anything on the radio. You do get your stations that play songs of yester-year, and I love classic Rock. But moving forward, where are those stations? Where is that community? I hope it’s not a dying art. I’d like to be positive and think that it’s not.
The music business has changed so much. Things are changing since songwriters don’t make any money anymore due to things like Spotify, and aren’t being given credit. I hate that songwriting isn’t being respected.
HMS: I tend to believe that the philosophy and spirit of Rock ‘n Roll will continue, like you were saying. I do come across younger artists who are very devoted to Rock ‘n Roll, and say, “No, man, I’m a Rock ‘n Roller and I will be the rest of my life!”
LM: That’s me. That’s it! It’s a state of mind. I know I’m not Punk Rock, but I do love the attitude. Like Patti Smith, and people like her, have had such a big impact on me. They are able to speak their own mind, but be vulnerable. It’s the true Rock ‘n Roll spirit. I feel like people like Lana Del Rey has the right attitude and it a great lyricist, also Phoebe Bridgers. I just love the spirit of those women, like Courtney Love, God bless her.
HMS: Music is for a lot of things, and keeping that door open, that it is for speaking against things, and for speaking for things, is important.
LM: I feel like we have to. I feel like it’s our job as artists to do that, if you have a perspective, to be able to share it.
