Studio Sessions

Thao with the Get Down Stay Down in-studio, 10-21-09

Recording engineer: Steven Kray, with technical assistance from Bill Ward

The trio (Thao Nguyen, Adam Thompson, Willis Thompson) makes a second stop by our studios with the Portland Cello Project's Douglas Jenkins and Skip von Kuske to play songs from their recent sophomore effort, Know Better Learn Faster, out on kill rock stars.

A deceptively bouncy collection of songs-- most of them informed by the end of a romantic relationship-- Thao describes the idea of the album's title as "the realization that you can't, because as soon as you recognize that you should be knowing better and learning faster you've already made your bed." The result can be heard as exuberance and liberation, yes, but also an observance of loss and the accompanying emotions of such an event. We talked about some of the ripe symbolism surrounding the music-- from the cover art to the video for "When We Swam," the evolution of the trio as a cohesive unit, and the numerous Portland connections featured on the record.

In case you missed it, Thao also rose to the occasion for our Saltine Challenge.

Photos: Inger Klekacz

See the full photo set here.

Audio Files