Things were coming together nicely for Califone in 2004.
Hectic recording schedules spawned four albums in three years, and near-constant touring with bands such as Wilco and Modest Mouse kept an equally manic pace. Then the band–and its leader Tim Rutili–hit the wall.
“It was pretty much non-stop work,” Rutili said from outside a Chicago recording studio. “After that I wasn’t sure if I wanted to keep playing music, doing a band or making records.”
So the lifelong Chicagoan moved to L.A. and threw himself into soundtrack work, a natural fit given Califone’s atmospheric mix of rustic guitars, broken-down electronics and clattering junkyard percussion. And ideas started flowing again.
“The best thing is it has nothing to do with me. It’s totally impersonal,” Rutili said of his film scores, one of which can be heard in an upcoming bull-riding documentary for IFC.
Califone reformed soon after, and the result was “Roots and Crowns,” a more hopeful record whose song-oriented focus was a byproduct of a more deliberate recording process.
“With ‘Heron King Blues’ we were just spitting it out, didn’t sleep, knocked it out,” he said, referring to the 2004 album. “With this one we got to take a nap.”
Check out the video for Califone’s “Spider’s House” at thrilljockey.com. Califone plays Oct. 21 at the Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., and Oct. 29 at Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia Ave.
