The Ritter End
It’s been a tumultuous few years for Josh Ritter. Against the dramatic backdrop of the Swiss Alps, he talks about his number one fan Stephen King, recalls the day he met Bob Dylan and explains why it’s never a good idea to drink before a show
Olaf Tyaransen, 11 Sep 2007
His brother’s now a distinguished computer scientist. They’re obviously an academic family, so how did Mr. and Mrs. Ritter feel when, at the age of 20, Josh firstly abandoned his neuroscience studies to take a liberal arts degree in the history of American song, and then embarked on the haphazard and itinerant life of the professional singer-songwriter?
“They were initially as nervous as I was, I think,” he smiles, flashing that trademark toothy grin. “But my parents are really supportive – because they’re scientists, they know that, in a lot of ways, you have to follow through on things that don’t necessarily have a distinct outcome.
“I think that’s where everything kind of comes from – whether it’s like science or art. You have to go with whatever you’re interested in. And, you know, maybe it will turn into something, and if not, you follow it down a certain avenue and it turns into something else.”
Anyway, Josh maintains that the science and rock & roll disciplines aren’t necessarily all that different: “Seriously, you can’t be a scientist without being a rebel. If you’re going to be a real scientist you have to question what everybody is saying, and go for it.”
Norman Mailer used to talk about artists needing to have what he called “the wound” in order to produce anything of worth – be it a play, song, book or painting. Is Ritter wounded in any way?
“Yeah, but I’m lucky because I think artists get a chance to expose that stuff and get it out. It’s like that old saying – it’s not what comes out of you that destroys you, it’s what doesn’t come out of you. If you don’t have that ability to get it out, it just becomes ingrown.”
Which brings us not especially neatly back to his new album. For the reasons he’s about to explain, The Historical Conquests Of... is a lot rougher and looser than Animal Years.
“I wanted this record to be radically different sonically, lyrically, and in approach,” he says. “After Animal Years, I was feeling a gravitas around me in the world that felt as oppressive as a smell. I was noticing that people were talking about what they wanted to say, but without saying it. I wanted something direct, and I wanted to be someone else in my songs.”
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