You sent in your questions for Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and he answered them in the comment section below. Above the line we frantically tried to keep up with him, copying and pasting the best questions and responses ...
booler asks:
Will,
"I See A Darkness" is very possibly the most moving song ever written.
I was wondering how you feel about the use of your music in advertisements and/or films? Do you subscribe to the Bill Hicks view that taking the advertising dollar is tantamount to selling your soul to the devil, or do you consider each offer on its merits?
Wolfroy replies
each person who purchases the song and therefore contributes to the 'welfare' of the musician may have inside of his or her self the very seed of evil. we all mean well.
booler and Jengiz ask:
What are your favourite records?
Wolfroy replies
my mind is a blank....one of the hazards of life-in-the-moment boot camp. REHEARSALS FOR RETIREMENT by Phil Ochs. YOUTH OF AMERICA by the Wipers.
Untitled1 asks
Is it your intention to be ambiguous about faith, incorporating it into your work as part of the general tapestry of life and the human condition, whilst leaving it entirely up to the listener to interpet as they see fit? Or is there an intention to convey a personal spirtual journey complete with the inherent conflicts and diversions of personal human frailties?
Wolfroy replies
God is all things, and is the catch-all word for everywhere that language falls short. Jesus and God are you and me; Christians use it and apply it to a mythic other when it really is an equivalent to you and me. God is music and music is god.
Tiresias42 asks
You seem to have maintained a pretty regular workrate over your career, is this intentional that you don't want to dwell on a project for too long like some artists, is it self imposed or just how long it takes to make stuff?
Wolfroy replies
dwelling on a recording after it is done...there is still writing to do, and if one is a maker of songs then what does one do once a song has been made? make another.
Question from Triani
you've recorded under the Palace & Bonnie 'Prince' Billy names. Are you using these artist names to create a sense of mystery or does mystery in pop music interest you at all?
Wolfroy replies
recording under. during the recording process there is no name, neither during the writing. everything outside of arm's reach is mysterious. it's hard to get a handle on the hows and whys of THE BAND PERRY or Keith Urban. it's nice to not have too much information, information that takes away from the song/ear/mind interface.
YourFavouriteHorse asks
Arise Therefore is my favourite record that any man, woman or beast has ever made. It seems like such a perfectly formed thing in terms of arrangement and mood. How did it come about, how did you make the decisions: "these men; this guitar; this piano; this bass; this drum computer"? The moment in The Sun Highlights The Lack In Each after the first chorus where the piano crashes in still sends shivers down my everywhere.
Wolfroy replies
decisions had to be made. the HOW came from all of the years and days leading up to the making of the decisions. at one point, a friend had committed himself to drumming, and then he changed his mind. Maya Tone was willing and able to soldier. the guitar appeared in Birmingham, Alabama in a forest of guitars. Its head broke off years later, again and again. the guitar pick creates a hollow foresty clip-clop, who knows why? the piano is all Grubbs, reacting and creating.
annoyinglefty asks
Is Bonnie 'Prince' Billy a mask you wear? A brand name? Something else? Why not record as Will Oldham?
Wolfroy replies
bonny is someone we can all share.
TheGhostWriter asks
How did you end up the the Kanye West video directed by Zack Galfianakis?
Wolfroy replies
i was desperate for a rest. I went to the mountains. that was what I found!
BadEddie asks
Did you ever get round to F*cking a Mountain?
Wolfroy replies
yes! and nothing compares to the beauty and immensity of it. but a vagina is softer, warmer, and better!
ravena asks
are you judging the wolfroy tshirt comp? i sent an album with mine, called 'wolfroy stays home'. is there any chance you'll hear it or are you touring?
Wolfroy replies
now that I know about it, I will try to hear it. the title is great. and yes i will be in on the judging.
NoGolddigger asks
Do you emphasize lack of sound as much as sound when recording?
Wolfroy replies
recognizing that lack, and the value of it, happens less often than it ought to. when they reappear, the lack and the recognition of it, one is reminded how welcome and necessary they are.
camellotment asks
What is your favourite dinosaur?
Wolfroy replies
when I was a kid, i loved the brontasauraus. then they took it away.
PaxtoN17 asks
I don't know who you are but you appear to be taking part in Movember. How much have you raised?
Wolfroy replies
I don't know what Movember is.
womenrose asks
Will you play Spain again soon? I was in the States the last time you were here!
Wolfroy replies
no not soon
deeohgoh asks
1) how immense was the feeling of having johnny cash, one of the greatest, covering your beautiful son 'i see a darkness'?
2) what inspired you to write it?
Wolfroy replies
1) on a scale of 1-10, about 56.
2) listen to it, it seems pretty obvious to me. is it not?
jameswalsh asks
Hey Will, I always wondered what you thought of the Jeffrey Lewis song Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror. I assume it's based on a true story?
Wolfroy replies
you have doubtless heard what results from assuming? you make butt-cheese of the world's civilizations.
titusdrone asks
Is there any chance of another collaboration with Matt Sweeney?
Wolfroy replies
we keep it rolling. we did some more songs; recorded one for a Kenneth Nager benefit comp that I think never came out; recorded one for Wim Wenders' THE PALERMO SHOOTING; recorded a cover of Gene Watson's "Love in the Hot Afternoon" which came out on a comp to benefit musicians in New Orleans; and we just released a single of two songs, "Life In Muscle" and "Must Be Blind" earlier this year. check that quantity out.
annoyinglefty asks
Do you feel your creativity is directly proportional to your obtuseness? Would you be the same artist if you were more straightforward?
Wolfroy replies
Would you be the same artist if you were more straightforward? apparently not.
PeterWalker asks
I loved the collaboration with Tortoise - any plans to record with any other bands?
Wolfroy replies
yes, with Trembling Bells. we traveled together last year in Ireland and England and we fell in love. now music comes a-crying!
Also, I got to sing with Shannon Stephens on a new song of hers.
boc610 asks
old joy is one of my favourite ever films..its beautiful and immensely sad at the same time.did you enjoy making it?
Wolfroy replies
yes, ever so much. it was really like being a part of a rain cloud, or a small storm system.
buttondup asks
Hi Bonnie prince,
I wondered how much of your character in Old Joy reflects your everyday persona.
Wolfroy replies
I'm afraid I don't have the proper perspective to answer that. maybe my everyday persona runs in abject fear of becoming Kurt. and gets away?
ThomasOMalley asks
Who's more debauched? You or Bill Callahan?
Wolfroy replies
I'm positive it is Bill.
deeohgoh asks
Any future collaborations with Scoutt Niblett? Your voices together are like banana and chocolate.
Wolfroy replies
i hope so. there was a time we sang together in Brookdale, California that remains one of the best and purest music moments for me ever.
empanda asks
what do you think is the most important thing we can do with our time on earth?
Wolfroy replies
I wish there was an answer that applied to everyone. Can you answer this question for yourself? maybe: live right, for there's the best of chances that we will die wrong.
Ravena asks
a wise man i know once described our creative side as 'the fat child of the imagination'. there's no reasoning with it.
Wolfroy replies
creativity' gets short shrift all too often. as if it is a gift or, worse, a luxury.
YourFavouriteHorse asks
You don't dwell on records after they're made, as you said earlier. How do you make sure you don't forget your old songs, while also writing new ones? Do you ever give yourself time apart from songwriting, alone with a guitar going over and over old songs?
Wolfroy replies
actually, we play live.
MissMincher ask
do you have some favourite venues? we love seeing you in Whelans Dublin - is it one of them?
Wolfroy replies
I think at this point we have played Whelan's more than any other venue on this planet. we get treated quite well there, and don't let an upcoming Vicar St appearance mislead.
ammypam asks
Have you ever been to Oldham?
Wolfroy replies
in England? nae.
Lampquote asks
Can you recommend me a record to listen to please?
Wolfroy replies
Don Everly's self-titled record from 1970.
beedee33 asks
I'm always surprised when good songwriters tend to downplay a lyric's contribution to a successful song. What are your thoughts on this?
Wolfroy replies
I'm not sure I've ever been made aware of this scenario.
beedee33 asks
Given that you seem to be writing some beautiful longer melody lines these days, has this had an effect on your lyric writing or is the process a lot more instinctive and hand-in-hand than putting words to melodies and/or it's opposite?
Wolfroy replies
longer melody lines! and more hair on the back. it's just age.
annoyinglefty asks
What's your favourite bumper sticker slogan?
Wolfroy replies
either "The greatest jihad is that of conquest of self" or "life is short, pray hard" or maybe "I'm Lost, but I'm Really Moving"
Amsicles asks
Wolfroy, are you familiar with Jeff Lewis' Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror?
Wolfroy replies
yes
Amsicles asks
How likely are you to essentially kidnap and abuse indie recording artists?
Wolfroy replies
one person's "abuse" is another woman's "love"
YourFavouriteHorse asks
Get On Jolly is another favourite, have you ever thought about going back with Mick Turner to the Gitanjali, given there's still many poems left in it?
Wolfroy replies
I hope to take care of this in a few months when we are in Australia.
JohnnySilks asks a load of questions, to which Wolfroy replies
Q In your opinion is it necessary to be an auteur to be an artist?
A No. at the beginning and end of the day, we are trying to get by, and we must do what we can.
Q Is it ok to take on personas to explore and empathise with emotions and experiences which are not true to your life at the time of writing.
A that's what most works are.
Q How does a musician deal with writing music about sadness when they have a partner or child. Does it not imply to the partner they are not content?
A Good question. I ask this all of the time when I am listening to Mickey Newbury. I would think that it is important to address this with the partner. constantly.
Q If you are happy do you think it is harder to write music people connect with?
A no. people love to be happy; and people also need to find others who share unhappiness in order to overcome unhappiness.
niamhie asks
What are you reading at the moment? What are your favourite books of all time?
Wolfroy replies
At the moment I'm reading: CURSE THE NAMES by Robert Arellano; OLIVER WISWELL by Kenneth Roberts; and BABY, LET'S PLAY HOUSE by Alanna Nash.
My favourite books are: THE SOT-WEED FACTOR by John Barth; HARMLESS POISONS, BLAMELESS SINS by Mohamed Mrabet; the books of Charles Willeford; the books of Hugh Nissenson.
Thepuffpastryhangman asks
q:Mr Billy - do you surf?
Wolfroy replies
body surf. thomas campbell is an influence, as a human and an artist.
JonDennis asks
Have you heard the singer-songwriter Ed Askew?
Wolfroy replies
Ha, I'm about to sing on his record.
HumanBoeing asks
I love the way Kid of Harith swoops above the beat. Kinda like the way a seagull would. Were seagulls an influence?
Wolfroy replies
No, pelicans.
edieinberlin asks
How much of an influence was the life and poetry of Emily Dickinson on the record The Letting Go (2006)?
Wolfroy replies
apparently, it was large. but I only discovered this after the fact, really. and I was excited to do so. a few months ago, I was able to visit her grave, and her house. another favorite book is GOOD MORNING MIDNIGHT by Chip Brown. I was reading this book while mixing THE LETTING GO.
Untitled1 asks
Sorry to hear you're not excessively happy at the moment. It's quite understandable under the current circumstances. On that note what circumstances tend to make you excessively happy?
Wolfroy replies
dancing. singing. swimming. kissing. being appreciated!
YourFavouriteHorse asks
Beware's cover was an excellent homage to Tonight's The Night. Is that your favourite Neil Young record or did you just like the image?
Wolfroy replies
the similarity was unintentional. I like TIME FADES AWAY.
DocMok asks
Considering your professed admiration of R.Kelly, and the fact that your lyrics often touch on the carnal and spiritual, have you ever been tempted to do a "proper" R&B record?
Wolfroy replies
I try, I really do.
annoyinglefty asks
Are you happy?
Wolfroy replies
not excessively, not right now. I'm at a public computer doing a web chat.
Wolfroy signs off
Thank you all for your time and your questions.
