R. STEVIE MOORE

Deep in the belly of a castle in suburban New Jersey, R. Stevie Moore has been recording and publishing more records than just about anybody you can think of, all by his lonesome. Since 1976 “The Godfather of Home Recording” has produced and self-distributed over 400 albums, starting with the brilliant Phonography, and tackling pretty much every genre of music to ever exist.

Despite being a fixture on such underground mainstays as The Uncle Floyd Show and WFMU throughout the 80s, Moore is only just now getting his big breaks. Thanks to the collaborative efforts of whippersnappers like Ariel Pink and Dr. Dog, the man who wrote “I Like To Stay Home” is increasingly making the trek out of the house to play few shows. But home is where R. Stevie’s heart is, and so it made sense to venture to his inner sanctum to speak to the artist himself. He’s also the kind of artist who gets in about five minutes worth of tape before you can ask him your first question.

R. Stevie Moore: Phonography Vice: Whew. OK, with over 400 albums, do you think there can ever be an R. Stevie Moore expert? Someone who gets the whole picture? this making the “teensy amount” gesture with his fingers I like your country stuff. Having been born to a Nashville session guitarist, do you see that as sort of getting in touch with your roots?
The White Album Also maybe the Bonzo Dog Band? It’s interesting you bring up Python because like you and Zappa and Bonzo, they’re all funny, which seems like something a lot of musicians are almost afraid of. Like everybody has to be a serious artiste.
Have you come close to this?
laughing Can you tell me about the recent live outings with your band?
Is that the biggest audience you’ve ever played for?
It seems like a lot of younger people have been championing you lately, like Dr. Dog and Ariel Pink.
It seems like technology is catching up with you and the way you work. Like ProTools now makes it easier for more people to be able to adopt this home-recording style of music. Everything fits inside a laptop. Does this excite you or do you think we’re losing something moving away from the old analog days?
It’s funny that you’d say you have mixed feelings about the internet seeing as how you’re all over it. I mean, you’ve got something like a ten separate MySpace pages.
A term that gets used a lot in reviews and articles about you is “genius.” Is it scary to be labeled a genius?
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