J.D. Desharnais

FEATURED ARTIST MAY An interview with J.D. of 13th ALIBI with Tia Mapes
"I first met J.D about ten years ago. I had decided to start a late night music venue and a mutual friend recommended I have J.D's band 13th Alibi be our first act. I was lucky enough to have 13th Alibi play numerous times over the years and I've been a loyal follower when they have played other venues. 13th Alibi has been called NYC's 'House Band' and described as Indie Rock with a twist of vintage. J.D was instrumental in the '45th Street Music Festival' as we put together a night of music to raise money for a friend stricken with brain cancer and no insurance. It is my honor to have J.D be our 'Artist of the Month'." - Tia

Tia: Where are you from originally? Where do you live now?
JD: Well, I learned to walk and talk in South Boston, where I was born back in the 1900’s. I learned to run and scream in New York, where I continue to engage in all of the afore-mentioned actions at a fairly adult level.

Tia: Who are your musical influences?
JD: Meaning influential musicians? Wow, that’s a hard one to whittle down. I think almost anything I’ve heard/hear (whether I like it or not) is on the ol’ subconscious “recall docket”. I imagine the amalgamations of all the bits and themes and moods from the stuff we listen to ends up blueprinting our musical instinct. And, whether I’d proud to admit it or not, a lot of what is on my Ipod’s most-played list is preeettty “uncool”. But screw it, I like what speaks to me. Thanks to my party throwing parents, I’d gotten an early exposure to a decent background of music that's as old (or older) than I am now. That’s where I first heard most of the old Atlantic records’ soul music, Beatles, etc. Lyrics and emotive voices are always at the forefront of my personal interest, but the pairing of those with their individually matching frame of music, instrumentation and melody is the other half of the recipe for a good tune. Naturally. This week, I’ve been revisiting a lot of Elvis Costello an early E Street band albums, two great (and greatly covered) songwriters/performers. I’ve also been downloading a lot of Wilco, saw them in Jersey last month with and I’m really glad that I did. I’ve been digging deeper into their stuff… lots of great songs that are just the right ratio of rusticity to rock for where I am right now. Ooooh, you know who else is good? That band, The Thrills, from Ireland. They're like Coldplay on heroin.

Tia: What was the first song you ever wrote? Can we get a few lines from it?
JD: Hmm, I think the first lyric I ever wrote was either “Running From My Troubles” or “Just Let Me”. I know that “Just Let Me” was the first song I’d ever recorded with a band in the studio. I know that I was around nineteen or twenty when we recorded the track, but it was written when I was sixteen or seventeen years old. One of the verses went, “Lifetimes hide inside daydreams while we walk around. And it’s not what you’re saying; it’s just the way you sound. Didn’t anyone tell us that second thoughts should come first?” I’d like to think I’m improving all the time. Hahaha. Over the past few years, I think the stuff (words) that I’ve written has begun to take on a more cohesive style that I seem to find myself comfortable with. I’m not gonna start regurgitating lyrics all over you to try and illustrate, but I’m noticing that each thing I write is developed from a recognizable formula that’s my own jumble of poetry, truisms, and philosophy interwoven with whichever story/sentiment is at hand. And who can resist the good turning of a phrase or some wordplay should it pop into the process? I do tend to write, I notice, from an autobiographical outlook. You know… a lot of “I” this or “my” that and first person language. But it’s not always that way. Sometimes you surprise yourself and write completely from the imagination. Maybe it's called lying. Hahaha. I guess sometimes its still fun to put play dress up.

Tia: How do you get the ideas for your shows?
JD: Well, our shows are never really concept performances or gimmicky. They’re pretty much just fueled on raw music and showmanship. The band is hot right now, so that’s usually enough to make an impact. Set lists always vary, and are (more often than not) made up on stage as we go. A lot depends on the vibe of the audience, the feel in the room, or the band's collective mood. Most times it’s hard to predict how any of that will turn out until you’re actually there under the lights. So a lot of the original plan and set list goes out the window. We’ve played all over NYC and will continue doing so because it’s got to be one of the greatest places on the Earth for artists of any genre to really get into it. Lately, we’ve been expanding our circuit and are trying to have our music heard along a larger chunk of the northeast coast. We’ve got a bunch of performances around Connecticut booked throughout the summer, as well as some in New Jersey. And we were in Boston just a few months ago. But New York is home, and there’s no place like home.

Tia: Do you sing everyday?
JD: More or less.

Tia: What would you be if you couldn't be a musician?
JD: I’m simultaneously bartending and restauranting while I am a musician. But, if you took away the writing/performing musical aspect from that formula, the creative kid in me would likely be pursuing some other facet of the arts rather than not. But in dreamworld, I’d like to work for NASA and be looking deep into space.

Tia: What song would you like to cover that you haven't already?
JD: There’s way too many and, over time, we’d like to try ‘em all on.

Tia: What would you like your music to contribute to the world? Do you feel artists have the power to make a positive change?
JD: AW, you can’t really answer this kind of question without sounding like an as*hole. I mean, sure… I’d love it if anyone ever took away from one of our songs what I’ve received from the music that really spoke to me, but we certainly can't look at writing stuff from that point of view. We pretty much do what we think we’d appreciate and respect if we’d heard it on the radio. But, yes, I definitely do think that art can change the world. I mean, the world is changed by people... and if a movie or a song can make you cry or smile or get angry, or even spark discussion or a debate, then it obviously has the power to change a person. So if art changes people, and people change the world, then surely art can change the world. How’s that for math, NASA bitches?! Hahaha…

Tia: Best starving artist story and your biggest accomplishment.
JD: There’s plenty of the first kind… but all the really good and worthy ones are either too incriminating or too embarrassing to admit in print. They’re best left in their natural habitat- The Land of Exaggerated Rumors. Try and catch us at the bar, after a show, that’s when the whiskey and the stories of old are equally freeflowin’. Biggest accomplishment? Hmmm, I’m not sure how to gauge that one. When we played AIDSWALK, more than 10,000 people heard us throughout the day. That was pretty big. But, really, any time we've gone up, done our thing, and won some people over... it's always an accomplishment.

Tia: Classically trained, self-taught or something in between.
JD: If I’m not mistaken, everyone in 13th Alibi is self-taught. I think that we all may have had a lesson or two here or there (I took piano lessons for a few months when I was a kid), but a lot of people would be surprised with how far the motivation of honest ambition can take you. Actually, I think most of the local musicians whom I know and love are self-taught. There may (and I stress “may”) even be a benefit of the occasional accidental innovation when you’re not restricted by the orthodox “rules” that proper training can impose.

Tia: Do you still get nervous?
JD: Nervous that a fuse could blow out, or that maybe we’ve been paired up with wrong types of bands at a venues lineup, or that the weather may kill the show? Sometimes. But not stage fright. Not anymore. Not so much, really, to begin with either. Personally, I probably get more and more comfortable the more we do it… but, ultimately, I think that the aspect of performing is a big part of what you're working towards from the get-go if you think that you’re someone with something to say.

Tia: 1st Concert and Best Concert
JD: My first concert, I believe, was Billy Joel with my mother during “The Bridge” Tour (that was the album with “This is The Time” on it). Best concert? Another toughy... possibly Paul McCartney at The Garden three years ago. At the time, he had just assembled this new younger band that was bringing the best out of him, and he was doing "never performed before" Beatles songs. He played for three hours! He was, like, sixty-three years old and singing these iconic songs (successfully) in the key he sang them in when he was eighteen. Makes you realize why legends are legends.

Tia: What famous artist would you like to collaborate with?
JD: The “old-timers” would be the most fulfilling for me. The most appealing and highest rating on the OMG factor would be Costello, McCartney, Van Morrison, or Stevie Wonder, or Springsteen or….

Tia: Do you remember when MTV was just music videos? Did you like it better then or now?
JD: Neither. Well, I guess the old corny videos are fun to watch now… thanks to nostalgia and changes in fashion. Music video in general though? Not to beat a dead horse, but (…as I kick the nag…) music is primarily for the soul and the mind and, at best, the ears. A visual, to me, (with the exception of an artist performing live) has always been a distraction from the main event. I know music vids are a great tool of promotion and have helped to blow up a lot of pop artists who’d otherwise remain unknown, but it’s had the reverse effect as well. A lot of beautiful musicians aren’t pretty. But I do appreciate some music vids on their stand alone video merit; Radiohead has done some intriguing things (like that video for their song "Just") and I like of what Spike Jonez has done with those three-minute movies also.


Tia: Where do you get most of your artistic inspiration?
JD: Deadlines! Hahaha... You know, from wherever. From whatever. It’s hard to not sound faux spiritual saying this but keep your mind and your eyes open and you’ll always find things to wonder about and always see something new... or even remember stuff you haven’t thought about in a long time. Sometimes that’s mind-clearing, or a learning experience, when you think it out on paper.

Tia: You've been involved in a variety of charity work and will be performing for the first 'One World One Art' fundraiser, what motivates you to participate?
JD: Aside from the invitation of a good friend involved with the fundraiser? Well, doing what you love in front of a crowd of new people while helping out with a good cause that raises money and awareness is pretty much a situation with no downside. Plus, when we forfeit payment, we can’t blow it all celebrating with drinks after the show! We’re basically volunteering with the selfish underlying motive to salvage our livers! Hahahah.. .

Tia: Whiskey or wheatgrass?
JD: Wheatgrass. Hold the wheat.
Tia: City or Country?
JD: City
Tia: Read the book or see the movie?
JD: Both, but not always in that order.
Tia: Night Owl or Early Bird?
JD: hoot hoot.
Tia: Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber?
JD: Are you serious? I would have to say Gaga.
Tia: And finally – one question you wish I would have asked but didn't?
JD: “Does my ass make this Room look small?” See you at the show!

13th ALIBI JD Desharnais (voice, words, harmonica) Gardy Louis (bass, vocals) Matthew Pitta (guitars, vocals) John Lesak (drums, percussion) Rob Kipp (keyboards, organ, vocals) Extended family: Anthony Masi (saxophone) Jeff Sokolowski (acoustic guitar) Find and become a fan/friend of 13th Alibi on:facebook www.13thALIBI.com Stay tuned for details on our first fundraiser featuring J.D and 13th Alibi Until then, befriend and support this local indie band via their facebook fanpage.