INDY'S WEEKLY ALTERNATIVE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTING ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

“You’ll be happy”

Instrumental soft rock snippets from Pete Yorn’s first album may have found their way into NPR segues, but when he plays the Murat Egyptian room on May 2, he promises a more aggressive sound. “Be prepared for a rock show,” Yorn says in a phone interview from Vancouver. “It won’t be mellow.” Yorn’s first record, musicforthemorningafter, made him a fixture on adult alternative radio stations. His most notable airplay in the Indianapolis market has been on Bloomington’s WTTS that kept the record’s opening tracks, “Life on a Chain” and “Strange Situation,” in heavy rotation for most of 2002. On the strength of that album, Rolling Stone dubbed Yorn the best new act of 2001. The record’s mix of upbeat rock, moody soft rock ballads and adept pop craftsmanship landed him gigs as the opening act for the likes of Sting and Blues Traveler. Yorn’s current tour promotes the release of his second album, Day I Forgot, a strong follow-up effort with a harder rock edge than his first. But he says the increase in volume wasn’t calculated. “It just came out that way. I think that it was a subconscious response to playing songs from the first album for a year and a half on the road. For me as a songwriter, the inspiration comes from so many different places. I don’t have to have one distinct sound. I can explore different sounds from record to record.” Raised in the Springsteen environs of New Jersey and schooled at Syracuse University in New York, Yorn’s sound has managed to cross boundaries. The meat and potatoes rock foundation is laced with occasional electronic flourishes that speak to his affection for English bands of the ’80s like Joy Division. Another English band of that era, The Smiths, featured Yorn’s favorite guitar influence, Johnny Marr. (“I saw him play at the Troubadour. It reminded me of John Squire and the Stone Roses,” Yorn says.) The result? A genre-crossing sound that earned his songs a place on TV’s Dawson’s Creek and Felicity, in films like Me, Myself & Irene and Spider-Man, and his first album on the alt-country No Depression’s album chart. After an 18-month world tour in support of the first album, Yorn found time to help create a record label called Trampoline Records with Rami Jafee of the Wallflowers and March Dauer of the Jukebox Junkies. After the success of the first album, was there pressure to produce again? “I guess that if there was any pressure it was from within. If anything, I felt more pressure on the first record. I knew I had to make a statement because I was writing without the guarantee that anyone would hear it. The new one ... well, it was just me making music that satisfied me. I thought, for maybe a minute, about needing to follow up, but then decided to just stay honest.” When he did start writing for the second record, some of it became autobiographical. “When I write I generally like to leave things open-ended and let people find their own meaning. But coming back home after so much time on the road promoting the first record, I got to wondering what it was gonna be like to be home and have free time again.” The result was the record’s first single, “Come Back Home.” The new album followed a process similar to the first. Peter Buck returned to play mandolin and guitar. Of overdubbing so many different instruments again, Yorn says, “It’s important to keep an open mind. You have to put yourself in a different head space for each different instrument.” But mostly he feels it’s important to relax. “When I get in the studio I just try to have a good time with it. That should be what it’s all about.” The industry buzz for Day I Forgot is positive. Yorn appears at peace with the success. “Everyone has a different concept of what success is. I just try to discover new things, whether it’s in front of 20 people or 20,000.” The brooding, hunky promo shots have made him a bit of a sex symbol as well as a musical success. But he’s philosophical about the possibility of the focus being lost. “You have to realize that certain things are not in your hands. You have to let certain things go. It’s really important to be who you are. The music has to make you feel good. If people respond to it, then all for the better. But in the end, you have to make it for yourself.” Because of those pin-up good looks, he’s often asked if his shows are filled with young girls. They’re not. “My audience is really diverse. It seems to be all ages. And different sub genres show up from indie kids to mainstream.” Besides a harder rock sound, what can people expect from Friday’s show? “We’ll play most of the first two albums plus a few covers.” What covers? “If you liked the Stone Roses, you’ll be happy.” Pete Yorn will be performing at the Murat Egyptian Room on Friday, May 2. For ticket information, call 239-5151 or visit cc.com.