JACOB TURNBLOOM - MRS. MAGICIAN
Name: Jacob Turnbloom
Band: Mrs Magician
Duties: Singer/ Rhythm Guitar/ Song Writer
The first time I saw Mrs. Magician was at the Crescent Ballroom on March 28, 2012. I drove out from El Paso, TX to Phoenix, AZ to see Hot Snakes but after seeing Mrs. Magician open up the show, I instantly became a fan. Shortly after watching them, Strange Heaven became a staple in my record collection that I would keep on constant rotation. Catchy melodic tunes that were happy but kind of evil at the same time. Whether it was lyrically or the contrasted happy/dark tone that pulled their songs together, I’d have their songs stuck in my head. Whenever I’ve been asked to describe what Mrs. Magician sounds like, I usually take the cop out and say that they kind of sound like a modern day Beach Boys but with an evil punk flavor to them. Fast forward four years to when I saw them a couple months ago at Low Brow on their newly released Bermuda tour and their tunes are easily as catchy and addicting as anything else they have previously released. Bermuda is actually one of my favorite albums so far this year so make sure to check it out. Here’s my interview with Jacob Turnbloom, the guitarist/vocalist, of Mrs. Magician.
Goofy
What are the thoughts that keep you up at night?
Constant fragments of melodies in my head keep me up, space and time, death, horror stories on the daily news.
Favorite Brian Wilson record?
Smile, favorite song however is “Caroline, No” off Pet Sounds.
Monster trucks or muscle cars?
Could care less
True magic is ________.
Fake.
Last thing you finished watching on Netflix?
I don’t have Netflix
Last time you went for a jog?
I prefer to swim, jogging hurts my knees.
Have you ever seen a celebrity at a Mrs. Magician show? If you could magically place someone at your show who would it be?
Yeah, Keanu Reeves was at the Troubadour once, but I think he was there to see METZ. I’d magically place Steve Coogan & Rob Brydon at one of our shows just so I could drink with them after.
Personal
Are you from San Diego?
Yes
What are some of your most visited hangout spots in San Diego?
M-Theory Records, Luigi’s Pizzeria, Soda Bar, La Mesa Antique Mall, Hoffers Cigar Bar.
What’s something or someone that can instantly lift you from having a bad mood?
Most dogs, a good horror film, Coast to Coast.
What band would you say has had the most impact on your life?
Fugazi
What other bands have you played in? Are you currently in any other bands?
First Wave Hello, Ken Andrews, Blessure Grave, The Grave Walks. No, I’m not in any other bands.
When you’re not rocking at night what do you do during the day?
I work for the local news, drink too much coffee, listen to records.
What are some of your favorite records so far this year?
Underpass (Red Reflection), Parquet Courts (Human Performance), And The Kids (Friends Share Lovers), also really stoked on that new Angel Olsen single.
Favorite band at the moment?
The High Llamas
Mrs. Magician
How did Mrs. Magician get its name and when did the band officially begin?
I don’t remember how or when I came up with it. The band started officially in 2010 after Tommy & I recorded a 7” together.
Mrs. Magician had a “final show” at the Soda Bar back in December of 2013. What made you all get back together? From what I understand, the break up came as a shock and somewhat abrupt.
We got back together simply because we wanted to continue making records as a band. Tommy moved to NYC for a while and toured doing sound for other bands as well as working on his project Lowlands. I focused on making music videos at the time, and I put out a 7” with Dan Sartain in our project The Grave Walks. Cory recorded an LP in his other project “Hideout” with other members of CULTS, Jordan continued his other band, so I think we were all still so active making music that when Tommy came back to San Diego we just started everything back up again.
What was it like to have Swami - John Reis produce your new album Bermuda? You guys already have some prior experience with him as he also produced Strange Heaven. Did you guys already have an idea of how you wanted the album to sound or did you let John take the reins and mold it into what it currently sounds like?
It’s always interesting with John. He is a big believer in what we are doing in this band and always carries that into making the band tighter and punchier live. He basically makes us do what bands are supposed to do. Perform songs as tight as possible over and over until you can play them in your sleep. The sonic tonal qualities of the records I’d say are generally discussed beforehand by Tommy, John, and myself. For instance, we would throw out ideas in the beginning like, “we want the drums drier, more 70’s punk or 80’s power pop, think Richard Hell, & Paul Collins”, or “I want to try this type of chorus on this amp, pull back the reverb and lets replace organ with some analog synths”. John would make lots of notes and when we received mixes after tracking we were allowed to shape it a few times before it went off to press.
How did you guys end up on Swami? Did John see you guys at a show and ask y'all to hop on board?
A friend of ours actually gave him a few of our 7”s, he came to see us play a few weeks after that, and then we met up a few times until he eventually offered to put out our records.
You released a song called “Bermuda” on the B-Sides album you put out. Any correlation between the song and naming the new album Bermuda?
Nope
You just recently finished up a month long tour. Are there any areas of the United States that you haven’t played yet that you would like to perform?
Collectively we’ve seen the states too many times to count.
From what I saw, you guys mainly played this tour without any backing support. For any other planned future tours, are there any bands you would like to tour with? I would love to tour with The Thermals or Parquet Courts.
Mrs. Magician recently put out a video for a track off the new album - “Eyes All Over Town”. Your previous videos “There Is No God” and “The Dead 80's” were animated. Any reason why you guys switched it up and went with actually filming people and having it staged?
The director, Ben Mekler, approached us at a show and wanted to make a video. He told me his idea and I was pumped. I love our old videos that Dusty & Derrick made for us. I just wanted to try something a little different for this record so we don’t keep doing the same thing over and over.
Also, any particular reason why you guys referenced Jason Voorhees of Friday the 13?
We needed a generic 80’s slasher. You legally can’t use Jason Voorhees so the character in the video is an homage to Jason. I reference horror themes constantly in this band as a way to reach my fellow geeks. For example, our song Videodrome off Strange Heaven references Phantasm, Friday The 13th, Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Poltergeist, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Omen, etc., I get a kick out of it. The label name Thrill Me Records is a reference to Night of the Creeps. It’s just a big part of my life and I like to insert it into the band when I can.
You also have your own solo project as a solo artist. Are there any plans for any upcoming releases? Maybe even a LP of solo material?
I’m not sure at the moment, I am writing music but I’m not sure what it’s going to be for right now.
As far as Mrs. Magician goes you guys just wrapped up your tour but is there any other news, releases, upcoming tours, projects you guys are currently working on?
We just finished two songs for an upcoming 7” and we are currently working on planning some tours.
That about wraps it up. Any last words?
Fuck Donald Trump
Check out Mrs. Magician at:
https://mrsmagician.bandcamp.com
end.
Chris
