Singer/songwriter Pete Yorn wanted to make a simple rock record. "I wasn't interested in using a lot of overdubs and loops like I did on the first album," Yorn said during a telephone interview from Los Angeles. "I wanted make music that would back up the vocals, which I wanted to be in the forefront."
The new album "Day I Forgot," which was released last week, is the follow-up to his gold-selling "musicforthemoringafter," which was released in 2001. "I'm pretty happy how it turned out," Yorn said of the new record. "I like the songs. And I like the way those sound when I play live."
Another nice aspect of having the album out is that Yorn can fill his set list with his own songs, rather than play covers. "A few years ago, I would pad the sets with other people's songs, just so I could fill the time," Yorn said with a laugh. " 'Oh, we've got another 30 minutes? Let's do another cover.'
"This time, it's like, 'we've got another 30 minutes? Great, let's see what else I've done.' "
At the same time, said Yorn, there are some songs on both records that have totally different arrangements. "When I record, I record different versions of the same song. And then I go and choose the version that seems appropriate for the album. When I play live, I play the version that's appropriate for the occasion. It might be the album version or it might be something totally different."
But that's the way Yorn — who cites Iggy Pop, early Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed, Nick Drake, the Smiths, Joy Division and the Stone Roses, as some of his main musical influences — has always approached his music. "When I began making music just after I graduated college, I just wanted to play stuff that was inspirational to me.
"The same still holds today. I make it a point not to watch MTV or listen to the radio. I'm not interested in trends. I'd rather live in a vacuum and make music that's interesting to me, that moves me, rather than jump on a bandwagon.
"That's another reason why I like being in the studio. I use my friend's garage and leave everything outside. When I made 'Day I Forgot,' I locked out the first album from my mind. I wasn't interested in making the same album twice."
If you go . . .
What: Pete Yorn
Where: Bricks, 579 W. 200 South
When: 7 p.m., Saturday
How much: $22-$25
Phone: 467-8499 or 1-800-888-8499
E-MAIL: scott@desnews.com