by JOHNSON CUMMINS

Talking to Jon Langford from his art studio in Chicago, you can’t help but be slightly taken aback by his thick Welsh accent. With the Waco Brothers, his collaboration with the Sadies or his tribute to bluegrass pioneer Bob Wills with the Pine Valley Cosmonauts, you would think he’d have a slow southern drawl, or at least be “kicking back and whittlin’ some.” On record he’s all about rootin’, tootin’ guitars, fiddle, pedal steels and mandolins, all brought home with a lyrical stew of arch Americana - guns, trucks, whiskey and honkytonks. Even Langford’s own artwork adorning the Waco Brothers’ albums is rife with Stetson hats and cowboy lettering.

“In the mid-’80s,” says Langford, “I started getting into the mythology of coming to America, that myth of freedom. I really liked the clothes and the music that you couldn’t get in Europe. The kind of cowboy gear was like a civilian uniform that sort of meant you were an American. I find that interesting.”

If the Waco Brothers don’t ring any bells, you might know Langford better as the brains behind left-of-centre indie rockers the Mekons, whom he continues to record and tour with. If that isn’t enough irons in the fire, Langford is also getting to be recognized as a major painter and illustrator, which currently has him putting last-minute touches on some pieces slated for a gallery show in Hoboken.

“I try to go in and paint everyday whenever I’m not on tour. I was trained as a visual artist but for a long time my critical muscles were stronger than my creative muscles. When I started thinking of my art in terms of my songwriting, I started getting influenced by the songs and subsequently the paintings have influenced the songs.”

The Sadies as the band behind Langford on their recent collaboration Mayors of the Moon is no head-scratcher. Langford hand picked them to be the support act on the Mekons’ 25th anniversary tour and Sadies guitarist Travis Good toured as a honorary Waco Brother last year. Initially, Langford had merely offered his services as a contributing lyricist for the next Sadies record. It seems the strapping young Sadies had other plans.

“When they were in Chicago, I just brought them some lyrics in a Jiffy bag. They took the lyrics home and arranged the songs and then they wanted me to sing them. I was flattered but the recording session was a couple of weeks later so I couldn’t really back out.”

Not only did Langford get to make a record with Canada’s ultimate y’all-ternative band but also recorded it at the digs of Blue Rodeo’s Greg Keelor in Toronto. “We just set up and it was really casual. They would play me the songs and I would desperately try and learn the arrangements so I wouldn’t mess them up with my vocals. I’m really proud of it, it’s my Welsh-Canadian record.” :

The Waco Brothers and Jon Langford
& the Sadies are at Cabaret on
Wednesday, Jan. 29, 9pm, $12.50

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