Ronnie Fauss follows up his Normaltown/NewWest debut I Am the Man You Know I’m Not with the equally impressive sophomore effort Built to Break. He also ratchets up the rock without losing the singer-songwriter roots I’ve enjoyed over the course of several independently released EPs.
For a happily married family man, Ronnie certainly knows how to write a sad song in the first person. Relationships gone south, and those gone sour, are a common theme and I assume Built to Break refers to the heart, the heartbreak scattered throughout the songs on the album. Or maybe it refers to the broken dreams and promises scattered across the disc.
Fauss’ raspy vocals recall Jeff Tweedy with maybe just a touch of Jason Isbell. Sadler Vaden, Isbell’s guitarist from the 400 Unit, adds some killer guitar throughout the disc, Rhett Miller from Old 97’s contributes vocals on the rollicking piano-driven trucker tune “Eighteen Wheels” and a reworked “Song For Zula” (Phosphorescent cover) slips in seamlessly. Built to Break might not make a great Valentine’s Day gift but any fan of Americana will find plenty to like here.
Hal Bogerd: Congratulations on your second album, Built to Break! What’s the Normaltown connection with New West?
Ronnie Fauss: Normaltown is an imprint of New West, and the same great group of people own and run both labels.
I just saw Old 97’s when they came through town and they brought so much energy to the stage. What was it like working with Rhett Miller on “Eighteen Wheels”?
He was a total pro. He nailed his part in no time and made it look easy. And he sounds great! He’s such a generous and talented guy, and it’s an honor to have him on the record!
Your arrangement of Phosphorescent’s “Song For Zula” is one of those covers that makes you listen and think “where have I heard this before?”
It’s such a great song, isn’t it? It was probably my favorite song of 2013. I kept hearing different things you could do with it. So we messed around with a few different ideas and came up with this one. People have really responded well to having it on there so hopefully it wasn’t a mistake.
I know you’ve been compared favorably to quite a few singer/songwriters. A friend walked in as I was listening to the disc and, for minute, she thought I was listening to Jason Isbell. And later I was reading the liner notes from your album and noticed you share a guitar player with Jason: Sadler Vaden.
Sadler is such a great dude, and so incredibly talented. He contributed background vocals on the last album. We knew we wanted him to do that again, and this time we just asked him to bring his guitar. It’s so cool to see him in the 400 Unit. He fits right in with those guys and adds so much to that group. [I] love him to death.
Built To Break rocks a little more than your other recordings. Was that a conscious decision. Did it just sort of happen, or was it a little of both?
It was a very conscious decision. A lot of the songs I brought to the table this time around lent themselves toward a more rocking arrangement, for whatever reason, so we went with it. It was very fun to go that direction.
Your songwriting on “The Big Catch” reminds me of the great John Prine. I hope that song is not autobiographical.
Wow, thank you! No, not at all, fortunately. It’s kind of a composite sketch of lots of different stories of people I know, from all angles: children, parents, grandparents. With young kiddos of my own now, I’m kind of hyper-aware of how they are often the collateral damage of mistakes adults make.
There’s a Springsteen, flavored with a dose of Texas twang, blue-collar feel to several of the tracks.
I like that. Someone told me at a show once I sounded like “Sprigsteen meets Willie Nelson,” and if that’s true, then that’s cool, because it’s definitely the vibe I’m going for. If you grow up in Texas, immersed in our culture and with an awareness of our incredible songwriting legacy (Guy Clark, Kris Kristofferson, Steve Earle, Townes Van Zandt, just to name a few), then that Texas influence tends to stand out, no matter what kind of music you’re playing.
Jenna Paulette real shines on the beautiful duet “Never Gonna Last”!
Isn’t she great? We had some mutual friends, and she was in Nashville while we were recording, so someone suggested she come by the studio and sing on that one. She blew us away. We’re very happy to have her on the record, keep your eye on that one.
