Forget Me Not
04.19.2011
MUSIC
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Elegantly coiffed Brooklyn artist George Lewis Jr. performs music that seems as if it’s only been intended for one person: himself. The bedroom-pop delights of his debut as Twin Shadow, titled Forget—produced by Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor (and released on Taylor’s Terrible Records)—recall the shy electro-sensuality of Junior Boys, without being above referencing 808s and Heartbreak-style bass rumble/synth sustain. But it’s the glimpses of Thin White Duke-ish showmanship that truly give Forget its personal charms, like the guilty joy dancing in front of your mirror when you know no one’s around. Indulging our brief questionnaire, Lewis recalls his love for church music and reveals the sexiest sound he can think of.
Life+Times: What’s the first album you ever bought?
Twin Shadow: Might have been Paul Simon’s Graceland, Green Day’s Dookie, Boyz II Men’s Cooleyhighharmony or Sade’s Promise. I can’t remember.
L+T: What was your earliest musical memory?
TS: My dad making us watch Pink Floyd’s The Wall when I was, like, six. Thanks, pops (sincerely).
L+T: What music do you first remember as meaning something significant in your life?
TS: Church music. I remember hating church but loving to sing and stand up—messing around with the melodies while everyone sang in unison.
L+T: What is the sexiest sound you can think of?
TS: Too obvious to write, but it usually happens at night.
L+T: The title of your album is Forget: What’s something you wish you’d forgotten? And what’s something you regret forgetting?
TS: I regret forgetting girlfriends’ birthdays. I’ve already forgotten everything I need to forget.
LT: What movie always makes you cry?
TS: East of Eden
L+T: What’s something people might not know about Forget?
TS: Some of the synth sounds are actually my voice.
L+T: In the movie of your life, who plays you?
TS: Please don’t make a movie of my life unless you make one with me (alive and well) in it. I’ll roll in my grave until I dig myself out and haunt you for making a buck on my decomposing ass.
L+T: Have you ever been in love?
TS: Yes. It feels as if it’s all there should be.
L+T: What’s the best part about being in a band by yourself? The worst part?
TS: I have a full band now. It was fun being alone while it lasted—no one to push but yourself.
L+T: Complete this sentence: Living in Brooklyn means I can always…
TS: Hope to catch Jay-Z at a bagel shop.
L+T: It’s a rock & roll dinner party. You can invite three rock stars, alive or dead. Who do you invite?
TS: Bob Dylan (circa 1967), Bob Dylan (circa 1976), Bob Dylan (circa 2500)
L+T: What’s the last lie you told?
TS: I tell them so often I couldn’t say.
L+T: Tell me a secret.
TS: You are going to fall in love tomorrow for the last time.
