An Interview with Robert Francis

At 22, Robert Francis evokes the wayward spirit of a much older soul.

The impression is one Francis first made with his strikingly mature 2007 debut album, One By One (Aeronaut Records), on which his skills as a singer, songwriter, and guitarist crystallized in songs and themes that belied his youth. In addition to the critical praise that came his way, his pensive narratives and overall craftsmanship earned Francis comparisons to hardcore troubadours Townes Van Zandt and Steve Earle.

Having signed with Atlantic Records, Francis ups the ante with his current sophomore effort, Before Nightfall. Available now on iTunes and everywhere else on Tuesday (October 20), the album courses with a feral intensity through moments both sobering and soulfully uplifting.

Also on Tuesday, Francis will embark on a national tour—supporting indie band Noah and the Whale—at the Roxy in Hollywood. In preparation for the release of Before Nightfall, Robert Francis spoke to Donald Gibson of Blogcritics Magazine about the making of the album as well as his expectations for himself down the road.

Now that you’re on a major label, was there any major difference in how you approached this album in comparison to your first one?

There were subtle differences. For a while, I was making my best effort to produce the record myself, which the label supported, but was also a little bit hesitant to follow through with given my reputation for starting projects and never finishing them. We started it off by [going] to Palm Springs. The label gave us money. We had to go out there and set up a studio in the desert, tried to record there. And I was feeling like the songs were never coming across the way I felt they should have. But then I got a call from Dave Sardy [producer, Before Nightfall] and I met him in London about two years ago when he was working on the Oasis record [Don’t Believe the Truth]. I don’t think he’s known for being the easiest person to work with or the nicest guy, but I think he’s great. He’s really serious; and I am too. [For] the vocal approach, he got a little more out of me than I had ever expected. As far as the record, it’s just the band playing; it’s pretty stripped down. Minimal overdubs, cut pretty quickly, and in about three weeks it was finished.

Article Author: Donald Gibson

A contributing music editor at Blogcritics, Donald Gibson devotes most of his writing to music criticism, paying particular attention to the craft and aesthetic of songwriting. He holds a B.A. in English from the University of South Florida.
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