March/April 2008 Skope Magazine Interview
" Exclusive: Stoli Razz heads Into Outerspace with Alchemy.
Jeff Stewart Dixon is a musician to the fullest extent. Jeff is a producer, songwriter, and singer. He has been in the industry for over 15 years. Jeff just released his new CD, Cosmic Joke, with his band, Alchemy. We sent Stoli to see what Jeff is up to now, enjoy! Posted 12/10/07 By: Stoli Razz
Stoli: It seems as though you work with a range of musicians, how do you determine who to work with and who not to?
Jeff: It all goes back to my first big musical endeavor and break. I wrote and produced a rock opera called Magic Music Myth about a courtroom trial between God and the Devil. It was performed at a theater in the Washington DC area in 1999 and there were subsequent versions after that that we performed in DC and NYC. I hired the best talent I could and met a lot of creative people while doing Magic Music Myth...Mark Prince (drums), Donnesse Monique (backing vocals), Jeff Gruber (mix & master engineer), Darren Wheeling (graphic design)...I met them all through Magic Music Myth. The new players on Cosmic Joke I met through Jeff Gruber. My Dad (Co-wrote Truckin Cowboys & wrote Return for You) I met shortly after birth :)
Stoli: You have been in music for over 15 years. Would you say that the industry is in a better or worse place from then to now?
Jeff: The cd selling business is in the toilet compared to 15 years ago. Goodbye Sony Universal Vivendi Clear Channel McMusic...and good riddance. The music business is fine and better than it was 15 years ago...especially for us non-famous musicians...performance, small scale sales of CDs & merchandise, and general PR...all operate about the same and better because of the internet.
Stoli: You wear many hats musically, what do you enjoy the most: producing, songwriting, or recording?
Jeff: Producing, songwriting & recording are all one big tasty burrito to me. I suppose professionally recording a CD is my favorite cause that means I get to eat the other parts of the burrito as well.
Stoli: How long did you work on putting together the new album, Cosmic Joke?
Jeff: About 1 year start to finish. 1st six months I wrote the tunes...2nd 6 months I recorded, produced, mixed, graphic designed, pulled my hair out, etc. I ain't a rock star and I gotta day job. I bet could do the whole shebang in 3 months if I could axe the evil day job.
Stoli: How did you come up with the name Alchemy & what does Cosmic Joke mean?
Jeff: The back story of everything that I do creatively is essentially about figuring out what the fuck I'm doing here on this planet. Why? Who? Where? What? When? & How? All of that. The best places to look for the answers to these questions are of course in the quagmire called spirituality & religion. The term Alchemy goes back to the middle ages. It's about enlightenment. When you've gained some perspective, experience, and dare I say it... wisdom, with regards to the quagmire of spirituality & religion...in the end you realize...well, that it's all one big fat cosmic joke. I’m into rock n roll but I also dig enlightenment. You should try it sometime. Highly recommended. It’s gotta beat and you can dance to it ;)
Stoli: You are located in the Washington area. How do you see the music scene there as opposed to other metropolitan areas?
Jeff: Well actually I no longer live in the DC area. I moved to Charlottesville, VA. Thank Gawd almighty! DC is about politics, shitty traffic & greedy over-development....music is a pimple afterthought on the nasty stinky and corrupt surface of that town. Charlottesville on the other hand is the holy land of the right brained person ...no politics, no traffic, a great university, liberal musicians, artists, writers and freaks galore...mountain, rivers, & lakes...lions, tigers and bears...oh my.
Stoli: When you are writing music, where do you find the most inspiration?
Jeff: I go right to the internet and steal everything I can from bad rock bands in Slavokia. On Cosmic Joke I was thinkin' DMB, Floyd, Robert Randolph, Maroon 5, Modest Mouse & Robbie Williams when I wrote & produced it. But mostly I write and write and whatever comes out that is not complete shit inspires me.
Stoli: You host various open mics, what is your favorite part about playing live?
Jeff: Shutting off my brain while falling into the pocket and the heart of the groove and knowing and hoping that the audience is there with you too...and anticipating the big ol' round of applause and cheers at the end. This is the shit!...and it can be applied to every live musical experience ever made...from the lowest little tiny open mic to the grandest stadium concert of all time and space. If it ain't in the heart of the groove it ain't the shit.
Stoli: Do you feel that Apple & Steve Jobs are good or evil for the music industry?
Jeff: Good. I loved my Ipod. I am still getting over it being stolen. Have you seen it? It's white, comes with earbuds, and has my whole frikkiiiiiiiiinnnnnnngggggggg library of music on it!!...which no dumb-ass thief will ever appreciate. Hey fucker!!, if you're out there , I damn you to an infinite Ipod hell of Britney Spears songs. We live in contradictory times. I'm sure every record company mogul out there would love to put a hit man out on Steve Jobs....but, at the end of the day they all get into their limos and mercedes benzes and push play on their ipods. Guaranteed.
Stoli: What do you prefer better, making a solo album or working with other musicians?
Jeff: Working with other musicians....definitely.
Stoli: What music do you listen to when you are not creating your own music?
Jeff: Slavakian rock bands, Britney Spears, and every CD ever made by the Wiggles. Well, a little bit of everything. I love ambient space music...ala John Sierre. Right now I'm into a jam band called Umphrey's McGee. I really dig Robert Randolph and the Family Band. I'm a modest Mouse fan. Stranded on the moon question...Pink Floyd. The Delicate Sound of Thunder live cassette...ya can't get it on CD!...f-in rocks.
Stoli: What would you say is your ultimate musical accomplishment that you would like or have done?
Jeff: Magic Music Myth was it. I'll probably never do anything the rest of my life as challenging and as rewarding as Magic Music Myth. 6 Live musicians. 20 Actors. 10-15 stage and crew, costumes, videographers, directors, video projection, light design, graphic design, fiber optic star drapes, rehearsals, performances, fundraising, investment contracts I wrote the music, the book, designed the set, paid the bills, hired the actors, did the PR ...the list is endless. It was great. I was a rock star and a creative waterfall for a good 6 months and more...
Stoli: If you could pick one song that represents Alchemy, what would that be?
Jeff: I'm gunna cheat. There are 2 songs. From Cosmic Joke- Bloom & from Magic Music Myth...Magic Music Myth.
Stoli: What can we look for from Alchemy & Jeff Dixon for 2008?
Jeff: I wanna have a jam band that's somewhere between Floyd, DMB, and Robert Randolph. And I'd love to work with other musicians or bands, in the capacity of music producer. We'll see..."
Jeff Stewart Dixon - Vocals/Guitar/Keyboards Allen Emerson - Bass
John Ware - Lead Guitar Mark Prince - Drums
Donnesse Monique - Backing Vocals
