Nite Jewel Am I Real?

The debut EP from L.A. native Ramona Gonzalez, a.k.a. Nite Jewel, is a listen reminiscent of the time - 20 years ago, give or take -  when electronic music was all about experimentation. Back before it splintered into dozens of sub-genres, before mainstream was quick to name (and music fans were quick to hate on) the term "electronica," the mood seemed more about self-exploration and creating art.

Going back to that place of invention, the self-released Am I Real? is a uniquely personal and intellectual take on that time.  Her live show, well-assembled and concise, adds to the dreamy, cosmic, lo-fi and somewhat retro aspects of the record - certainly the beginning of something great.

I had the opportunity to ask Ramona a few questions about her inspiration, production process and more:

I loved your live show the other night at the Troubadour. How did the band come together?

Cole who plays keys and guitar is my long time collaborator.  I stole him (back) from Ariel Pink back in spring 2010. I asked Corey Lee on bass to be a part of the band about a year ago.  I met him when I first moved to L.A.  It was '07 I think; I was jamming in the early hours with some friends near his bungalow and that's when we met. Gavin, the drummer, I met through Andrew and Daniel Aged of Teen Inc. Julia Holter is an old friend from early L.A. days like Corey. I've been a fan of her music for years now and we have always liked singing together.

Who would you love to collaborate with?

I've done a number of collaborations recently with the likes Dam-Funk, Teen Inc, and Heart Shaped Rock. These have been truly rewarding, but right now I'm really trying to focus on the new Nite Jewel full-length, and with instrumentalists and vocalists who are working directly on my recordings with me (e.g. my band). Ideally, I would like to do a remix for Autechre, but I don't think they do that sort of thing.

I read somewhere that your musical inspiration includes everything from Kraut Rock to New Age. In general, who are some of your artistic influences, music or other?

Ah the inevitable question.  For some reason, I think perhaps because I'm really tired, I will answer this question directly for the genres just mentioned. In Krautrock, I'd say I'm very influenced by Kraftwerk's early Ralf & Florian records, CAN's Future Days, Amon Duul II's Wolf City and Only Human, Neu! 75, Cluster's Curiosum, Zuckerzeit, Sowiesoso, and Grosses Wasser, and the many solo recordings and collaborations manifested therein.  For New Age, to name a few: Iasos, Ojas, Constance Demby, Collie Ryan, Larkin, and Michael Stearns (esp. Planetary Unfolding).

When creating the EP, was there anything about the creative process that was more challenging than you thought it would be?  On the other hand, was there anything that came easily?

I'd say the most difficult thing was writing to Logic for the first time. Writing to a computer took getting used to and I'll never like it as much as tape. There was too much ease that came with it and it definitely was like putting up a fight with my conscience.  On the other hand, it does allow for minute editing, which allows for more "sheen." But being deep in the sheen is never good. All the songs came naturally.  They always do, otherwise I scrap them.