DURAND JONES & THE INDICATIONS
A little soul in the morning is how we like to open up the shops. Some of that new soul breathing life into the four corners of our stores is Durand Jones & The Indications. This group weaves together the sounds of legends like Marvin Gaye, Al Green, and Curtis Mayfield. They sound smooth, timeless, and modern with a bit of funky groove. (And they look the part, too, of course.)
We had a conversation with Durand (vocalist) and Blake (bassist) about where they’re at, where they’re headed, and everything in between point A and point B. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Be sure to check out Durand Jones & The Indications' newest album, Flowers.
BR: Online, you share quite a bit of content from your live shows. Talk about the balance between that and the behind-the-scenes studio content. Where are you now, and where are you looking to go?
Blake: We’re really lucky. We do have a focus on both. The most exciting part for me about doing music is the recording side, and it’s been inspiring to see Durand get more and more involved and interested in the recording aspect. But he has, alternatively, really pushed the live show and motivated me to explore what it takes to put on a great show. I am really grateful for the way we’ve been able to grow our band, and I am really grateful that we put a lot of care, attention, and detail into both aspects [live and studio].
BR: You have a consistently distinct feel, but each of your albums has a bit of a different sound. What are some of the biggest inspirations you draw from
Durand: I think the biggest inspirations are how we draw off of each other, really and truly. Not only are we doing this collaborative project that holds weight to a lot of people all over the world, but we also have been diving into our own individual projects where we dig into our own individual sounds. I’m a southern boy from rural Louisiana, Aaron grew up on the East Coast in a Jewish community, and Blake is from the Midwest. We have all had these different experiences, and I really do feel like those experiences reflect within our music and whenever we come together, it really shapes the way that I approach music, produce in a studio, and even list to music. So yeah, the influences are each other. Especially with our new record, because I hear us settling into our own sounds.
Blake: To add to that, one of the cool things I didn’t even realize until the song was out, but our second single from the new album, Flower Moon, has a blended sound. The base of it has a Chicago steppers-type rhythm, and then the vocal is reminiscent of an East Coast 70’s vocal group - sweet with a beat. Durand called it cookout music. I just think it’s really cool to have this one song in our catalog that touches on different places for all three of us. But I do agree - drawing on each other for inspiration is the right sentiment.
BR: To build off that, how is your creativity distributed? Are songs being workshopped in the studio from all five of you, or does someone take the reins and lead songwriting?
Durand: As the band has evolved, we each just try to do as much as we can. Since we’re all based in different cities, that can make it difficult, but when we are together, we try to write and do as much as we can as a group. And it’s been interesting to see people step up into roles that they didn’t do on previous records. And more than ever, I don’t feel like anyone has a specialty necessarily, so that’s been fun to see everyone pitch in and work on every aspect. It also helps spread the workload, and no one feels like they are saddled to any one thing, and can explore new areas.
BR: Because you all live in different cities, when you can’t be together in the studio or you aren’t on tour, how does that dynamic work, creatively?
Blake: For songwriting specifically, during the pandemic, it was nearly impossible for us to meet up so we were forced to adapt, which has helped in the long run. At that time, we would just share “hey, this is an idea - can somebody write something?” or “here’s an idea for a melody, can someone add chords?” We did a lot of that and it was a big learning lesson for us because we had never songwritten in that way before. So for this particular record, a lot of it was spur-of-the-moment creativity when we were able to be together. A lot of half-finished or incomplete ideas were brought to the table that we built on. I think there is some magic in that type of creation. It’s cool to have that sporadic spark of creativity even after being collaborators for over ten years. A lot of magic was also in how we built off demos, taking what we did in the past and applying it, and then, when it came to finishing, creating “something out of nothing” in the studio was really fun.
BR: We were excited and honored to have you guys in our Ottoman Knit Sport Coat for your music video, Been So Long. Tell us about your personal style and the synergies there with Billy Reid.
Durand: Aaron introduced me to the brand, and I’m a southern boy at heart, so immediately, when I saw the pieces and learned you are based in Alabama, I fell in love. Especially lately, I have been embracing my roots, my rural culture, and my southern background. I've been trying to have that be a reflection of who I am within my art. Part of that, especially when it comes to fashion and style, I think of my elders - the folks, who, during the week, you might see them in scrubs or a uniform or a janitor outfit, but on Sunday’s, it was their day to show their style, their fashion, and they really wanted to emit, personify, and ooze this sophistication and classic style. So whenever Aaron introduced me to the band, I could see myself in it, and I could see my elders in it, and those are the people that have influenced my style, and to embrace a nice, tailored look where I feel like I am putting on my Sunday best.
Blake: I was not very interested in clothes altogether until we started the band. And when you’re in a band, you’re on stage, you have to look nice, and then you’re getting photographed from weird angles - it’s hard to figure out how to make yourself look good. Learning about silhouettes, proportions, and that there is a function to your clothes that should work for whatever you’re doing - it all helped to shape my personal style. That melding of form and function is important to my life. And that was a big reason why we wore the pieces from Billy Reid - we were moving a lot, and the movement of the jacket was forgiving, but still looked great. I can’t imagine a better garment for what we were trying to accomplish.
Durand: I agree with everything that Blake said. And not only that, if you watch the music video, you see that every single person has a different body type, but the fit of the jacket worked for everyone. Everyone looked crisp, clean, and tailored. And that was a dope thing.
