There comes a point at which, after a decade or so of
devoting every waking moment of existence to your musical endeavors,
little can faze you. Case in point: tornadoes.
“They’re saying tornadoes, so we’re just bracing ourselves for
that,” says Viva Voce’s Anita Robinson nonchalantly, in a manner not
usually associated with someone threading a touring van through the eye
of a Southern twister. Yet over the years Robinson, along with her
husband Kevin, have piloted their rock outfit through far worse
obstacles than a typical Kentucky tornado warning.
In 1998, Viva Voce came together below the Mason-Dixon line, forming
frantically as an accommodating duo—additional members came, but
none stayed—then relocating to Portland in 2001. From there, the
Robinsons battled through the slough of “couple bands,” thankfully
never finding a place among them: They were always too indie to rock
out with the White Stripes, and too rock ‘n’ roll to double date with
Mates of State. All the while Viva Voce delivered a memorable trail of
recordings, eventually leading up to their most confident album
captured to tape, Rose City.
But before Rose City came to be, the band was mired in a rut
that came after winding down two years of travel in support of 2006’s
Get Yr Blood Sucked Out. “In 2008 we didn’t tour at all as Viva,
it was like we were living in this bizarre world,” explains Anita.
Perennially devoted to their craft, the Robinsons were not accustomed
to a respite from band life, and quickly used these rare moments of
downtime to pen songs that didn’t quite fit the rock ‘n’ roll mold of
Viva Voce—thus the country-tinged Americana of Blue Giant was
born. And while Blue Giant produced a couple releases—plus a
three-night “tour” of Portland—the Robinsons were once again
drawn back to Viva Voce.
“We both felt a real sense of urgency to do Rose City.
Luckily it came about quickly, and I think it worked out for us to have
that gnarly deadline that we gave ourselves,” says Anita. That “gnarly
deadline” was a three-week writing/recording session in the Robinsons’
Northeast backyard studio. Eschewing the notion that a customized
studio—mere feet from your domicile—will result in epic
recording sessions, the band tried to streamline the process as much as
possible. “We don’t pay for studio time,” says Anita. “It definitely is
a temptation to be really self-indulgent, and sometimes that’s totally
fine. We were with Get Yr Blood Sucked Out for sure, and I think
that the songs sort of warranted it. Rock ‘n’ roll is sort of
self-indulgent anyway, so it’s fine.”
Rose City never approaches that level of polished
extravagance, instead exuding a loose charm and carefree ease without
feeling haphazard or rushed. Credit this new dimension to Viva Voce’s
aforementioned urgency, in addition to the band’s swelling in size with
the addition of local music mainstays Evan Railton (Swords Project) and
Corrina Repp (Tu Fawning). This new lineup’s first order of work was to
show pride in their hometown, and the album’s title track has the
finest tribute to the Portland Rose Festival (and Fleet
Week)—”Lovelorn sailors disappear with the hearts of daughters
once a year/I wanna be back in Rose City”—this side of Elliott
Smith’s “Rose Parade.”
Every band, no matter the size, needs something to come home to, and
for Viva Voce, that is the city of Portland. That is, if they make it
out of the tornado in one piece.