Sometimes I get e-mails about Jennifer, the character I sing about in Become Someone Elses. People are wondering if they can please talk to this girl and have her advice on their relationship issues, sort of like Liz Lemon's Dealbreaker Lady. So I asked the real life Jennifer (not her real name) and she agreed to do a few. So for the month of may, if you have any questions for her, send them to me and I will forward them. She will answer as many as she can (but probably can't do all of them). Just put "For Jennifer" in the subject line.

Some of you are asking about the topic of the month thing we had here on smalltalk before and I thought I should let you know that I decided to take a break from that for a while because I simply haven't had the time to juggle a hundred conversations simultaneously. Well, I've had the time, but I've wanted to spend that on other things. Like getting started on new songs. Which is going well! I still enjoy getting e-mails though so keep them coming.

When Yakult Swallows score, the tiny umbrellas come out and it's a party. One of the best things I did in Tokyo. Thanks for all the great suggestions you guys sent me. And thanks for the wonderful shows!

When I was living in Melbourne I used to get some really weird (but occasionally really fun) packages from some fans who had been able to track down my new address. There were packages with food, dust, wooden sculptures, fluids, bottled air from Ohio and on at least one occassion - a dead bird. Sealed in a plastic bag apparently but still a dead bird.

I say apparently because Australia has some of the strictest quarantine rules in the world and I only heard about it from the customs. Most of this stuff never reached me, sometimes the package would show up with a note notifying me what was missing and why it had been removed. Most times I had to call the customs and talk to them, this started taking up a lot of time.

That's not really a story worth a song I thought to myself. Until Esopus magazine asked me to write something on the theme 'customer service'. Listen to 'Regarding A Package' here.

Linköping, Sverige
May 10th, 2013
Klubb Din Mamma

Är det nån som vill ha ett piano? Jag tänkte skaffa ett nytt så jag behöver bli av med mitt nuvarande. Det är gratis men ni får betala flytten, det finns ett antal flyttfirmor som gör det gör en tusing eller två inom Göteborg (obs, det är inget ni kan flytta på egen hand, det står fyra våningar upp och väger som ett piano gör). Pianot är av märket Rippen, ett holländskt märke. Det är inget fantastiskt piano i ärlighetens namn men gör sitt jobb om man gillar det där knarriga skolpiano ljudet (det är pianot jag använde på senaste skivan, ni kan ju lyssna på den). Givetvis behövs det stämmas också, jag har några bra kontakter för det om ni vill ha. Maila mig. PS. Katten på bilden ingår ej.

smalltalk (at) jenslekman.com

(This probably only makes sense if you live in Sweden but...) Does anyone want a piano? I'm planning on getting a new one so I need to get rid of my current. It's free but you pay for the transport, there's a number of movers who can do it for between 1000-2000 SEK within Gothenburg (please note, this isn't something you can move yourself, it's four floors up and weighs like a piano does). The piano is a Rippen, a dutch brand. It's honestly not a great piano but does it's job if you like that creaky school piano sound (it's the piano I used on the last record, you can listen to that). It needs tuning too obviously, I've got a few contacts if you need them. PS. The cat in the drawing is not included. 

The photo on the front page had to be changed. To something that is not from the last record but something just after. A photo that can represent the time between the record that just was and the one that is to be. I chose a black and white photo taken by the very talented Julien Bourgeois, from a backstreet in Paris last summer. I hadn't shaved. I still haven't shaved. The palette brooch on my jacket sleeve was lost soon after this at a Ryanair airport in Italy. I used to point to that brooch in interviews and say "for this record I chose the more sombre colours from my palette".

This year at Knarrholmen I will bring a more open songbook. I will play two early sets, one each day, solo acoustic. Where usually in my sets, some songs get pushed out by the hits, the crowdpleazerz, this time there will be room for the other songs to come out and hang. I will divide the sets alphabetically too, that felt like a natural way to let the setlists write themselves.

So just to clarify:
Knarrholmen 2013
Friday the 24th - Songs A-J
Saturday the 25th - Songs K-Ö

Jason Molina passed away two days ago. I didn't know him well but we met a few times. The first time we met was during thanksgiving 2004 in Bloomington, Indiana where our recordlabel Secretly Canadian have their office. In a backyard behind a house Jason showed me his broken guitar that he had placed in a tree there years earlier. The guitar and the tree had grown together, the tree slowly swallowing the guitar as it's stem grew around it. Jason was sweet, friendly. I didn't get a chance to tell him how much I loved his records.

The second time I met him was backstage at a show. I came back to say hi. He didn't say anything, just looked at me, smiled and started a playing a song. Then he gave me the guitar and said "your turn". So I played a song and then said "your turn again". And we just stood like that for a while, taking turns playing songs for each other. I didn't get a chance to tell him how much I loved his records that time either.

I never got a chance to tell him how that first album of his opened my mind. I was sixteen, I put some american dollars in an envelope and sent it over the sea. Two weeks later it arrived, I didn't know music could sound that close. I followed his every move for years, bought every little strange seven inch and "tour only" CD. I'm sitting here now with those records spread out across the floor. I never grew tired of Jason's songs because they don't belong to a time but rather a place. I don't think I've ever heard music be so geographical. It's not a place I've ever seen on a map, it's a hut in a dark rainforest, a savannah in the sunset, a freeway with no traffic signs. A place no satellites has ever laid their eyes on but your GPS tells you "you have reached your destination".

Have you ever really listened to "What a Wonderful World"? Yes of course you have but I mean have you ever really listened to it? Have you ever sat down and read the lyrics and studied each dim7 chord? Let each one ring out through it's perfect position in the chord structure? Have you ever had a beloved uncle pass away and been asked to sing at his funeral, and you thought of this song and how it evokes a sense of optimism in a time of grief. That the world moves on, babies are born, seasons come and go. "I see friends shaking hands, saying how do you do, they're really saying I love you". And have you ever tried to sing through the whole song but found that by the time the last verse comes along your voice always starts shaking? And you have to tell your family that you probably can't sing because the whole thing is a bit too emotional for you. And you go outside and take a deep breath, you go for a run up to the lake in the hills and you see that the snowdrops have started growing and a deer looks at you curiously from up the hill. A fine rain falls upon you. And you think to yourself…

Hi Jens,

Your fans have been excitedly (VERY excitedly) coming into KUWAII to pick up their CDs. Today we got an hilariously adorable gift from a chap named Joel, I thought I'd show you a picture as you will surely find it funny. What a lovely idea Jens. I hope your trip home is wonderful and look forward to seeing you again,

Your friend,
Kristy B

As I'm packing up my stuff to leave Melbourne again I come across a small box of my CD's. Leftover merch from one of my tours, probably the asian tour I did in 2010. On closer inspection they turn out to be in good condition but not in mint condition, some of the shells have cracks in them, some have what looks like slight water damage to the paper. They're totally fine, but they're unsellable. I can't even give them away to a recordstore and I have to get rid of them right now.

So what I'm going to do is I'm going to sign each one and leave them at my friend Kristy's store KUWAII in Brunswick (37-39 Glenlyon Road). Drop by and ask for one, they're free. Your money is no good but you can leave a tip in the form of fine chocolate or a small flower if you want.
Love
J

Just to clarify, what I'm sad about is where things are going with music in general and the fact that I'm personally uncomfortable with my songs ending up in that context. Not that you would be judging me.

It happened two weeks ago. An offer came in to license one of my songs for a commercial. This time I had to take it. My last album and my last tours lost so much money, money that would take years to recoup. The reality of things meant there was no way around it.

I don't think you guys care about that. I don't think most people care about these things anymore. But it makes me a little sad. However, I've decided to not be grossed out by it and just move on.

I just wanted to write a few lines and say thank you Melbourne. It was such an amazing show. And when I say amazing I say it like you say it down here, with an emphasis on the second A, drawn out forever. Amaaaaaaayzzzzing.

It was so wonderful to finally hear the new songs come home, take their shoes off, make themselves comfortable. It was quite emotional for me, hearing so many people sing along, actually knowing the lyrics and melodies. And when that eerie screech from when tram # 1 towards Sth Melbourne Beach drove by around the corner of the last song, creating a sound that somehow actually was in tune with the melody... I don't know, from where I stood it was just one of the best moments ever.

Sydney, Brisbane and Perth were also really amazing. I really wish the circumstances under which we played in Perth could be for every show, with the breeze gently breezing by just when you needed it and Jupiter positioned just underneath the moon. I wish the stars and planets were always aligned like that.

Dorset, UK
Sep. 1st, 2013
End Of The Road Festival

I have five spots for the Wheeler Centre (see below, feb 2nd). I want to give these to minors only as the other shows are strictly 18+ and I haven't been able to do anything about that. So the first five to write me about this gets one ticket each. There is of course no way for me to check that you are minors so I'm just going to have to trust you. If you're over 18, don't ask for the tickets or you're a jerk.

Dear Quantas Airlines

I have an idea, just wanted to throw it out there. Maybe it's crazy I don't know. But regarding this war against musicians that you and most other airlines are engaging in, I think I've solved it, I don't think we need to fight anymore. Seriously, just hear me out. What I'm thinking of is a new kind of guitar case. It starts off pretty much like a normal case, wooden base covered with the stuff they used in the astronaut suits back in the 60's. Then covered in solid metal, layers and layers of it. Yes, this DOES mean it gets heavy, glad you're listening. Outside the metal we wrap it in 900 layers of bubblewrap, so many layers that it would require a chainsaw to simply get through that. This means that it would be a gigantic ball of plastic, about three-four metres in diameter. You could just roll it out to the airplane. Oh but the ball would also be covered in very sharp nails, so use gloves. I'm not sure why the nails need to be there, but they seemed to go with my idea. Of course, the actual guitar still goes in a soft case that I would love to take as carry on, this is just the case that I'm talking about. Ok, let me know what you think. Love ya. Thanks for the extra scoop of icecream I got last time. J x

As part of my Australian visit I will be dropping by the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne on the 12th to talk about storytelling and writing, excited about this. The info is here.

February 12, 2013
The Wheeler Centre, Melbourne
6:15 - 7:15 PM

I'm sorry I wasn't able to inform you in time about this, I see that the event is already booked out. I know there's a lot of you who have written to me about the age restrictions for the Melbourne show and I was hoping this could be at least something you could go to. But I wasn't informed that it had been released. I hope you were able to get tickets.

POLAND
Aug 3 - Katowice, OFF Festival

JAPAN
April 22 - Tokyo, Billboard Live (1st show - 5:30)
April 22 - Tokyo, Billboard Live (2nd show - 8:45)

AUSTRALIA
Feb 18 - Perth International Arts Festival
Feb 16 - Brisbane -The Zoo w/ Courtney Barnett
Feb 15 - Melbourne -The Garden Party, Southbank w/ Courtney Barnett
Feb 14 - Sydney - Oxford Art Factory w/ Courtney Barnett

There's a place underneath Grand Central Station in New York called The Oyster Bar which is quite famous but a place you might miss since it's a bit hidden away underneath the constant flow of people on their way somewhere else. It's a beautiful place with it's Gustavino tiled ceilings and soft lights. If you know someone who lives in New York there's a chance they might've taken you there. There's a chance they might've said "I know you're vegetarian but you gotta try the clam chowder". And there's a chance you might've said "Well, I'll try a bit of yours if that's ok". And it's likely this takes place in the coldest of the winter months and that the warmth of the food and wine overwhelmed you and got your spirits up after a long day of walking in the cold. And maybe one of you might've ordered potatoes and when the potatoes show up at the end of the meal you realize that it is simply a bowl of boiled potatoes. And you're already full. And that might've been the moment when your friend Gary suggested that you put the potatoes in your pockets, using them as heating devices as you walk home through the cold. They last a long time, the skin of the potato keeps the heat in. And when you're finally on the subway and you have fourteen stops ahead of you, you realize you have a snack in your pocket, still warm.

If you meet me on the street on a day like that, on a day like today, when it's fifteen below and your legs go numb. Then the answer to your question is "Yes, that is a potato in my pocket. But I am also happy to see you".

I just woke up from one of those dreams that my friend Bill Wells would probably call "nighttime composing". A productive dream it was, where an idea took shape. I saw on the news last night about how electric cars are too silent, potentially posing a threat to pedestrians and bicyclists. So they're thinking of equipping the cars with a sound. A man from the department of something said something about what a pity it was that when we've finally started getting rid of the traffic noise, we face a new potential cacophony. And in my dream I solved the problem, I thought why not have each vehicle produce a certain note within a harmonic scale. Look out your window, there's a blue Renault slowly crossing the bridge producing a mellow G. The Renault meets a Mazda humming an E. On the other side of the river, a Toyota gives out a low C and all of this turns into a dreamy Cmajor7 as a Volvo passes by on the street below you, singing a high B. Now imagine a highway, the equivalent of someone pressing down all the white keys on a keyboard producing the most beautiful ambient dreamscape. What about emergency vehicles you'd say, well they could have pulsing dissonant tones, breaking through the dreamscape, catching your attention. This is as far as my dream got before I came to think of the Doppler effect.

Trying to finish some lyrics here. something really honest and from the heart.
But I have a pie waiting on the windowsill and it smells delicious.
Hard to write lyrics when there's pie.