Quiet Hooves

originally published April 18, 2007

Quiet Hooves - (clockwise from top left) Andy Pruett, Patrick Bozeman, Julian Bozeman, Christian Seklecki, David Specht, Javier Morales, Mercer West.

Brothers-in-arms (and blood) Julian and Patrick Bozeman used to play in a slightly off-kilter alt-country band called Kamikaze Headband. Patrick’s bass playing brimmed with heart; Julian was prone to wearing a bumblebee hat. As time went on, Julian’s songwriting quirks burst beyond what that act was suited for, and after a brief period of incubation, a baby band called Quiet Hooves emerged.

Backed by the venerable Mercer West on drums, expatriate John-Michael Boling and chronic extrovert Christian Seklecki on keyboards, as well as uncanny multi-instrumentalist Javier Morales, Quiet Hooves has, since its inception, traded in a tender sort of unearthliness not oft heard ‘round town. Julian conjures a host of imagined storytellers with affected (and affecting) voices over a calm clamor of toy piano, Fender Rhodes and subdued percussion. Having more recently recruited Cinemechanica’s Andy Pruett on trumpet and Folklore’s David Specht on violin, the group’s sound has become engorged with warm goodness without losing its low-volume charms.

Julian Bozeman took Flagpole for a personal tour of the family ranch, and we traded barbs and yarns over the campfire.

Flagpole

Explain the evolution from Kamikaze Headband to Quiet Hooves.

Julian Bozeman

Brad, the Kamikaze drummer, left Athens for sunny Ft. Lauderdale and the diaper biz… and along came Mercer, Javier, David, Andy and John-Michael just as the buzzer rang and some new songs were done warming in the oven.

Flagpole

Briefly, share with Flagpole what each member of Quiet Hooves brings to the stable.

Julian Bozeman

Alphabetically and phonetically: Andy, brrmbrrm; Christian, dinkdeedink; David, vvvweeowwh; Javier, waowaow; John-Michael, deyowdeyow; Julian, lalala; Mercer, clopclopdapadoom; Patrick, boodeedoodee.

Though, what's great is that everybody is capable of all kinds of sounds and is in no way limited to [those] sounds. And we're all pretty open to trying to make different kinds of sounds.

Flagpole

It seems like a lot of characters and voices pop up in Quiet Hooves' music. What's the ratio of autobiography to fiction in the lyrics?

Julian Bozeman

Different kinds of people tell different kinds of stories. Even narrators have pretty mixed-up brains. Everybody has them. But stories can be fun to listen to from time to time. I just take different made-up situations, though some are loosely based on real events, and create a character that is interpreting these things in a way I think is interesting… There should be a disclaimer, "The views expressed in these songs in no way reflect those of Quiet Hooves..."

Flagpole

What brought you to compose on the toy piano?

Julian Bozeman

Some things sound better with other things with them. The toy piano is like a tiny sound that needs a tiny voice and a tiny song. Tiny songs about simple brains with narrow points of view.

Flagpole

2007 plans look like... go!

Julian Bozeman

Finish a record (No Mare o' Mine, tentatively?). Go on tour (with Mouser, tentatively?). Learn a million new songs and finish a second record (Blinders Off, Boss, tentatively?). Get off this wishy-washy tentativity. Clop clop.

Jeff Tobias

Spotlight is a biweekly feature looking at newer or emerging local acts.