On June 18th, the second annual Shadow of the City music festival will be held in Seaside Heights, right on the beach. I had the pleasure of speaking with the man behind it all, Jack Antonoff (Bleachers), as well as one of the performers, BØRNS.
What inspired you to organize Shadow of the City?
A lot of things. I grew up in New Jersey. I spent most of my life there and I think it’s an incredible place with incredible music and a lot to celebrate. A major theme behind the festival is that growing up, you would always have to go to NYC or Philadelphia for big shows. Everyone would skip over New Jersey for these big cities, hence the name ‘Shadow of the City’. I always dreamed about starting a music festival that would be specific to New Jersey, celebrating the culture. Everything from where the festival physically is, to the food that is going to be there…every last drop is about New Jersey.
What goes into planning a festival like Shadow of the City?
Planning a festival is really crazy. There are all these tiny things that mean so much in terms of making a great experience for people: everything from stage slots, to food, to where things are positioned, to how people get in, to how people see the performances. I’ve probably played every festival around the world and I’ve really gotten to see first hand what makes a festival great and what makes a festival not work. I just try to take in all of the information.
How will this year’s show compare to last year’s show that was at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury?
Seaside and Asbury are both iconic places in New Jersey and to me, it’s really important for this festival to celebrate New Jersey, so it’s extremely special to have it right on the beach. Growing up in New Jersey, we would go to that very site where the festival is being held all of the time: right in the center, right on the beach, right off of the boardwalk.
This year, SOTC has a diverse line up that includes The 1975, BORNS and Carly Rae Jepsen. What made you choose those acts and how important was it to offer a variety of different music genres?
When I think of this festival, I don’t want it to be any different than the music I love. I don’t want to have to look into any information or algorithms of what people listen to outside of just, if I can invite a couple thousand people to the beach to listen to bands, who would they go to see? The 1975, BØRNS and Carly, those are people I listen to myself. I try to treat it in a very organic, simple way.
In 2002, you formed Steel Train, who will be reuniting and playing SOTC. Did you feel an obligation to your younger self to play with Steel Train instead of Bleachers because of your roots?
Steel Train started in New Jersey in 2002 and played until 2012. We grew up practicing in my parent’s garage in New Jersey. All of us grew up in New Jersey and went to see shows in New Jersey, so that’s everything that we are. Last year I played with Bleachers. I want to be a part of SOTC in the flesh every year, but I don’t want to headline it every year. I want the festival to be about a lot more than me, but I still want to be there. It’s kind of perfect because I want the festival to have the kind of quality where bands can reunite and special things can happen that are out of the ordinary.
You were raised in Bergen County and have become a 3-time Grammy award winner, a talented songwriter, and have found much success with Bleachers. What advice would you give to younger New Jerseyians who feel as though because they weren’t raised in NYC or Hollywood, they don’t have a fair shot at becoming successful?
It’s actually more interesting to be from a place slightly more random than the place where everything is happening. Sometimes when you’re from the place where everything is happening, everyone is sharing a lot of ideas so you’re looking at what is going on and mimicking it. Growing up in New Jersey, I learned to write songs in my bedroom and there was nothing beyond that. I just did it for the joy of doing it. I had to imagine what a great song sounded like and I had to try and write it – I didn’t have anybody showing me how or teaching me.
Then I started playing shows, which were all shows that my friends and I were putting on, like at the Wayne firehouse or Pequannock Legion Hall, and we created our own scene.
There is something extremely special about that that can get lost in big cities, so the advice that I would give would be to embrace the small space around you and learn to really craft something rather than dive into a giant pool.
, your first full studio album, is fantastic! Tell us about the process that went into making it.
Thanks very much. The creative process was a mix between arranging drum samples, vintage analogue keyboards, and iPhone clips of random sounds. Tommy English produced the album and we both have an affinity for Brian Wilson-esque harmonies.
You’re going on tour with The Lumineers. What other plans do you have for the future?
I’m on a tour bus this very moment, about to play festivals as well as a headline run in the states. Once I’ve completed summer tour, I’ll be back in the studio working on new material.
What should we expect from your set at SOTC?
Everything about my show is top secret – except that there may be parachutes involved.
To learn more about SOTC, check out: www.shadowofthe.city
