James: Rumor has is that you passed up a free ticket to see Rival Schools to finish a tour with some band.

Paul: (Laughs) We (Readymade Breakup) were on tour with our friends The Gay Blades. It was our first time out in almost a year.

James: What were some of the highlights of the tour?

Paul: The highlight for me would just be playing together. We hadn’t done that in about a year. Going out with a band that already had success in the markets we want to work.

So we’re no longer rolling into a town for the first time to play for the bartender.

There are kids there who’ve come to see the shows. I hope there will be more of  that when we come out with this record. In the past it was “get on the phone, book some shows and hope for the best.”

James: Give me a little feel for Readymade Breakup.

Paul: Readymade has been a band for some time. G.E. and I have known one another for ten years now. We were in a band called the Blakes for a very short time. We put out one EP before breaking up and forming Readymade. We’ve been together now for seven years. We’re about to put out our third record now. I would say the hybrid is songwriting, classic songwriting and structure. We’re a pop band but pop often gets a reputation as something hollow. Our songs have a sense of depth. We’re good musicians who put our heart into what we do. At the core of it is that classic Pop sound.

James: So your not dancing around to a drum machine.

Paul: Exactly.

James: How does Readymade Breakup differ from the Blakes?

Paul: Long story short G.E. was in a band with a friend from college. He heard my demo tape and kind of stole me from that band. I was the singer for the Blakes and  I wrote the songs which is pretty much what i do for Readymade. The songs have change but as much as we’ve evolved we’re still the same and that goes for my music too.

Paul: Readymade Breakup had put out our last record and toured on it a bit. I had always written songs on my own and there came times when I began to recognize that some of them might not be songs for the band. After a while they just started piling up and I had about ten or fifteen songs. Readymade had begun to slow down. Family obligations were beginning to kick in for some of the guys. G.E. had a beautiful baby girl. Things were slowing down. I had these songs but I was always there for my band. I didn’t want it to seem like an ego driven choice. It was just the right time. I had these songs and it was time to do something on my own.

James: Were there ever any times when you were say writing songs for Readymade and got that devil on your shoulder telling you to save it for your solo effort?

Paul: Truth be told I think I’ve gotten better at writing for the band. That’s another reason why I think this record we’re about to put out is the best thing we’ve done. We’ve tried a lot of things along the way but I think we’ve really started to develop a sound of our own.

I think one of our missteps was maybe going against what we really were.

James: What were you hoping to achieve?

Paul: It’s the difference between pushing the boundaries, Which is a good thing. And running from who you are and resisting your instinct. Which to me is a bad thing.

Now we’re full speed ahead with the writing and the music.

James: The title of your solo record “Broken Nosed Poetry” is so catchy. Tell me where the name came from because there’s got to be a story in there somewhere.

Paul: I was playing a game of basketball with Dawn. (Pauls Wife) I went up for a rebound and clocked her in the nose. She went down and it was terribly embarrassing. She in turn wrote me this funny story/poem which was broken nose poetry. I was kicking a few titles around but the ones I had just seemed over thought.

Paul: September of 2009.

James: Last time we passed one another in the hall you mentioned you might be performing with Art Garfunkel. How did that come about and did it ever materialize?

Paul: There’s this local Artist Showcase they do at NJ PAC. They have this prelude to whatever big act happens to play. You perform before the show. You play in the lobby, not much more.

A friend of mine who knows somebody at NJ PAC thought I would be a good fit. Played my music for the the organizers there who thought I fit. The event was scheduled for April when Readymade was in the middle of recording the album. I was recording the vocals and got really sick to the point where a few days before the show I was bed ridden and had lost my voice. There I was about to perform with Art Garfunkel. I said to myself “You cannot miss this show.” I spent the next three days in bed. I had cleared CVS out of every over the counter remedy they had. I stayed in bed those three days and woke up the day before thinking “You know, I’m going to be okay.” “I’m going to make it.”

About an hour later I got a call form NJ PAC. “Art Garfunkel’s sick. He won’t be there to perform.”

It’s been rescheduled for June but at the time it just seemed crazy.

James: That is sick and twisted. Was there ever a moment? maybe in the back of your mind when you thought “Damn, I wish it was Paul Simon I was getting to perform with.”?

Paul: No, the thing is I really didn’t know the first thing  about Simon and Garfunkel. I didn’t know that Paul Simon wrote most if not all of the music and Art Garfunkel was just singing. But I’m trying to do my homework and educate myself.

James: Going back to Walter Schriefels. I think our initial bonding was over the fact that we both were big fans of his work. What was your introduction or perhaps the work your most fond of?

Paul: It would be Rival Schools. Which brings me to my heartbreaking moment. The EP was mixed in Brooklyn by this guy Joel. So I’m in the studio, he’s mixing and somehow Walter comes up. During the mixing of one of the songs he said it reminded him of Walter in some way. I had no idea Joel had anything to do with Walter. Turns out their friends. Walter’s well known in certain circles but by no means would you assume that anyone on the streets knows who he is. I looked at him and said “Are you kidding me? That’s one of my song writing heroes. I can’t believe you just said that.” He said “Are you kidding me? He lives like a block away. I should get him to come in and do some background vocals on this.” I was going nuts. He’s around the corner and I’m freaking out. So he picks up the phone, calls Walter and leaves him a voice mail. As it happens Walter was busy and couldn’t get back to him in time. We never made it happen unfortunately.

Who knows, Maybe next time.

Interview James Damion. Pictures courtesy of Paul Rosevear.

Link to Paul’s work;

http://paulrosevear.bandcamp.com