Cochemea Gastelum or Cheme as he is best known to fans, has been a fixture on the jamband scene for the past 15 years. The San Diego-bred alto saxophonist first made a name for himself as a classic member of Robert Walter’s 20th Congress—and branded himself as a solo entity through a series of sit-ins and side projects with a range of groove artists. Shortly after relocating to New York in 2002, Cheme also quietly started work on his first solo album The Electric Sound of Johnny Arrow , an upbeat medley of soul, funk and electronic sounds. The saxophonist finally released the project in late 2010 while on the road with his current band, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings.
Cheme recently sat down to discuss his first solo album, involvement with the Daptone community and future plans for Robert Walter’s 20th Congress.
After years of jumping between bands and session work, you recently released your first solo album. When did you first start working on The Electric Sound of Johnny Arrow?
Well, it’s gonna sound crazy, but probably about eight years ago I would say [laughs]. But it wasn’t consistent because I’ve toured pretty heavily, so I’ve been on the road the whole time. I’ve kind of just been tracking here and there from time to time. There’s only been a couple of songs that have survived because I record all the time so I have tons and tons of material that I scrapped over the years. It wasn’t until about three years ago that I put the entire album together. I wrote probably half of the record in that time period and finished a bunch of songs that I had started but never finished. I just kind of touched up the ones that had been sitting there and laying around. I think stylistically the album has two different vibes because—during that time—I was into different shit. So it represents two different eras in a way—even with the musicians. Some of the earlier songs have Joe Russo and Brian Jordan (Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe) and some of the musicians I played with in Robert Walter’s 20th Congress and then the later stuff involves Dap-Kings and Antibalas, who I play with now.
It must have been a trip to revisit material you recorded eight years ago. In a sense, it gives you a chance to critique your own work with something of an outside perspective. What did you notice most about how your sound has changed in that time?
I got into some of that glitch-y kinda shit a few years ago. It was really fun, especially when you have a laptop and you’re just playing around. I was really into stuff like The Books, and I had all these songs that were electronic-based. As I progressed, I realized that sound wasn’t really what I was going for. I’m not an electronic artist. I’m a musician. I like music that comes from the ground up—that’s organic and has a natural feel—even though in the process everything’s tracked because I recorded a lot of the album by myself—on my own gear—in my studio. But, even then, friends would often come over and we would collaborate.
I’m not really an electronic artist: I don’t want a laptop on stage. I think that stuff’s really interesting to listen to and I go through periods where I listen to it a lot, but that would be the biggest change I would say to my sound over the years. I also noticed that I’ve gotten into sounds that were definitely more percussion-heavy with a Latin-Afro influence. That sound just kind of took more of a predominate factor in the music.
You mentioned your involvement with the Antibalas/Dap-King family. Not only have you played in those two bands, but you have played in a number of related Daptone projects. How did you first get involved with that community?
Well, it’s a really interesting thing. Back in the day, Antibalas and the Dap-Kings were pretty much the same band with interchangeable band members. It’s all just a big family and, as the two bands progressed, they did their own things. My involvement started back around 2005. Robert and I had just parted ways—he was doing his thing and I was just booking any gigs I could.
I got called as a sub for [Daptone band] Sugarman 3 on the baritone, which I never even played. I’m a straight alto player. The whole time, that was my main act and then they called me to audition. It is a funny story: A friend of mine played guitar in Sugarman 3 and they were looking for a horn player. They were leaving for a month-long tour the very next week and had auditioned a lot of people and no one really worked out. My name got thrown in there as a baritone player. Neal Sugarman and the band’s trumpet player Dave Guy knew me and they called me in for an audition. They had this old cracked out baritone just laying in the corner [laughter], and I told one of the dudes, “’Man, I’ve never played this before’ and he was like, ‘Aw, don’t worry about it, just blow really hard.’” I did that tour and then Neal Sugarman had his first child so he couldn’t really tour during that time. I ended up actually working a lot with them on session work and all these side gigs—they just grew into my circle of musicians. I played some shows with Antibalas and then I started playing with [Antibalas affiliate] Budos Band. I also acted as an understudy in the band for Fela! the musical, and, in the past year or so, I started going full time with the Dap-Kings. It was very organic.
Cheme with 20th Congress
Did you start working on your solo album around the time you moved to New York?
Yeah, about the same time. Sometimes I think of that the record as my New York experience until now. I moved here in 2002 and, at that point, I was still playing with Robert but I really wanted to make a record of my own. I didn’t want to go into a studio and get a band together, I just wasn’t feelin’ that. So I bought a computer and I just started messing around with sounds and gradually I got a little bit better at it. I think when I started playing around with The Dap-Kings—and being around that crew of people who just make their own records—it was very inspiring and it gave me the push I needed to finish what I wanted to do in a more organic way. So I put the computer away and started doing everything more organically. It was around 2007 when it all amped up so it’s been eight years man since I’ve moved to New York and I guess that’s where, unofficially, I start the clock on the record.
I didn’t know shit about recording; I didn’t know anything when I started. But that’s great because I think that’s the best way to learn—just throw yourself in there. I asked people who know about recording who were friends of mine. That’s how I want to make records from now on. I really enjoy the process of creating something out of nothing. To me that’s the best part of being a musician. Playing gigs is also great but there is something about being in a studio and making something with my own hand—and involving my friends and the community—that is very special to me
From a production standpoint, did Neal or [Daptone producer] Gabe Roth give you any particularly meaningful advice while you were working on the album?
Absolutely. The crew has been so supportive, really. I think the person who really helped me out the most was [former Dap-Kings guitarist] Tommy Brenneck from Budos Band and The Menahan Street Band. We really just clicked right away and he’s become a successful producer in his own right. Jay-Z even used one of his samples. It was really an honor to get so close with him, in a way, because those guys are just really tight Staten Island dudes from back in the day. But they brought me in and I toured around with them and recorded on their second record. He became a close friend of mine—for a while we were roommates. He would just hop over and play some stuff. He wrote the bass lines on “Dark City” and played some solos on the album. He had great advice and is such a smart musician.
What brought you to New York originally?
Well, I mean it was either L.A. or New York if you want to “make it.” San Francisco is a great town to visit but I wouldn’t really want to live there. I just wanted to “up” the game because San Diego—where I was living—is a pretty small town. I grew up there, and I pretty much hit the ceiling by that point—I’ve always loved New York. I went to college in Boston but I’ve pretty much always had my eye on New York. I always wanted to come here, and I knew one day I would have the opportunity.
I was ready to make the move, and I just wanted to be around the best musicians because, when you’re around the best, you have to rise to that level and that’s what I was looking for at that time. It was the best move I ever made. I believe that if you put yourself in the right place, eventually, you’re just going to gravitate towards like-minded people, and I feel that’s what happened. I’m really grateful for it
In a sense you were already part of that community because of your time on the groove/jamband touring circuit.
Absolutely. I was very fortunate because after all my years of touring I had met everyone, especially in the Soulive/Galactic family. We had all bonded on the road and played music together so whenever anyone came to town for a show, I’d jam with them. I was lucky…I already had friends here and that definitely made it much, much easier.
Do you see a lot of similarities between the two musical communities represented on your solo album—the jam/groove scene and the Antibalas/Daptone scene? Especially given Sharon Jones’ recent mainstream attention?
It is interesting. I see a lot of the same people—a lot of familiar faces in the crowd—when I play with the Dap-Kings and [some groups from the jamband scene]. I don’t know if there really is a division. [In terms of Sharon Jones’ success], in a way it’s not really rocket science: if you take an incredible person like Sharon Jones, an incredible producer like Gabe Roth and a crew of talented musicians that make music they like, then other people are going to like it too. It is a different vibe but it is still really interesting music.
I guess what’s interesting is being around these bands and seeing their rise. It is interesting to see what the mass audience likes, and I think [everyone at Daptone] will tell you it’s surprising for the people in the band that have gotten this far. It just started out and then all of the sudden—bam!—it got huge.
It is crazy to play for some of those [mainstream audiences in Fela! ]. It really is. You look out and see people sitting down but by the end of the show, they’re on their feet clapping, You’re on Broadway and you’re like ‘what the fuck is going on?’ but at the same time it’s really nice to see. I think the music is the bottom line…
Finally, can we expect a Robert Walter’s 20th Congress reunion anytime soon?
We’ve been talking about it. Actually, we just recorded some music—well, actually, he recorded some music and I put some stuff on it for him. We were talking about doing some stuff early next year. Robert’s been off doing a lot of soundtrack work and just doing his thing in LA. He definitely wants it. We have such a great chemistry—we always have, and we always played really well together. It gets better as the years go on. I hope we can get some gigs together [in early 2011]. Those gigs, they don’t happen very often but it’s nice to do them. There’s some negotiation there but Robert and I will always be together in some form ‘til we’re old men.
