Art Alexakis has survived a lot. An impoverished and fatherless childhood in California. Sexual abuse. Drug addiction. And then later, in Portland, the great success and gradual tailing off of the ‘90s alt-rock era, when Alexakis and his band, Everclear, had such hits as “Heroin Girl,” “Santa Monica,” “Father of Mine” and “I Will Buy You a New Life.” Their lyrics were often fueled by those dark moments and dysfunction, while also pushing toward connection and transcendence.
Alexakis’ newest record, his first solo effort after nine albums – and then some – with Everclear, is no different. “Sun Songs” comes on the heels of Alexakis’ annnouncement in March that he has something else to overcome: A few years ago, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The album’s first single, “The Hot Water Test,” lays bare the experience. Its metaphorical but not-metaphorical title referencing the early-20th-century medical practice of exposing people suspected of having MS to hot water to see if they presented symptoms.
Said metaphor/not-metaphor extends to the current state of the United States, as “Sun Songs” is also a work of angry and satirical political protest. “Orange” pokes fun at grown-up punk rockers, like Alexakis himself, while celebrating the increasing liberalization of the longtime California Republican bastion Orange County. “House With a Pool” was inspired by the 2007-08 housing crash. The profane and somewhat self-explanatory “White People Scare Me” calls out Jim Crow, Nazis and police. Its hopelessness is balanced by the album-closer call to action, “A Seat at the Table.” “I’m not asking anymore,” Alexakis sings. “The time for polite is over.”
Alexakis spoke to Street Roots via phone from Southern California prior to his return to Portland to play the White Eagle on Dec. 13.
Jason Cohen: When did you move away from Portland?
Art Alexakis: 2011. I lived there for 20 years. My daughter went to college, and my wife, when she came to live with me – she’s from Arizona, and I’m from Southern California – she was like, when Anna goes to college, can we move somewhere warmer?
Cohen: And I gather now it turns out the Southern California weather is also better for you.
Alexakis: Yeah, the Vitamin D is really good for the MS. I feel so good in sunshine, it’s just crazy. And I’m actually building a pool in my backyard. I’m becoming what I used to make fun of. I have a “house with a pool.” But the only way I can exercise without overheating is swimming.
Cohen: You were originally diagnosed with MS because you were in a minor car accident?
Alexakis: Yeah, in April of 2016. I was OK, but about two weeks later, I got a twinge in my neck. My doctor was like, yeah, it’s probably just a pinched nerve from the accident. Go get an MRI so I can see where it is, and I’ll get you an epidural.
And I went and got the MRI, and I went to his office, and I walked into this little examination room that I go into all the time, and there’s like six guys in there in stethoscopes and coats and clipboards. And they all turn and look at me and don’t say anything, and I’m just like, oh, fuck, this is bad. And a couple of them were neurologists. They were all looking at my MRI, and they were convinced that it was MS.
I called my wife, and just like in the song (“The Hot Water Test”), we cried. I went home, and by the time I got home, she had three computers out, and she was like, “We got this. We can do this.” And that’s been the MO ever since. I take medication. I changed to a full-on plant-based diet. And I feel great.
Cohen: So you have a pretty manageable version?
Alexakis: Well, yeah. It seems so. If I stay on medication and the diet and the physical therapy and all that stuff, my prognosis is I’ll die in my 80s. And hopefully not in a wheelchair. That’s my job. I want to stay out of a wheelchair until I’m in my 80s. I just want to die in my sleep. Up to then, I’m walking and I’m not in pain and everything’s great. Is that gonna happen? Probably not. But I can work for it. So, y’know, when I get off the phone with you, I’m gonna go do yoga. Do I want to do yoga? No. Do I want to be a vegan? No. But I want to be around for my wife, and my kids and hopefully grandkids someday.
Life can be a lot fucking worse. One of the things this disease has helped make me is grateful for every day where I just feel good. I wasn’t feeling good for a long time. When I got diagnosed, it started making sense because I’d been having balance problems. I’d had different problems that were full-on MS stuff, but I didn’t know. So at least I knew what I was dealing with.
Cohen: In one interview, you mentioned that people saw some of your symptoms and were speculating that you were off the wagon. But I also wondered, does being in recovery also make you ready for something like this in a way.
Alexakis: Yeah a little bit. That wasn’t the main reason I came out publicly about it. I don’t like it when I’m not being 100% honest about myself. And that comes from my sobriety for sure. Thirty years being sober, of just no tolerance with myself. I draw lines in the sand. I don’t go over ’em. That’s how I stay faithful. That’s how I stay sober. That’s how I stay clean. So yeah, I think that 30 years of doing the steps have prepared me for this better than the average bear.
Cohen: In America in 2019, one never knows – whether you’re a musician or anyone – did you have good health insurance?
Alexakis: Yeah. But if I wasn’t a guy that made, you know, a middle-class to upper-middle-class living, I’d be fucked. And if they ever do get rid of pre-existing conditions, people are going to just be fucked. A lot of Republicans, a lot of those Trumpers, are gonna be fucked. I don’t know how they’re gonna swing it to blame it on the Democrats, but I’m sure they’ll find a way. But yeah. Thank God I have insurance. It’s so much harder for so many more people. I’m one of the lucky guys for sure.
Cohen: You almost made solo record once before, right?
Alexakis: Yeah, I actually started making one, and it turned into Everclear’s fourth record, “Songs From an American Movie Volume One.” That originally was a solo record – me but with a different band. There were a couple songs missing from it, including “Wonderful”; I hadn’t written that yet. It was a lot less rock than it is, even though that’s our poppiest record.
My idea (this time) was if I’m gonna do a solo record, I need to do it myself. I need to keep it stripped down. It needs to be acoustic. And it needs to be really different. Or why not just do it with Everclear? I got the bug to write songs, but I didn’t want to make a rock record. I didn’t want to make a record with anyone else in the studio. I just wanted to do it with me and one guy who was going to record it (engineer Stuart Schrenk).
Cohen: Did it take you back at all to more lo-fi, four-track sort of days?
Alexakis: A little bit. I mean, we did it on Pro Tools, but that was about as technology as it got. There’s not like, a lot of Autotune. Everything now is tuned, even stuff you don’t think is tuned, like metal. Before Autotune came out in ’98, you had to work hard to get those good notes. I look back at stuff from the ’90s, including ours, but especially stuff from the ’70s and ’80s, and the ’60s, and they’re not in tune, but they sound great anyway. Classic stuff. Zeppelin. Black Sabbath. Cheap Trick. Tom Petty. And that’s rock ’n’ roll. It’s kind of where the magic is. It’s not about the math of making it exact. It’s about the heart and soul and everything coming together as a package.
And that’s what I tried to achieve on this record. At the end of the day, whether you like it or not, this is an honest record. I’m not trying to be anything I’m not. I’m still pushing myself. I’m still trying to broaden what I can do. I think I’m still making relevant music that makes me happy. Is it gonna break down doors? No. Is it gonna sell a million records? No one sells a million records anymore. But I think my fans enjoy it. The people who like the type of music I make enjoy it. So as long as I can do that and make a living, I’m blessed. And I don’t even believe in that.
Cohen: So tell me about “White People Scare Me.” How did you come up with the idea for that one?
Alexakis: Really? Really? You can ask me that question?
Cohen: I mean specifically. Was there a particular moment of inspiration?
Alexakis: No. I mean, me and a couple friends of mine, we’re all white guys, and we’re always like, “White people are the fucking worst! Just the worst!” And it was a joke, right? A sad, wry, bittersweet joke.
Well it’s just not funny anymore. The fucking clown car is getting bigger and bigger and bigger all the time. When Dubya was in the White House, I couldn’t see it getting any worse. And it really taught me: don’t ever think it couldn’t get worse, because it can always get worse. It can get worse than Trump! It could.
Cohen: In the song, you sing: “So one night I was feeling like I needed some shame real bad, so I slipped in to my camo tee, my mom jeans and my MAGA hat. I walked into a Trump rally …”
Alexakis: No, I’ve never been to a Trump rally. Don’t ask me that question; that’s ridiculous. Why the fuck would I do that? I don’t need to. I know setting myself on fire with gasoline is a bad idea. I don’t need to do it to learn from it. I know it’s a bad idea. So why would I do that? Some writers are like, “Well, have you actually been to a Trump rally?” C’mon. Really? No, I’ve never put on a MAGA hat. No, I’ve never worn a pair of mom jeans. And I don’t wear camo. Not even a little bit. I don’t even like it when my 11 year-old wears camo. It’s a fashion thing. But I know where it comes from, and I don’t like it.
Q&A: What if this artist had succumbed to toxic masculinity?
Cohen: You’ve always kind of written about the American dream, or the myth of the American dream. The album’s last song, “A Seat at the Table,” is kind of about how it’s more of a myth than ever. Does it feel different now?
Alexakis: Well, yeah. Doesn’t it feel different to you? We grew up being told, y’know, majority rules; we all have a voice. The House of Representatives, those are the blue-collar representatives. And then we have senators, which is more of a patrician-type of representation. I personally think we should get rid of the Senate.
But yeah, I want a seat at the table. If not me, a representative that hears my voice. And it’s not like that. It’s all bought and sold, and it pretty much always has been. As we get older, we figure it out. But I’m not gonna stop fighting for it. I’m not gonna stop voting. I’m not gonna stop giving money to people that I believe in. And I’m not gonna stop marching where I think I should. I’m not gonna stop knocking on doors. I’m not gonna stop because I believe in the American dream. I do, 100%, and it does work sometimes.
Right now we’re in a crisis. Will it be our last crisis? Probably not. But what do you do, give up? Fuck that. I’m not giving up. You’re not giving up. We’re not giving up. We do what we have to do to make it better.