[TMN EXCLUSIVE] Interview – Dr. Rosen Rosen

Deep Dark Robot
Fuck You, Stupid Bitch (Doctor Rosen Rosen Remix)

The day that people stop quoting Fletch will be a sad day for me. You see, my parents had me watching appreciating comedies from this era at a young age. I watched Caddy Shack, Fletch, and Animal House ad naseum. I’m actually convinced that’s how I learned about sex. God bless the loose parental ratings of movies from yesteryear. It pains me to think people will one day look at me in awe as I tell ask them, “Yeah, why don’t you guys go down to the gym and pump each other?”

Classic movie quotes and their associations aside, Dr. Rosen Rosen is lying beneath the radar and producing some amazing music. This LA based producer recently has been the wizard behind the curtain of TMN favorite Meg Myer’s tracks, but who is he? We hit up his label to ask. Here’s what he had to say:

TMN: Doctor Rosen Rosen, such an honor to interview a producer that has been so involved in the music industry, producing and remixing work for Wanderhouse, Meg Myers, Cold War Kids and even Britney Spears. Between song-writer, record producer and “remixer” What title and line of work gives you the most pride?

DRRR: Thanks so much! I’ve been a fan our your blog for a long time, so it’s an honor to be interviewed by you guys.

As far as titles go, I definitely identify myself as a record producer first, but I think I take the most pride in the song-writing aspect of my work. Production is super important (and I obsess over it), but it is also very subjective and constantly changing. I feel like a great song can stand on its own with or without great production. As a musician, that pursuit of writing a great song is what drives me the most in the studio.

TMN: How early did music become an influence in your life? Can you pinpoint the primary thing that made you want to get involved in producing music?

DRRR: My brother is 9 years older than me and exposed me to a lot of great music at a young age. He turned me onto Prince when I was 5 and I have been obsessed with the purple one ever since. For my 11th birthday I got a bright yellow electric guitar (because Prince had one in the “Cream” video) and that is when I first started making music. Guitar was my main instrument in high school, but I would often sneak into my brother’s room and try to make music on his synthesizers. In college, I started experimenting even more with synths and drum machines and making entire songs from scratch, which was also inspired by Prince– I thought it was so cool that he played all of the instruments on many of his recordings.

TMN: When coming on board to produce and/or co-write an EP with an artist, what are the things that are first discussed in terms of sound, are you ever defined by what they want to achieve or is the creative process more of a collaboration?

DRRR: One of my favorite things to do with an artist before starting a new project is to spend an entire day just listening to music with them. It’s a great way to understand where the artist is coming from musically and where they want to go and vice-versa. I find that after that, it is much easier to find a common jump off point and start creating. Songs can come to life in so many different ways. Lately my favorite way to create is starting with a completely blank slate with an artist and building from scratch.

TMN: In 2012 you were able to produce Meg Myers’ Daughter In The Choir and Kay’s Say What You Want, can you tell us more about what we can expect for 2013? Any new collaborations you are excited about?

DRRR: I’m currently working on Meg’s debut full length album as well as an EP for Wanderhouse. There are a couple other projects in the pipeline, but I don’t like to jinx anything…

TMN: Who do you want to work with next? Is there any artist in particular you admire right now?

DRRR: There are so many people I admire and would love to work with… The-Dream, Kimbra, Lily Allen, Fiona Apple are all high on my list.

TMN: When visiting your tumblr blog, we notice screenshots of trending tracks you were involved with on Hype Machine, Where do you go to discover new music and how much does it influence you, if any?

DRRR: I love discovering new music and also old music that I haven’t heard before. For new stuff I go to Hype Machine and various other blogs I have in my RSS reader. For older stuff, I love checking out songs in Spotify. I’ll find something I like and then click the “related artist” button and go down that wormhole.

TMN: Ok, we have to ask this one. What’s your favorite line from Fletch?

DRRR: I have to go with the obvious one. “it’s Dr. Rosen Rosen, I’m here to get to the records room.”

TMN: This next question is kind of ridiculous, but the answers are always entertaining. If you’re music were an animal, what would it be? Meg Myers told us hers would be a Sea Wolf, by the way.

DRRR: Koala Bear. They seem nice and cuddly, but they have a dark side and could rip off your face.

TMN: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us, is there anything else you would like to tell your fans?

DRRR: Thank You! To all my fans- I know you all mean well, but you have to stop sending me all of your money. I am running out of places to put it.