Three Music Thingz with Riggings

My my, it's another rendition of Three Music Thingz, the blogseries where I ask musicians for three thingz that are essential to their music-making.

Today we have Riggings! Riggings is the stage name of Alex Riggs, who just released her album Egg on June 21st via Horse Complex Records. Holy sh*t, Egg is incredible, an exercise in experimental rock catharsis, landing somewhere between "slow burn" and "controlled demolition." From second track "The Birds Knew First," which details the intensity of gender transformation ("I put on a dress and I snuck up to my room / My new body's a temple / Breaking out of the tomb"), one gets the notion that this is not any kind of background music—it's something to sit down and stretch out with.

Egg, by Riggings

10 track album

Horse Complex Recordsjanieryan

Its elongated orchestral elements remind me of Scott Walker, and its earthy rawness reminds me of later-period Fiona Apple. Riggs' voice and phrasing are particularly captivating, delicately unleashing some killer punchlines ("Straight men love nothing more than writing about the end of the world") over intricate arrangements that have been produced and mixed to crispy perfection by Alli Rogers. "Put on your good headphones," suggests the liner notes, and I'd second that emotion...the percussion alone is gonna tickle yr brain ears.

Riggs sent their three things and you should read them right now! Spoiler alert, one of them is coffee and as a certified coffee fiend 'I approve this message'!!

1. DRIVING for the music.
   
   I spend a lot of time driving. I've been a delivery driver for the majority of my jobs, so I mostly listen to music while I'm driving. Some music reminds me of driving. That feeling where you're on a longer stretch of road and you have the chance to look out the window and look at the landscape. Then your brain tries to Man->Bowl Of Soup the music and what you see together. Sometimes there's a swamp with a forest of dead trees, sometimes there's an Arby's. No matter what it allows me to indulge in my love of the cinematic, scoring the scenes in the movie where the protagonist has a lot on their mind, and Wild Pink's "The Shining But Tropical" or Bill Withers' cover of "Everybody's Talkin'" leaves the viewer to make their own conclusions about what's in their mind. Then they pull into the Arby's drive thru and order the jamocha shake and go "Oh."
2. COMEDY for the lyrics.
   
   Most of my writing is inspired by comedy writing, primarily stand up. I submerged myself in the world of stand up from a young age (a mistake, in hindsight!) and started picking up the importance of pacing out a joke for maximum effect. Even though I don't have a lot of what some might call "funny" songs, I do try to approach my writing with an attention to hitting important moments hard and never staying too long on a point. Don't write the whole song about your cat puking, make the song about the absurdity of pushing through the boring shit you have to do in the face of immense trauma and grief.
   
   A Small List of My Favorite Comedians and Comedy People:
   Maria Bamford
   Tig Notaro
   Ron White
   Patton Oswalt
   Tom Papa
   Moms Mabley
   The Smothers Brothers
   Brandon Rogers
   Richard Pryor
   Any child who cusses
   That video where the dog's owners are playing a vuvuzela really loud and the dog retaliates by taking a shit on the carpet.
3. COFFEE for the Life and Living.
   
   I abhor snobbery, let's get that out of the way. I refuse to gatekeep anyone's tastes, god knows I have bad opinions and weird tastes (incorrect, but humbling myself is important). Whatever pizza you love is the best pizza, your favorite band is unshakable, you're definitely not a psychopath for saying Summer is your favorite season.
   
   I will, however, be a coffee snob as is my right.
   
   My current set up is an Aeropress espresso maker and an electric burr grinder. I get my coffee primarily from Little Waves right here in Durham, NC. On a normal morning I will drink one to two cups of coffee. My body reacts very strongly to caffeine, I tend to get manic in my thoughts and speech patterns. So if I damage my body and brain with coffee every day then at least let it be of good quality. Mama needs her rocket fuel.

Thank you Alex!! Go listen to Egg right now. Thanks for reading I Enjoy Music, if you like it, tell a friend.