Good Looks Interview: “I think our resilience is one of our greatest strengths”

Sometimes, it feels like the most positive people suffer the worst luck. It’s all based on the law of averages, of course, but when you see good people falling on bad times, it tends to cut that little bit deeper.

There have been many unlucky bands over the course of music history, but I’m not sure many have suffered worse luck than Good Looks.

Following their excellent 2002 debut album, Bummer Year, it felt as if the Good Looks (Tyler Jordan – vocals/guitar; Jake Ames – guitar; Robert Cherry – bass; and Phillip Dunne – drums) would break through the ceiling that led to a broader listenership. A band that delivered the kind of message music that spoke to people with an honesty and sincerity that feels otherwise lost these days.

That luck, though. Or in Good Looks’ case, lack thereof.

Following the band’s launch party to Bummer Year in Austin, Ames was hit by a car outside the venue whilst crossing the road. He fractured his skull and tailbone, also suffering short-term memory issues.

Ames made a full recovery, and when the band finally managed to tour again in July 2023, lightning struck twice – this time another accident on the first day of their tour. The band’s van was rear-ended by a speeding car on the highway, and while they managed to escape unharmed, the van itself was a write-off, engulfed in flames. Instruments, merch, records: destroyed.

With the gods seemingly abandoning them, it makes you wonder how a band could muster the energy to continue. But Good Looks did just that, and the result is their equally thrilling sophomore release, Lived Here For A While.

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Recorded by Dan Duszynski (Loma, Gold Motel) at Dandy Sounds, and mastered by Carl Saff (Holy Sons, Water Damage), Lived Here For A While explodes with the self-awareness and brave honesty inspired by small towns and pastoral landscapes. Music that echoes America’s modern day literature greats like Jane Smiley and Wily Vlautin, Jordan’s songwriting is steeped in narratives inspired by the working class. The difference, however, is that the members of Good Looks have lived these moments. You can just feel it, and it makes their songs deeply authentic. As they say: write what you know.

Starting with the sonically breezy If it’s Gone, thematically, it’s anything but. Jordan’s narratives are on a knife’s edge, melding heartland rock with the kind of tailspin wordplay you would associate with the Drive By Truckers.

From the cascading countrified indie-rock of Day of Judgment and Self Destructor to the politically charged Bad Neighborhood and the aggressive scourge of capitalism that envelopes Vultures, Jordan’s songwriting reaching new levels. Songs that frame these dark times, Jordan poignantly underlines the everyday struggles for so many.

Then there’s Why Don’t You Believe Me. An electric dream that has the cut and thrust of The War on Drugs when they were at the peak of their powers. It’s simply one of those goosebump moments that illuminates the power of music, and a fitting end to Lived Here For A While. An album that sees Good Looks return as big-hearted and hopeful as ever.

Ahead of last week’s release of Lived Here For A While, Jordan answered some of our questions via email about the album, band’s run of bad lack, their influences, and more.

Sun 13: Was music a big part of your childhood? What are your first memories of it? 

Tyler Jordan: “Music was always a big part of my life. I went to a really small, culty church for all of my childhood, and most of it wasn’t so great, but the music was always the highlight. All of the music was acapella singing. Some of my first memories around music were learning these really fun bible school songs from my grandmother, Shirley. She had a long battle with Alzheimer’s and passed recently. Towards the end of her life, she’s the only person in my family I was willing to lie to about still being religious. I hope it brought her peace. She ruled. She moved through the world in such a kind way, with pull yourself up by your bootstraps mentality. I’m not sure the art part of the music was really present till I was a teenager.”

S13: There have been many bands that have suffered bad luck, but perhaps none more so than Good Looks. Just how challenging has it been since the release of Bummer Year, and do you think your setbacks have made the band stronger?

TJ: “Yeah, it’s weird, the setbacks are certainly woven into our story in a very prominent way. We’ve definitely become tighter as a group of humans. I think our resilience is one of our greatest strengths. Everybody is fully onboard and locked in with the goal of aural domination.”

S13: Having grown up in small towns and being closer to a culture where you may not hold the same views as others, with a track like Bummer Year I feel like Good Looks is in a far better position to shine a light on these issues compared to a lot of people shouting at each over the internet. Is that something you’ve thought about?

TJ: “A lot. I think it’s important to understand that modern politics in the US are almost like a sports team or wrestling match. It’s all very preformative in our society, and the ‘team’ you choose has a lot to do with relating to the humans in your life and around you. I don’t really believe in the idea of bad people, and I think internet discourse can be really black and white. As a socialist, I think it’s our job to meet folks where they’re at and try to win them over to our side. You can’t get that done through being a dick. It’s easy and appropriate to be angry about the circumstances in our country and system, but as my therapist Barb often says, ‘No positive change comes from shame’.”

S13: Can you tell us the process behind Lived Here for a While?

TJ: “Well, this record was mostly written during the pandemic. I spent a lot of time reconnecting with the writing process. It was definitely one of my most prolific songwriting periods. There was so much more space and time. Boredom is a big part of my creativity. I was in a new relationship and a new house, leaving my 20s behind and sifting through past relationships. There are a lot of goodbyes on this record. We started recording these songs about four months after Bummer Year came out.  We went back out to Dandy Sounds to make another record with Dan Duszynski. Working with him is a joy. It also felt like Jake was fully formed as a guitar player this time around. On the last record we’d only been playing with our drummer Phil Dunne for two weeks. This time the songs felt road-tested and like complete packages, instead of more open-ended ideas.”

S13: What was the main aspect you wanted to capture with the album?

TJ: “I’m not really sure. That’s not something we really think about going into a record. We recorded 16 songs and we put the ones together that felt like they fit. I guess it’s the opposite of a concept record. More of a ‘here are some songs we wrote’ kind of vibe.”

S13: Do you remember what you were listening to whilst writing and recording the album, and did it influence or shape the record in any way?

TJ: “I was really obsessed with Boat Songs by MJ Lenderman in 2022. I’m not really sure that comes out on the record, but we did show it to Dan as a reference for sounds. I was also going through a super heavy Leonard Cohen period, but again, I don’t think that really shows up either. I’m sure there’s more but I’m blanking a little.”

S13: I might be way off the mark here, but it feels like If It’s Gone is the initial seed into how the rest of the album transpires. Can you tell us about it?

TJ: “Yep, that’s one hundred percent correct. I was going through the breakup of a four-year relationship on day one of the pandemic. I was out in Elgin, TX at our bass player Robert’s house. He had recently moved to Nacogdoches, but still had this beautiful, empty house while he was trying to sell it. That was the first song I wrote after a long period of writer’s block. The relationship ended and I could finally be honest in my writing again. Most of the other songs just flowed out over the next year or so. A couple of them predate the pandemic.”

S13: Self-Destructor feels like a protagonist from Willy Vlautin novel, which got me thinking: is literature a big influence of yours?

TJ: “I’m going to have to look up Willy Vlautin. You know I read a lot more non-fiction political stuff and biographies. But I do read a lot these days. Steinbeck is probably my favourite fiction writer. I think tons of ideas make it into my brain from reading, but songs feel so different from books. I’m a very left-brained individual, and the short length and structure of songs are one of the few places I feel safe being creative. I think other songs and poems are the biggest influence on my writing.”

S13: White Out and Vultures once again taps into the political nature of the band. How frustrating is it that a lot of people aren’t engaged with politics as much as they should be?

TJ: “I’m mainly frustrated by the fact that our system, country, and educational system make it so hard to be engaged politically. People just have so much going on, and it’s hard to carve out the time.  When you work 40 hours a week can you really blame someone for wanting to do something fun and fulfilling with the rest of their waking hours? I also think bourgeois democracy is designed to disengage regular working-class folks. But people are waking up. The unions are growing and we’re relearning our rich working-class political history. You can’t be bothered with people feeling powerless, you just have to get into the business of trying to help them rediscover their own power.”

S13: To me, Why Don’t You Believe Me is the best song you’ve written and an obvious closer. Can you tell us about it?

TJ: “Ha! Well I hate to hear that because it’s the oldest one on the record. I was hoping my writing had gotten better over the years, but maybe the raw emotion is closer in that one probably. Sometimes simplicity and directness are the most important thing. I wrote that song in 2012 and had released a more stripped-down version of it initially. I had always wanted to do a more fully fleshed out version of it. Dan really killed the auxiliary parts on this one, you know, like the strings and such. 

“No offence, but I think I might let this one stand on its own rather than going too far into the lyrical content here. It’s pretty heavy and personal. But if folks wanna know more about a particular song, I’m always happy to nerd out about song meanings and content after the show at the merch booth.”

S13: Do you think your music reflects your personalities outside of the band and the way you live your lives?

TJ: “Yeah, absolutely. First off, the way you write a part is totally affected by the way you move through the world. I’m very cautious and thoughtful. Overanalysing almost anything I can. Jake moves through the world with a youthful exuberance. He’s fully present and barging into each situation with the bravery of an invincible being. You certainly hear that in his solos and the way he plays the guitar. I breakdown our personalities as such. Team Robert, Tyler, and new bass player Harrison are team thoughts. Phil and Jake are team vibes.”

S13: With a presidential election coming up, is there any chance of things changing for the better?

TJ: “There is a chance for things to change for the better, but it won’t have anything to do with the presidential election unfortunately. I had a friend tell me if Trump gets elected the genocide in Gaza is going to be so much worse. What a wild fucking sentence and situation we’re in. All presidents are fucking war criminals. To quote Howard Zinn, ‘What matters most is not who is sitting in the White House, but “who is sitting in” – and who is marching outside the White House, pushing for change’. And to quote myself, ‘You force someone to listen to you when they’re fucking scared’.  Speaking truth to power might be righteous, but it doesn’t do anything unless you’re in a position to make power listen. Keep the faith and keep fighting no matter what evil motherfucker is president.”

Lived Here For A While is out now via Keeled Scales. Purchase from Bandcamp.