Name: Time Spent Driving’
Interviewee: Jon Cattivera
Nationality: American
Current release: Time Spent Driving’s new album Estrangers is out via Negative Progression.
Musical Recommendations: The universe and the overall cosmos are the pinnacle of everything and anything, pure perfection, depending on how you look at it. I’d call that art. That and life itself—the fact that we’re here at all is mind-blowing.

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For a while, it seemed as though the model of the bedroom producer would replace bands altogether. Why do you like playing in a band rather than making music on your own?

I’d say a lot of reasons. But it’s probably in part because it’s the devil I know in the sense that I’ve always played in bands. It’s more difficult to play live if the people around you weren’t involved in the process, as opposed to getting brand new people on board to figure things out and navigate the logistics.

When it comes to this band, I’ve played with the other guys so long that it makes it a pretty smooth process. I like hanging out with them, and it’s good to have a sounding board for the materials. Plus, I’m not an engineer, so I demo stuff, but I need more than just me in my bedroom to get things where they need to be.

What, to you, are some of the greatest bands, and what makes them great?

As far as current bands, I saw Bear’s Den at a little club locally—their music feels very genuine, and you could tell those guys were pumped, having a good time, and appreciate that they get to do what they’re doing so far away from home.



I also think something that makes a band great is persevering for a long time and keep on making new music. Even if fans are more into their old stuff, I’m stoked to hear the arc of what they’re doing so many years after they started.

Some examples are Blonde Redhead, David Bazan/Pedro the Lion, Death Cab, Jimmy Eat World, Samiam, Dinosaur Jr., and the Descendents to name just a few.



Before you started making music together, did you in any form exchange concrete ideas, goals, or strategies? Generally speaking, what are your preferences when it comes to planning vs. spontaneity in a collaboration?

I think it was a natural progression for us since Derek (our other guitar player) and I had already been playing in punk bands together for five years or so. In that time we progressed as musicians and shared new bands we found out about that we mutually appreciated. We were also already close with our bass player and he and I were deep into the underground scene in this genre as far as digging for new bands at the record stores.

I guess something that was more calculated was when we recruited our drummer, Kem. He wasn’t coming from the DIY punk adjacent scene, and had more of a mainstream influence. The Foo Fighters or maybe Radiohead were the closest bands in the general realm that he was into, so I remember we all got him CDs as Christmas presents to try to subtly get him into the right mindset.

If I remember correctly it was Sunny Day Real Estate’s (Diary), Jimmy Eat World (Static Prevails), and I can’t remember the other one. Might have been Sense Field (Building) or Chamberlain (Fate’s Got a Driver).



There are many potential models for creativity, from live performances and jamming/producing in the same room together up to file sharing. Which of these do you prefer – and why?  

If I have to choose one, it’d be recording and putting out music. I want to create and put things out into the world. That being said, I wish it was better balanced between playing live and recording, but I have to keep the right balance for the other members.

I’m not really into jamming things out or writing in a band room too much—I like to have as much fleshed out as possible on my own because it’s a much swifter process than getting together a couple times a month and barely making a dent.

We did start file sharing more about a year ago and it’s been really good because the other guys have been able to move a lot faster with their parts too. That’s something we’ll definitely continue to do, no reason not to.

How do your different characters add up to the band's sound and in which way is the end result – including live performances – different from the sum of its pieces?

Kem our drummer is like a machine, so he really acts as the backbone of the band, and even though he’s an amazing drummer, he doesn’t overplay like some.

Derek our guitar player holds things down with effect pedals so I don’t really have to deal with it, and he’s great at embellishing guitar parts that I bring to the table to expand upon them.

Steve our current bass player has really added a lot. He really puts the time and energy in to come up with bass lines, probably more so than any other bassists we’ve had, even though he was originally a guitar player. I think it’s helping expand our sound.

Is there a group consciousness, do you feel? How does it express itself?

Yeah, I think we’re pretty unified on what a good song is or not, and what fits into our sound. It’s rare that I bring something to the table that they’re not feeling, and when I do, I take their feedback and get back to work to make it better. On the other hand, sometimes they have to give it some time to realize what I’m trying to do and end up liking it later.

Having played so long together though, I think it’s a bit limiting because when I’m writing I always have to consider what they’re going to like, or say about it. I don’t always pay heed to it, but it’s always a thought in my mind during the process.

Tell me about a piece or album that shows the different aspects you each contribute to the process, particularly clearly, please.

“Under the Weather” off our latest album might be a good example. My original demo had a really basic drum beat (which they often do), and we didn’t just learn the song and call it a day. We had it kicking around for several years, and at some point Kem started trying some new drum beats for whatever reason.



At first I remember some things not really working and taking away from the song. But ultimately, we got to a good place, and it’s got a different vibe because of it. I like it because we don’t really have any other songs with a beat along those lines. Derek did a few deviations in the 2nd guitar parts that are a bit different rhythmically I would do, and Jon J. (our bass player at the time) added a lot as well that fits really well. On top of it, our producer Andy added some cool feedback parts and also some strummed chords in the choruses that aren’t our usual go-to.

I’ve got a keyboard part as well—I’m not a piano player so I keep things simple, but that’s usually what I prefer anyway. Now that I’m thinking about it, quite a bit going on in this one!

What is your sense of ownership like as part of the collective songwriting process? What is the balance between the lyrics, melodies and harmonies, and the groove in terms of your sound?

I write and demo complete versions of the songs both musically and lyrically, so they’re obviously very personal to me. Naturally, that instills a lot of ownership and requires a lot of time and energy.

That being said, those guys make their own changes and add insight to the end product that elevates the songs in a way that completes our sound. They definitely help me edit myself down too—sometimes I have a hard time letting go of something I might otherwise keep to my detriment.

They keep me in check.

What tend to be the best songs in your opinion – those where you had a lot in common as a band or those where you had more differences? What happens when another musician take you outside of your comfort zone?

It’s rare that we don’t come to a place that we all agree is working. Especially these days—we don’t take things as seriously, and that’s diminished our egos.

That being said, there are times when something really doesn’t feel like it’s working for me since I wrote it and have a case of demo-itus. “Polly Jean” off the latest record is an example of that.



The feel and dynamics for a song like that are tricky. Things were sounding pretty good when we first started jamming it, but I had an idea to do something different with the drums—more of a disjointed tom thing than a more standard beat. When Kem settled on something, it was just too sparse for me and not really matching the idea I had in my head. It’s one of the few songs on the record we had an argument about actually. It felt weird that it kept going through the chorus too, but he was confident about it, so I surrendered and went with it.

There was a lot of doubt about it by everyone else until we were all the way through to the point of mixing it. But Andy our producer worked some magic and made it work, now it’s one of my favorite parts of the record.

What are your thoughts on the need for compromise vs standing by one's convictions? How did you resolve potential disagreements?

If I believe strongly in something I’ve written, I’ll lobby for it. Once in a while it’s non-negotiable for me, but that’s pretty rare these days. These guys are great musicians, have good ears, and they should have buy-in as well.

As far as disagreements, usually when Kem does something I don’t like, I just wait until he forgets about it and never bring it up again, haha.

Do any of the band's members also have solo projects? If so, how do these feeds into the band's creative process?

No, but Steve plays in a metal band called Kavalkade …



... and I’m in the process of starting a side project with a few other guys I’ve never played with before to try something different. I already wrote 4 or 5 songs for it. I don’t really think there’s a need for me to start a solo project.

At this point, if the other guys didn’t want to do it any longer, I’d probably just keep putting things out as this band. I write what I write, and it wouldn’t be much of a departure.

In a live situation, decisions between band members often work without words. From your experience and the performances of your current tour, what does this process feel like and how does it work?

We haven’t been playing live but want to get back to it.

Usually we’re pretty prepared and only have rehearsed the songs we’re going to play, and already have a set order written, so there isn’t much to decide on.

How has the interaction within the group changed over the years? How do you keep things surprising, playful and inspiring?

Now that we’re passing files back and forth for the new record we are in the process of recording, I think that’s brought a new energy and an additional sense of ownership to the other guys.

Plus I have a better space and setup to write and record demos, plus a little more time on my hands than in the past, so I feel like the new stuff is going to be our best, most cohesive material we’ve ever recorded.

Have you worked with outside contributors - from sessions musicians via producers to other songwriters? How did this change, improve or challenge the established dynamic and how do you look back on that?

When we worked with J Robbins on Just Enough Bright, he definitely added some cool ideas that wouldn’t be there otherwise.



On the latest record, Andy spent a lot of time on it, is a perfectionist, and an amazing musician. I think he probably added a lot more to things at the end of the day than any of our previous stuff.

But we’ve never worked with session musicians or an outside songwriter to flip things on their head. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do for us.

Most bands eventually break up. What makes you stay together? What are essentials for a successful band?

Well, we’ve already broken up, twice. The bottom line is playing in a band is hard, and gelling with new people is hard.

I’m the instigator of momentum, but I have definitely learned not to push to hard or it’ll just stop, and I want to keep doing this. I had a few different guys in the band for a while and it just wasn’t the same. They know who we are, and are on board with what we are trying to do.

Plus, these guys are my friends, my brothers really, and I think it gives us a chance to get together once in a while, hang out, give each other shit, and gets them off their couches or whatever! They are great players and I think it’s a waste of their talents if they aren’t playing at all.