Over his career, James Vincent McMorrow has gradually relinquished more and more control over his music. His first record was recorded alone in a remote coastal studio north of Dublin, with McMorrow playing all instruments. From there, he moved on to a remote Texas studio for his next album, adding in a couple of collaborators. For the third and fourth albums he inserted a producer, and now on his latest he has moved from releasing the album independently to signing with a major record label.
McMorrow muses, “There’s this implication that you move to a major label because you’re sort of desperate for stardom, but I was happy with my base. If I’d been destined for that level of fame, I would have made different choices.”
Notably, in his early twenties, McMorrow was invited to audition for a major label, but he feels it wouldn’t have been the right move for him at that time.
“There are people I helped in the beginning of their careers who are now huge pop stars, and that’s amazing to see,” he says. “I’ve got friends who are gigantic superstars, but I’ve never wanted that. My brain wouldn’t have allowed for it.
James Vincent McMorrow took a year to prepare his newest album Grapefruit Season, only to have its release delayed another year due to the pandemic. Normally stubborn and opinionated about decisions related to his music, McMorrow saw the delay as a test. Was he going to adapt to the new normal?
After receiving the support he wanted to make his new record, he felt obliged to accept the labels decision on timing. McMorrow says “I think the label was expecting me to lose my mind, because I’m pretty belligerent and opinionated! They called me and I was like, ‘I understand.’ I moved to Columbia so I could make the album I’ve always wanted to make, and they supported my decisions. To turn around now and shove a release date down their throats just to be a jerk, would seem like I’ve learnt nothing from the past year.”
