INTERVIEW: Jude Brothers Embarks on Their Dogwood Maiden Voyage
Jude Brothers has always insisted on being nothing more than themself, and inviting others to join them. In our interview, Brothers discussed their approach to their new album, Dogwood Maiden Voyage, and what it means to hold live music as a sacred space.
From hand-binding the very first edition of the Rainbow Rodeo zines (really!) to appearing in its pages, Jude Brothers has spent nearly a decade creating spaces for expression to thrive. Whether it's through DIY spaces or their expressive, expansive approach to traditional music, Brothers is an unstoppable force. Their coming album Dogwood Maiden Voyage, out tomorrow via Gar Hole Records, is a monument to Brothers' insistence on being perfectly themself – and inviting others to join them.
Explain your album's title, Dogwood Maiden Voyage.
The title of my album is “Dogwood Maiden Voyage” because even though it’s not my first album, my first rodeo, or my first anything- the last couple of years, every day has felt like my first day on earth. Or rather, my first day on big, open water- my maiden voyage, drifting deeper and deeper into the unknown. Dogwood was a secret name I held for myself for many years, an aspect of the self I’m still getting to know. I decided that this ship was made out of a living dogwood tree, and that is who helps steer the ship between worlds, both corporeal and immaterial.
Who is one of your biggest influences?
I think one of the biggest influences for me is Kate Bush. Sometimes when I feel bogged down, uninspired, or held captive by rigidity in my creative process, I watch old interviews of hers. The way she approaches exploring a wide array of stories, the confidence with which she disregards stuffy conventional expectations, the way she comes in and out of the ethereal, the way she engages sensuality- so much of the groundwork she laid is a blueprint for me.
In your mind, what's an example of a perfect song?
A perfect song that comes to mind is “This Town” by Bonnie Montgomery, off of her 2023 release River. It’s a great example of a song that is about something deeply personal to the writer, that manages to stay universal. It really accurately captures grief, heartache, and regrets- but from a place with perspective and a lightness to it. It feels like leaving a beloved, albeit complicated, hometown in the rearview mirror, while the sun shines on your face and the wind blows through your hair. It’s one of those country songs that makes you reckon with time in a practical, heart wrenching way.
What's one of your favorite shows that you've played?
I have many favorite shows. The first to come to mind though, was years ago in Albuquerque, when I was playing a different version of my solo music under the moniker “ppoacher ppoacher." I had the honor and pleasure of opening for the amazing Y La Bamba. I’ve been so inspired by their music, and that alone made this show really special.
Of course, their set was incredible- they played a bunch of my favorites from different albums. I laughed, I cried, I danced! But one of the most memorable moments was when Luz picked up their nylon string acoustic guitar to play a more sensitive/quiet solo song- I want to say it was “Ojos Del Sol.” They started, but the audience wouldn’t shut up! I stood in the back in disbelief that folks felt capable of just…yapping over such total beauty. Luz stopped and calmly addressed everyone, not scolding or fussing, just gracefully reminded them that what they were doing up there was vulnerable, difficult, and important, and that it warranted respect from the crowd. It was a foundational moment for me as a young artist, to see someone transform a room so powerfully- by being so real and vibrantly honest.
How do you feel your queer identity comes out through you're music?
I feel like queerness comes out in my music in that it has very much so expanded and challenged my views on what I thought I knew, and how I perceive the world. That perspective translates in my songs in various ways, and expands my capacity for variation and deviation. Being a gender fluid part-time woman, loving a very wide gender spectrum of people, certainly shapes my life, therefore also shapes my storytelling. Many years in, I’ve finally started to embrace the constant shapeshifting that plays out in all of that.
Dogwood Maiden Voyage will be out tomorrow, September 25th.
