Mason Jennings has plenty of reasons to be nervous. There's the new major label record deal, the impending major label debut and the increased attention those two factors are bound to attract. Jennings, however, seems anything but nervous.

"I'm pretty stoked about it," he said. "For me, it's important to keep doing what I'm doing."

If Jennings sounds like a cool and collected veteran, that's because he is: His self-titled debut came out in 1998 and it was followed by four more albums. These records were all self-released and distributed by indie label Bar None; the rollicking, lovely "Boneclouds," out May 16, is his first for Epic subsidiary label Glacial Pace. The major label possibility, he said, was unexpected.
"I've had a few offers over the past few years ... [but] I kind of just thought I was going to stay independent, until this came along," he said.

"This," specifically, was a ringing endorsement from Modest Mouse singer and songwriter Isaac Brock, who liked Jennings' raw approach to folky, country-tinged pop.

"I was completely blown away with Mason's incredibly sincere voice and lyrics," Brock said, in comments included with Jennings' press materials. "I can be a real shithead critic when it comes to music, so I have to tell you how nice it felt to instantly want to compliment, instead of criticize, the music."

This admiration won Jennings a slot on a Modest Mouse tour, followed by a chance to release a record on Brock's label, part of the Sony company (who themselves gave Brock's indie act a big break by signing them in 2000).

Brock likely not only appreciated Jennings' songs, but the work it took to reach his current level of success. Jennings formed his own label, Architect Records, and sold 100,000 copies of his first four albums (10,000 of his debut alone) with little outside promotion. He also scored a weekly gig at the 400 Bar, which kept him practicing for audiences who, in the early days, weren't always listening carefully.

Jennings said the chance to record for a major label was an exercise in expanding his approach. Recording "Boneclouds" was not only his first time with such a full band, but also his first time with a producer. Since his other records were self-produced, letting go took some to get used to.
"It was hard for me ... I'm pretty hands-on about the whole thing," he said.

When it did come time to choose a producer, he turned to Noah Georgeson, whose work with Joanna Newsom and Devendra Banhart he admired. He also enlisted Shepherd Fairey (whose images of Andre the Giant have become urban icons) to design the album cover. These two heroes, he said, could never have entered the picture on a minimal, indie-label budget. In fact, many things were different this time around.

"The process that was longer on this record was the experimentation," he said. However, the extra time did not provide unwanted pressure. "The scary part is when you have to expand it and you only have three days," he said, as opposed to the many months Jennings spent putting together "Boneclouds."

The resulting album takes Jennings' confessional folk sound and enlarges it. Leadoff single "Be Here Now" is a direct tribute to living in the moment and its sweet melody is surrounded by tambourines, a steady drumbeat and piano interludes.

Despite the larger canvas, Jennings said his writing process for "Boneclouds" was as casual as it has always been.

"I try not to put any real restrictions on [writing]," he said. "I try not to think about it too much or I'll mess it up."

Jennings hadn't heard Modest Mouse before Brock approached him to tour and was surprised to find they had musical styles in common, which Jennings calls a "lyrical overlap" in mixing beauty and violence.

He and Brock also got along swimmingly – the Modest Mouse frontman would often stop by the studio to offer a hand, but otherwise stayed out of the process. Before their tour, Jennings wasn't quite sure what to expect.

"I was scared they were going to be a pretty hostile crowd," he said, because of the two acts' differences in sound. "I thought it was going to be more of a punk scene."
Instead, Jennings found an appreciative audience and a chance to play for a larger crowd than he was used to.

Until the record's release, Jennings is on a whirlwind publicity tour, which includes in-store performances, radio interviews and all the usual promotional stops preceding a new album. After "Boneclouds" bows at stores on May 16, Jennings will begin a tour that will bring him to the Orpheum on June 24. In the meantime, he waits for the record to come out, feeling equal parts excitement and nervousness about his first major label experience.

"I wouldn't have been so ready for this five years ago," he said. "I'm stoked, though."

www.masonjennings.com