It’s 4:15 and I’m on the train over to Drexel University, clutching an interview with one of the lead members of Cold Court–a college band that’s taken the Philly music scene by storm in less than a year. In the past six months, they’ve been on the same bills as They Are Gutting a Body of Water, Ovlov, and black midi. What’s catching the eyes of so many young listeners? It’s not just rising status, it’s Cold Court’s complete disregard for authority or filter.
It’s a quiet Friday afternoon on campus when I slip into the Center for Black Culture. I spot Jojo across the room, admiring pictures on the wall. They’re photographs of protests in the past years; they scream black pain, black power. He says he’s never noticed them before. I hadn’t either.
I usher him to a table in the corner of the room.
Dom: This is Dom Lopez interviewing Jojo…I don’t know your last name.
Jojo: Josyah Lavina-Maldonado is my full name.
Dom: Let’s just start small. What kind of music did you listen to growing up?
Jojo: Mini and I’s dad, he used to play–I mean we both grew up listening to a lot of hip-hop, for sure. RNB. And then, occasionally, he would throw on MCR or The Killers during long car rides. Or like, John Mayer.
Dom: So a little bit of everything?
Jojo: Yeah.
Dom: Sounds like your dad kinda pulled from newer scenes, too. He wasn’t a…a traditionalist?
Jojo: No, he definitely wasn’t. He was super on top of things in the music scene. He works in the media, so he kind of has to be. We were definitely lucky to have him play all that cool stuff for us.
Dom: And your mom?
Jojo: She was a big Evanescence fan, I remember growing up. She was mostly into a lot of RNB. Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, SWV. And newer artists too, like Jorja Smith.
Dom: So you have this wide music spectrum built up from your parents. What are you listening to today that’s influencing your music?
Jojo: I’ll read about new music coming out through Pitchfork and other music blogs. Recently, I’ve really liked the new Slauson Malone project, the Kara Jackson project. She’s great. Probably that Big Thief project from last year. Those three projects, I’ve kinda just gone in on. And I think the common denominator between those three artists is just the fact that they’re all great songwriters. Creatively, too. They’re super innovative, while still keeping to tradition in some way. Those three, they stick out to me.
Dom: What are they doing that’s putting them ahead of the curve?
Jojo: There’s definitely a sense of authenticity in their music. In the lyrics, in the poetry. There’s a kind of transparency. You can really feel what they’re trying to say. I mean like, Slauson Malone, he’s insane. He processes everything in such meticulous ways that he immerses you.
Dom: I agree with what you’re saying about authenticity. You really need to open up your heart and expose yourself, to be an artist.
Jojo: Yeah, exactly.
Dom: And I’ll see the timeline of some artists that I really liked, and there was this point where it feels like they sold out. And now they’re making music that isn’t emotionally cathartic, or has anything to do with them. They’re just trying to make a hit.
Jojo: Yeah.
Dom: If you’re that artist to begin with, I understand. Nicki Minaj is great at what she does.
Jojo: Totally. It’s super commodified and catered to a commercial audience. She has to sell herself short in some ways, to make that product. I love Nicki Minaj. But I can’t really listen to her anymore. I don’t feel it anymore. Not as much as I did in middle school.
Dom: What are other artists that you can’t feel anymore?
Jojo: Probably Kanye West.
Dom: Kanye West?
Jojo: That might’ve been the worst for me. I mean, for a number of reasons I don’t listen to him anymore.
Dom: Right. I feel like some older artists try to put out stuff, but it just doesn’t compare because they’re out of touch with the culture now. They’re just older people. Kind of isolated, which I feel is inevitable.
Jojo: That’s a good point. Just like our Dad, having an open mindedness to you can really go a long way. Being able to appreciate a wide range of genres over a wide span of time. I think it’s just being empathetic with artists.
A woman with beautiful braids walks up to our table. She tells us that the Center for Black Culture is closing at 4:30. We get up and take the stairs to the second floor.
Jojo and his little brother, Mini, come from the edges of New Jersey. Even though he’s a stone’s throw away from New York, Jojo decided to study Music production in Philly.
Not a bad idea.
In the past year, he and Mini have gathered a group of fellow students from the area, and they’ve been gigging ever since. Philly’s music scene has welcomed Cold Court with open arms. They’ve been a young and livid breath of fresh air, built on one thing: nonconformity. Cold Court’s sound bleeds over wildly written vamps, with lyrics that resemble streams of consciousness–deferring from traditional melody.
I lead Jojo to the end of a hallway. An empty space calls our name. Drexel’s very own non-denominational prayer room. We sit.
Dom: Your singing is not the conventional, melodic kind of singing. More like black midi, more like Slint, singing atonally. Is it easier to find lyrics that way, where you can just plug it in?
Jojo: With that, I don’t think it was intentional. Mini started out with the classic hardcore delivery, and then we toned it down with more intricate instrumentals that didn’t use as much distortion. It was kind of natural to use that delivery over those songs. I think that kind of delivery and approach to vocalization is a vehicle for weirder lyrics. You can get away with saying certain things.
Dom: Yeah, I really first heard that style in Slint. Where else have you heard that?
Jojo: The No Wave scene in New York. DNA, Mars. A newer band, Gilla band. I love those guys. That kind of stuff, for sure. Whatever feels and sounds the best to us is what we usually go with first. Recently, it’s just been straightforward like, working in this key, here are the changes. The riffs, it comes from that. Maybe a hook we have in mind.
Dom: It’s simpler than it sounds.
Jojo: Probably, yeah. What really gets those intriguing moments out is really just the improv in the rehearsal space. We just jam on an idea, and then maybe Jet would shift his beats over once, and then it’s weird syncopation. It’s just the improv we get out of playing together. That’s where I think the magic comes from.
Dom: I think The Beatles did that. So much stuff thrown back and forth. How long are your rehearsals usually?
Jojo: At least two hours. We can go for longer, sometimes shorter. Ideally, two hours.
Dom: We were at WKDU one time, and I overheard our friends talking about how a fan perceived you guys to be very similar to The Mars Volta. And one of them was implying that the fan just thought that because you were two kids with afros.
Jojo: Yeah.
Dom: And I know you guys support that, you’re huge Mars Volta fans. But that got me thinking, what if you guys had never heard of The Mars Volta? You have people out there trying to put you in a pocket of another sound just because you look similar, and there’s not a lot of people making music like this that look like you. Have you ever felt like you had to fit under some category to make it?
Jojo: That’s an interesting question. When we first started the band, Mini and I, what really seemed to work for us was our unadulterated, raw approach to music. Just approaching it with no f%#’s given. I really appreciate how people latch on to us. You would think to make some sort of mark in music, or in a scene, you’d have to conform in some way. But it really hasn’t seemed like that at all. Even now, with how many people we’ve been able to play in front of, we’ve never felt pressure to shape our sound a certain way.
Dom: Right.
Jojo: Mini and I grew up listening to The Mars Volta, so we can’t deny we don’t like them. We do feel like we don’t really sound like them as much, and we kinda wanna make our own voice, for sure.
Dom: Do you get that a lot?
Jojo: Yeah, we get it, like, a lot. People who come to our shows that say hi to us after, you know, “You guys sound like the Mars Volta”. Maybe I can hear it, a little bit, but I don’t think so, no.
Dom: Do you think there’s a sociological component happening, where it’s like, ‘I’m seeing another pair of afros here, and I’m hearing The Mars Volta.’ Do you think it’s like that?
Jojo: It might be, honestly. I’m flattered, but at the same time, we are trying to make a voice for ourselves. I think it’s a little silly to compare music, but it’s inevitable. Of course you’re gonna compare A to B. I think the moral of that story is if you’re trying to replicate something that’s already been done–I don’t know. Just making something original, and authentic, and true to yourself is what goes a long way.
Dom: What does your future sound look like?
Jojo: With Cold Court, we’re gonna maintain the approach of–we all listen to what we really like, and then we bring what we can to the band, and whatever comes of it will be the song. I think that approach is probably the best way to get the most honest image of ourselves. I wouldn’t be surprised if we made something completely different in the next few years, or even the next few months.
Dom: Any closing thoughts?
Jojo: I had never thought, up until two years ago, that I’d be in a band. Just keeping an open mind helped me figure things out. Chase your dreams.
After some fanboying over Daft Punk, Jojo and I head to Wawa for some food. We talk about movies.
It seems like Jojo has the attitude of someone truly connected to their craft–an emphasis on transparency over commodification, and a hunger for composing something new in today’s soundscape. That begins with an open ear, an open heart, and an open mind.
You can keep up with Cold Court on their Instagram.
You can read more of Dom Lopez’s work on his blog The Soundbank.
