1 of 2

The duo hails from the tiny town of Barnesville, Ohio. Karin Bergquist has an unfathomably beautiful voice and stunning range. Linford Detweiler is the son of a Protestant minister whose prolific songwriting is pensive and spirit-penetrating. Together, they make up the nucleus of Over the Rhine, which has been wowing critics and fans since its beginnings at a small Quaker college in Ohio. After a string of acclaimed albums (including Films for Radio and Good Dog Bad Dog), OTR returns with the double-disc Ohio (Back Porch/Virgin), its most adventurous and soul searching album to date. We asked Detweiler to talk more about Ohio and OTR's faith roots.

Karin Bergquist & Linford Detweiler

How did Ohio become a double album?

Linford Detweiler: We made a double album by accident. I wish we could take credit for coming up with this grand plan, but it was a bit more spontaneous. We had a lot of songs, and there was some talk of organizing them into two separate projects. But there was something about the songs once we got into them. We were having a hard time figuring out which 12 we would pull together for this record and which 10 to leave for a year and a half later. It was much more cohesive to leave as one body of work. Fortunately, we talked to our publisher and label, and they approved. There are a handful of double albums I can't have out of my record collection.

Like what?

Detweiler: The Beatles' "White Album," Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life, and The Rolling Stones' rough and tumble Exile on Main Street are seminal. I can appreciate the untamed nature of The Clash's London Calling, which became an important, historic recording. When we first started thinking about a double album, we laughed ourselves silly and thought it would be self-indulgent.

How have fans perceived it?

Detweiler: Our fans—the OTR community—embraced Ohio. It's fun. Some people really like Disc 2 a lot better because they feel they really connect with it immediately. Some people like the first disc and treat the second as bonus disc.

What are some of the record's primary themes?

Detweiler: I think there was some sense of coming home when we were recording. That's part of the reason we went with the title Ohio. Karen and I grew up there and met; there's a lot of Ohio in our roots. I think there's another theme in the record. There's something prayerful in a lot of the songs to me. Also, as we were recording Ohio, war against Iraq started, tanks rolled into Bethlehem and we watched with a sense of helplessness, watching the civilized world slide dangerously to an unknown quagmire. I'm not saying there were easy answers, but using force to solve problems seemed like a really dangerous message to send to the world. In some ways we were responding on the fly. There was a sense of "Whoa, we need some help."

How does Ohio match up to the rest of your catalogue?

Detweiler: Ohio helps glue the catalogue together. When you dump these 21 songs into the mix, it unifies itself as a recorded work. I think you can draw a line; Good Dog Bad Dog and Films for Radio all sort of point to this record in my opinion. Good Dog was a very honest, simple record that had an amazing life and is still a favorite. Ohio really feels good.

What role does faith play in Over the Rhine?

Detweiler: Spirituality plays an important role. There's no way we could do OTR music without having grown up in the church and without people trying to sort things out spiritually in their lives—trying to make some difference in the word. I refer to the record as Christ-haunted. To me, it conjures up an image of the presence of Christ being inescapable and turning up in different places—looking over your shoulder and being pursued by God. On the other hand, we don't have any interest in being a Christian rock band. We don't have an agenda and don't want to write to convert people to our beliefs. It's much more personal in nature. This character of Jesus always turns up. To me that's fascinating.

next page... |  1 of 2