Ty Segall, raised in Laguna Beach, became a leader of California’s garage rock scene in the 2010s, and demonstrated versatility as a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. His 2013 album Sleeper was an acoustic experiment in psychedelic folk. Now, at age 38, Segall is prolific. He’s out with his 16th album, Possession, which draws inspiration from the rock ‘n’ roll sounds of the 1970s as well as cinematic American storytelling.
He describes his workflow as similar to throwing paint at the wall: “You haven't painted in a while, your first couple paintings aren't very good, until you're like, ‘Oh, this is the style I want to stick with.’ And then you finish that group of paintings.”
“When you're done making the record, for me, I don't just keep going,” he adds. “I need a little time to react to it or something.”
Segall also shares that he never sought out to be a musician, attributing his career to luck.
“Now I'm addicted to it and I have goals,” he says. “But back in the day, I just was like, ‘This is fun. I just want to hang out with my friends and go play a show.’”
For the track “Fantastic Tomb,” Segall collaborated on the lyrics with filmmaker and longtime friend Matt Yoka. “He has a very great eye and brain for storytelling. I've known him forever. We met when we were 18. We're basically family. So it was a perfect collab.”
Another old friend of Segall’s, Mikal Cronin, arranged the strings for “Shoplifter.” Segall adds that most people he’s worked with, he’s known for a while. “I've got a handful of old, old friends that we all were the weirdos that started making music together.”
“Another California Song” pokes fun at the proliferation of songs about the Golden State, Segall explains. He lists “Vegetables” and “Wind Chimes” as among his favorite tracks by the Beach Boys.
In general, Segall says he listens to a lot of California music from the 1960s and 1970s. “The 70s studio sound, I think, is the golden era of analog recording,” he says.
However, the state has had a lot of challenges this year, first with the LA wildfires in January and the ICE raids this month. How has this affected Segall’s perception of his home?
“I love LA. LA is the best. I think everyone here has just been coming together, first with the fires and now the ICE raids, which, by the way, no ICE, obviously. No ICE for me, thanks.”