Space Man

DEVENDRA BANHART GAVE his new album from Nonesuch Records the title Ma, and true to that word, the subject matter on the record is largely concerned with the ties that bind people to one another and to the world at large, be they maternal, spiritual, cultural or geographical.

However, Banhart says there was another, more specifically musical motivation behind his choosing that title.

“Right before we began recording, I was in Japan and I came across this word, , a philosophical term for essence, or space,” he explains. “The example for is an empty cup, and the essence of that cup is the empty space. So I began thinking about that in the context of music. The essence of the song is not just the notes but the space between those notes. And space is so hard to achieve musically for me. I just want to fill it up!”