Sam Robbins: The Introspective Journey of "The Real Thing"
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
SAM ROBBIN’S SO MUCH I STILL DON’T SEE is a deeply introspective album, a sonic and lyrical journey born from years of touring, personal reflection, and a profound connection to the human experience. With his latest single, "The Real Thing," Robbins offers a lighter, yet equally poignant, exploration of the existential themes woven throughout the record. Rooted in the open road and the small moments that reveal larger truths, Robbins's music is a testament to the power of observation and the beauty found in the everyday.
We chatted with Sam Robbins to dive into the inspiration behind "The Real Thing," the influence of stoic philosophy and 70s singer-songwriters on his work, and the transformative impact of his work with veterans through Music Therapy Retreats. Recorded in an old church in Springfield, MA, the album's warm, intimate soundscape reflects Robbins's desire to capture the "between-ness" of human emotions, a space where joy and melancholy coexist. As he shares his experiences from years of touring and his recent return to the Boston area, Robbins reveals the heart of his music: a celebration of human connection and the quiet moments that shape our understanding of the world.
LUNA: Your new single “The Real Thing” is described as a lighter take on some of the deeper existential themes in your album. Can you talk about the inspiration behind this song and how it fits into the larger narrative of the record?
ROBBINS: Yes! “The Real Thing” is a fun song for me… it was a song that came to me while I was driving away from a certain US city, after a long time on the road. The sort of bounce in the groove reminds me of the feeling from driving...
I had been getting ready to record this album, and had started to see the identity of the album take shape. It’s an uplifting album, but most of the voice of the project is through softer, fingerstyle arrangements. I wanted a bouncy one!
LUNA: You’ve spent years touring across the U.S., covering 45,000 miles annually. How has life on the road shaped your songwriting and perspective on the world?
ROBBINS: Being on the road as much as I have been in the past few years has really helped me feel a lot more grounded, actually. It’s so scary and dark on the internet – we’re all experiencing life so digitally these days, and being on the road and able to physically GO to other places, see and meet people from other cultures and areas of the world has been such a blessing to me.
I really believe that most people are truly decent and just trying to get by. It’s so easy to get scared by the way we see the world, and the way the world is shaped for us, through the lens of being online. I think this really shines through on the album!
LUNA: Your album So Much I Still Don’t See was recorded in an old church in Springfield, MA. How did that setting influence the sonic feel of the record?
ROBBINS: It was a huge part of the sound… I haven’t always loved recording, and I think it’s because the spaces can sometimes feel, and sound, a little sterile. You’re sitting there in an unnatural setting from where you’re used to playing the songs, singing to a microphone, while hearing yourself and trying to get “the perfect take”. It’s hard!!
For some reason, the space at Ghost Hit Studios really allowed me to ease into the recording process… there was a warmth and woodiness in the space, and while it was big, it wasn’t imposing – it was welcoming!
LUNA: You credit James Taylor, Jim Croce, and Harry Chapin as influences on your songwriting and sound. How did their music help shape this album?
ROBBINS: What I love about the singer songwriters from that area is that their songwriting isn’t “happy” or “sad”, if that makes sense. There’s melancholy there, but it isn’t DARK. Those writers that you mentioned capture the in-between feelings so well, and their lyrics and voices are so plainly written and sung. I love the rawness of it all, without being too far in either direction of happy or sad… I tried to capture that between-ness in the songs on So Much I Still Don’t See.
LUNA: Much of your writing is centered around small moments that carry big meaning, whether it’s a pile of gravel in Piles of Sand or the suburban lights in The Real Thing. What draws you to these everyday details when crafting a song?
ROBBINS: I feel like part of the job of being a songwriter is “keeping the antenna up”. When I can, I try to just be present and try to notice the little things around me… to me, that is a much easier starting place for a song rather than looking at the “big idea”. That’s so overwhelming!! The big idea is held inside the little moments, or at least I think so. And that kind of intricate lyricism is what I love about the singer songwriters from the 1970’s too! You can really put yourself in the shoes of the singer when they dive in with these details.
LUNA: In addition to your solo career, you work with Music Therapy Retreats, helping veterans turn their stories into songs. How has that experience influenced your approach to storytelling in your own music?
ROBBINS: Oh man, it’s my favorite thing that I get to do in music. So much of my new album is rooted in positivity, and the belief that people are decent in this world. So much of that has come from my work writing with veterans. It’s given me a much deeper appreciation for… people, as cliché as it sounds!
The veterans I’ve written with have gone through things that are far, far beyond my understanding. Usually, we’ve come from very different backgrounds and have very different political beliefs.
But when we’re with each other, talking and writing the song together, it’s like we’re best friends. It’s just the most amazing thing to watch the power of music work so fully and completely, and right in front of me. I’m so grateful for the experiences I’ve had writing with these men and women, and it’s really dripped down through my entire songwriting and honestly, life experience.
LUNA: Stoic philosophy, particularly Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations, played a role in shaping this album. What lessons from stoicism resonated most with you, and how did they find their way into your lyrics?
ROBBINS: This was a very indirect influence that I didn’t really realize until I had compiled the ten songs that I wanted to record! I had been reading Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations, essentially the Roman emperor’s diary, where he describes his application of stoic philosophy very clearly and beautifully.
The general sense of accepting the passage of time that I found in the book was very inspiring and comforting. There were writings in the book that were essentially: “are you sad when leaves turn dark and fall? Then you should be no more sad at your own aging.” The sense of connection to nature written so plainly was very inspiring, and honestly very calming as I see myself, my parents and my friends' age. It’s a great way to try to RELAX!
This thread is very clear in many of the songs… most notably “The Real Thing”, “Piles of Sand”, “All So Important” and more. “All So Important” is essentially a tribute to the writings in this book – the chorus is sarcastically repeating “It’s all so, all so important”, which is an essential idea in Marcus Aurelius’s writing. Nothing is THAT important. Our time here is very short, and will be gone away with the wind soon!
LUNA: Your guitar work on “The Real Thing” pays tribute to Chet Atkins, blending classic fingerstyle techniques with a modern twist. How did you develop your signature playing style?
ROBBINS: I’ve always loved Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel and Richard Smith, etc. – great fingerstyle instrumentalists. But I’ve also always loved more songwriter-style finger pickers. Writers like James Taylor, Don Mclean, Jason Mraz. I think I will try to blend some of these styles. I’m obviously a singer songwriter, but I try to bring in some of that energy and arranging style that Chet Atkins or Tommy Emmanuel might bring, and I try to layer it in with my own songs!
LUNA: After five years in Nashville, you recently moved back to the Boston area. What prompted that decision, and how has it affected your music?
ROBBINS: My time in Nashville was a very interesting ride! I learned so much from my years there, from when I first moved just after college to where I am now. I definitely learned what I am not as a songwriter and artist! I kept finding myself drawn to the geography of the northeast… I think I learned that I’m a little more of a country boy than I thought, just a northeastern one! I really missed riding my bike by the water, or driving through the mountains, and experiencing the seasons… There is such a part of me that is so rooted up in the northeast, I had to come back.
Honestly, I feel much more relaxed. There is less of the constant music industry hum around me in the northeast, which I think is a great thing for writing and recording, which I think shone through on So Much I Still Don’t See.
LUNA: What do you hope listeners take away from this project?
ROBBINS: I hope listeners can relax with So Much I Still Don’t See. Me and the producer, Seth Glier, both worked hard to really create a sonic and lyrical landscape that carries through the entire project. There is a meditative aspect of the songs to me, and I hope that that energy shines through throughout the whole album to the listener!
