TV Buddha

TV Buddha is a Chicago-based rock band known for using gritty guitar textures with a analog feeling. Their newest single, “You’ve Been Changed,” continues that sound while leaning into themes of growth and emotional shift. For this interview, I spoke with Johnson Rockstar (JR) and Eli Schmitt (ES) about how the song came together, what they used to record it, and how they build both their live shows and visual identity. Throughout the interview, I’ll be referring to them by their initials as they talk about their creative process.

Photo by Riley Natalova

1. Your latest single “You’ve Been Changed” just came out in February, what’s the story or inspiration behind that track?

JR": The original title of the track was “You’ve Been Changed (By Rock ‘n’ Roll)”. No one’s the same after Rock ‘n’ Roll.

2. Chicago has such a distinct music history, from post-punk to experimental rock. How does the city shape the way TV Buddha sounds?

JR: Chicago’s got mods, punks, rockers, glams, goths, poppers and toppers, and they’re all part of TV Buddha.

3. You’ve worked with a variety of musicians and collaborators, how does the creative process evolve from writing to recording?

JR: TV Buddha has always existed as a carousel of our friends providing their own interpretations of the songs. Sometimes those interpretations are codified in recordings. But the songs are always changing from person to person, whoever happens to be a bhikkhu at the time.

4. What gear, software, or recording spaces do you gravitate toward when you’re tracking new songs?

JR: We always record the basic rocknroll foundations to eight-track cassette on a Tascam 688. All the extra stuff is just the digital cherry on top.

Photo by Braeden Long

5. When you’re getting ready for a live show, what’s your approach to planning the performance itself, from setlist to atmosphere?

ES: One of the things we’ve been doing recently is bringing our own lights to shows. A lot of venues want to blanket you in blue and green light, and it just feel very undramatic. No one wants to be green and sickly. We bring two can lights wherever we go because warm lights just look the best on stage.

6. Live shows can either replicate a record or completely transform it. When you’re building a concert experience, what’s more important to you, precision or unpredictability?

ES: unpredictability for sure, we know by now that we’re never gonna be the tightest band in the world, the chaos is where you pull out those piece of silver and gold, in giving yourself over the song and trust the sonics you can arrive at something really immense. And it’s nice cause we’re not really the greatest musicians but a lot of our friends are, so we get a lot of help.

7. How does the band approach visual identity for shows like posters, merchandise or promotional art? Do you design these yourselves, work with local artists, or does it evolve organically

ES: We do everything ourselves! For us the images that surround a band are almost as important as the music. We’re very influenced by the cut and paste dreams of fanzines. Most of our collage work is super referential, stealing images from other zines or artworks or just stuff we see out in the world, it builds these really cool networks of ideas that I think add a beautiful meaning to the music we make. People think they can pull original and new ideas of their ass but true new work comes from artists who pull from the fringes and centers of their lives.

8. Are there upcoming projects, shows, or collaborations you’re excited to share?

ES: We’ve been working on a record for the last couple months and we’re almost done now, which feels great! It’s taken a long time cause so many of our friends are playing on it, but it’s really coming together now. It’s very orchestral, in an Elephant 6 way, but at the same time influenced by free and experimental music with saxophone freakout and electronic interlays. We’re feeling super proud of it.

9. What’s one thing you want people to know about TV Buddha that they might not get just from listening to the music?

ES: They may not know that the song “Hudson to China” was written after watching the infamous Turkish Star Wars movie Dünyayı Kurtaran Adam, featuring the music of Indiana Jones. The film is about the world’s greatest warriors who crash-land in a godless land of phantoms and femme fatales. It was an important moment for

From recording choices to show posters, it’s clear this band thinks intentionally about every layer of what TV Buddha puts out into the world. As they continue building momentum in Chicago’s rock scene, fans will have a chance to see it all come together live on March 5 at The Hideout. If “You’ve Been Changed” is a preview of what’s next, their upcoming show should be a strong reflection of where the band is headed.

-yomi