Jimmy LaValle, the driving force behind The Album Leaf, tells Ben Sin why you won’t see him tweeting about his post-rock credentials

Jimmy LaValle says touring is gruelling work, but his Twitter account abounds with videos, pictures and anecdotes of him and the rest of The Album Leaf messing around all over Europe. One video features LaValle on the tour bus dressed as GI Joe villain Snake Eyes, while another video shows the other band members – guitarist Drew Andrews, keyboardist Matthew Resovich, drummer Tim Reece and bassist Gram LeBron – checking out what they describe as the “cleanest toilet seat in Germany.” There are also photos of the group pigging out at a Czech Republic diner and LaValle running around the streets of Switzerland sliding on the snow. Clearly, they’re having fun.

“Ok, touring is usually tiring but not this time,” LaValle concedes. “This time it’s great because it’s been so long since I’ve been on the road.” That long period he’s referring to is three years, roughly the time between The Album Leaf’s fourth album, Into the Blue Again, and their recent release A Chorus of Storytellers.

“It was the longest I’ve been inactive since I was 15,” says the San Diego native, who recorded The Album Leaf’s 1999 debut in his basement over a decade ago. The longer-than-expected hiatus was caused by two events: marriage and, in LaValle’s own words, “a massive case of writer’s block.”

That “massive” creative funk led to big changes. Up until then, LaValle was The Album Leaf. “I wrote, played, and recorded every part of the music myself alone,” he says. “That’s how the first four records were made.” But in order to break away from the mental block, he invited his longtime touring band mates into his studio to collaborate and record the music together. “It was surreal to be able to take a step back and look at the music as it was being created, to be able to hear feedback and fine-tune the music-making as it was happening.”

The collaborative process allowed LaValle to focus more on vocals, which is a bit ironic considering The Album Leaf is known for its mostly instrumental, dream-like, ethereal tunes that could easily double as a film score. “I think doing something different is needed,” says LaValle. “After making music for so long, trying something new can help keep the creativity and inspiration coming.”

And so The Album Leaf has returned to action as a different beast. The industry, according to LaValle, has changed too. “This is the first record I’ve put out when iTunes is really relevant,” he says. “I see that our shows are getting bigger than ever but our album sales are getting worse and worse. Meaning downloading, whether legally or illegally, is the way to go.”

Fortunately for LaValle, he’s tech-savvy and keen on keeping up with the internet, as evidenced by his frequently tweeting. “Social networks are great tools to connect with fans and spread our music,” he says. “But the thing is, you have to be up to date because the scene is ever-changing. MySpace was great in helping bands spread music years ago, but now it’s a pain in the ass because it’s just filled with spam. Twitter is the way to go currently, the short text allows us to talk to the fans in a back and forth manner.”

One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is LaValle’s vexation with his music being grouped with the post-rock genre. “Whatever you do, don’t call us post-rock,” he says with a laugh. “I mean, I guess it’s not so bad to be grouped into a label that’s so popular, but that’s just not our sound.” Instead, LaValle describes The Album Leaf’s sound by using a slew of adjectives: “Electronic, melodic, ambiance. That’s what The Album Leaf sounds like.”

The band are arriving in Hong Kong on the back of a mini Asian tour that includes several dates in Japan – and they’re excited. “We get the best reaction in Asia,” LaValle says. “Especially Japan. We’re bigger there than anywhere, even more so than in the US. Damn, that’s kinda sad.”

The Album Leaf play Grappa’s Cellar on April 7. Tickets from Grappa’s Cellar; 2521 2322.