From the shows and fans to nationwide fame, one can assume that the life of a rock star is easy. For Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche, these things are definitely enjoyed, but not always enough for the life of a musician. Instead, the life is busy and frantic, but full of growth and self-fulfillment. Kotche’s new solo album, “Mobile,” is a testament to one man’s pursuit of making the best of his talents and the opportunity to find new ways in which to express ideas and emotions. Pulse had a chance to talk with Kotche about his solo aspirations and Wilco, which recently got invited to perform at rock festival Lollapalooza.

Chris English: What has it been like being on tour and getting to see America?

Glenn Kotche: It’s a blast. You don’t really get to see a ton because we are usually in a city for just an afternoon or something. But after touring for years, coming back to the same cities, you get a better feel.

CE: Have you had a good response toward your new solo album compared to what people have heard through your work with Wilco?

GK: They’ve been really receptive so far, actually. I think it’s just because most people haven’t seen a solo percussionist before, so I think there’s enough different interesting sounds for them to grasp on to. It seems like the shows I’ve been lucky enough to play so far have been where the audience has been mainly good music fans, so they typically have a more open mind.

CE: When you perform a solo album live, is the live setting pulled off?

GK: It’s all solo. I have a drum kit and some melodic percussion instruments. I use backing tracks on like one or two songs. There’s a few songs that were written for solo drum kit and solo vibes and stuff, so that’s really easy to pull off live and some of the other things I just had to learn how to pull off live.

CE: What were some of your inspirations when you wrote “Mobile?”

GK: Um, gosh, there were quite a few actually. Basically I make solo records to kind of explore different rhythmic ideas and questions that I have. There were a few dealing with like negative rhythm, just the interchangeability of a few simple ingredients. The liner notes are pretty intensive, they go through tune by tune what the inspiration for each of them was. Originally I just had some ideas I wanted to explore and was writing different compositions. They weren’t really things I could do solo drum kit for so a lot of them I wrote for ensembles and then ended up recording them all myself. I use a lot of different instruments from the percussion family: vibraphone, hammered dulcimer, djembe, almglocken, drums, cymbals – you know, all the normal stuff but a lot of unusual melodic percussion, too.

CE: What educational background do you have as a musician?

GK: I’ve been playing in a rock back since I was a little kid since like junior high, but I also have a degree in percussion from the University of Kentucky. So I’ve done drum corps, orchestra, rock bands my whole life – all that kind of stuff. I went to school for it all and I learned all those instruments so I’ve kinda been away from it long enough now where I’m kind of excited about writing for it and performing that kind of music again.

CE: So would you say that this has been sort of a refresher course for you?

GK: I don’t know. The stuff that I’m writing are definitely some things that I haven’t done before. That’s why I’m writing them. So I wouldn’t say it’s so much of a refresher, but a learning experience for me.

CE: Is that what ultimately drove you to do a solo record?

GK: Yeah, totally. A musician grows. I see my composing as an extension of my drumming. And you know, it deals with rhythm, chiefly. I don’t write to make pretty melodies or anything like that. I write from a rhythmic basis. That’s the origin of every piece, as sort of a rhythmic exploration.

CE: Do you have any specific flow to your writing process on the solo project compared to writing with Wilco?

GK: Yeah, well, for this particular record. My first two records were done more improvised and kind of created in the studio. But this one, I was touring extensively with Wilco. I started writing it while we were actually doing the recording sessions for “A Ghost is Born” in New York and that’s why this one is composed. Also because it was stuff that was too difficult for me to just play solo, but also mainly because I was touring constantly so a lot of it was written down on the tour bus or in hotel rooms while I was touring with Wilco. That’s kind of how this record came about.

CE: Do you find yourself coming up with stuff randomly and having to write it down on napkins and other crazy stuff like that?

GK: (Laughs) Yes, unfortunately. Sometimes it’s not always worth writing down but I do it anywise. There’s a table in the buses and a lot of it’s done in a hotel room and on a computer, too.

CE: What’s the balance like between Wilco and a solo project?

GK: It’s perfect right now for me because I love playing in a rock band, I love playing in Wilco and I love collaborating with other musicians, so it’s an absolute blast being in Wilco. The stuff I deal with in the solo realm is just things that are a lot more personal for me. And like I said, it’s all rhythmic-based even though other elements of music do factor in – of course – like harmony and melody and all that. It’s just a nice balance for me and I think it allows me to be a better musician after I make a solo record. I’m thinking a lot more musically, and when I come to Wilco I think it helps me keep that frame of mind and play as a musician instead of trying to get a lot of cool licks and notes in on songs, you know, I already have an outlet for expressing that side of myself. And vice versa is true – when I’m working on a solo drum set piece, for instance, I’m forced to kind of think in an ensemble from my experiences in Wilco, where I know in every single song or every verse for every lyric what my role is.

CE: So would you say that the solo project has made you more of an internal player, as opposed to writing something under the pressure of what others might expect?

GK: That’s kind of always where I’ve come from; that’s definitely where Wilco comes from. Wilco has never made a record to try to hit a trend or try and be cool because it just doesn’t work. The intentions are wrong. That’s why we make records that we’re going to like, that we’re going to want to listen to in 10 years. That’s the only way. It may sound selfish, but that is the only way to make music with integrity, I feel, you know? I’m lucky enough to operate that way. I think people can see through ill intentions – if not now, then eventually. I don’t think we have a clue how to make music that’s going to be commercially huge. So we can only make music that we like and want to listen to.