Interview – The Mission In Motion
on November 16th, 2011The Mission In Motion get their ‘Control‘ tour underway tomorrow night in Brisbane at the Beetle Bar, then hit up The Hive on Saturday for an All Ages show. Next weekend it’s Sydney, followed by Melbourne and Adelaide in the coming weeks. The band are plugging their new single ‘Control’, which is available on iTunes now and will feature on their new album which is due out early 2012. Sean Degan recently caught up with Brett from the band for a chat about all their goings on since the release of their ‘Somewhere Safe‘ album, and what we can expect from the new album. The band have also given us a double pass to give away to each show on the tour. See below for the interview and competition details.
Can you fill us all in on what The Mission in Motion have been up to since the release of ‘Somewhere Safe?’
We have been mostly touring, we went out and did the album tour with our buddies Valencia then we did Big Day Out and the ‘Good Times, Killer Rhymes’ tour. We got to do ‘Like A Version’ for triple j and we toured with You Me At Six and We The Kings. So yeah, been super busy. I probably missed out a tour, oh yeah! We also went out on the ‘What Do You Do’ tour. Lots has been happening!
Are the any specific shows that have stood out on the last few tours you’ve done?
The Brisbane show on the YMAS tour was pretty crazy, I don’t think we were expecting the crowd size and we definitely weren’t anticipating the response we got that was a pretty amazing night.
You had to cancel your shows over in Japan with FYS and Set Your Goals cause they had to pull out of the tour. How was that for your guys and do you have any future plans to head there?
It sucked! It was hard on us, because we had already paid for flights etc. I mean, we pay for everything out of our own pockets, so 5 days before we are due to leave we find out it’s been cancelled. It was pretty rough. We definitely have plans to go to Japan, it’s the only place besides Australia where our records are in stores and we get messages from kids in Japan about coming over etc so we really want to go over. Personally its a place I’ve always wanted to go, so hopefully we can make that happen on this next record.
Your song ‘New Skin’ got a fair amount of air time on triple j. How was your reaction to hearing yourself on the radio. Do you feel it increased the bands fan base?
I think it has, it was pretty weird hearing the song when it was on high rotation and getting texts from friends every day. But it’s definitely raised the profile of the band which is something we are grateful for. It was also something we were never expecting so when it happened I think it gave everyone in the band a little more drive, like hey, people are actually paying attention.
You’re hoping to release your second full length early next year. Was it a decision all of you made to release an album so soon after ‘Somewhere Safe’, or did the writing “just happen” so to speak.
It’s not really a short amount of time, I mean ‘Somewhere Safe’ came out in July of 2010 and this record wont come out until early 2012. But in terms of writing we are always writing new stuff especially Far, our guitarist. We don’t designate time to sit down and go “hey we are gonna write for two weeks and then go straight into the studio”. The songs come naturally, you can’t really put inspiration into a schedule when song ideas come they are worked on and when we have enough to put an album out then we will. That’s how it will always be with us.
Out of the songs that you have written what made you chose ‘Control’ as the lead single? And what is the meaning of the song?
Out of all the songs we had written, and all the ideas, riffs and demo’s that had been thrown around ‘Control’ was the one we all instantly connected with and that’s how singles are chosen. We think it’s a really good representation of us as a band for someone hearing us for the first time. The song is about motivation and about having self control and ensuring that you have everything together in your life to be able to achieve the things you want.
On Somewhere Safe you had special guest appearances by Caitlin Harnett and Kenny Vasolli. Can we expect any special guests on the new album?
Ummmmm right now we haven’t really locked anybody in or even talked about it or approached anybody. There is one person in mind that I would love to have sing on the record because I have a part in mind for them. We won’t really put any guests on a record unless we have something we think that that person can add to the song. When we wrote ‘The Whole Truth’ we had all thought that Kenny would be perfect in that one section and when he came out he did it and the song with Caitlin was a song we had written together so if it’s something we think will be beneficial to a song then we will do it.
How far in to the album are you? Is there a title or tentative release date yet?
Right now we are about 8 songs down in terms of writing and about 5 songs in in terms of tracking. There is no confirmed release date yet but we are hoping to have it out by March at the latest.
Apart from releasing the new album, what are you guys planning / hope to achieve in the coming year?
I think in terms of expectations and achievements, we have gone well beyond anything we believed could happen to our band, so anything that happens from here on out is kinda just a bonus I guess. a lot of bands say shit like that, but with us we are honestly stunned when things like ‘Like A Version’ or the YMAS tour happen. We aren’t out there expecting things to happen, we just work our arses off and have thankfully been lucky enough to have some really good opportunities. As soon as the album is out we will be on tour for a long time. We’re not going to skip a single state, we are going to go out and play pretty much anywhere that will take us. This album is really going to be us throwing all our cards on the table and seeing what happens.
Do you or any of the guys have any pre show rituals?
I do but i don’t think anyone else really does besides have a few beers and just get everything organized. I’ll do ten minutes of vocal warm ups and drink some pineapple juice (cos it’s good for the throat) and kinda pace nervously like a weird arsehole until it’s time to go on.
What are you listening to at the moment? And what would you recommend readers to listen to?
At the moment I am listening to the new I Am The Avalanche record ‘Avalanche United’ which I think is a great record especially since I was really into The Movielife. Also the new Ryan Adams record ‘Ashes and Fire’ is getting a fairly big spin because he has always been a hero of mine in terms of music.
And finally is there anything else you’d like to add?
Thanks for your time Sean and thanks to anyone who took time out of their day to read this!
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THE MISSION IN MOTION
With guests STRANGERS
NOVEMBER
17th – Beetle Bar, Brisbane [18+] w/ Wherewolves, Goodnight Midnight. [Buy Tickets]
19th – The Hive, Brisbane [18+] w/ Call The Shots, Hey Denise. [Buy Tickets]
25th – Spectrum, Sydney [18+] w/ The Salvages, Divide & Conquer. [Buy Tickets]
27th – The Lair, Sydney [AA] w/ The Sweet Apes, Veroa, As Rockets Fall. [Buy Tickets]
DECEMBER
1st – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne [18+] w/ The Statics, While The City Sleeps, The City In Motion. [Buy Tickets]
2nd – Ed Castle, Adelaide [18+] w/ Mere Theory, All Year Round. [Buy Tickets]
—> Tickets on sale now.
—> For more information, visit [Here].
WANT TO WIN A TICKET? Thanks to the band, we have one double pass for each show to give away (be quick if you want to get in for this week’s Brisbane shows)
Simply e-mail competitions@bombshellzine.com with the subject TMIM Tickets. Include your full name and age (note the age restrictions on each show), as well as the show you would like to attend. If you are the winner for the show you’ve selected, we’ll be in touch with further details.
