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 INTERVIEW :: MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK
Posted byBomber on Sunday, June 04 @ 22:51:10 CDT
Contributed by Bomber
Motion City Soundtrack have sat comfortably at the forefront of new-wave punk since the release of their acclaimed 2005 full-length, Commit This To Memory, with exceptional results. While the band’s
impressionable articulation of quirky hooks, imminent lyrics and soaring guitars continue to circle the globe, Motion City Soundtrack have convinced
many that a breath of fresh air has been damn near overdue. Since Motion City
Soundtrack blew into Australia, many have been left with
favourable echoes from that aforementioned album and it’s clear from reports
that the band have become one of the year’s most sought after live entities. Justine Cleghorn
spoke with Matt Taylor and Justin Pierre during on the band's recent Australian tour to discuss the
success of Commit This To Memory as
well as CD splits, movies, DVD's and ice-cream. Read More to check it out.
“We
got in today about noon,” Justin confirms. “We got
into Australia…was it three or four years
ago again? I can’t remember! What day is it today? Saturday?”
From Justin’s
haphazardly quick sense of humour and entrenched yearning for a good time, I
sensed early in the course of our interview that any serious objectives would
be thrown out the window. But that’s the infectious appeal that has made Motion
City Soundtrack instant winners with fans and punters alike. While the music is
good (real good) it’s not hard to
admire Motion City Soundtrack for their happy-go-lucky sense of purpose in what
they’re doing. It’s an ethic that streams from their succinct answers to my
dull, and at times, tedious questions and into their live shows that
reciprocate Motion City Soundtrack’s chance at being a band that refuses to be
driven by blinkered attitudes and copious amounts of earnestness. And this is
the added appeal that brought fans back this time round, as Justin explains.
“It’s amazing how when we first came out a few people knew who we were. When
you’re opening for a band, usually people aren’t there to see you. It’s cool,
you know, whether the kids come to see us or at least stay.”
Judging from the
responses to Commit This To Memory,
it’s become apparent that Motion City Soundtrack are the latest band to
determine for themselves the task at upheaving standard music plays and reviving
ears with a refreshing course of action that has partaken in a crucial step in
today’s music. But Commit This To Memory
also provided Motion City Soundtrack with a key opportunity to establish their
brand of sound without chaotic lineup changes.
When the band set forth on their
debut, I Am The Movie, Motion City
Soundtrack were left with the added stress of departing ways with their bass-player
then securing Matt for bass duties before the album’s release. Commit This To Memory was the chance for
Motion City Soundtrack to devise an album as a complete band. “I, personally,
was pretty much stress-free,” Matt admits. “For this album we just all got
together, each one of us contributed fairly equally but I wasn’t thinking any
certain way, you know. What we had on the record came out and it happened very
naturally - it was a very natural process.” Justin elaborates: “We’ve been a
band that lets things happen. This time we ventured a little outside of that
just to see what happened as well.”
As part of the successes that Motion City
Soundtrack have enjoyed with Commit This
To Memory, Matt and Justin shared an insight into the band’s plans to
release the album with a DVD. “There’s a live show we did in one of our own
hometowns and there’s a documentary about us,” Matt reveals. “I believe there’s
two ways you can watch it - one of which you can watch the documentary
interlaced with the shows and it includes every single video we’ve shot. So
there’s some extra fun stuff too.”
While
critics immediately championed Commit
This To Memory as a crisp awakening from the generic bedlam that is
continuing to swamp the music world, others chose to predict that it was either
make or break time for Motion City Soundtrack. I quizzed Matt and Justin about
this in order to determine whether such a scenario was ever visible and how
Motion City Soundtrack felt as a band to uphold such a pressure-filtered
expectation. Matt cleverly intervenes: “Some people would say that it depends
on your definition of ‘make or break’. To us, we’re making it because we’re
paying our bills. We’re not Number 1 on TRL but certain people have
expectations. We’re functioning and we’re doing what we love to do so we’re
making it.” Justin follows: “I think the best part is that we’re content. We
always see this as rad and anything on top of that is like ‘bonus!’ I think
that keeps us sane.” Matt furthers: “I know none of us like to think about the
future and having to meet some sort of expectation. We’re never gonna think
that way, you know, I can’t function like that when creating music and you
shouldn’t have stress hanging over your head like some office job - no
deadlines, just have fun.”
Fun
is one optimal motivator for Motion City Soundtrack and the opportunity to
feature on the upcoming soundtrack to John
Tucker Must Die was another one of those bonuses as Matt emphasises: “It’s
always a plus, you know.” And for those in audiences across the globe who may
not know who Motion City Soundtrack are? “I think there’s a few nerds like
myself that will stick around until the end. There’s this stupid example where
at the end of Fight Club they used a Pixies song and I waited until the end
just to see the name in the credits. It was weird!”
Together with soundtracks
and compilations, Motion City Soundtrack have also featured on a couple of
splits with noteworthy bands such as Matchbook Romance and Limbeck. “Limbeck
was a split we wanted to do because we’re really good friends with them and
their music and they like us too,” Matt discusses. “It’s good for bands to do
things like that.” So if you could choose any band to record a split with, who
would it be? Matt jumps in: “Led Zeppelin?!” Justin confirms: I think it would
be a lot of fun and the coolest thing ever to do a split with Ben Folds.”
That’s quite possible, considering Motion City Soundtrack have been documented
on MySpace as the most influential rock band in the history of the world? “I
doubt that very much!” Justin chuckles. “Oh that thing? That was kind of a
joke. That was a quote from a kid in like sixth grade. If you can’t tell we’re
pretty tongue-in-cheek. I think if anyone takes themselves too seriously they
should…eat more ice-cream?”
Interview By Justine
Cleghorn
"Commit This To Memory" Re-issued with bonus DVD available now through Epitaph / Shock.
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