Athens,Georgia'sDead Confederatefinish off 2010 and start the New Year with a localized tour of their home state before heading off to Germany for dates withThe Whigs. As far as New Year's resolutions go, however, the band's already sorted.
"I'm not satisfied being in a mope-y quasi grunge band,"singer Hardy Morris declares to Spinner."I want to make music that isn't just in a certain genre. I don't get excited if it's the same song after song after song."
Far from quasi, though somewhat mope-y and grungy in a great way, the quintet's summer-released 'Sugar' certainly stepped away from their debut 'Wrecking Ball's' deliciously dark, churning meditations.
"We reached the decision that we did not want to make the same record twice. We want to keep people on their toes and keep ourselves on our toes. I guess, the biggest example would be 'Run From The Gun',"Morris recalls of recording the record's wistful anti-war epic."We had to approach it a lot differently. Everybody in the band liked the song, but we wondered, 'How are we going to play this? What's everybody going to play?' We're used to banging away with a bunch of distortion. We stripped it down and I played it on the acoustic first. We added layers to it; we went round and around with it, tried it a few different ways. That song, I'm sure is furthest away from anything on the last record, but it's also got the most reaction."
When it comes to artistic and career role models, it's no big surprise that the noise rockers holdSonic Youthin high regard."It's their fearlessness and being true to themselves. I feel like the bands that I really value have never compromised in their careers. We'll continue to do what makes us happy and hope that translates to people. Then, at least you tired. I'd feel far worse if I was compromising and got bad results. At least, if I do what I want to do and get bad results then who cares, you know."
Far from quasi, though somewhat mope-y and grungy (in a great way), the quintet's sophomore effort, 'Sugar,' certainly stepped away from the deliciously dark, churning meditations heard on 2008's 'Wrecking Ball.'
"We reached the decision that we did not want to make the same record twice. We want to keep people on their toes, and keep ourselves on our toes. The biggest example would be 'Run From the Gun,'"says Morris of recording the album's wistful anti-war epic.
"We had to approach it a lot differently. Everybody in the band liked the song, but we wondered, 'How are we going to play this? What's everybody going to play?' We're used to banging away with a bunch of distortion. We stripped it down and I played it on the acoustic {guitar} first. We added layers to it; we went round and around with it, tried it a few different ways. That song, I'm sure is furthest away from anything on the last record, but it's also got the most reaction."
Watch Dead Confederate's Video for 'Giving It All Away' Ft. J. Mascis
When it comes to artistic and career role models, the noise rockers have a few stalwarts they hold in high regard, includingDinosaur Jr.frontmanJ Mascis(who lends a hand on 'Giving It All Away,' featured on Dead Confederate's new album) and, no surprise,Sonic Youth.
"It's their fearlessness and being true to themselves,"Morris says ofThurston Mooreand the gang."I feel like the bands that I really value have never compromised in their careers. We'll continue to do what makes us happy and hope that translates to people. Then, at least you tired. I'd feel far worse if I was compromising and got bad results. At least, if I do what I want to do and get bad results then who cares, you know?"
Afterannouncinga string of reunion shows late summer 2011, British pop bandPulpare seemingly hard at work preparing for the dates. The band sent a message to fans Saturday (Jan. 1), on their official mailing list thanking them for their interest in the three confirmed dates.
"We will not let you down,"the message says."The fact that so many of you have shown in interest is an inspiration– we knew it was a big part of OUR lives, it's exciting to know it's a big part of YOUR lives too. We have played the songs and the songs sound good. We can have fun together, get to know each other again. Christ, it's been too long– we'd almost forgotten what you look like. Don't ever let that happen again. Cross your heart?"
The band also added how they're anticipating the shows while using a line from the song 'Disco 2000,' from their 1995 album 'Different Class.'
"And so it grows...each day that passes brings us closer together. It's exciting isn't it? So much to say, so much to share. Is that a new haircut? You know what? Let's cut to the chase– at the risk of being corny: let's all meet up in the Year Two Thousand -& eleven. Promise? We do if you do."
The band will perform at Barcelona's Primavera Sound Festival on May 25 before playing the Isle Of Wight Festival on June 10 and London's Wireless Festival on July 1. No other dates have been announced. The shows mark the band's first live performances since Dec. 14, 2002.
Pulp released its last studio album, 'We Love Life,' in 2001 with deluxe reissues of 'His 'n' Hers,' 'Different Class' and 'This Is Hardcore' released in 2006.
It's not exactlyBeyonce's 'Single Ladies,' butTitle Tracks' 'Steady Love' takes a look at single girls who are looking (and looking and looking ...) for love."It's about all these female friends I had who really inexplicably didn't have anybody and had been single for a long time,"Title Tracks singer and guitarist John Davis tells Spinner.
It seems that the odds were stacked against his girl friends, though."It was so strange but D.C., I guess, is one of these weird towns where there aren't many single men, or desirable single men,"the former Q and Not U drummer says of his hometown.
The peppy beat pop song, which is the lead single for Title Tracks' February-released debut album 'It Was Easy,' takes more than its style from the 1960s Brit invasion bands. The song's third-person perspective, says Davis, is reminiscent of theBeatles'She Loves You,' where the narrator is also talking to a friend about their situation.
"It's a little bit different from the songs on the rest of the album. It's like I'm talking to you, my friend, about you and this other person. I find that an interesting stance as a narrator in a song. More frequently songs are about I feel this way, I am upset, I love you. This is interesting to take the point like how 'She Loves You' is as this third person. For me, a lot of the songs I write, it's about just me or about me and you. But not about you guys!"
Davis is happy to report that the song's real-life inspirations have ended up in relationships, even if they haven't had a ring put on it:"Most of the people that were the subjects of that song have now found people who are developing into good things."
It may have taken North Carolina indie rock pioneersSuperchunknine long years between recordings, but it's not like band members have been idle in the time leading up to the recent release of 'Majesty Shredding' -- frontman Mac McCaughan and bassist Laura Ballance continue to help run Merge Records, the successful indie label they founded over two decades ago, guitarist Jim Wilbur has his own solo project and also plays with McCaughan inPortastatic, while drummer Jon Wurster moonlights as a radio comedian and also gets behind the kit with theMountain Goats.
With so much going on, it's no surprise it took the band nearly a decade to get around tomakinga new record, but the spirited 'Majesty Shredding' has been warmly welcomed by fans new and old alike. Spinner caught up with McCaughan as he wound down a banner year that included not only the comeback of his own band, but also saw his label release one of the biggest albums of 2010,Arcade Fire's 'The Suburbs.'
How does it feel to put out a new album almost a decade after your last release?
It feels good that people are actually listening to it and liking it. One of the reasons we made another record is that over the years we've been playing a few shows here and there, and at a certain point, if you're still playing shows, you want new songs to play. So it's also been awesome to have songs from the new record to pad into our set. And they seem to blend well with our old songs, so it's worked out really well.
Watch Superchunk's Video for 'Watery Hands'
The new album has that classic bouncy Superchunk sound but also sounds really fresh and current at the same time. Do you feel your sound has evolved in any specific way over the years?
Hopefully it's evolved, in the sense that you don't want to do the same thing over and over again. And I don't think our new record really sounds like any of our other records, though I think musically it's maybe more similar to some of our earlier records than the last couple things that we did. I think each record we make is a little bit of a reaction to the one we made before.
The last album we made, 'Here's to Shutting Up', and the one before that, 'Come Pick Me Up', were both maybe on the poppier side, and we were doing more with strings and horns and more complicated arrangements. But I think this time around we were ready to kind of strip it down a little bit. I mean, it's not as stripped-down as our first few records -- there's certainly a bit more going on -- but I think that it's just a little bit more direct than the last couple records we made.
Was there a deliberate move to try something new?
It was -- and it was both deliberate and also logistical. In other words, the last couple albums we made, it was all four of us writing songs together over the course of weeks and months all together in a room. And when you're writing that way, you can kind of work over ideas endlessly, the four of you, and find all kinds of stuff. And that's good, but it also means you can end up with some pretty wacky ideas that are maybe hard to pull off live, but work great in the studio.
No one had the time to write that way this time -- Jon was living in New York, and everybody's been really busy, so this time around, it was more like me writing the songs, making demos and sending them around, which is kind of the way that we used to do it. Writing them by myself on acoustic or electric guitar means that they're just naturally going to be a little bit more straightforward.
But as far as it being deliberate, we wanted some new songs to play live -- songs that would be really fun to play, songs that we could just plug in and play and not worry about, 'Oh, do we have this keyboard?' or 'Do we have to play this other part?', so it was both deliberate and also just a function of where everybody's at in terms of how we could write songs.
Watch This Exclusive Spinner Interview With Mac McCaughan About 'Majesty Shredding'
Superchunk is also touring again for the first time in years. How has it been being back on the road?
It's been good! One of our goals in both making the record and touring after it came out was that nobody has to do this -- it's not our main job anymore, so let's do it in a way that's fun for everybody and is not going to drive us crazy. We've kept the runs of dates pretty short, which is different than it used to be. But it's also just so you're not away from home as long, and it just kind of works for what everybody wants to do now. But the shows have been really fun -- the crowds have been great, and the reaction to the new songs has been really good, so it's been awesome.
Now that Superchunk is a going concern again, do you think it will be tricky juggling your duties at Merge with being in the band?
I don't think that Superchunk is ever going to be in the mode where we're touring for five or six months in the year like we were at one point, so the balance is always going to tilt towards Merge. But it's really fun to be able to be somewhat active like we have been lately.
Merge Records celebrated its 20th anniversary last year, what has it meant to you, knowing the label's done so well in an industry not always known for longevity?
It's kind of crazy -- in some ways, it makes you feel old, knowing it has been that long {laughs}. We did a book about Merge called 'Our Noise', going through all the photos and flyers and all that stuff ... That book was really great, but it's definitely like, wow -- looking at yourself at 19, seeing how different everybody looks, can definitely make you feel your age, you know? But it's awesome.
For us, it's really satisfying that we get to work with a lot of artists we first started out with, like Lambchop and Polvo, as well as working with new bands. To me, frankly, Arcade Fire still seems like a new band to us, even though they've been on the label for six years at this point. So the whole journey has been really great.
Watch This Merge Records Retrospective
What's it been like for Merge to have had a hand in the incredible success of Arcade Fire, and the release of 'The Suburbs' this year?
It's been awesome. Really, for a band that's out there as much as the Arcade Fire is, they're doing so much hard work touring and supporting their record that a lot of their success can be pinned on the band. They really bust their ass to get the word out there about the music and to play their music all over the world. There are a lot of people that want them all the time -- that's not an easy thing to face every time you put out a record, to have it be the most anticipated record of whatever year it's coming out. I mean, that's a lot of weight, you know? But they seem to handle it really well -- they're a special group.
And it's that time of year again, when everyone's counting down their favourite albums of the year. Were there any records that really stood out for you?
I'm in the midst of making a list, actually ... For me, {Broken Social Scene's} 'Forgiveness Rock Record' is one of the albums Ilistened toa lot this year. I really like the new album by Parting Gifts -- it's the side project of Greg Cartwright, who's in Reigning Sound. I really like theWild Nothingalbum, the newEdwyn Collinsrecord, and theNew Pornographersrecord is one of my favourites of the year.
When I think about the records that are my favourites, I can't really mention the Merge records, which are the ones I've actually listened to the most. But if I start naming two or three, I'll forget all the other records we put out {laughs}. I can't start playing favourites, because I really do love them all. So those are some of the non-Merge releases that I've listened to and loved this year.
Growing up is tough to do when you're in a rock 'n' roll band, asCage the Elephantfound out. The Bowling Green, Ky., band's 2009 debut has sold an impressive 400,000 copies in the States alone, but on their sophomore set, 'Thank You, Happy Birthday,' they don't necessarily take time to reflect on their recent success. If anything, it's quite the opposite.
"After really trying to control everything in my life, it just unraveled before my eyes,"Cage lead singer Matt Shultz tells Spinner."I had a huge hypocrisy in my own world. A lot of the songs are written about that, discovering that."
As previously noted, 'Thank You, Happy Birthday' takes on a host of influential '80s and '90s rock influences, from theButthole Surfers, thePixiesandPavement, and was actually recorded before US audiences became widely familiar with the group. They spent a long time in England, penning songs before returning stateside, only to scrap everything from those lengthy sessions."We were close to band suicide,"Shultz says."We were all ready to drink the Kool-Aid at once, together."
Those itching for some new Cage got a taste this past November when the stuttery, 'Shake Me Down' was released. But it's the bass driven, Weezer-inspired song 'Aberdeen' that Shultz says works as a great indication of the band's more grown-up sound."I had this personal revelation,"he says.""I'd continue to see myself go back to the same thing that enslaved my life; over and over, putting my hands in the fire, even after I realized what I was doing to myself and the people around me."
'Thank You, Happy Birthday' is due out Jan. 11 on Jive.
Cage the Elephant Perform 'Tiny Little Robots' in Our Studios
Matthew Adam Hart was all set to release 'The Weight's on the Wheels,' his fourth album under the nameRussian Futurists, when he opted to scrap everything and start from scratch. Having self-produced his previous three full-lengths, the Canadian singer, songwriter and sampler wrangler decided his latest batch of wordy, down-and-dirty electro-pop jams could use some cleaning up. For this, Hart enlisted Michael Musmanno, a producer whose work withOutkast,Arrested DevelopmentandLilysmade him an attractive potential collaborator.
"It definitely wasn't something I ever thought I would be into or open to at all,"Hart tells Spinner."It was a combination of a good idea and someone I really liked. I had done my version {of 'The Weight's on the Wheels'} and I thought it was great. That was the version I was committed to putting out, but I rethought things. I'm not someone who changes the formula that much from album to album, but I thought maybe I could challenge myself a bit in the way it sounds, at least, and make it different from that end. As soon as it started rolling, it took on a life of its own. I was into it right away."
Released last month,"The Weight's on the Wheels"is a sing-songy synth-pop album with a shiny '90s R&B feel. It's the glossiest Futurists album yet, and Hart is so pleased with the results that he plans on working with outside producers from here on out.
"I'm way more open to it now,"he says."I'm considering the stuff I do at home now a bit more of a demo. I think I'll always from this point on be working with someone else. It's good to ask for help. The earlier stuff, I stand behind it. I like it, but some of it can be a really hard listen."
Hart refers to the production aesthetic of his earlier albums as"lo-fi, but not on purpose."Thanks to Musmanno, he says, nothing has been lost in the mix.
"I like the clarity of the newer production, the way you can still make something really full of lots of intricate sounds, but people can actually hear them,"Hart says.
Even if Hart shares production credits on future Futurists albums, he likely won't justify his plural moniker by welcoming other songwriters into the fold.
"I'm really interested in the idea of writing for other people,"Hart says."But that's the one thing I do have a singular focus on: the songwriting process. I really like doing it by myself, because I just feel like if there are too many cooks in the kitchen, it can water down an idea. Some bands are great at doing it. There's obviously a chemistry they have. But that end of it is going to remain the same."
Russian Futurists Performs 'Register My Firearms? No Way!'
