Memphis

0:00Me and Chris and Jimmy Shaw Who's in metric now and selling when who's in stars with me? Mm-hmm. No, no, okay? We all moved to New York at the same time in the 90s we all started right We all were in a band together all of us together like that was sort of the first band Yeah, Luke's well that was what it was it first the first time it was called Paris Smith then It's called Luke's Chris divorces himself The Nate part of Luke's But then we also to one our separate ways but me and Chris always kept on writing, you know, so I Don't know it's been something we live in different cities, so we do it regularly, but where you mantra

0:49I'm in Vancouver a lot of the time. Oh really Montreal some New York. Yeah, so But now we're starting to do it more Yeah, cool Chris has more time and has made more time and You know, we've got a band that we like We've got great people working it other than the record label the people who are working great The booking agent and the publicity people. Yeah, well you don't even really need a record label anymore, you know I wish dude I think that's absolutely true and I you know I just was talking about it last night I don't think I would ever sign a Traditional record deal again, you know because it just doesn't make any sense anymore the only thing they're doing really that that You that you can't do yourself is manufacturing the albums and you could do that right anymore, so yeah

1:40Well, you could ostensibly but Yeah, you couldn't get a distribution deal with the MI and stuff like that, but now Nobody buys records. Yeah, and you could you could manufacture the ones that you saw the shows anyway totally I Wish I'd done that right off the bat in a way, but oh well 2020 right yeah, and still it's I mean It's it's good to get advances and support and all that shit I mean the infrastructure is you know really helpful to have for sure. How come it's not an arts and craftsman? Well, it's a complicated question I just I just assume why why is it not an arts and crafts bed I think basically because truth basically because we wanted money for it

2:26We didn't have any money to make the record the record wasn't made and course record the new one or the other one This record the last Memphis was made and we needed to Chris needed to take time off work to do it and travel to a different city to do it So we needed money to do it and we wanted to the record to sound a certain way and stuff and I think at that point You know like Amy's record and you know the young galaxy record those came to arts and crafts already done They didn't have to invest. Oh, okay. Are you on Amy's record? No, I'm not on it. No, but I think that was a big part of it was that we needed an advance so we ended up deciding not to even really look into it because this guy was offering us the money we needed you know and Plus he was a guy who I had worked with in the past and is a really nice guy. He's just

3:15Doesn't really have a shit together Justin I can't lie he doesn't he's a good guy, but he doesn't know we shit together But I think the next Memphis record will probably be on it. Oh cool. That's all cool. You already started working on it No, we haven't we're just we're just feeling cuz this isn't coming out in the States for another month Yeah, I was gonna talk about that dude at the plane show more shows with apostle and then we're doing hillside in the summer and stuff like that So nice jobs that you were going guys It's going really good. Yeah, it's going surprisingly well. Yeah, it's surprisingly well We're always surprised when things go well, you know, we're sort of strange people that way How long you been on the road for now a couple of weeks? Yeah, yeah, we went down the west coast of the States with a band called the postmarks who are in American

4:03Oh, they're cool girls, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, they're really good band and sweet people Well girls are is it just female singers? Yeah, no singer. Okay. It's actually the rest of them Yeah, there guys, but um so we did the troubadour in LA with them We did San Francisco with them and Seattle and Portland and now we're on the road with apostle hustle our favorite band Seriously, I mean they literally I like I listen to Andrews music at least three times a week all the time really life Yeah, yeah, I'm also stuff or broken socially impossible. I mean I you know broken. I think for all of us at this point It's kind of like listening to it is sort of like staring at yourself in the mirror on the year Yeah, you know, you look like somebody else Every song though, right? I'm not on any songs, but I've played in a lot of I've got some on a couple But I've played in a lot of shows and it's just a part of our long time. I mean, it's just like

4:52Ubiquitous nice, which is a good thing. Yeah, I like that word too Ubiquitous where was last time Ubiquitous was used on fuel 90.3. I mean we've been since Lars from Metallica came in Ubiquitous So I want you guys been together I don't give you no each other I've known each other like 14 14 years. Yeah, making music for 14 years or just friends before I Think we started making music fairly shortly after we met. Yeah, we took a break there for a few years after I left New York Of course stayed in New York. We didn't really write that much during that time But it was always just something we did as friends. It was it's always been a part of our life as our social life as two guys hanging out together we We just always wrote tunes together and play songs together and I

5:41It's hard to say when it started as a band because it really is more of a friendship than anything and I think for us It's still kind of a strange Period of time where we're trying to define what what what the band is and what the friendship is and and Now that we're more sort of in business together What this music really means because it was a very private thing. I think it's always just been summers, you know hanging out You know making music in an apartment somewhere. Yeah some some apartment that's usually not mine back. It's never mine Nice when you start recording then I mean I would think that when you when you sit when you talk about that kind of stuff It just be like you sitting around with the acoustic and you just start singing over it, you know riffing around Yeah, that's basically what happens, you know the wonders of home computers, right? I mean Chris has He works on reason and he just we can record very quickly and very easily

6:30You know our basic ideas and and even get quite sophisticated with it What tends to happen is we write them and then Chris takes them away and He'll play with them for months on end and put beats in and arrange them. Oh cool So is that most of stuff is most of the stuff on the record just you like musically? Do you have other guys come in and do it other guys come in but I'd say most of the ideas germinate with me That's cool. That's cool Chris is very much the architect of the music for sure Wow a Jimmy Shaw has been a big part of our music as well. He always has been he he mixed our first album Did he mix our first album? No, but he played on our first album and yeah, he's played on every album Eric hove the sax players. Yeah, I'm gonna be record. It's John. Hi John. Hi. Yeah I'm in a mine place that'll steal him. There's a little crew of guys that we exploit and then we take the credit for there

7:19Do they come on the note you guys or is it completely different group people? oddly enough John friend he plays pedal steel played two shows Portland in Seattle. He lives in Seattle So he came to me shows and then it's been sort of a roundhouse of Musicians that have come along on this tour Andrew Whiteland played a show with us in San Francisco and Daniel Handler who writes the Lemony Snicket books he played a show with us because he plays a accordion It's been a motley collection of people but they've all gone to court union come at him all of them all of them. Yeah He was like yeah, he was like Lee the accordion player for the entire show and he loved it none He's quite a showman. I can't know how you can be so I've never met. He's like hey everybody look at me That's an awesome dude. That's incredible. Yeah, it's been fun. What's what's next for you guys?

8:08I mean I know Calgary today it's a paul's gonna Saskatoon I assume you're going with we're going right clear to Winnipeg with those guys So we're doing Regina Saskatoon Winnipeg with them and Calgary tonight and And then we got a little two weeks off and then we play two shows in New York Yeah, I got a couple shows in New York and then we go Chicago Boston Philly All that kind of stuff with a puzzle back again in Joga after they do their Europe thing Yeah, and then we got the Hillside Festival in in July and well outside. Yeah, it's a great great festival. You played it before I Never have I'm looking forward to it. It's really beautiful stars did a couple years ago. It was awesome So we're doing that and we'll see what happens after that. There's a dude in Sweden who wants us to go Oh, yeah, I just have to find the time. Is it just a random fan or something? No, he's like he's actually a great promoter in Sweden

8:58Okay, cool. He's taken a liking to Memphis His myspace page has a has a computer like fix up image of him with a he's drawn his own Memphis t-shirt I Character writing actually but he said yes, but don't hurt me, but at least he wants to bring you there Right, he's a brilliant guy. No, I've worked with yes before he's the man I'm wondering how's it was working live because I mean Andrew and you've known each other for a while in is the live show kind of Are you guys playing each other songs kind of thing is he guessing on your tracks? Are you guys going playing with them? Or just kind of sticking your own kind of stuff? Well, he did a show with us I mean, I think the thing with a problem. Yeah, and I get up and do some harmonies with those guys I think with with those guys they're right in the midst of like

9:45Really trying to hone how they're gonna get around the world as it as a three piece, you know and That's a big project for them and and they're really focused on it So it's there are some tours where it's like you've already found your sound and so people can move easily in and out of that But I think for both bands actually on this tour We're both kind of in a similar place where we're we're just beginning to find our identity as a group of four people or three people or whatever and It can be difficult under those circumstances much as you want to do it To find the space and and all that stuff to let other people in is sometimes hard But I think probably by June people will be playing, you know, Moracas on everything. Yeah, they'll be far too many handclaps all the rest of it but

10:30You know, it's it's complex music to what a possible of how slow doing is is They're working on a really sophisticated level. So you can't just get up and sort of goof around you really have to have it together Mm-hmm unlike you guys is it more good for us? Well, I mean, it's not it's not goof around but it definitely we we write We write simple songs on quite complicated chordal structures I guess but the structure of it the rhythmic and the the basic idea of our songs tends to be quite classical and an easy to interpret an Apostle or section writers, you know, they'll go sex that key that you never know where they're gonna go next. Yeah So I think in that way there there folks should go and see them. Yeah, they're really just it's so incredible to watch them every night

11:19They're just they're three guys who've taken their musical art to such a high level and they do it with such love every night And they know each other so well. It's just really cool to watch our deans actually biking from Camar He did and then he got here with two flat tires. He made it and now he's gone out biking again. No special He's unbelievable that guy you you were mentioning multivitamins before I'm wondering you guys big health nuts. Oh, yeah Are you biking? Oh, we're big health nuts. What a big bad health body is a temple. Yeah, I'm trying to replenish now with the vitamins Our body is a temple and I'm a money lender. Um No, it's uh No, we're not health nuts, but I have now because I'm in my 30s made the concession that if I don't try and at least Take a multivitamin every day Then I'm going down really hard. So I have to try and it's sort of my my lip service to health. I'm obsessed with multivitamins

12:13Helpful. Yeah, it's sad, but it's true amongst other things. I don't know. Yeah, I have one other things There's all kinds of things I'm obsessed with but we won't go into that. All right People ask me for star students live. I wonder no hope the only time anything like that has ever happened was hilarious. We're playing in Kingston I'd say I wish to make it. Yeah, we're huge in Kingston Jamaica really big on the dance. I'll see This this kid leans over he actually beckoned over to me like in an instrumental break in one of our Memphis songs Calls me over. I lean over and the kid goes hey, can you play Casey accidental? It's a broken social scene song. I'm like dude. Does this look Like a broken social scene show to you like if you what are you talking about?

13:00But no nobody has and I do appreciate that and I think that's probably because We kind of went out of our way to Make a band you know make the idea of people being able to completely immerse themselves in an entirely Other experience from one that they might expect and so we haven't really played that that aspect of things and you know obviously for Chris who's the creator of this music to To have to play a star song would be like having to eat Somebody is poo or something It's like He's done a good stars cover the other day actually I heard it was beautiful

13:47No, yeah, what's wrong? Soft revolution, but he wouldn't give it to me to put on our new remix record. Do you trust your friends release May 22nd? Oh, there's a plug there's a plug shameless plug. Yeah, I was wondering I expected now that I knew what this band that Do you guys would put one out there too? Yeah? Didn't feel like it Put a remix yeah, um Yeah, I you know we have a couple of remixes. We haven't nobody's remix star stuff that that sounds all that great I would love somebody to remix Some stuff. Wow. You just you just a whole bunch of people. Yeah. No, not that many Dear that's not listening yeah But uh, yeah, I would love for somebody to remix our stuff. I think it would be kind of interesting

14:33I'd like like um who would I like I'd like um The Great Lake Swimmers to remix Memphis. I think that would be cool. Cool thing. Let's load it down. Yeah, make it even more mellow Yeah Yeah, really I think everything can more and Calgary in the same day said no time dude. We played can more just yesterday That's that's some town is it right a night. I've driven through it. Oh, it's very beautiful. Yeah, yeah I'm fine night though. You know, it's a ski town. It's kind of like being in in Roadhouse starring Patrick Swayze or something like that. So I got can my head Can you see right now? I think you can people seem to be ski talking about skiing. Yeah, I mean there's snow up there Interesting. I mean I would never because it's terrifying

15:21I get scared on elevators But uh, well some brave folks out there Your carousel operator. I am indeed. It's amazing. Yeah, it's It's an incredible experience running the carousel. It's true. It's not one of these things. Oh, no, it's absolutely True folks. I run the carousel. That's so cool. He actually I have to bust him. It isn't true He does something but the thing is that what's sort of disappointing about this story or maybe not disappointing is he hasn't even Stranger job than that. What do you do? His real job is that he's a non singing Costumed actor on stage at the Metropolitan Opera No one now which one is true?

16:08You'll never really know but one of those two things is actually true You're an actor too though. I used to be used to be yeah, and I you know I probably will be again Yeah, don't ever go into acting Yeah, no, I was I come from a theater family and my wife's an actress and that's a big part of my life for sure But I don't do it anymore because I'm too busy. Yeah, yeah, but I did all my life Act cool. Yeah, let's let's go through a songs you played Tell me about him and give me a little interest before we play him first song is called I'll do whatever you want that we played and that's we made a video for that with Daniel Handler who no, okay?

16:54And he directed it and did a fantastic job. You can find it on YouTube and stuff like that. I think It's sort of like a it's like a trick song to me, you know, it's a very very classic sort of back-or-back pop song and the words Sometimes writing lyrics is sort of like writing a crossword or doing crossword puzzle or something except with an idea behind it You know if all the words in the crossword linked up to make an idea and For me that song was very much like that. It was very much a crossword puzzle and just putting together kind of interesting rhymes and interesting little jokes and making a story about Just a basic love story really cool. That's lyrically about musically

17:40Musically, I just said I think I'll write a pop song Yeah, I'm just one about that one the chorus just came to you. Yeah, well when we had Eric Cove and Jimmy Shaw playing horns on it So they add that really like classic sort of 70s vibe to the after the chorus there's a big horn blast that comes on and I Think that really added a lot to the song. Yeah. Yeah, well, I was always there. Yeah, we were doing the ba ba ba That's right the ba ba ba ba. You know, it's a sort of we should it's like an Austin Powers song We should have like pointy shoes on we play that song That's cool Drunk on whiskey. Yeah, that song's incredibly drunk on whiskey and I I read recently that that was the worst lyrics I've ever written which is ironic because they're the favorite lyrics of mine that I like them. Yeah, they're cool

18:29But maybe we'd backshot of maybe that's a particular person couldn't take a joke or something I just um I love the idea of I always have sort of been in love with the idea of kids hanging out at like Tim Hortons And they pick these unbelievably depressing useless places because they're the only place where people will leave them alone essentially and not bother them and and they get into all kinds of trouble and do kinds of kinds of stupid things and I guess One of my big obsessions is that that moment in youth when you are Sort of emotionally a child But you're doing things that grown-ups do in order to force yourself into adulthood in a way sex and booze and whatever you know what I mean and You transgress all these lines with yourself and and it's stupid and it's embarrassing

19:17But there's something kind of beautiful about it in retrospect, you know So that song is just kind of about a moment like that between two people who are incredibly drunk and we're incredibly drunk on whiskey And you were like you wanted to make a Django Reinhardt song, right? Yeah, I mean I was just doing a Django Reinhardt song basically and I think I was probably drunk on whiskey Yeah, that's actually that's how that song came about the the the riff incredibly drunk on whiskey It was because I came over to Chris's house at like two o'clock in the afternoon And he polished off half a bottle of bourbon You're incredibly drunk on whiskey. That's right. So that's right a song And in the cinema alone Again a lot of birth back rack in that song to me. There's a certain kind of Dion Warwick 60s

20:04five to the song and I Used to go a lot before I was happy When I lived in New York and I was miserable and in my 20s I used to go a lot to the movies by myself and Spend like hours in there that whenever something terrible happened to me in my life I would just go and sit in movie theaters for six hours and Escape from dealing with the problem and I guess the idea came in a way from that it's a good place to be alone It is a good place to be alone because nobody sees you. Yes most alone You can be in a way, you know, and you're watching something nobody's watching you So I just wrote from the point of view of a friend of mine. I guess telling me to get out of it cool, you know No, well, you know, I I concur

20:50See this is the thing about musicians. They don't talk about music Yeah, I mean like I that that's why I'm a sort of anomaly because I hang out with musicians But in fact, I'm just a record nerd who can sing a little bit So I get to hang out with musicians and write songs with them But I always have these concepts and I you know pitched them to everybody and they go sure Whatever or we could just play it. It doesn't really matter to me so I talk they do it fair enough. Yeah, five questions one more answers. I pod or CDs iPod neither What are you? Oh, you mean, what do I listen to yeah? Well, I pod

21:38Bring in the walkman back man bring in the tape back then gonna do some mix tapes this summer I Heard something the other day. I should they're saying four years. No more cassettes are being built in England The cassette is the finest of all the forms. That's what it lasts forever You can get a pencil out and enroll them I mean you can make art out of them you could big up to the tape to the C90 man, okay? Leonard McCourtney. Oh, that's a tough one Lemon gotta say I'm gonna have to go with Lenin as well Sorry Paul to abandon you and your hour of need but you're still alive and you're a billionaire. Yeah, I'm making another record Alcohol and marijuana Marijuana both

22:29Song you've written your most proud of doesn't have to be a one-word answer obviously I'm not proud of any of them What's your favorite song to play live? I think my favorite song to play live is a song from our first EP called oh six two one zero zero Yeah, interesting title. Yes. This is a day. It was written. Yeah, so I think something I think Yeah, that's definitely one of my favorites that we've ever written for sure that Memphis is ever written man I love that song cool. Do you does how does the setlist work for you guys? You go back to that EP and play that first record to and we do the record. Yeah, we did everything We get around for sure nice and down one word Memphis pop

23:19Beautiful It should have gone the other way around it should have been beautiful pop yeah beautiful Should have done it with the Russian accent new stars record. I heard you went to Vancouver and started recording it We true finished recording it. We're mixing it. It's starting today actually the mixing is beginning. I'm not there But Chris and Evan it's in there capable hands. They're pudgy capable hands and Yeah, it'll be out September 25th. Oh wow release date never it's called in our bedroom after the war That's a good time. Let's hope by the time it comes around. That's where we'll all be Yeah, hopefully the world will be done. Yeah, thank you. Thank you man. Thanks for having us. No worries