People In Planes

0:00Alright, talking to the curious from people on planes. Start to show up with a song, any song off the record. What do you want to hear? I wouldn't mind hearing my black widow, actually. Nice, harder song. Yeah, it was the latest arrival to the record. Oh really? One of the last songs that was written? Yeah, we were talking between these two songs. We had this song called Baby Cards, which we had up on our own website for a while. That was kind of a mainstay. And then gradually, as the album got kind of finished getting mastered and the final touches to the mixes and stuff. We just really decided the black widow was just, I don't know if I felt like it was a better song than Baby Cards. So it was the late arrival to the record. Cool. Let's play that song now. Black Widow, it's people on planes talking here with Gareth from the band.

4:48We're at the Roxy Theater here. Have you played it before? No, we played Alay. We played with the Avalon. Okay, yeah, cool. We played, we were sporting the bravery. Oh, nice. Oh, and the toys of 10. Oh, yeah, came up to Canada too at the Cool House. I saw you guys there. Yeah, exactly. Nice. It used to be called Tetris Flender. Yeah. Why the name change? And do any of the songs show up from that record or the record on this tour? No. No, no, what it was, when we were about 18, we signed a record deal, end of the name Tetris Flender. We signed to EMI Chris-Liss in the UK. We recorded a record, put it out, put three singles out, did a video and kind of thing. I don't know, I suppose it was just like a change in staff, the structuring of EMI.

5:33I think they dropped, I think it was some ridiculous that year, they dropped like about 150 bands off their worldwide roster. So we were just kind of shuffled out as the new management came in, kind of went through all the acts and said look, you know, I mean, you're not really that viable for cash, so we just got, our contract was terminated. And then we sort of went away and re-thanked our whole position, you know, and wrote a new record. Found a producer to do it for us. You know, got some studio time. We had to do it on a shoestring, so we did it for kind of downtime in the studio, you know, for this commercial studio in Sidewood. We recorded an album, changed our name, got a new membrane, which is Ian on keyboards, because I was playing keyboards for the band before I started playing guitar.

6:26You still go back and play piano at all? Yeah, I mean, it might spare time, but I mean, you know, I don't play on stage or anything, you know. Because I started playing guitar like about a year, a year and a half ago when we changed people in planes. Nice, how long to take you to learn, are you still? I'm comfortable, but it's just, I'm playing very basic kind of things. I'm just back in a Pete, really, because he's kind of phenomenal, you know, so it's just like filling in the spaces. Why the bana was doing for a long time too? Yeah, I don't know, yeah, it's cool. It's not really my major concern, it's more about the singing, you know, for me, obviously, that's how I'm having to concentrate on more now to become a better singer, I guess. Oh, you sound good? You showed EMI with this new record, you're doing quite well. Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm glad it's kind of kind of strange really, because there was talk about this, maybe releasing our record, this record, in the UK through EMI.

7:11Oh really? It's just quite funny, I don't know if that'll happen, but if it will, it'll be quite a funny story, I guess. How can you chose Windup? I mean, they're heavier bands over here, like, see there in Evanescence, that kind of stuff. Yeah, and I mean, that was definitely a concern, you know, for us in the beginning, but I don't know, I mean, just before us, they signed the exit from New York City, so it was like, it's kind of a sort of a re-jig and of their ideas, I guess, as a record, they really felt like they wanted to kind of move away from maybe the heavier kind of band. And bring on a more diverse range of music, and I mean, with signing us and the exit and Omni Soul, and some of the other bands are kind of like, stuffy, I think, is the other band. There's some pop and there's some more, like, indie kind of music and taking it in a new direction.

7:59It's like, they felt like, I don't know if they felt like, maybe they were kind of becoming a bit stale in some of their areas and stuff, and they just wanted to kind of bring some new fresh ideas into their music. It's a small label, you know, so I mean, it's not very, even though it's a big, small label, if you know what I mean, it's like a big independent. It's a very family-orientated place, like, so they've got everyone, everyone works so closely together and everything. We've just been embraced into the wind family, you know, which is great. It's pretty cool. It's playing another song. Talked too much, my head will explode maybe, since the single. Yeah, okay, yeah, no worries, we'll play the single then. You're getting tired of it. It's kind of like a hard one to play that one too. No, it's just, you know what I mean, you've got a record of like, you know, so many songs and it's just like, you know, everything kind of is one of lost on the singles.

8:45Yeah, well, we're going to play some other songs too, I'll let you do it. Yeah, that's cool. I mean, I'm sure you might as well get it out there. What did that song do? You're obviously on the radio, it doesn't have a little intro bit.

14:04I think it was kind of the idea that people were just kind of, you're going to get really annoyed by that. You know, they just want to hear the song because you know, it's like a radio, they just really want the, that's why you do anything. It's stupid, but you know, so it works. Where'd that intro bit come from? Talking about it. It's actually my mother. Is it really? It is. Pete came up with this idea for like a kind of a Julie Andrews type Mary Poppins type vibe at the beginning of the song. I don't know, he'd phone with my mum and got her up to the studio. And I wrote this piano part and I don't know, just got her in and she did it and she loved it, you know, and everything. It sounded great. Pete was like recorded some like birds and some like a down by a river and stuff. Yeah, just kind of constructed this thing. It was really cool.

14:51Does your mom was singing? Yeah, she's like a classically trained kind of singer. Nice. Cool. You mentioned you wrote some of that stuff. I was reading somewhere that Peter wants this stuff. Is that not true? Yeah, yeah, it just writes the last percentage. It was just like, like for me it was like talking heads and if you talk too much, my head will explode. Speaking of talking heads though, how come it doesn't show up on the record? Well, the song talking heads is if you talk too much, my head will explode. Okay. I just heard it was a single in England and I was looking at the record. Yeah, it was. It was. We kind of thought that, you know, like with the, like when you get requested songs, you know, on the radio, the people would just find it easier to kind of. So long with the hook line, you know, if you talk too much, my head will explode because that's the thing that I've been remembering. Speaking of that song while we're still on it, Walking Phoenix directed the video.

15:38It takes place in an airport. You call people in planes? Is that going to be like a theme on every video or? No, I don't think so. Was that thought of before? Is that one of the reasons why he was shot in an airport? Well, he did. Like his first video, yeah, it was a bank or ring side and it was in a boxing ring. Yeah. So I guess he has that kind of thing with it. Kind of a literal, the most literal thing. Would you do the second single two do you think? Would you ask him to? We've actually already done it. Is it really? What song is it? Well, I think I'm not exactly sure what it's going to be yet, but the talk in the camp is maybe we're going to be thinking about falling by the wayside. You know, just having a kind of a slower, more of a, I don't know, like a big song. Yeah. So it's cool too. Let's play that one right now. Yeah. Okay. Let's play that one. It's okay.

16:41It's okay. I'm trying to. Blin planes falling by the wayside, talking with Gareth from the band.

20:26Now you were at South by Southwest recently. How was that? It was cool. It's really a bit strange. It's like there's so many bands and it's just so congested. You know, it's all industry, which is the hard thing. I don't think it's the most enjoyable place to play, certainly because... Most bands I'm talking to were saying lately. It's just like a throw and go. I mean, we were on a, we were playing the D.E. dog and it was like a, like a, a six band build for the evening, you know. And then we were on like last but one. I know it was just a mess. No soundtrack or anything. Oh really? And you've got to play for all these industry people. And to kind of like try and, you know, you're trying to sell, you know, you know, you're selling stuff to these people to get them enthused. You know, people to label or people are radio and, you know, whatever. And you're really trying to do the best you can.

21:12But it's just like, you can have a really, like we're a band. I think they really need to kind of put the time in with the, with the sound checks, you know, and kind of... It's not something that we can adapt to that easily just throwing and going. It's pretty hard. It just seems like they put all these bands in really awkward positions, you know, and just to kind of watch some sweat. Is it weird playing for industry people? I mean, I would imagine them not jumping around and stuff like the fans would. They kind of just stand there and bob their heads. No, no, certainly. I mean, like when we first came to America, which was like sort of last year, last year, February, I believe, we came up to play like a showcase in the Mercury Lounge in New York. And we had some labels there, like about four labels there, people from labels there that our press guy had sought out for us. And then like wind up got passed on the demo by someone the next day. And then the next day after that, we were in a rehearsal room with like 30 wind up staff, you know, showcasing for them.

22:02It was like there was 30 of them. And you know what I mean? It's a normal, normal lighting in the room. You know what I mean? There's 30 like business folks and, you know, people marketing and all these people there. It's just so intimidating, you know what I mean? It's just like you've got in your head that there's such an important thing that if you can impress all those people, you know what I mean? You've got yourself a record deal. They're not the best people to play in front of, I don't think. But I mean, with wind up, they've always come to the shows and give us loads of support, especially in New York and all of a sudden. That's cool. But I mean, when we played Pippie, like we played in the Sony Building, you know, for Columbia and Epic, and I don't know, it was just horrible. It was just like an uncomfortable environment, you know what I mean? Very uncomfortable. It's really weird. It's playing another song, something off the record. What do you want to hear? I think I'd like to hear Penny. Cool, too.

22:47You talking with Garrett from People in Plains? Downloading your music. The illegal stuff. How do you feel about it?

29:13You think it's going to help you or harm you more? I don't know. It's really funny because the other night we played a gig in Sacramento, and this girl came up to me and said, sorry, I don't have enough money to buy the record, you know, at the store. She came up and asked me, did I mind if she could go and download it of Lime Why? And I was like, well, and she said she was going to go away and buy it, so I said, well, if you're going to do it, you're going to do it. But just make sure you even buy it afterwards. I just don't think she will. But I'd rather she had it, I suppose, not paid for it than not have it at all, you know? In a funny way, you know? Yeah, well, she came and saw the show. She's obviously she liked it. So it's a kind of like, it's a thing. You'd rather them have it than not, you know, you'd rather them have it by all means, all costs or whatever, rather than them just never hear it, I suppose.

29:58So it's kind of, you know what I mean? I don't agree because it's obviously that's what's going to, you know, I live in. You know what I mean? We're not going to make any money, but I mean, you'd just rather them have it than not have it. Yeah, it's kind of a bit of a catch-22, I think, isn't it? Did you put a lot of thought into your, like, the album? Like, as far as the eye can see, like, the track order and all that kind of stuff? So I'm afraid this whole download thing is going to get rid of the whole, like, having albums, like, Sergeant Pepper, and, you know, like, actual, like, concept, you know? Yeah, I suppose it does, really. I mean, if you go and just download track 8, it's a bit, bit shitty, really. But, I don't know, this is something, like, we feel very strongly about, like, as a band. We've got, like, a record that's very eclectic, I think, in the sense of, there's no real, you know, there's not just like four songs reproduced, like, you know, two songs of time.

30:48It's like, we try to bring in as many influences as we can, you know what I mean? We've always tried to do whatever we want it to do with our music, you know? So I suppose that makes us kind of, you know, a prime candidate for, like, more of a concept type record, you know what I mean? I reckon, and I think, and our second record, I'm sure, certainly will be. But, yeah, I suppose it's going to spoil it for us. I'm just hoping that the fans and people we kind of attract, you know, with our music would want nothing more than to have a copy of the record and a copy of the artwork, you know what I mean? Because it's a nice package. It's just like the thing with, you know, like old LPs, you know what I mean, like, records. It's just like you're buying, like, a painting, you know what I mean? It's just the work of art. And when, you know, you used to have, like, albums, you just used to kind of, like, be able to just stare at them, fucking, you know, for, like, for, like, you know, an hour at a time, you know what I mean?

31:35And you'd want to read, like, everything through the record, you know, you've got these big bold pictures on your, you know, on big record cases. It's like, I love that. So shame you don't have that anymore, but I mean, I think there are people out there who really love to have the hard copy, you know? Definitely. So, do you have a record player? Do you ever buy vinyls, anyway? No, I don't, I do used to have a record player when I was younger and I kind of went through that phase of, like, buying records and, I don't know, I kind of gradually become a time, you know, a time thing. Yeah. You know, it's something, you, it's more of a hobby kind of thing, you know, so you'd have to really kind of set aside. I guess you're not at home too much, I can't remember playing on the bus. No, exactly. You mentioned a new record. Have you guys been writing it all or? I mean, I mean, I mean, because it's been like a year and a half since we got this record, you know, so it's like, there's lots of stuff, you know, there's lots of bits and bobs that we've got, you know, we like, we've already demoed like, you know, like, I don't know, like eight tracks or something.

32:23You know, to a really cool standard. So there's at least another eight or ten or something to go. So I guess we've just had quite a lot of time moving into it. I kind of get that together. So, but I'm sure we're going to have some downtime now over the next, you know, before Christmas, hopefully, you can kind of maybe get into the studio and start. You know, making these songs in them. Cool. Explain another song. What do you want here? What do I want to hear? I would like to hear, like for the dead vine. It's my favorite track on the record. I don't know. I just like singing it, I guess. It's like my favorite song, you know. We have five questions, five quick questions, one more answers.

37:22iPod or CDs? iPod. Lening or McCartney? Lening. You say it like, very cocky, it's like, it's no question. Next one's Alcohol and Marijuana. Alcohol. Favorite song to play live? Light for the dead vine. There you go. And one word, people and planes. Um, stupendous. Thanks, man. Appreciate it. One song closed out. What do you want here? Um, I'll have to finish with Rush. Thank you. Cool. No worries, man.