INTERVIEW:    Explosions In The Sky_06.03.2003

Michael James and Munaf Rayani sat down with me before the band's performance at The Crocodile Cafe in Seattle.  We discussed their upcoming new album, their growing popularity, some of their peers, and music they are currently listening to.

 

rectangular:  During one of your recent interviews last year in Paris, Michael stated that one of the major differences between playing live in the United States and in Europe is that everyone here speaks during concerts.  Personally, I find it extremely annoying.  How do you guys feel when this goes on when you are performing or attending a show as fans, and why do you think American fans appear to be so impolite?

Munaf:  I don't know why?  Maybe American fans do that or not, but it is probably a phenomenon all over the world.  In Europe we did notice that it was considerably more quiet and people did listen.  It is probably just a cultural thing, I don't know?  As a fan, when I'm watching bands it bugs me.  Especially if it's a quiet band like Low or whoever.  I just don't understand the mentality of going to pay ten bucks for a show and talking to your friends, but I think everyone is guilty of it, me included.  If it's a few people talking it's just kind of a whisper, but when everybody is saying something then you obviously notice.  But when we are playing I think we all feel like it gets to us because we do have quiet parts and stuff, but I think it only makes us bring the rock a little bit more.  We want to play over the top, like we want to be able to make them (the audience) pay attention.  That's what I think the goal for any band is, to demand attention, and I think that's what we pull for.  But overall, I just think that you can't really stop it and I'm not angry at anybody for it.  It's not something that I do or like, but that is how the world works you know?  People are people.

Michael:  I think in Europe, especially in a lot of the small towns, they don't get as many shows as we do in the states.  Here in the states bands are constantly touring.  In Austin you can see ten different bands a night and it becomes more of a social thing.  Instead of going to see the band you are going to have some drinks at the bar, hear some music in the background and talk with your friends.  That's terrible when a band like Low comes thru and you can't hear what they are playing, and you are there to hear the music.  You don't care about talking to anybody or drinking, you just want to hear the music.  Over there (Europe) if someone's favorite band comes to town it is a rarity, so they are going to go and pay attention and it's not just a social engagement, it's actually for the music.  I prefer that.

rectangular:  It is rumored that you guys already have most of the new album completed as far as the composing is concerned, and apparently the artwork is also finished?  Can we expect a similar running time to the last record, and would you mind hinting at what kind of stories or imagery inspired the band this time around?

Michael:  I think the running time will be fairly similar.  We have discussed that we don's want to make albums over fifty minutes or so.  When bands put out double album discs it can be done wonderfully, but for the most part the albums I truly love are short and to the point, with no "filler".  That is what we try to do, so we are going to try keeping it a similar length of fifty minutes or less.  As far as imagery, it's going to have some of the same reoccurring themes because that's who we are, but I don't really know?

Munaf:  I think whatever we were shooting for on this album is probably going to be interpreted a hundred different times over for whoever else listens to it.  When I have talked to people about this stuff it's really cool when somebody tells you a story.  They will say "man, here's what this song means to me" and you hear somebody else in the same night say something different, and that is beautiful.  But I think when this new album is compared to our last album it has a little bit more, and this is a funny word, but like "romance" to it.  A little more of the lighter side of life.  I think a lot of the same emotions we showed on the last album ended up on this one.  Like Michael said, that's who we are.  So you kind of run consistent in what you do.  I do hope that kids see that we try to take some steps forward, and steps away, and steps towards everything we've done before.  I don't know, it's going to be interesting to see how people interpret the record when it comes out.

rectangular:  I know that very specific imagery inspired several of the songs on the last album, for example "six days at the bottom of the ocean" as well as The Angel Of The Mons, and the whole tragedy of war theme.  I was curious if you had a similar specific theme?  It sounds like the theme for the new album will be romance?

Michael:  I would say that the last album definitely has a lot of war imagery.  I think on this one it was not discussed as much as we have some other themes, but I think it's going to have more "post-war" imagery.  Aftermath, renewal, rebirth and a lot of those kinds of ideas.  There will be a lot of the same kind of darkness that I feel was on the last album, but there is also some more light at the end of the tunnel and the hope of the cycle of life.  We all go thru the horrible times, but that's not all there is to life.  You also go thru the beautiful times that make life worth living, and I think there is a lot of that on this new one.

rectangular:  I think many of the instrumental bands out there today do not convey the same drama or emotion that your band does.  My suspicion is that it has to do with the imagery you were influenced by?

Michael:  It has a lot to do with our writing process as well.

rectangular:  Have any of you heard samples of the new Metallica album, and if so what are your opinions about it?

Munaf:  We have heard that song called "St. Anger".  I think Metallica fell so far from the tree so long ago.  It just makes us laugh now.  I can honestly say that we think the song is pretty bad, but we appreciate that they've gone back to metal I guess.  It's fast and hardcore I suppose?  I don't know about those guys anymore.  I wish them the best of luck, but I doubt we will go buy the new album.

Michael:  I don't know, I may go buy their new album.  I have heard "St. Anger" and a couple of clips from other songs, but I don't even know what word to use for Metallica?  They were an inspired band on their first four albums and I really feel that has kind of dried up now.  That's not to say they can never find it again, maybe they can?  But what they are trying to accomplish with their music now is a completely different thing than what they were trying to accomplish then.  I am not that big of a fan of it.  The new song is fast and heavy, but it sounds like so much other stuff that is on the radio today.  There is no innovation there.  There's nothing new and I am kind of disappointed.

rectangular:  What other music or bands have you guys been listening to lately?

Munaf:  I stay pretty consistent on a personal level to the bands that I love.  I guess the newest thing that came out recently that struck all of us hard was Iron And Wine.  It's this guy from Florida that plays sweet music.  One man, one guitar type of stuff.  Speaking of that, this guy Lazarus that we are touring with, Trevor, he is equally amazing.  The emotion and the passion that we try our damndest to portray on stage and bring out in our music or albums, Trevor accomplishes by himself.  I really appreciate that.  There are so many band that I like, but one of the few that are killing me all of the time is this band The Lapse, that doesn't really exist anymore.  I listen to them all of the time.  This band called Migala from Spain who are really phenomenal too.

Michael:  My new favorite right now is the new Four Tet album "Rounds".

Munaf:  I agree!

Michael:  Yeah, it truly blew me away the first time I heard it.  It's one of the guys from Fridge.  Kieran from Fridge.  The first time I listened to it I said "this is a musical revolution on this CD".  It's so great, just incredible.  I've been listening to that the most lately.  I don't know, I haven't been listening to much new stuff.  M83 is also a really good band!  They are great.  Mark got a copy of that album, and I've been listening to that some on this tour.  I am really impressed with them.

rectangular:  Since the incident your band experienced in the Amsterdam airport a couple of years ago, at least one other band was detained by authorities under the suspicion of being terrorists.  Do you think the current administration’s so called “war on terror” has caused a state of global paranoia similar to the Red Scare or McCarthyism of the last century?

Michael:  Yes I do, and I think it has the same sort of political motivation behind it.  They are trying to push thru some bills that are going to give the government more power, and I think that the post 9/11 scare and general fear in the country is helping them do that.  They are taking full advantage of it.  I think it's ugly, I really do.  But at the same time I realize that there is a need for caution and security.  I totally respect that.  But I think it's been pushed to unhealthy, unreasonable and ridiculous levels, much like the Red Scare and McCarthyism.

Munaf:  I completely agree with that.  The idea that a rock band can be detained as suspected terrorists is just paranoia setting in at it's finest.  Although I try to keep up with world events, I try to not get too political.  But you know, terrorism is winning right now.  Their goal is to make you wonder "what's going to happen tomorrow."  Something major may never happen again but for a long time out, maybe forever, the U.S. is going to be scared that something is going to happen.  So I think they (terrorists) are achieving their goal on some level.  But I would agree with Michael that the government does want more of a lock down on things, and they want even more control than they already have.  It's really scary if you ask me.  Especially since I am of Indian and Pakistani decent, I am seen more as a suspect even though I do not experience that every day.  But soon everybody will be a suspect.  It's a frightening world to live in, but it has always been that way.  We are just feeling it more now after history was made.  I hope good things will happen from here on out, but I don't know how it will all go down.

rectangular:  Last year you guys had a chance to play with a band from Portland called The Swords Project.  I am curious what you thought of their music, since both Explosions In The Sky and The Swords are currently my favorite two groups.

Munaf:  I liked The Swords Project a whole lot.  We played with them in Portland and I had never heard them before so I didn't know what to expect.  Their music was beautiful first of all, but they were very fantastic people as well.  That goes a long way for me.  I mean, you could write some of the greatest music ever but if you're a jerk I don't have any time for you.  It's really nice when you do come across people like that who seem very sincere and very into what they are doing.  That is really all I can ask of any musician or anybody for that matter.

Michael:  I liked what they were doing when we say them.  I have a hard time judging a band strictly on a live performance.  I had not heard their recorded material before, and have not since.  I think we got a CD from them but it must have got lost in the van.  I agree with Munaf and enjoyed what they were putting out there on stage.  They were really trying to do something emotional, affecting and beautiful, so I liked it.

rectangular:  How did you react to learning that your band was briefly mentioned in Rolling Stone?

Michael:  I would have to say that our first reaction was laughter.  I'll occasionally pick up a Rolling Stone just to see what's sort of going on in the realm of pop culture, but it's not a magazine that I hold a lot of stock in.  But at the same time it's pretty cool.  It's kind of a ridiculous magazine and it shouldn't make me feel any better about myself or the band, and it doesn't really but I still thought it was pretty cool.

Munaf:  I think it was a very nice feeling, and it was very flattering that they would pick us out of the millions of bands that walk the Earth.  Even if it was a small blurb it was very kind what David Fricke wrote.  It was very complimentary and I think I just appreciate that.  Besides the fact that he does write for Rolling Stone, that's nice for someone to say those things about us.  But the fact that he does write for Rolling Stone is pretty nice too.  For us who are an indie-rock band in this indie world, it means that so many kids that don't even know what our genre of music is have now seen our name.  That is just great you know, because for us the idea is to reach as many people as we can and that is a great avenue to do that.  Overall I was pretty happy with it.  I thought it was really nice.

rectangular:  I was excited for you guys because when I was a teenager the only way to learn about interesting new music was by listening to the college radio station or by reading about it in a magazine.  It is cool that millions of kids who are exploring for something that is not on MTV are now going to say "I'll have to check out that band".

Munaf:  What was even more beautiful than the fat that we were mentioned in Rolling Stone is that is a magazine that our parents could go to the store, pick one up and read about us.  And for our parents on some level it validates things, like "well those boys really are doing something".

rectangular:  They are saying "all those hours playing in the garage were worth it".

Munaf:  Exactly.  I think a lot of people don't understand that from playing music in your garage and to being on the cover of Rolling Stone that there is a whole gray area in between there.  That's where we play our music, that's who we play it for and I love it.  But for them, who have no idea really what this is all about, it's pretty special.  For example, I called my sister and told her to buy a copy at the store and she was really happy.  I think we all did that with our parents and siblings, so it was really nice.

rectangular:  If you could open for or tour with any band past or present, who would it be and why?

Munaf:  I don't know there's so many,  but one band that is walking now would be Lift To Experience.  That would be a really great time for us, and I think for them as well, just because we're really great friends and we are super fans of each other's music.  That would be nice, but to daydream about any band that ever walked, I suppose The Beatles or The Who.  Any of those bands that I would love to just go watch would be amazing.  Fugazi would probably be another one for me.  If we got to tour with Fugazi that would be out of control.  The one show we did play with them was a highlight for our lives.

Michael:  I guess since we've already toured with Trail Of Dead, so I can't say them.  But that was a dream come true.  Being able to tour with them, just because I love their music so much, and I love their live shows so much.  I think we are both trying to do the same thing with playing music.  We are both really trying to put everything out there for the crowd to see while you're on stage.  That was great.  I would love to tour with them again.  Maybe that's still my dream band to tour with?  But apart from them I would say Lift To Experience also.  I think that would just be heaven, to be able to see them every night, and play with them every night because I love their live shows so much.  I think it would just be a good show for people to go see.  I really do.

rectangular:  Yeah, I was heartbroken last year when I was not able to attend their show here.  Hopefully you guys can convince them to come back.  Well I guess that's about all I had for you guys.  Thanks for sitting down with me.

Munaf:  Thanks so much.