Darren McLeod
05/23/06, 07:43 AM
Interview conducted via email with Matt Armstrong, bassist of Murder By Death
Darren: How did the writing/recording process for the new album go?
Matt: usually, adam would come in with a kind of skeleton of a song and then the rest of us would flesh it out. this time we actually recorded demos of the songs and then took notes on them and talked about all the little details that we wanted to change. we were pretty anal about it.
as far as recording goes, we were in baltimore for five weeks with j robbins at his studio. we would show up, drink a lot of coffee, and then record songs. later, we would get pizza. we had a lot more time to do this record than we've had before, so everyone got to take time and try all the ideas we wanted to try. it was intense but surprisingly low-key.
How do you feel about the finished product that's sitting in your hands right now?
i'm really happy with it. i hope we aren't the only ones who feel that way. it was a really fun record to make, and j did a great job getting it onto tape. we're really please with the artwork as well. i guess you could say we're officially stoked.
Is the first single "Brother," going to get the video treatment?
yep. we have a video for it. you'll see it soon.
(Editor's note: Since the interview was conducted, the video has been released. You can watch it here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYA-81-eU8o).)
A lot of people having been noting the Johnny Cash similarities on the album. Were you listening to a lot of Johnny Cash at the time, and so it just came out subconsciously, or is it completely by coincidence?
we weren't listening to any more johnny cash than usual. there's a sort of somber vibe that we sometimes put out, and i'm sure that comes from johnny cash to a degree. at the end of the day, the subject matter on this record just needed that cash thing sometimes.
One thing I really loved about your last effort, Who Will Survive And What Will Be Left Of Them?, was that Adam posted lyrical explanations and delved into the symbolism on every song. Could you go into a bit of detail about the concept for this album, its links to Dante's Inferno, and are there any plans for explanations like you did for WWSAWWBLOT?
i'm not sure if adam's going to do that whole thing again, but he probably should because people seemed to enjoy that. basically each song on this album tells the story of a sinner in a certain circle of hell, and then the last two songs are more about paradise (as opposed to the inferno). the last record was one story; this one is twelve stories about different people. it deals with good and evil and sin and redemption and all of that light-hearted kind of stuff.
Any good touring stories?
yes. lots. you have to get us drunk to hear them. sorry.
Alright, now a few questions from our readers:
domesticyeti asks: Because you recorded this album as a four-piece, with Sarah playing both the cello and a keyboard, how will this work with the live show? Will there be a touring keyboardist, a new full-time band member, or will Sarah pull double-duties and just switch back and forth?
sarah will pull double duty, and the rest of us will just play louder.
thisgetupkid asks: Why'd you change your name? What is your favorite zombie movie?
we changed our name because we though mbd was tougher, scarier, funnier, and sounded more 'us.' the scariest zombie movie ever made is the paris hilton sex tape. creeeeeepy.
dashboard1190 asks: What's your favorite song that you've written, and which is the most fun to perform?
i don't know. as far as the new album goes, i really like 'steam rising, ' but 'boy decide' is one of the most fun to play live.
jsteil asks: Me and my Fiance saw you in 2004 at the Granada in Lawrence,KS on voting day and we had to watch coverage of the day before the show. My question though is during your set since the big screen was still up you played about an hour of old footage from horror movies and what not. Do you plan to use is in future sets and is there anyway I could get a copy?
we're actually assembling a new video to take the place of that one. it should be pretty cool. i don't even know how to begin making a copy of the older one for you, but i'll let you know if that changes.
preppyak asks: What's the reason behind the title of In Bocca Al Lupo, and how does it relate to the album?
it's italian for "in the mouth of the wolf." we thought it sounded cool, so we used it. if your idea of hell is a wolf, then it makes perfect sense. know what i mean?
AFSJulian asks: I know you may have touched on it before, but why the split with Eyeball? Now that you have yourown imprint through East/West, will you use it simply for MBD or will you sign other artists?
we are going to be so busy touring that it will be years before we can even think about signing other bands. we would need a lot of free time and money to sign another band, and right now we are short on both.
Cahrisshurr asks: What's the story behind the coverart of the new album?
it's a tree and its roots go down really deep and then there are some rings of fire and demons and stuff. oh, and a pile of skulls. sweet.
if you want to get all deep about it, i guess you could say that the top part of the tree image is really pretty, but it's rooted in all this terrible shit below the surface. metaphors rule.
Base3Studd asks: If you were going to shoot the Devil... what kind of gun would you use?
a really big, accurate one that holds a lot of bullets. the kind they used in the movie 'aliens' would be pretty ideal.
Winterdale asks: At past shows you had said something about a concept album that would serve as a soundtrack to a Tim Burton film that didn't exist. What's with that?
we are a bunch of lying whores, because we did this album instead. we still want to do film music but we haven't gotten around to it yet. make us an offer.
Winterdale also asks: Is your obvious rise in somberness on the new record a progressive thing from your last two albums or did you consciously want the mood to be that different? I know every artist usually talks about how organic their new sound came about, but you had to have been aware of how much more uppidy folk you were on In Bocca, not that its bad, just wondering if you see yourself as more of a folk outfit now than a....dreary/drunken/spooky indie rock band.
i think we're still a dreary drunken spooky indie band at heart. we just wanted to try things that we hadn't tried before so we weren't making the same record again. making a ska record about hell wouldn't really work for us, you know?
Any last words for our readers?
at black angus, your name is peaches.
Thanks again for taking your time out to talk with us, and good luck with the new album.
Darren: How did the writing/recording process for the new album go?
Matt: usually, adam would come in with a kind of skeleton of a song and then the rest of us would flesh it out. this time we actually recorded demos of the songs and then took notes on them and talked about all the little details that we wanted to change. we were pretty anal about it.
as far as recording goes, we were in baltimore for five weeks with j robbins at his studio. we would show up, drink a lot of coffee, and then record songs. later, we would get pizza. we had a lot more time to do this record than we've had before, so everyone got to take time and try all the ideas we wanted to try. it was intense but surprisingly low-key.
How do you feel about the finished product that's sitting in your hands right now?
i'm really happy with it. i hope we aren't the only ones who feel that way. it was a really fun record to make, and j did a great job getting it onto tape. we're really please with the artwork as well. i guess you could say we're officially stoked.
Is the first single "Brother," going to get the video treatment?
yep. we have a video for it. you'll see it soon.
(Editor's note: Since the interview was conducted, the video has been released. You can watch it here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYA-81-eU8o).)
A lot of people having been noting the Johnny Cash similarities on the album. Were you listening to a lot of Johnny Cash at the time, and so it just came out subconsciously, or is it completely by coincidence?
we weren't listening to any more johnny cash than usual. there's a sort of somber vibe that we sometimes put out, and i'm sure that comes from johnny cash to a degree. at the end of the day, the subject matter on this record just needed that cash thing sometimes.
One thing I really loved about your last effort, Who Will Survive And What Will Be Left Of Them?, was that Adam posted lyrical explanations and delved into the symbolism on every song. Could you go into a bit of detail about the concept for this album, its links to Dante's Inferno, and are there any plans for explanations like you did for WWSAWWBLOT?
i'm not sure if adam's going to do that whole thing again, but he probably should because people seemed to enjoy that. basically each song on this album tells the story of a sinner in a certain circle of hell, and then the last two songs are more about paradise (as opposed to the inferno). the last record was one story; this one is twelve stories about different people. it deals with good and evil and sin and redemption and all of that light-hearted kind of stuff.
Any good touring stories?
yes. lots. you have to get us drunk to hear them. sorry.
Alright, now a few questions from our readers:
domesticyeti asks: Because you recorded this album as a four-piece, with Sarah playing both the cello and a keyboard, how will this work with the live show? Will there be a touring keyboardist, a new full-time band member, or will Sarah pull double-duties and just switch back and forth?
sarah will pull double duty, and the rest of us will just play louder.
thisgetupkid asks: Why'd you change your name? What is your favorite zombie movie?
we changed our name because we though mbd was tougher, scarier, funnier, and sounded more 'us.' the scariest zombie movie ever made is the paris hilton sex tape. creeeeeepy.
dashboard1190 asks: What's your favorite song that you've written, and which is the most fun to perform?
i don't know. as far as the new album goes, i really like 'steam rising, ' but 'boy decide' is one of the most fun to play live.
jsteil asks: Me and my Fiance saw you in 2004 at the Granada in Lawrence,KS on voting day and we had to watch coverage of the day before the show. My question though is during your set since the big screen was still up you played about an hour of old footage from horror movies and what not. Do you plan to use is in future sets and is there anyway I could get a copy?
we're actually assembling a new video to take the place of that one. it should be pretty cool. i don't even know how to begin making a copy of the older one for you, but i'll let you know if that changes.
preppyak asks: What's the reason behind the title of In Bocca Al Lupo, and how does it relate to the album?
it's italian for "in the mouth of the wolf." we thought it sounded cool, so we used it. if your idea of hell is a wolf, then it makes perfect sense. know what i mean?
AFSJulian asks: I know you may have touched on it before, but why the split with Eyeball? Now that you have yourown imprint through East/West, will you use it simply for MBD or will you sign other artists?
we are going to be so busy touring that it will be years before we can even think about signing other bands. we would need a lot of free time and money to sign another band, and right now we are short on both.
Cahrisshurr asks: What's the story behind the coverart of the new album?
it's a tree and its roots go down really deep and then there are some rings of fire and demons and stuff. oh, and a pile of skulls. sweet.
if you want to get all deep about it, i guess you could say that the top part of the tree image is really pretty, but it's rooted in all this terrible shit below the surface. metaphors rule.
Base3Studd asks: If you were going to shoot the Devil... what kind of gun would you use?
a really big, accurate one that holds a lot of bullets. the kind they used in the movie 'aliens' would be pretty ideal.
Winterdale asks: At past shows you had said something about a concept album that would serve as a soundtrack to a Tim Burton film that didn't exist. What's with that?
we are a bunch of lying whores, because we did this album instead. we still want to do film music but we haven't gotten around to it yet. make us an offer.
Winterdale also asks: Is your obvious rise in somberness on the new record a progressive thing from your last two albums or did you consciously want the mood to be that different? I know every artist usually talks about how organic their new sound came about, but you had to have been aware of how much more uppidy folk you were on In Bocca, not that its bad, just wondering if you see yourself as more of a folk outfit now than a....dreary/drunken/spooky indie rock band.
i think we're still a dreary drunken spooky indie band at heart. we just wanted to try things that we hadn't tried before so we weren't making the same record again. making a ska record about hell wouldn't really work for us, you know?
Any last words for our readers?
at black angus, your name is peaches.
Thanks again for taking your time out to talk with us, and good luck with the new album.