The Art of Telling the Truth with Magnet School - An Interview

Facilmente o disco que mais ouvi neste ano de 2016 certamente é The Art of Telling The Truth dos estadunidenses de Austin, Texas do Magnet School.

Uma verdadeira pedrada noventista transportadora para os dias atuais, uma explosão de ruídos evocando Dinosaur Jr. Swervedriver e mais uma penca de referências mas que só servem como norte para o Magnet School, porque o disco grita muito mais alto do que simples rótulos ou conexões.

Simplesmente não deixe de ouvir, faça o que puder, compre, roube, pegue emprestado, baixe, se vire.

The Art of Telling The Truth definitivamente não pode ficar de fora de qualquer coleção que se preze, simplesmente aumenta no máximo que seu aparelho de som permitir e sai pulando.

Um dos discos do ano, fácil.

***** Interview with Magnet School *****

Q. When did Magnet School started, tell us about the history…
A - Magnet School formed in 2005 in Austin, Texas - in late 2004 I'd heard that Mark & Michael J. were writing songs together to form a new band - they needed a bassist and I happen to be just leaving my previous band. It was instantly magical how we worked & played together and I knew something special was on the horizon - we came up with the name in April '05 & Magnet School was born. Mark and I were already friends for several years & I knew we were both in to a lot of the same early 90's Alt Rock bands like Swervedriver, The Catherine Wheel, Ride, ect - I knew Jason (our original drummer) as his other band practiced down the hall in the same rehearsal complex in South Austin - Michael J and I had recently become friends & I'd seen his previous band play live and thought they were awesome - so it was love at first site if you will - 10 years later, 2x albums, an EP, and 2x UK singles we're still writing the kind of music we love. Our current drummer Erik joined the band in 2012 - we'd all known him for many years on the Austin Music scene and were already good friends. It was a perfect fit having him come on board before recording the new album "The Art of Telling the Truth." (answered by Bassist Brandon Tucker)

Q: Who are your influences?
A - We have broad array of influences between us all but here are a few - Jawbox, Pixies, U2, Shiner, The Jesus Lizard, MBV, Sonic Youth, Swervedriver, The Cure, Melvins, Van Halen, Led Zeppelin, Dinosaur Jr.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
That's tough as we all have our own list - so here ya go:
-Michael J. (off the top of my head and in no particular order)
1. Jawbox - For Your Own Special Sweetheart
2. Jeff Buckley - Grace
3. Miles Davis - Birth of the Cool
4. Sonic Youth - Dirty
5. Van Halen - Fair Warning

-Brandon:
(In no particular order)
1. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
2. Swervedriver - Mezcal Head
3. Pixies - Trompe le Monde
4. The Cure - Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me
5. The Jesus Lizard - Goat

-Erik
(In no particular order)
1. Unforgettable Fire, U2
2. Master of Puppets, Metallica
3. Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin
4. Head, Goat, or Liar, any of the first three full length records by The Jesus Lizard.
5. Pretenders 1st, Pretenders

-Mark
1. Turbonegro - Apocolypse Dudes
* Mark just listed 1 band... he said "Very broad spectrum here. I like all kinds of stuff"

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Michael J - Recording is great, but live is where it's at! There's nothing in the world like playing together as a band in front of a crowd of fans -

Mark - Playing live- A high that nothing else comes close to. Unless it's a shitty night, no one is there, and the groove just ain't happening. Which is also a high nothing else comes close to, but not in a good way.

Erik - FUCKING AMAZING! I live for playing live, it's what my whole life is based around doing. I wish I did nothing but tour....I have many analogies about what I'm feeling when I'm playing with my bros, and what it feels like being plugged into the remarkable energy that happens when we're all playing together. If someone isn't a musician and wonders what it might feel like, my thought of a good visual of the power and euphoria, is watching big wave surfing or sky-diving....maybe old-tyme drag racing footage.

Brandon - Magnet School lives to tour! I get a natural buzz that I can't explain when you see people rocking out to your music - extra bonus when you see them singing right along with the lyrics. It really make your heart and soul soar.

Q. How do you describe Magnet School sounds?
We have a unique sound due to the kind of alternate tunings we use - nothing is in standard tuning. It gives us a special foundation with the kind of songs we write - we also like to record guitars in stereo as I mentioned - the best description of our band would be a pretty but heavy wall of sound - we can be very melodic and sonic, but also mix noisy pop with floaty alt rock. The vocals are the icing on the cake - well written songs with lots of sonic texture.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the new album?
Since the record took over 2 years to make - and 5 years counting the writing process, it was largely a waiting game. It was a tough record to make and at points we wondered if it would ever be finished, but it turned out better than we imagined. We wanted to record drums in a big room to get real, natural, big drum tones so we tracked drums and bass live to analog 2-inch tape in a studio with 30-foot ceilings. Then the guitars & vocals were recorded at another studio with Pro Tools HD. We did a lot of stereo guitar tracks using multiple amp combinations to get the wall of sound we like. This record is kind of a hybrid with the rhythm section being recorded on tape and guitars & vocals recorded in the digital realm - but it turned out spectacular. This is also very similar to how we did our first record, 'Tonight we drink…Tomorrow we battle the evil at hand," so we had a formula that we liked, overall we're super stoked about the outcome.

 Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Last year we played with Solids from Montreal at CMJ in Brooklyn, amazing live show. The Life and Times from Kansas City/Chicago are friends of ours and they are the gold standard. We've played with them multiple times over the years, do yourself a favor and check out 'Suburban Hymns' and thank us later.

Q: Which bands would you love to make a cover version of?
In the past we did a cover of "Never Lose That Feeling" by Swervedriver on our debut album, and we've also covered My Bloody Valentine's "When You Sleep" live at a handful of shows, and "Mountains of Your Head" by Flaming Lips - in the future we talked about covering "Head Over Heels" by Tears For Fears" - we'll see if that happens?

 Q: What are your plans for the future?
To tour the US in the late Spring the and UK / Europe in the Fall - we'd love to come to Brazil one day… I think this album could do well in South America? We also plan to start writing new material and get to work another future album.

 Q: Any parting words?
Brandon - We really appreciate your time Renato - keep in touch! We are very excited to share this new album with a large audience all around the globe. Spread the word in your area ~

Erik - Thanks for your interest in our band! We sure appreciate you reaching out to us. Hopefully we can come play for you sometime, sooner than later. Until then, thanks and take care!
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Thanks

For North & South American fans - get our music here at our Bandcamp Page:
https://magnetschool.bandcamp.com/album/the-art-of-telling-the-truth

For UK / Europe, Rest of the world - get from our Sunshine HQ Store:
https://magnetschool.officialstore.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/magnetschooltheband/