Interview by 1000 Knives
1. The new title of the record translates to "moving on/forward" can you elaborate why?
Even after 15 years of touring with bands, I’m still learning how to deal with the inertia of spending half the year constantly on the move And the other half of the year in total stasis. It can fuck with your head. Even worse is feeling stuck and immobile in a situation when you should be in transit. for example, being at the very end of a 7 week tour and getting stuck in Greece for an additional week when the Icelandic volcano erupted and the European air space was shut down. or getting your van totaled in Louisiana in the wake of the gulf oil leak, at which point BP had seized every available van in the area to shuttle the clean-up crews. the record isn't actually about these specific experiences, but that feeling of static definitely seemed like a recurring theme over the last couple of years and it felt good to vent against it.
2. what are the lessons as a person and as a band from these experiences?
Always carry a good book with you. and insure your shit.
3. what got you into music?
I started buying music when I was 9, though it was mostly radio rock like Survivor and Chicago. it wasn't until I was twelve or so that I started getting interested in the weirder stuff on MTV, like Pixies, REM and Camper Van Beethoven. then I was introduced to Dead Kennedys. it was hard to wrap my head around it; it was so out of context to everything else on the radio. but i liked that they were so opposed to the superficial side of music. before that, i thought REM was the shit because Michael Stipe refused to lip-synch in their videos or write love songs. Fuck man, Dead Kennedys wouldn't even stoop to making a video or put their faces anywhere on their album art. and of course that whole era of punk was about encouraging people to start their own bands. i took it to heart.
4. favorite tour /show story?
I can never think of one when I’m on the spot. at least, not one's that I’d be willing to share with the public. and honestly, the best tour stories are usually the ones where really awful shit happens. so most of my best tour stories come from touring with These Arms Are Snakes, because that band was always on the verge of rattling apart at the seams. with Russian Circles, we're pretty boring. we get hotel rooms and go to bed early instead of hanging out til 3am and sleeping on strangers' floors. on our days off we go to water parks and eat Italian food.
5. 5 things that you're currently enjoying?
I’m currently enjoying my Fuzzrocious Terrordactyl pedal, which is basically a fuzz pedal with a filter on it that makes everything sound super gooey and nasty. i basically just sit and play slow sustained power chords through it and drool all over myself. I'm also really enjoying Tonebutcher's Pocket Pus pedal, which is another fuzz that has this weird arppegiating decay on it. it's all over the song Schiphol on the new record. and i picked up a synthesizer made out of a cigar box in Portland a couple of months ago. the company is called Just Say Noise, and the dude basically just takes random boxes and throws a couple of oscillators in 'em. it's hours of neighbor-aggravating fun. Aside from random gear stuff, I’m enjoying the new album by Christina Vantzou on Kranky. it's kinda your standard Kranky faux-classical ambient stuff, but it's really really well done. and then i have to admit that i bought the new Blink182 and have listened to it everyday for the last two weeks.
Brian’s current band Russian Circles new LP “Empros” is due out on Sargent House on 10/25/11