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1.Kate Bush once said that “music gives her the freedom to
be who she wants to be.” Is this the same for you?
“Yeah, it’s interestingly put – I don’t know that
I would phrase it in the exact same way, but I do think that it is who
I want to be. So it’s not like music is allowing me to do something,
it’s what I have always done and it’s who I’ve always
been!”
2.What for you, have been some of the landmark songs in the history
of popular music?
“I think Across The Universe by The Beatles, when I was like 11-years-old,
sort of changed my perspective on things. Maybe Babylon Sisters, which
is the first track on Gaucho by Steely Dan, and there’s got to
be some Smiths tune in there somewhere (thinking), probably This Charming
Man.”
3.Is there a track that you consider to be ‘A Perfect Pop Song’?
“I mean, they kind of come in and out right? It’s like there
are moments of feeling that about a song and then it goes away, but
in the last couple of months, I felt like the song, Re: Stacks by Bon
Iver, was pretty close to a pure emotion – it was pretty amazing!
I feel like The Rolling Stones’ Sweet Virginia is a pretty awesome
pop tune as well!”
4.Of all your songs to date, which one has been your favourite to make
from start to finish?
“Um, there are certain processes and it’s not necessarily
that I think that the song is the best thing we’ve ever done, but
there are certain processes that I really enjoy, like for example, Front
Row, on this record. We had spent the entire night in the studio doing
everything that we needed to do, and then at like 11.30pm, Emily went,
“Oh, I’ve got this song that I kind of wrote the other day.”
And the whole thing literally came to fruition in about 20 minutes –
it was written and tracked in its entirety, in 20 minutes! So before
we left the studio, we said, “We don’t even know what that
song really sounds like – let’s hear it again (laughing),”
because it was so fresh! But that was cool (smiling).”
5.Prior to the release of your new album, fans were able to pre-order
a number of different and beautiful limited edition versions through
your Official Website. But are you yourself an avid record collector
and do you have any favourite collectibles?
“I’m not really a record collector – I never really have
been. I mean, I have a massive iTunes catalogue, but I’ve never
actually done the collecting records thing, like sifting through record
shops. That’s never really been me.”
6.Would Metric ever consider releasing an acoustic, rarities or remix
LP, perhaps as a companion piece?
“Yeah, I think so, but I think we’re more tempted to go on
the side of the acoustic stuff, because it still feels like it’s
us. I think this band in particular, is a little bewildered by the concept
of remixes. I understand that the world loves them and the world needs
them and everybody’s into them – it’s all cool and I
have nothing against it. But, I just find it a little hard to understand.
You know, it’s the song but it’s not the song, it’s you
but it’s not you – I get a little confused by remixes.”
7.Are there any records that you would like to see dissected track-by-track
as part of the ‘Classic Albums’ TV Series, whereby musicians,
producers, engineers etc. talk in detail about the making of an LP now
considered to be a masterpiece?
“Well, you know what (excitedly), I’ve been in a studio in
my life where they had the raw tracks to all of the Queen records! We
brought them up in Pro Tools and you could solo Freddie Mercury’s
vocal tracks! That absolutely blew my mind (big smile), like, it BLEW
MY MIND! It was incredible, so that was kind of a highlight.”
8.On a similar note, there was a recent debate about what the darkest
and most uplifting albums ever recorded are. But what’s the darkest
album and the most uplifting album in your record collection?
“Closer by Joy Division, is a really great dark album, that’s
for sure! In terms of an up album or a light album, I don’t know?
I feel like it would probably be a pop record, like Thriller or something,
you know what I mean? Thriller’s a pretty up record – you
don’t put that on and cry about anything (laughing). I don’t
know? That’s a tough question.”
9.HMV has been running a ‘My Inspiration’ advertisement
campaign, which features photographs of musicians and groups, along
with an act / lyric that means a lot to them personally. But if Metric
were asked to appear, which artist or band + lyric of theirs would you
choose?
“Which artist or band and which lyric? Oh God (long pause + thinking)…
For me, it would probably be David Bowie and it would be something off
Ziggy Stardust, but I don’t know what lyric it would be. I’m
going to come back to that one, I’ll see if I can muster it up.”
10.Throughout the history of music, there have been people who are
‘Born To Be Rock Stars’ and then are the ‘Unlikely Rock
Stars’. But which musicians would you place into either of these
categories – and also, where would you place Metric?
“I think we’re definitely born to be doing what we’re
doing you know? I think that the age of the full-on rock stars is possibly
over, and I think that the idea that you can be very, very successful
(pausing), I mean for example, Jonny Greenwood in my opinion –
now that we’re in Oxford – is as big a rock star as you can
get at this point. But at the same time, he’s not a rock star you
know? He’s a man, he’s a musician. I think that it’s
kind of cool that you don’t have to be that character anymore –
the world is sort of a little more accepting of someone who’s just
plainly talented.”
11.February 2, 2009, marked the 30th Anniversary of Sid Vicious’
death, although an NME.COM Blog entitled, ‘Why The Sanctification
Of Sid Vicious Must Be Stopped’, argued that he doesn’t deserve
to be thought of as an icon, due to the troubled life he led. What are
your feelings on the canonising / romanticising of tortured musicians,
and the ‘live fast, die young’ ethos often associated with
rock ‘n’ roll?
“Well, it is glamorised, but at the same time, the whole point
of rock ‘n’ roll in a sense – outside of the music itself
– is the idea that someone is going to live out a dream or a fantasy
for you. You don’t have to ‘live fast, die young’ because
someone else is going to do it for you – you can live vicariously
through these people. So it’s up to the likes of a Sid Vicious
or a Jonny Greenwood, if they want to ‘live fast, die young’
you know? It’s completely up to them and for me, no-one should
really tell anybody how to live. Sid Vicious probably lived the way
he wanted to and anything that happens that’s not the perfect way
of doing things, is probably going to get romanticised by a lot of people,
because they don’t have the balls to do it you know (laughing)?
So, I don’t think we need to pass any sort of retroactive, moral
judgement on people who died at 27, having lived a crazy, crazy life.
I think it’s all good.”
12.Do you think it’s a good thing how the record label, Rough
Trade, actively encourages young musicians to send demos to them?
“I think that’s the best thing and it’s a shame that
all labels don’t do that – that’s how you discover bands!
Because a lot of labels don’t have the time to look at every single
artist or band on the Internet, or go to every single show, so how else
are they going to do it?”
13.Has Metric surpassed your expectations, and what have been some
of the standout moments in your career so far?
“I think it’s kind of like everytime we meet expectations
in our lives, in our music and in our career, the expectation grows,
and then we have to try and take time to grow to meet that and then
it grows again. So, I’d say that we’ve probably met our expectations
a few times. Are we meeting it today? No, because it will happen soon
you know? But we’ve had some amazing moments, like opening for
The Rolling Stones at Madison Square Garden was pretty massive, and
playing after Sonic Youth at a Festival in a castle in France was amazing!
There’s definitely been some highlights (big smile)!”
14.And during this time, have you ever ‘Googled’ Metric?
“I try my best not to read reviews, because it seems like it’s
really light-hearted, like someone sends you something and you just
check it out, and then it sticks with you in a really awkward and unnecessary
way.”
15.Many music magazines now feature a guest columnist discussing
a topic of their choice, but if you were asked to contribute an article
on a subject that interests you, what would you write about?
“I would ask, ‘How Important Is It To Know Your Neighbour?’
Because I find that if you know your neighbours, your life is completely
different, but I think that a lot of people don’t see the value
in it.”
*I mention that in the UK, there’s already a ‘Get To Know
Your Neighbour’ style Government Campaign*
“Really? Huh, that’s cool!”
16.In reference to the title of your new album, do you have any unfulfilled
Fantasies?
“I’d love to own a spaceship (laughing)! Joking aside, we
feel that the title can be interpreted in a number of different ways,
such as what your own personal fantasies are, or even the way you view
the world around you.”
17.Have you ever had a favourite DJ, and do you think there will
ever be another important / influential DJ like John Peel?
“I never really have had that, like in Canada, I find radio is
a lot less influential than it is over here. In England – I mean
John Peel is a great example – there have been really influential
DJs and people who have sort of changed the way people listen to music;
what they listen to and what’s cool and what’s happening.
But I don’t find that it’s really the same in North America,
or at least not that I was ever exposed to you know? In fact, my favourite
DJ is my best friend Kevin, because he plays me AMAZING records all
the time (smiling)!”
18.Where’s the most unusual place that you’ve ever heard
a Metric song?
“I think I was in a department store somewhere, and you know how
the first floor always has perfume counters? I was walking through there
and I heard a Metric song, and the combination of the sound and the
smell really through me off – I had to get out of there (laughing).”
19.If a Metric ‘Tribute Album’ was recorded, which artists
/ bands would you most like to see cover some of your songs?
“Oh My God, I don’t know (long pause + thinking)? I’d
love to hear what Animal Collective would do with a Metric song –
that would be really cool! Because it would sound completely different
and it would be so exciting to see where they would take it. Yeah, totally!”
20.And if there’s ever a Metric ‘Tribute Band’, what
do you think they should call themselves?
“(laughs heartily) Regardless of what I said, they would probably
be called The Matrix. How about the band that I would like it to be
the most? That would be Keanu Reeves’ band, whatever they’re
called – Dogstar, I think? They should be called The Matrix. Perfect!”
21.Fans almost always shout out song requests at gigs, but of all
your songs, which is the most requested + are there any cover versions
that you often play during soundchecks?
“Um, well people yell out for songs from Grow Up And Blow Away
all the time, like Raw Sugar and stuff like that, because we’ve
never played them! So, I think that’s why they yell them out. The
ones that they could yell out, they know we’re going to play anyway,
so they don’t bother you know? In soundchecks, Emily and I do a
couple of covers, like just acoustically – we play Don’t Think
Twice, It’s All Right by Bob Dylan, and what’s that Elliot
Smith tune (thinking)? Between The Bars. We also played one Elvis Costello
tune once as a full band, and I think we played The Passenger by Iggy
Pop once, on a French TV station or something like that.”
22.Do you see many familiar faces in the audience when touring around
the world?
“I feel like I used to see more, because the crowds were consistently
the same size. But in the last couple of years, the crowds have grown
quite a bit, so I think I’m starting to not see the same ones anymore
– maybe they’re just further back in the room (laughs heartily)!
I don’t know?”
23.NME TV recently screened ‘The Top 10 Bands You Need To See
Before You Die’ – with the Top 3 being: 1) Muse, 2) Kings
Of Leon, 3) Oasis. But who would be in your Top 3?
“Let’s see, I mean Radiohead are a phenomenal live band for
me. I like Interpol – they’re kind of boring live, but I just
love their songs and I think that they’ve got a great energy and
a great vibe on stage, it’s really stoic and awesome! And I’m
kind of in the band, but a Broken Social Scene concert when there’s
like 25 people on stage, is one of the craziest sights ever! So I’d
say those would be in my Top 3: 1) Radiohead, 2) Interpol, 3) Broken
Social Scene.”
24.Much has been made about the future of The Music Industry, but
for you personally, what do you think would be the best thing that could
happen?
“I think the more that the musicians can take back the Industry,
and the more that the people who have actually made a way of making
a career out of being a middleman – between the listener and the
musician – the more they can go away and stop controlling the Industry
from a place in the middle. Then, I feel the most important thing that
could possibly happen, is that the musician feels empowered to do what
they want with their career, and they’re not listening to businessmen
telling them what to do.”
25.What’s the biggest lesson that your career has taught you?
“I think it’s that lesson – yeah, it’s that lesson
actually! I’m the one who’s completely in control and everybody
who told me what to do with my career, when I knew they were wrong,
I’ve got them out of my career. And now we own our own label worldwide,
we release all of our records, we pay for everything on our own, the
return is five times bigger, and we don’t have to deal with people
telling us what to do from an office in another country you know? We
run the show and it feels great (big smile)!”
26.Is it important to you all, to keep challenging both yourselves and
your audience?
“Yes, it is important to challenge ourselves and I think we challenge
our audience to stay young – to stay young at heart in a way. To
be alive and know that you can do whatever you want to with your life,
and that the only way to change the world, is to do something about
it.”
27.If you were asked to put together a TV show in a similar vein to
‘Storytellers’ – whereby 5 musicians play songs together,
talk about their music / respective careers, jam and tell anecdotes
etc. Who would you ask to appear?
“I think I would have Keith Richards, Brian May, Jack White and
who else would I choose (thinking)? Jonny Greenwood and… myself
(laughing)!”
28.Lastly, chips or cream buns?
“Chips, as in French Fries? French Fries – totally! I couldn’t
live without French Fries (smiling)!”
A very special thanks to Jimmy, to Metric’s
Tour Manager Lana, and to Warren @ Chuff Media, for all of their time
and help.
Oxford Set List
Twilight Galaxy
Help I'm Alive
Satellite Mind
Handshakes
Gold Guns Girls
Gimme Sympathy
Sick Muse
Empty (long version)
Front Row
Dead Disco
Stadium Love
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Monster Hospital
Live It Out (slow version)
www.ilovemetric.com
www.myspace.com/metric
“Gimme Sympathy
After All Of This Is Gone
Who Would You Rather Be
The Beatles Or The Rolling Stones”
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usicm
the 3rd album?