[30 Seconds to Mars - "An orgasm for the Eyes and Ears" ] Interview Shannon/Matt 2002...

Alors je ne sais pas si ça a déjà été posté en farfouillant par ci par là en retrouvant des vieux sites on trouve sur des trucs pas trop mal xD

Donc une vieille interview (2002???) de Shannon et de Matt qui sont en forme
Le nom du site me dit quelque chose et certaines réponses aussi alors je ne sais plus si déjà lu ou pas

Bref

C'est long hin

Enjoy

Citation :

Matt 30 Seconds to Mars - their self-titled debut is out in stores now. The band has opened for Puddle of Mudd, Incubus, Our Lady Peace and is now on tour with Sevendust. The album itself is reminiscent ofalbums of the 70s from bands such as Yes, Rush and others like that. A concept album of sorts with multiple layers. To see this band live is an experience in itself as the music speaks for itself.

Landing this interview was a journey in itself. I don't like taking no for an answer and I'm really glad I pursued this interview.

Shannon I'd love to see them do a huge headlining tour where they could use the stage and the lights to their advantage to go along with the music as related bands have done in the past. I must say that overall this was a very entertaining interview for me and I thank Shannon and Matt for that.



Matt: Do you prefer us both on the same side or what?

Shannon: Do you want to be a sandwich?

ER: OW!(as Shannon and Matt made a sandwich out of me!)

Shannon: A 30stm sandwich?

ER: First thing I should have you do is say your names so your voices get on here.

Shannon: (in this like fake voice) I am Shannon. How are you?

ER: Are you going to do the whole interview like that?

Shannon: (in that same voice) Yep!

Matt: (trying the same voice but laughing) My name is Matt.

Matt: Sorry about that.(laughing)

ER: Now I have to tell you, whoever wrote your bio didn't say anything.

Shannon: Nothing, our bio is blank?

Shannon: How can a bio say nothing?

ER: No it wasn't blank. It doesn't who you are, nothing about you, your backgrounds. and I definitely understand why for some of it

Shannon: I'm going to talk to the authorities about it! Whoever is in charge is going to get a spanking!

ER: You are probably the one in charge.

Shannon: Spanking on the butt! You're pointing at me! She's pointing at me!

ER: I'm sorry. That's one of my pet peeves.

Shannon: She's a pointer!

ER: Okay so I run a music website, earplugsrequired.com it covers everything from Matchbox Twenty, the Calling all the way to heavy metal

Shannon: Gotcha

ER: We cover everything so it's not genre specific.

ER: In searching the Internet, I did a search under your name (looking to Shannon) and everyone else in the band so I could find some information on the band.

Shannon: Just don't believe the Internet. Everything about me is 99.9% false.

ER: Trying to find something on 30stm is very difficult.

Shannon: So we will start from scratch.

ER: So, seriously how long has the band been together?

Shannon: I believe about 7, uh 6 years

Matt: At least

Shannon: No this year 76 years. (laughing)

Matt: Yeah 76 years.

Shannon: Is it tomorrow?

Matt: Tomorrow but ...(hugging each other) I thought we weren't going to make a big deal about this. 76 years.

Shannon: We've been together a long time.

ER: Okay listen. If I'm not going to ask questions I'm not supposed to ask, about Jared, his acting, his girlfriend and all that crap then be a little honest with me. Okay?

Shannon: Uh I felt something. . .

Matt: I felt a . . . little thing there.

Shannon: did you? I felt something . . .

Matt: She's threatening us now.

ER: Oh I wasn't threatening you.

Shannon: Something happened. I don't know what it was. It did feel threatening.

ER: I don't threaten.

Matt: Oh okay.

ER: Hey I'm honest and I do a music site so I talk about music.

Matt: Obviously Jared and Shannon (are brothers) they've been doing it since they were kids.

Shannon: Hey how's this?

ER: (looking at Shannon)Yeah I won't ask how the two of you (Jared and Shannon) met?

Shannon: We've been doing it for all our lives and Matt and Solon, God we met Matt and Solon years ago. Over 10 years ago really.

Matt: We just became friends.

Shannon: We became friends and

Matt: we began playing music together.

Shannon: Yeah. We all had the same interests, the same goals. And we just started doing it. We did it for ourselves for awhile and then we wanted to share that experience with people so we started playing out under different names so we wouldn't

Matt: we really weren't that concerned with building a following

Shannon: Yeah we were just doing it for ourselves

Matt: doing it for ourselves

ER: What names were you playing under?

Shannon: Can't tell you.

ER: (teasing) You gotta kill me if you tell me.

Matt: No because it's something that maybe

Shannon: Torture you

Matt: down the line we'll do again you know.

ER: Well that's true.

Shannon: You never know.

ER: A lot of bands do that, especially when they are trying out new material.

Matt: Yep. Something special for hard-core fans.

Shannon: Yep. Then they will know to show up.

ER: Right.

Shannon: But then we wanted to share with a broader audience. We picked the name, 30 Seconds to Mars, which Matt

Matt: Actually it picked us

Shannon: You are right, it picked us

Matt: There was this former Harvard professor and we like to go on the Internet a lot and we came across this thesis that he wrote. He was talking about technology and how fast it's moving and quite literally how we are 30 seconds to Mars and that was one of the subcategories, titled 30 Seconds to Mars.

ER: Now is that true or is that like how Hoobastank's name means twenty different things?

Matt: No, no that's true.

ER: I just want to check. After the beginning part of this come on now.

Matt: I know. We're serious now.

Shannon: We got all the funny stuff out of the way now.

ER: Now I did an interview this summer with a punk band that's been around for a long time and I have never had where I have sat down for an interview where I have been asked a question. They asked me to describe their music in three words so I want you to describe your bands' music in three words.

Shannon: (motions to Matt to begin)

Matt: I'd say atmospheric. (then motions to Shannon to go next)

Shannon: My turn.

ER: Your turn.

Shannon: Okay. Powerful.(motions to Matt to finish)

Matt: Loving.

ER: Okay I feel like we are playing Family Feud.

Matt: Cuddly. Snugly

Shannon: You know what it is? It's atmospheric, powerful, dynamic

Matt: Yeah dynamic

Shannon: Those are three.

ER: Now I had read where each of you guys have your own little parts. You (looking at Shannon) do photography. . .

Shannon: Well, we are all artists. We do a lot of things besides just playing music. Just a lot of things from painting to Matt reconfigures the amps and the sound, I don't know what he does. . .

Matt: I like to do a lot of soldering.

Shannon: Yeah. He likes to do a lot of Matt: because it burns.

Shannon: whatever he does. Solon loves to do things with clothes and our stage and the way it looks and stuff like that. I take pictures. Jared does just everything from the writing to the graphics to overseeing everything.

ER: It said that he did the writing, Did he write everything, the lyrics and the music?

(the opening band at this point is starting to soundcheck and it gets loud up on the balcony where we are)

Shannon: He wrote, he wrote (trying to talk over the soundcheck)

ER: Oh great.

Shannon: That's ok. (taking the recorder) He wrote the lyrics, and he wrote all the music. I play all the drums on it. And that's that and that's that.

ER: Now you had another guitar player?

Shannon: No.

ER: That's what it said.

Shannon: Exactly. See.

ER: That's good. We will clear up the rumors because nobody knows. And even on some of the fans sites there is this other person's picture and it said he left this summer. So he was a figment of everyone's imagination?

ER: (looking at Shannon) He's not saying anything.

Shannon: Exactly.

ER: (Laughing)

Shannon: It was definitely a figment.

ER: Okay. Fine. You guys played in Toronto and there was this freestyler on stage who was badmouthing you guys.

Shannon: Okay.

ER: So what's the truth about that story?

Shannon: I don't know, I didn't read it.

ER: It said that you were supposed to headline that show, and this other band headlined and there was this freestyler

Matt: A rapper?

ER: Yeah.

Shannon: You know what, I don't remember, I remember I don't remember.(laughs) How's that, I don't remember any of it.

ER: You are good at evading questions.

Matt: So were we there?

Shannon: we played, I don't remember trying to headline a show. I don't know, I didn't read it but now I'm going to.

ER: Search the Internet, it's on some Canadian

Matt: Website or something.

ER: Something or other.

Matt: That's the beautiful thing about the Internet, they can say whatever they want.

ER: But these are press people too.

Matt: And they can say

Shannon: Exactly, that's my point. You know what we have had many, not many but we have had a couple of horrid experiences with the media, with the press.

ER: I know.

Shannon: It's really unfortunate so let's hope this goes smooth.

Matt: It's going smooth. It's going smooth so far.

ER: You guys are bad to me. Recently MSO was doing your publicity on your headlining tour and they sent the package to me and I was like okay cool. We'll go see them. And then I asked for them to arrange and interview and it was "Oh they are not doing press now."

Shannon: Yeah we weren't going to do press for a while.

ER: That's what I heard.

Shannon: Hold on.

(soundcheck drums got too loud so we moved to the dressing room)

Shannon: Yeah we weren't going to do it but now we are. This is the whole thing, we are trying to let the music speak for itself and that comes first. I mean if you are doing a band, if you are interviewing a band you want to talk about the music so it just makes sense to talk about the music.

Matt: We are musicians. We play in a band. We play music.

ER: (teasing) You mean you are not just standing there, holding an instrument and having a DAT play the whole time?

Shannon: No.

Matt: Contrary to popular belief, no.

Shannon: No. So we are just trying to do that you know. We are trying to have integrity.

ER: So what do you believe the biggest misconception the media has about you?

Matt: That we are all homosexuals.

ER: I think the guy in the audience last night thought that. (the night before someone in the audience yelled "suck my dick" to which Jared replied "I might be cute but I'm not gay.")

Shannon: You know what, I don't really pay attention to that. I just try to focus on what is in front of me and we're just trying to move ahead and. . .

Matt: You get caught up concentrating too much on what people think about you. You know "Oh he's this. . ." or "he's dating this person" or it's not about that. If you get caught up thinking about that you lose sight of what you are really trying to do. We are just out there trying to create music and bring it to people.

Shannon: We don't have enough patience. That never crosses my mind. The only people that have a problem with any of that is the media and the press. They are the only ones that bring it up, the fans don't. They are like "Oh my GOD! You guys were fucking amazing!" "You guys are so amazing live!" " I just bought your CD, it sounds so good, can you sign it?" They never, they like recognize but they push it aside because the music, I mean they are really in love with the music.

Matt: I mean if you don't care for the music then so be it. Leave it at that.

ER: Right it doesn't matter.

Shannon: It doesn't matter to them.

Matt: Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but then just leave it at that.

ER: The biggest thing I heard about the Puddle of Mudd show, the show in Baltimore sold out like in minutes, but the biggest thing I heard was that you blew Puddle of Mudd away.

Shannon: Wow.

Shannon: Wow. They've been touring for a long time. We were only a couple of weeks into it but yeah wow.

Matt: For us it wasn't like we were trying to blow them away.

ER: No. I didn't mean that.

Matt: We just do what we do. That's great if someone likes our show. That's great.

ER: Now you just did the Incubus tour, huge stage big places, now you're doing the club tour. I know it's great playing in front of thousands of people compared to a thousand but with your show, which do you think is a more comfortable feeling?

Shannon: They both serve differently. We're a brand new band so we get to show our music to a wider audience when we are playing and that you know spectrum but also when we are playing these small type places the intimacy is really nice as well.

ER: When I hear your music, I could really visualize what Incubus does with their lights to go along with your music. Is that something that in the future you are going towards?

Matt: Absolutely.

ER: As an opening band it's hard, you don't want to show up the main band.

Matt: Yeah, like we said, we're interested in all aspects of the show visually and acoustically so we are definitely interested in making it like an orgasm for the eyes and ears.

Shannon: I like that. (with a Robin Leech accent) Orgasm for the eyes and ears. The theatrics are definitely playing a part in 30 Seconds to Mars. It's bigger than just four guys up there playing our instruments. There's like a whole thing going on. You know what I'm saying Matt?

Matt: It's not just about us, it's about our fans who obviously if it wasn't for them we wouldn't be able to do what we do and we have a very dedicated hard-core following which is part of 30 Seconds to Mars.

Shannon: Yeah we have these fans coming up they're making shirts with 30stm. They are like writing, they are getting tattoos with our glyphics.

ER: Yeah I saw those.

Shannon: We are striking a chord and I think people are tired of the music that's going on right now. It's like nowadays you listen to a song, it's a poppy catchy sort of song but if you listen a little more you are like

Matt: There's no depth.

Shannon: There is no depth. We're trying to bring something different to the table.

Matt: Something that you can absorb that's tangible. It's not just a flash in the pan. We want to build a community. Something that's going to have longevity and is going to be interesting and you know not a single serving band.

ER: Bands today it's just, I don't know, it's just very difficult to get an album out unless you are on MTV, the radio and all, it's very difficult to albums. You can sell an album because of who you are anymore. In the 70s fine, Zeppelin put out an album and it sold all these copies because of who it was.

Matt: I disagree. I think there are still bands out there that can bring the music to people without radio. I mean you look at bands like Metallica and Dave Matthews Band, here are bands who built a following just on touring alone.

ER: Right.

Matt: Without any help from radio, that came later but they had such a strong following just through touring. That's what we are looking to do -- just tour. Just to keep touring.

ER: I'm taking about like the nu-metal bands of 2000 - 2002. These bands now have one hit, their second album doesn't do well and they are gone again.

Matt: Yeah they get their song on the radio and they think they don't have to go out and tour, that the work is going to be done for them. We're not about that, we ready to go bust our asses.

Shannon: This is no hobby. We are willing to just keep on working as hard as we can. Nothing's really going to stop us and that's the bottom line. We are willing to tour, we are willing to do these interviews, we are willing to do whatever it takes to get the message out there. Whatever it takes.

ER: I've noticed the bands you are touring with cover a wide range of styles. Puddle of Mudd, Incubus, these dates with Our Lady Peace and you are doing Sevendust next which is totally different, much heavier than the other bands you have toured with. What are your feelings about this?

Matt: I think it's a great thing. It brings our music to a wider range of listeners. If you tour with the same type of band every time you get the same people coming back. No new people are going to be exposed to the music.

Shannon: From Puddle of Mudd, just like you said a totally different animal and they do a great job at what they do. We just showed up we kicked ass. People know if it's real or not. Everything is really disposable these days. Just like Puddle of Mudd, the Incubus tour was just as amazing. Like it was again an overwhelming response every night man. Every night.

Matt: And I think as music fans we all listen to a wide range of different styles of music. So for us it keeps it interesting playing with different . . .

Shannon: Yeah we all like different types of music literally, we don't all listen to one type, you know what I mean. We all like different kinds which is very important.

Matt: Creates sometimes problems on the bus. Who wants to listen to what.

Shannon: But at the end of the day it's all going to be in the positive direction, it's all good. It all works together.

ER: Tell everyone to get walkmen and headphones.

Matt: We do.

Shannon: It's funny.

Matt: We all like corner off.

Shannon: Everybody corners off. They have their thing you know.

Matt: It's good.

ER: Who would you like to open for or tour with?

Shannon: I would like to tour uh. . .

Matt: I'm going to come out, right out and say U2.

ER: Oh, there you go. Big, I said anyone.

Shannon: I don't know man. I don't know.

ER: That would be a cool tour.

Shannon: I don't know. There's a lot of bands man but I wouldn't mind touring with, well we talked about Led Zeppelin, with Bonham coming back on drums. I mean Zeppelin in 1970 would have been cool. We just want to make shows an event. And we want to make it some place where you can go and just lose yourself, find yourself and just totally explore parts of your mind that you haven't explored before. You know that's what we want. Really. My brother likes to say this - it is like a huge art project. People can do so many things and there are so many different areas.

Matt: And that's the thing about the band is that you can, if you are just a fan of the music great, but if you want something more, it is there for the taking it's you know we are offering much more than music.

ER: Right.

Matt: And you know I think for me, as a music fan, that's something I always responded to as a kid listening to music, bands that had a strong sense of identity, you know, bands so we are creating something we would respond to if we were on the outside looking in.

Shannon: Yeah, it's only a natural process. We are all coming together. At the end of the day we all have the same goals and interests.And it's true, he grew up listening to huge bands, like rock bands and that makes sense for him to be in this band because it's kind of like the same thing. And it's like we're all in it together we are all in it - is it working? (looking at the recorder)

ER: Yeah it's working. (turning the recorder over) See, it's moving.

Shannon: Oh, you looked at it. Whatever.

ER: The buttons are pushed in. I've never done that before.

Matt: We had done a whole interview for like 45 minutes and "oh shit, the recorder's not on."

ER: I've actually never had that happen. I've had it where I have taped it at the wrong speed and had to adjust it later.

(laughs)

Shannon: Yeah, right right.

ER: It's like whoa, everyone sounds like chipmunks!

ER: Now being on tour, is it all you thought it was going to be?

Matt: For me, nothing is ever what you think it's going to be, it's always something else. Sometimes it's better, sometimes it's worse. For me, I love it. It's the best job in the world. It's do this or back to the fry laders.

Shannon: Yeah this is definitely an amazing experience -- to share the music with lots of people and have them respond in the way they have been responding. And traveling to different cities, there's things, I mean it's amazing touring. You can explore different cities. You get to meet lots of different people, it's an amazing job and experience. 30stm is a great fucking band to be in. It's something that's driven by passion and driven by perseverance.

ER: Now I ask everyone this question.

Shannon: And we are not going to answer it. (in a strange voice) We are not everybody.

ER: I didn't say you were. Say it's in the future, you open up the Rock and Roll Encyclopedia, what do you want it to say under 30stm?

(silence)

Matt: Turn it off for a second please.

(I turn off the recorder. After a bit of talking amongst ourselves I turn the recorder back on)

ER: None of that was on tape and that was good.

Matt: What do other people say, I'm just curious. You don't have to name the bands, I'm just curious.

Shannon: ( in another voice) The best fucking rock band to rock your balls off!

ER: Some people say they kicked ass, or they were an honest band, down to earth or

Wade the Tour Manager: I like "They showed up"

(laughter all around)

ER: some were like they wanted to be remembered as someone that was real. That's just down to earth.

Shannon: Don't know. We'll let someone else dictate that.

Matt: Yeah, we'll let someone else write that for us. That's the thing about us, this band is about interpretation. The music is about interpretation, the visuals are about interpretation. That's the beautiful thing about music is it's not just written in stone. It's not the way we see it, it's the way listeners

Shannon: it's the way the listeners hear it. It would be such a disservice - you are recording this, this is good -

ER: Yeah, and it's quiet now (soundcheck is over)

Shannon: but anyway, it's a disservice of lyrics to explain a song to you. If we were to explain parts of the song because it's like "Stairway to Heaven", could mean literally a stairway to heaven, this beautiful place and I'm on my way and all that, but if you ask Jimmy Page (in a British accent) "I was taking a shit and. . ." you know and like you are fucking ruined.

(laughter all around)

Matt: I grew up on that. It kind of loses it's emotional attachment. Or not loses it but changes it. So we don't want to take that away from anyone.

ER: It does change it unless the only time it's important to explain is when somebody does get something totally wrong. Like after September 11th, when they pulled, they censored all those songs on the radio, because of lyrics and things like that, that had nothing to do with what they thought they had to do with.

Shannon: Sure in that circumstance, maybe.

Matt: Maybe, but I mean it's still

Shannon: But you know what? A lot of people

ER: It's all artistic freedom.

Shannon: Right. A lot of the time people want the easier way out. And we are living in a day and age where it's like

Matt: Everyone is looking for an easy answer.

Shannon: Yeah it's like they don't want to work for it. We have so much information at our fingertips. It's just so easy. There's no going to the library and looking it up. It's there's while you are eating your take-out. There's no discovery really. There is no discovering things for yourself.

ER: It's true. You go online, I go to cnn.com all the time. Especially with the sniper news.

Shannon: We all do it.

Matt: Yeah we all do it.

Shannon: We all do it. I'm just saying we are all getting caught in it. I mean we are all in it but it's just nice to be aware that there is a different way to go about things in addition to; you can do many things, you don't have to be stuck in one way of finding things out.

by Courtney Campbell Photos by Alice Barkwell

Lien:
earplugs