Kev of Two Door Cinema Club
Top 10 Albums of 2010
Not really in any order...
Four Tet: There Is Love in You
The National: High Violet
Bad Veins: Bad Veins
Caribou: Swim
LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening
The Black Keys: Brothers
Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Blood Red Shoes: Fire Like This
Stars: The Five Ghosts
Wild Nothing: Gemini
What was the highlight of 2010 for either you personally or for the band?
We’ve been lucky enough to be part of a lot of very cool things, but I think our highlight definitely has to be releasing our debut record. It was kind of like we’d properly laid down our intent.
What was the low point of 2010 for you?
When someone threw beer over my favorite effects pedal.
What are your hopes and plans for 2011?
We’re going to be touring until about April/May. Before 2011 is over we want to have the next record finished and well on its way or finished in the studio.
What are your thoughts on President Obama’s job performance in the last year? Has your optimism, if you were an Obama supporter, waned?
After studying American Politics in school I probably should have taken more of an interest. I think from touring all over the world for the duration of his presidency I have lost a lot of touch. He seems to be doing all right yeah! Doing a better job than I could.
What are your thoughts on the Tea Party movement?
I think in essence they have a point. It’s not a new idea. I think their demands would be rather hard to achieve, though. In these kinds of circumstances I think there are more important things that people should be putting their energy into. There are contradictions in their argument. How can a state such as the United States reduce its enormous debt by lowering taxes that its citizens pay? In my opinion it’s “perfect world ideal-ology.”
With the Internet making every artist’s music potentially available to a wide audience, is it now easier to find listeners or more difficult because you have to compete with so many other musicians?
It is definitely easier. These days you can post things you’re listening to on MySpace or last.fm directly to your Facebook where all 1,000 of your friends who you don’t even know can listen to what you are listening to. You don’t have to be an established band to get fans. If you know how to work the socials to your advantage you’ll benefit.
Who would you rather listen to—a totally original musician whose compositions are groundbreaking but difficult to listen to or a musician whose songs are immediately enjoyable but derivative? Why?
The latter. Music shouldn’t be about what’s cool or not. I listen to music that I enjoy.
In the race to find new bands, are too many unworthy bands being hyped up by music blogs and websites? How are music fans supposed to filter through all these new bands being hyped?
Things have come into this new generation. People are finding the music for themselves and less and less listening to the stuff they are told to by the big institutions. It’s definitely the age of the independent blogger. There are definitely a lot of terrible bands doing reasonably well because of hype, but hype is a curse as well. Hype seems to lower the shelf life of bands, especially if it comes around before they release a record.
If your house was on fire, what would you grab as you were running out?
I unfortunately don’t have a house. I have a suitcase so if that goes on fire I’m fucked.
If you could relive one day of your life, which would it be?
The day I was born so I could start over.
What’s the strangest fan encounter you’ve ever had?
When a whole class of medical students in Paris grew moustaches because I had one.
If you had a bucket list, what would be the Top 4 things on that list?
1. Go to the carnival in Rio de Janeiro.
2. Get a platinum record.
3. Punch an A list celebrity in the face.
4. Sleep with an A list celebrity.
Who was your first love and do you still keep in touch with them?
Beer and daily.
Is there anything that most people are able to do that you can’t (such as drive a car, swim, ride a bike)?
Draw.
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Delphic extra answers
With the Internet making every artist’s music potentially available to a wide audience, is it now easier to find listeners or more difficult because you have to compete with so many other musicians?
James Cook: The Internet is a junction of avenues that help people find their way to your band. Ten years ago there were no forms of social networking and now there are dozens, all with dedicated band/artist pages. It has changed the way we consume music, although not necessarily for the better. Whereas in the past people were forced to buy a few albums and really consume them, now the listener is spoilt for choice. It’s neither easier nor more difficult, as bands have always had to be competitive, it’s just now they have to approach it in a different way.
Who would you rather listen to—a totally original musician whose compositions are groundbreaking but difficult to listen to or a musician whose songs are immediately enjoyable but derivative? Why?
Matt Cocksedge: Music is dependent on mood—sometimes you want to be comforted by what you know, sometimes you want to listen to something groundbreaking or original because you already know what you know, if that makes sense. One category is neither more valuable nor less worthy than the other. It’s a big landscape and there’s room enough for everyone to find an audience, even Barry Manilow.
In the race to find new bands, are too many unworthy bands being hyped up by music blogs and websites? How are music fans supposed to filter through all these new bands being hyped?
James: The modern music fan has become savvy to the Internet, discerning which blogs or websites they trust, but inevitably it’s like it always was. You filter by listening. It’s easy to tell at that stage which bands are hot air and which bands are of substance. The press should always be seen as a guide rather than a rule.
Who was your first love and do you still keep in touch with them?
Rick Boardman: Delphine—she is our muse, so yes.
Is there anything that most people are able to do that you can’t (such as drive a car, swim, ride a bike)?
Rick: We can do all those things. In fact, we swim and cycle quite often.
Have you ever been starstruck when meeting another musician? If so, by who?
Rick: No.
What’s the most embarrassing thing to happen to you in the last year?
Rick: We don’t dwell on things enough to get embarrassed by them.
What or whom do you miss most when you’re touring?
James: Delphine
What moment made you maddest in 2010?
Rick: When we realized our football club in England was £1.1bn in debt thanks to the Glazers.
What was the first movie you saw in the theater as a child and do you still enjoy it now?
James: Peter Pan—you can’t better those Disney choirs. Of course I still enjoy it, it’s timeless.
In 2010, what was the best movie you saw, book you read, comic book you read, video game you played, and/or TV show you watched?
Rick: Movie—The Social Network by Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher. Book—Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick. TV Show—Mad Men by Matthew Weiner.
What are your thoughts on President Obama’s job performance in the last year? Has your optimism, if you were an Obama supporter, waned?
Matt: Obama has definitely changed the perception of America around the world, largely due to the symbolic nature of his initial policies (on human rights, health care, discrimination) which showed the determination and clear direction of his government. Of course there is a lot left to do, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan, and criticism is inevitable. However his hesitation is understandable given America’s relations with the Middle East, and the critical state the nation was in when he took the reins.
If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring musician, what would it be? What was the best piece of advice that you’ve ever gotten?
Rick: Everyone and anyone can be a musician these days. Bedroom studios have taken over from commercial studios. All you need is a computer and you are officially a recording artist! But, in order to rise above all the thousands of applicants, you have to make sure you are making the best music with the best songs. There is a sea of bland music out there and only a few who are really doing something special. Work harder than everyone else and write better songs.
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