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AN INTERVIEW WITH....
SOLANOID.

WHO IS IN SOLANOID AND WHAT DOES EACH MEMBER DO?
Lee: i sing and play guitar.
Jon: i play bass and sing.
Adam: i play drums.
HOW DID YOU ALL MEET AND COME TO FORM SOLANOID TOGETHER?
L: adam and i met about 4 years ago through an advert a friend put in a music shop saying that we were looking for band members. we knew jon from playing in another local band, and he joined us about 6 months ago, as a replacement for our original bass player vic crane.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR STYLE OF MUSIC?
A: we always find it hard to describe exactly what we sound like.
L: my influances come from bands like velvet underground and sonic youth right up to stuff like biffy clyro. personaly i'd describe us as alternative-rock.
WHO ARE YOUR INFLUENCES?
L: my influances come from bands like velvet underground and sonic youth right up to stuff like drop 19's, seafood and biffy clyro.
J: at the moment im listening to some emo and hardcore stuff like Fugazi and Favez.
A: drum wise i'd say im influenced by people like tony hajjar from sparta and JR conners from cave-in, among others.
YOU HAVE A NEW SINGLE OUT. IT IS CALLED �UNIVERSITY�. DID YOU GUYS GO TO UNI AND IF SO WHAT DID YOU STUDY?
L: we all went to college, but none of us have been to uni. the song is really about friends experiances with university. the song doesnt really have to be about university. its more about a situation.
IT IS TAKEN FROM YOUR DEBUT ALBUM, �AURORA AVENUE�. WHERE DID THE NAME OF THE ALBUM COME FROM?
L: aurora avenue was the name of the street we lived on in seattle when we were recording the album. we felt that the title fitted well with the general feel of the record as well.
ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT IT�S RELEASE?
A: yeah its great to be able to put our music out there and try to get people to listen to it.
L: we are proud of the way the record sounds. Jack did a great job. now we hope we can build on it and make the next record even better.
J: even tho i wasnt involved in the recording of the album, its great to be able to go out there and play the songs.
WHY DID YOU GO ALL THE WAY TO SEATTLE TO RECORD IT?
L: the opportunity came up to work with Jack and we were already fans of his work so we jumped at the chance to go over there to record.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING WITH LEGENDARY PRODUCER JACK ENDINO?
L: the guy is a genuis. he really gave the recording that extra something that it wouldnt have had otherwise. he came up with some really great sounds for us.
A: it was really cool to have him play guest guitar on 'lee majors' as well.
DID HE SHARE ANY INTERESTING STORIES WITH YOU ABOUT THE TIME HE SPENT WORKING WITH NIRVANA?
L: we tried not to bother him to much about the whole nirvana thing really. he must get asked about it all the time. but he did let us in on a few stories about working with them, and also playing with them when nirvana would support his band Skin Yard. He also told us some interesting stories about other people he's worked with. but we cant say any more about that unfortunatly!
HOW DID THE RECENT DATES WITH JETPLANE LANDING GO?
J: jetplane are probably one of my fav bands so it was an honour to support them and really cool to get to watch them every night for free.
A: it was really cool. they are great guys and we had such a laugh hanging out with them.
L: we had really good fun touring with them and hopefully we'll get to play with them again in the near future.
OUT OF ALL THE BANDS YOU�VE PLAYED WITH IN THE PAST, WHO HAVE YOU MOST ENJOYED PLAYING WITH AND WHY?
J: apart from jetplane, it was cool playing with biffy clyro cos they are a great live band and we are all fans of their music.
A: the crowd at the biffy gig was great as well. they had never seen us before but seemed to warm to us pretty fast.
L: i didn�t enjoy playing with the buzzcocks because the drummer told us to fuck off.
DO YOU GET NERVOUS BEFORE GOING ON STAGE?
L: no.
J: sometimes if its a big show i'll get a few butterflies. but usualy im ok.
A: i dont get very nervous because i know we can play well. but i try not to be to confidant about it. a little bit of nerves makes you stay focused.
HOW DO YOU STRUCTURE YOUR SET?
L: we pretty much always end the set with 'lee majors' because it works well as the last song and we can really let go at the end with feed back and stuff.
J: lately we've been opening with 'solanoid is rad' which seems to start the set off well.
WHICH TRACK DO YOU MOST ENJOY PERFORMING?
J: there is a new song we have called 'JFK' which i really like playing because it has some really big riffs in it.
A: i really like some of the new stuff we've been writing. my fav of the new ones is a song called 'start at the sequel'. off the album i'd say 'lee majors' is my fav to play.
L: off the album i'd pick 'solanoid is rad' because i like the double vocal i share with jon. out of the new material i'd maybe pick 'down from stars' because it has a big stomping riff that people really seem to get into.
WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU DO AFTER A GIG?
L: we like to try and meet some of the people who have come to see us play, then i'll generaly get a bit drunk and if im lucky take some herbal remedies.
J: bassicaly just try and chill out. maybe listen to some CD's if we have our own dressing room.
A: after a gig we are generaly all totally knackerd so first we have to sit down, get our breath back and dry off all the sweat. but after that its cool to hang out by our merch stand and meet people and hear what they thought of the gig.
DO YOU EVER GET HOMESICK WHILE ON TOUR?
A: no. its great to get away.
J: i haven�t been away for long enough yet i don�t think. i do miss my girlfriend and home comforts tho.
L: yes. i miss clean bathrooms and my own bed. we spend a lot of night staying with mates who are students and they have the worst bathrooms you've ever seen. but we are grateful they let us stay tho.
A: it can be hard sleeping on floors and armchairs, but at least we have somewhere to stay.
IS IT DISHEARTENING ON NIGHTS WHEN FEW PEOPLE TURN OUT TO SEE YOU?
L: obviously its great to play to bigger crowds but even when there are only a few people there we still try to play as good as we can. even if there is only one person watching, they have still payed the money to see us and we're grateful for that and want to give them the best show we can.
WHAT IS THE BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT YOU COULD MAKE AS A BAND?
J: it would be great to be able to make a living from playing in this band. to not have to get a day job to make money.
A: basicaly i just want to make music that people like. to be able to get as many people as possible to hear our songs.
L: i'd like to be recognised as a good song writer and musician by other artists i admire and who have inspired me.
WHAT IS IT LIKE SEEING YOURSELVES IN MAGAZINES ETC?
L: if its a good review i just get a sense of relief. but it is strange when people come up and say they have seen you in a magazine.
MUSICALLY AND LYRICALLY, WHICH OF THE SONGS YOU'VE WRITTEN IS YOUR FAVOURITE?
L: it changes from day to day really. but obviously we tend to favour the newer songs we have written because they feel fresher to us. ask us this question after we've played these songs for another 12 months and we'll tell you how much we hate them.
A: i think we are all really excited about the new songs we've been writing and we cant wait to start making the 2nd album. it feels like the new material is a fresh start as its the 1st stuff we've been writing since jon joined the band and he's really helped the song writing process.
WOULD YOU EVER CONSIDER DOING ANY COVERS?
L: we used to do a couple of covers. one was a song by one of my favourite bands 'sammy'. he song was called 'babe come down'. we also covered a song called '17' by a band we played with called 'popgun'. at some point in the future i'd love to do a cover of 'toggle' by 'seafood' maybe as a b-side or something.
IF YOU COULD INTERVIEW YOURSELVES, WHAT QUESTIONS WOULD YOU ASK?
L: 'why are you interviewing yourselves?'
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF TV SHOWS SUCH AS POP IDOL AND FAME ACADEMY?
L: being a pop idol or whatever must be better than working in a shop. but these people have to understand that their music is the lowest form of music there is. and their souls will pay in hell. probably.
J: its depressing that its blatently all about money and not about expression.
A: it is a real shame that there are so many bands out there who write great stuff but the fame idols get all the coverage.
WHAT FIRST MADE YOU WANT TO PICK UP A GUITAR AND JOIN/FORM A BAND?
L: i started playing guitar when i was going through all that 'teen angst' and being in a band kind of fitted how i was feeling. it gave me a way to express myself.
J: i started playing guitar at school and then got into a couple of cover bands for something to do before really being inspired to write my own songs and stuff.
A: i started playing drums when i was 11 at school just because i was offered the chance and just kept going from there.
WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE FOR ANYONE THINKING ABOUT STARTING UP A BAND?
L: just make sure you enjoy it. if you really want to try and make a career out of it be prepared for a lot of hard work and no money. also don�t let peoples negative comments stop you, just play music that you like.

ALL QUESTIONS BY MR MARTYN.

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