Interview: Matt Pond PA Ponders Austin Living, Lone Stars, and a New Name

This is Tarrytown? Bridle Path? I’m bad with knowing where I am, I just rely on a GPS. I'm not in New York - we’re recording our record [in Austin].

For The Wooden Birds?

No, I did sing on some Wooden Birds stuff, but I’m doing my own record right now.

Are you in the middle of that recording process or wrapping it up?

We’re finishing up. I think we’re doing an EP, if it works out, and we did all the tracks for our next record. Once our tour’s done we’re going to come back and finish the record. It’s been kind of hectic, because we’re practicing and getting ready for this tour and at the same time we’re recording and working twelve-hour days at least.

Sounds like you’ve got your plate full!

Yeah, but I love Austin, and I love a lot of the people here, so around that is jammed Lone Stars with friends. I think I’ve slept maybe two or three hours at most any of these nights.

And loving every moment of it?

Yeah. We’re leaving at 6 in the morning tomorrow to drive to San Diego, though, so there are a lot of details left. I was just listening to a mix and pretending not to sleep. It’s a mix from our new album, a song on our new EP. It’s pretty different from stuff we’ve done, so we’ll see how it goes.

Can you talk at all about how different it is, in what way, or are you guys trying to keep that on the down-low for now?

Oh no, there aren’t any secrets. We’re going a little bit more direct, I’d say, and we’re using some electronic beats along with real people playing drums to really push these songs along. And if it is possible, if people could accept this concept, I believe you could almost dance to some of these songs.

Wow, that is a new exciting direction! Do you guys have a targeted release date, or is it still kind of up in the air?

If we can do all these little things quickly, we might try and do it in a couple months.

Would that be then followed by another tour?

That’s a good question. The Wooden Birds record comes out soon and then we’ll play some shows. And then I think we’ll put out maybe one more [Matt Pond PA] EP before the record comes out, which I’d like to release next winter.

I'm tired just hearing all that!

I know! If everything starts falling in place it’ll mean that we don't stop touring for several months. A few weeks with the Wooden Birds and we [mpPA] are looking for another month or two in the spring.

So how do you deal with that the daily grind of touring?

I like driving, I don't mind it. I’ve never minded it. I like living like this where you don't really have time. Although, it’s hard to focus on practicing our old songs for a couple of hours a day when those hours are hard to find. It pulls you in three different directions, and I just blank on words sometimes.

But if they are old songs, the audience will sing along, right?

Right. It makes you live in the moment, which is hard to do anymore. Not to make a cultural comment on it, but it’s become harder and harder to just be in the moment. Like when we go on tour, even though I am exhausted and I like a feel like I’ve been pulled inside out, I like it.

Right, you are focusing on that day's show or that day's recording or whatever that day is giving you.

Sure...whatever happened yesterday, it’s not even relevant. It’s hard to remember things because you’re just moving along.

This tour is supposed to focus on a more intimate, acoustic and stripped down version of your songs. What was the catalyst for that? What brought out that idea?

It’s just a different way of looking into something. I like peeling back parts of songs and arrangements and see how they work. It also terrifying to me, and I like to do things I’m terrified of.

Absolutely - it makes you stronger.

There are actually two guitars and a cellist, so I have a little bit of a net.

No percussion though? The sole bass line will be the cello?

Yeah, or me, I’m a pretty choppy guitarist so we’ll be able to keep it down.

Right on. So in terms of what we should expect for the show in Austin at Stubb’s, what do you think?

It’s hard to say, since we’re driving all the way to the West coast and then driving back before then!

So we should expect you to be tired!

I love it here and love the people so much, but I’m not using it in that false sense of how people say every single town is their favorite. This really is it. You know, I’m almost inclined to move here because I like the people and the place so much.

Have you thought about moving here? Is that something serious?

It's totally serious, I mean Andrew Kenny [lead singer of Wooden Birds] is one of my favorite people and musicians of all time. To be asked to play in his band was like, that was almost one of the better things that has ever happened to me.

Do you have thoughts on leading your own band versus being a part of his? Any differences between the two?

Well I love that in my band I'm the dude and in his band he's the dude. It's really something to not be the dude. And to see how I can make him better, how do I help him get to where needs to be? I'm also kind of a hillbilly gang-banger so... I'm not always appropriate… I don't make the best decisions sometimes but I work hard too so...

Sure, you can be his net, in this case.

Yeah kind of more like a net with holes though. So he's going to have to fall lightly.

Now that you're spending so much time here in Austin, do you have favorite places to go or hangout or any good stories?

Good stories tend to be the things you can't really tell.

It's true. "You had to be there" kind of things.

Well you had to be there and also, you also don't want to tell people about being arrested, causing scenes, those things are all kind of a little more personal, secrets.

Anyway, I like this place called the Grackle. We've been there a few times and had a few beers and it’s nice. I like Carrera’s. I just have a lot of tacos when I'm here and I've yet to go to the better food level.

Ah but the tacos are delicious so I don't blame you.

Yeah the tacos are great, the tamales are great. Especially when you're recording or making music, sitting down for an hour and a half eating, that’s an hour and a half when you could be getting something done.

Right- making music, making things happen. I lived in New York for a couple of years and one of the things I could not wrap my head around were they didn't know what breakfast tacos were. How has no one in New York make breakfast tacos yet?

I don't know! Leslie, who's in the Wooden Birds, pushes the... I keep saying 'Waterburger', but it’s.. [pause] 'Whataburger'.

Whataburger...yeah *laughs*

The breakfast tacos at 'Waterburger'.

”Whataburger’!

Right! Anyway it's really cheap and they’re good. They do the trick.

So the album you are working on or EP I guess, does it have a name yet or are you still working on that?

Yeah, I think. And I think the band name is changing because Chris [Hansen - guitar/vocals] is such a big part of it. And a couple of the other ones are pretty well into this.

As for the name, I can’t tell you. I can only write it down and since we’re not in front of each other... it looks good written down, but to say it sounds like I’m in high school and I’m starting a club. I’m like in junior high, I’m like, this is my treehouse club I’m calling it…

Like the pen 15 club?

Yeah, yeah. But the EP is called Spring Fools, I think. Releasing it in the spring.

What kind of music or bands are you listening to right now? Or do you not have time for that since you’re making your own and practicing for the tour?

It’s hard, I mean, but I like listening to music because that’s why I do this, but there’s a band called Tennis, I really like them.

Yes! They’ve got kind of a throwback sound.

Yeah, I like them because it’s a throwback sound, and her voice sounds a little bit like Madonna, early Madonna, and the throwback could very easily sound disingenuous and to me, it’s not.

Right, making it her own as opposed to trying to emulate something else.

Yeah. I also like The Radio Department. They have like a single that just came out. I really like listening to them and, what else? Cass McCombs, always Cass McCombs.

Anything else you want to share about Austin or the show or your music or anything else?

I mean, I’m really excited to play. I’m almost more excited about that show than any other show just because so many friends and people that I play music with will be there and I love this town. I don’t want it to be that date that I tried so hard that I ruined it. Spill water all over my crotch, say the wrong thing… I’m good at saying the wrong thing, I’ll always say the wrong thing, but I don’t want to say the wrongest thing.

Right, or many wrong things over and over.

Yeah, which just happens to be part of some of our shows, so...

That’s what makes them unique.

Yeah, I guess that’s one way of looking at it. I’m really looking forward to it.