INTERVIEW: A Living Soundtrack

So earlier this month, I posted the things I am excited about this month and I believe it was Patrick from Smiley With A Knife who took my call to action and told me that I should be excited about their show tonight with Antenna Inn and A Living Soundtrack. I was so excited that someone actually reads the blog that I decided to get excited about the show. I had already done interviews with Smiley With A Knife and Antenna Inn for the blog so I decided to hit up the boys from Smiley With a Knife to help promote their show tonight at Tipitinas. So, lesson learned. Let me know about your shows! I DO CARE!!

Also, while putting in the tag for this post, I realized I have never talked about A Living Soundtrack before on the blog. That is a shame, they seem like some swell guys!

STATIC: I don't know much about you guys personally, what the Genesis of the band?
A LIVING SOUNDTRACK: It started out years ago (2004-ish) as a studio collaboration between myself and Matt Aguiluz.. We recorded an album that was eventually edited down to the self-titled EP. Our old friend Marshall Flaig, whom we had played with in other bands, helped us out with some drum tracks. At some point shortly after Hurricane Katrina the decision was made to actually make ALS a real live band. It took us about a year to figure out the logistics off how we would translate the material to a live scenario. It all started falling into place when Jenn Gosnell (now married to Matt - everybody say "awwwww") started playing keys with us. After some instrument switching and a lot of experimentation with computers and various MIDI devices, we finally had a 30-minute set to start practicing.

ST: Whats in a name? I have been having this debate a lot lately about band names. How did you come up with your name and what does it mean to you?
LS: Marshall was my neighbor during the time that Matt and I were working on what would become the EP. He suggested the name. It made total sense - Matt had written what was basically a screenplay for the album and we were working with sound in a very visual way. The project itself seemed alive in that it was growing and changing from the concept album that we envisioned into a what is now basically a rock band. A Living Soundtrack the band has always had its own agenda separate from the humans that play its music.

ST: What kind of movie would you want to make a soundtrack for?
LS: Honestly I think we'd all really love to write and play the score for a video game more than anything. Our alter-ego, Walking Man Sound, handles that side of things. We scored and recorded the bulk of the music for "Mythosis", a film currently in production in Spain. We also contributed some music and production work to the soundtrack of "Where the Sun Has A Mustache", a locally-produced documentary filmed in India.

ST: Been to the movies lately? Seen anything good? Any Summer flicks you excited about?
LS: We have all been so busy - I don't think anyone in our band has been to the movies in a while. I'm so disconnected right now I'm not sure I could name two movies that are currently playing. I think Marshall and Matt may have seen the Watchmen?

ST: What do you think the number one reason is that New Orleans bands get along so well?
LS: I think the number one reason would have to be a collective open mind when it comes to appreciating music. Most musicians that I know play in several bands at once, usually wildly different genres. You'll see ska kids playing jazz, metal-heads with techno side-projects, funk players in a noise-rock band, and all of them can and will rap if drunk enough. Our first show as ALS had an act that was improv jazz, an act that sounded like a pop-friendly Fugazi, and us - a keyboard-heavy electronic rock band. This is not uncommon in NOLA and I think that it is because the players and the fans alike tend to have a more universal respect for music than whatever genre their current projects fall into. Most musicians here are genuinely interested in what their fellow musicians are doing, whatever it is.

ST: Promote the show on Thursday
LS: ok. THURSDAY THURSDAY THURSDAY . Come to Tipitinas and see an eclectic showcase that will certainly satisfy. Antenna Inn, Smiley With A Knife and A Living Soundtrack unite for a clothing-optional night of free pizza and a raffle to win your own island**
**disclaimer: do not show up naked. pizza will not be free nor will it actually exist. elegibility for island giveaway subject to availability of free islands.

ST: Anything else coming up that we should be aware?
LS: We are working hard on an upcoming full-length album. We are trying to get it out by the end of summer. Keep your ears peeled.

ST: Have you ever had a question for me?
LS: What would you have done if we had answered all of these questions with quotes from "The Big Lebowski"?

I would have LOVED it! And I know you wanted a free MP3 out of this, so here it is...

MP3: A Living Soundtrack - Constantly on the Verge of Knowing