Swell Guys

Among other things, Richmond, VA is known for being the onetime home base of Edgar Allan Poe, the inventor of the horror story, playing host to several civil war battles and NASCAR racing. But lately, this southern city has been churning out more than colonial history lessons and carbon monoxide; Richmond's long burgeoning music scene is going nation wide. And while bands like Strike Anywhere and Denali have been instrumental in this coming-out of sorts, the most promising of the Virginia pack is most definitely Engine Down.
Engine Down, by way of their fourth and latest release Demure (Lovitt Records), bypasses the conventions and associated dogmatic genre-lumping increasingly common in the "indie" scene. Demure plays out like musical breath of fresh air. Seemingly not compelled by anything other than the quest for personal satisfaction, the members of Engine Down - vocalist / guitarist Keeley Davis, drummer Cornbread Compton, guitarist Jonathan Fuller and bassist Jason Wood - craft a blunt yet accessible brand of rock music which Davis lovingly dubs (doubtlessly with tongue firmly planted in cheek) "tremo;" truthful emotional rock 'n' roll.
Recently wrapping up a cross-country tour with Thursday, Engine Down are at present preparing to get back in the van for a tour with The Dismemberment Plan. In anticipation of this your, and in celebration of Demure, the Synthesis recently spoke with Engine Down frontman Keeley Davis via e-mail, who managed to tear himself away from MTV long enough to post the following replies.

I've heard you guys described as "post rock" which seems like a cop-out, and "emo" which seems a bit absurd. What sort of genre descriptor, if forced at gunpoint, would you use to describe your sound?
My favorite cop-out is the term "rock." The thing that most annoys me is the term emo because I would say that our music is driven by emotion, but what art isn't? The term "emo" has become stale in the way "grunge" became a favorite word at Best Buy. Let's just say we write "truthful emotional rock and roll;" "tremo." Wow, in the background I just noticed a Jimmy Eat World video on the TV and in the corner it said Clearasil.

What kind of feel were you going for on Demure? Was the change of producers, from J. Robbins on the last record to Brian McTernin on Demure a cause or effect of the sound, or both?
Saturation, heavy beats, trance-inducing, live sound. We had written songs that were tested on the road in Europe, and since they grew into strong structures without added layers, we wanted them to be recorded in that same vein. Brian McTernin's work was as a master sound sculptor. He was a slave driver for the correct studio representation of these songs and it helped since we were usually satisfied with the first takes. He also introduced me to some beautiful guitars.

How did you guys all get together?
The other three men went to the same College in Harrisonburg, VA and I grew up with two of them. Engine Down started as a project for everyone to try out different positions in a band. We have all been in numerous bands and this was at first more of a short term thing. Now years later, it seems we feel comfortable in the roles we have chosen. The only person that stayed with his roots was our drummer Cornbread. We have been friends for a lifetime and now we grow together as a band.

What's the Richmond, VA scene all about?
Cheap cost of living, many musicians, many projects, similar inspiration. It is a community that supports itself and tries to grow more each day. The only problem is the bands seem to die and start over before the word even gets out. More concrete needs to be poured on the first band names and then maybe we will take over.

Have the ensuing years of toil and travel since Engine Down first formed influenced the mood of the music?
No and yes. The mood of our music has changed since we have been on the road more, but I don't think it is because we are on the road. It changes as we learn more about the world out there. I have met some of the most inspiring people in the past year than I have seen my whole life. There is a small crop of those people that just stop you in your tracks and make you rethink how you are doing things. I learned that just when I think I have it, I don't. The toil is when I come home. Get me back out. I need out.

What kind of goals do you have for Engine Down as a whole? MTV? Hipster underground cred? Don't Care?
I just want to challenge myself. I'm curious as to what we will create when allowed time to write more and more. My goal in that is I want a shelf full of our material with nothing repeated. The band needs to stay together long enough for me to stand on the outside and decide if it was all worth it. I love nothing more than what I do but I change my mind about why I do it everyday. I would like to be on MTV, but not for the music. I think we could offer them more enjoyment with our own show than a fake video.

You just recently finished a short tour with Thursday / Cursive / From Autumn To Ashes. How was that? At the show here in Chico the crowd seemed really confused, and pretty much disinterested in everyone but Thursday. Was that a common theme for those shows? Were you purposely trying to expose a different audience to your music?
Ah Chico! Let's chat about that science project for a second. It is curious when a live show is put on with four bands, 1200 capacity hall, 3000 watts of sound, $40,000 light show and a sound crew that hires a first time sound engineer. I might be a little off on the schematics of that show but when the "lighting engineer" laughed at me after I requested all the lights be turned off except for our four white lights, and then asked if we wanted any fog from the smoke machine, I knew exactly how that show was going to come off. Quickly after I had to explain that we like our own environment without the help of strobes and fog, I was deafened by the sound engineer who had just started that day. All this made for a terrible looking and sounding show, and in this I must say that the band with MTV hits will win if the crowd is not getting anything from the venue. All the bands on that tour were amazing in so many ways and it really was a great time. We purposely tour with bands that we think will give us different experiences and longtime friendships.

You're going out next with the Dismemberment Plan. When I first heard Demure, they were the first thing that popped into my head. Are you excited about the tour? Is the D Plan at all an influence upon your current sound?
We have played a few shows with the Dismemberment Plan and it has always been a good time. GOOD TIME. As far as a influence...I don't think I know their material enough to claim it an influence. They influence me to work hard and be a swell guy.

After this tour what are your plans for the future?
We still plan to tour on this record while writing new material that gets us off. We are proud of Demure and want it to be demonstrated to as many eyes and ears as possible.

Any nuggets of wisdom you want to convey? Comments on the sniper?
Don't answer an interview while watching TRL, and don't give the sniper the publicity he wants.

Bookmark:

Comments down for maintenance.