Marta from The Meaning of Life talks videos, cats, and CMJ

  As promo for 10/17 Hearts Bleed Radio CMJ Showcase #1, my band Big Quiet was going to record a collaboration with The Meaning of Life. Unfortunately, we couldn't make the time to get it recorded in time, so you're going to have to wait till, well, who knows when. But it's gonna be an original song, and it's gonna be sweet! Anyway, instead of a song right now, you get an interview, and a song in the future. You can see both bands (as well as FAN-TAN, EULA, and Heavy Birds) on Thursday, and another great bill (I set it up, so I'm biased...) on Saturday 10/19. So check out this interview with The Meaning of Life's singer/bassist Marta DeLeon and get pumped for the festival!


Hearts Bleed Radio: So, I've known you guys for awhile, but I'm not sure exactly how TMOL got started. How did you and Christian meet?

Marta: Somewhere between J-Date and the Bensonhurst Times? I answered Chris's ad for a female singer who sounded like Talk Talk's Mark Hollis being tickled by Jeff Buckley.

HBR: You seem like such a good fit for each other, it's hard to believe you met that way. What was it like when you first sat down to play together, and how is it different now?

Marta: I'm always a little scared meeting strange men in remote areas of Brooklyn BUT Chris's silliness translated through email. I was glad he also seemed to be a intuitive and creative player at the end of the B6 bus ride. We played for a couple of hours mostly originals. We were going to do a Velvet Underground cover I think to break the ice. Our approach today is similar. We start playing in the practice space with our adept current drummer San Lajeen and form a verse and maybe a chorus piece of the song. Then we make fun of each other while one talks of an obscure sitcom and or metal band. San grew up in Kalmyk and Chris in Chile so that makes the pop culture POV really fun.

Just another day at TMOL practice...

HBR: We did a piece on the Laura V video. Now that it's been out for awhile, are you thinking of making more videos? I kinda think you guys should do a movie.

Marta: Sure and something much different than Monty Python right?! The video really let us express the absurdity, color and cinematic qualities that we feel in our heads when play and write music. We are inspired by so many different images, vintage and futuristic I'd love to make something like "The Man Who Fell to Earth" type video/mini movie next time. These things take time and a little bit of bling.

HBR: Yeah, that's true. I'd like to see a four song EP, where like, you make videos for each song. Then, if you watch them in a row, it all actually goes together somehow. Anyway...
Are you working on anything in the studio right now?

Summer Saints, Spring Rock Out

Summer Saints are an absolute blast to see live, and we're super excited to have them for the first Hearts Bleed Radio show.  We're talking loud, instrument swapping, rhythmic AND melodic, all out rock party goodness.  I spoke with Mark Karges, the sometimes singer, sometimes drummer of the band...


Hearts Bleed Radio: So I saw you guys at Cakeshop in January, when you played with The Planes. I would consider you guys to be a "high energy" band (as would Jeremy from Tenrec). What's you mentality like before a show? Nerves?

Mark: I get some nerves, but if I don't, I feel I don't play as well. Plus we all have a few beers too.

HBR: That always helps. Have you ever had two many?

Mark: Sometimes, but we try to behave as much as possible before playing. We're only human, though.

HBR: It's hard to be in a bar, and like, be waiting to play, and not drink quickly. I was listening to "Road to Hoe" and I hear a lot of Dinosaur Jr. in that track. Are they an influence?

Mark: Yes, definitely.

HBR: Who are some others?

Mark: Husker Du, GBV, Swell Maps... We tend to like fast stuff with some melody. 

HBR: Indie has really drifted away from some of it's "punky-er" roots over the past decade. Does that affect what you do? Even if you're just explaining to someone what you sound like, you can't just really say, "indie" these days.

Mark: We just say rock n' roll.

HBR: Haha, love it. I do to. Say that and hope they don't ask a follow up.Something I like about you guys is the tightness of the rhythm, and the importance it plays in the songs. Do you you guys write that as a group?

Mark: All three of us contribute to the songwriting. Initially they'd start off fully-formed, with one of us bringing a song to practice, but as time has gone by I think the process has gotten more communal, especially with arrangements and stuff like that.

HBR: You just posted a track "Made The Circuit" on SoundCloud. Should we be expecting more tracks any time soon?

Mark: Yep. We've got a few from the same session that just need vocals.

HBR: How did you record them?

Mark: Very poorly, with our pal Billy's eight-track that Joe stole out of his bedroom when the two of them were living together.

HBR: Haha, sounds pretty tight though, do you do the band together live, and then overdub the vocals?

Mark: You got it. None of us are very good singers, so it makes sense to overdub instead of spoiling a perfectly good instrumental take with our caterwauling.

Talking to Tenrec

Tenrec is a really interesting local band, and we were lucky to get them to open up the Hearts Bleed Radio showcase, March 22nd, at Legion in Williamsburg.  I sat down with Jeremy Garcia (lead singer and guitarist of the year old band), on ye olde Facebook chat to talk a little bit about the band, the show, and music in general...

Hearts Bleed Radio:  Are you the principal songwriter, or do you guys write as a group?

Jeremy:  We write as a group although it usually starts with me writing at home or in my practice space, and the other members writing their own parts.  Creative freedom is encouraged to an extent.

HBR:  I figured it was somewhat of a collaboration when I heard the kinda surf-y outro to "Lizard in the Sun". That strikes me as the kinda part that a guy writing songs on his acoustic in his apartment doesn't usually come up with.  Explain where that part came from. I think its great, and gives the song a totally new dimension.

Jeremy:  Haha, I wrote the lead on my own but the guys just made it work. Sean (drummer) just got it without me having to say much. Those are the best moments.

HBR:  Yeah, when you're on the same page like that, and something that is somewhat counter-intuitive just falls into place. The recordings on Bandcamp sound good, do you guys have plans to release anything more?

Jeremy:  Yes, we are planning to release a 12" EP. The next couple songs are my favorite of the bunch. It will be a 5 song release.

HBR:  Any idea when? Have you started planning the epic release party yet?

Jeremy:  No idea, we ought to be finished mixing in April. It's an independent release so we just need a little time. Hopefully before Fall. Release party is definitely not what we are even thinking about at the moment. But when it happens it will be a fun night for all, I hope.

 That's some real sci-fi shit, right there.