ZapTown

Suckers are charismatic, jovial, a ball of spontaneous combustion, and musically as diverse as you can possibly imagine this band to be just by looking at them. The multiple instruments and twisting of pop aesthetics put Quinn Walker, Austin Fisher, Pan and Brian Aiken in a unique place. No matter where they are on the musical spectrum, they are doing it their way.

With their self-titled EP (IAMSOUND), the band documents their celebration, and it has made people notice. Fresh off a tour, an appearance in one of this summer’s hot indie films, and a residency in New York city, Suckers keep working to stretch out their capabilities any way they possibly can.

Photo by Victoria Jacob

Andrew Duncan: That “Easy Chairs” video is amazing! How did that video all come about, and can you tell me about the video animation that went into it?

Austin Fisher: Pan’s brother Vin and his friend Craig did everything for that video. They offered to do it and showed us some storyboards, which we got excited about. Then we basically just each stood in front of a green-screen at Craig’s apartment for 10 minutes, and then they worked like maniacs for many hours putting it together.

Duncan: You also made an appearance in the Wah Do Dem movie. Did you go down to Jamaica with Sean to do that? I haven’t seen the film yet but did get a chance to talk to Sean about it recently. What is your role in the film, and how was the experience? Is this your first film contribution?

Fisher: One of the film’s creators, Sam Fleischner, is a friend of ours. The scene we’re in takes place in Brooklyn before the main character heads to Jamaica. Nora Jones dumps Sean Bones and then our songs start. Then the film cuts to a bar where Sean is watching us play. We pretended to jam out to one of our songs at the bar at 9am on some Sunday morning for a few hours to film that scene. And we also ate some bagels. I think Brian, our drummer, took all the extra bagels home. Waste not, want not.

Duncan: Coming up is a residency at Piano’s in Manhattan. What do you think playing at one place will be like and what do you have in store for the performances? What is your goal for the month long stint?

Fisher: Maybe Pianos will just as cozy as our living room by the time the residency is over. We just wanted to give people in NYC plenty of opportunity to see us, because I think we’ll be in hiding for a while afterwards, making up new songs.

Duncan: For a band with just an EP out, how has that affected touring and your popularity? What are the plans for a full length?

Fisher: We put the EP out in April and we’ve had two tours surrounding its release. We’ve never toured before, so it’s hard to say how it’s affected our popularity. The last tour went really well though. We’re making demos of new songs now, but we don’t have a concrete LP release plan yet.

Duncan: How has New York affected the style of your lyrics? I see some David Byrne references (probably because of your eclectic views of pop music and the interesting nod to a world music, multi-instrumental philosophy) being thrown out, so I want to know how the city plays into how the lyrics are laid out.

Fisher: I’m sure New York has worked it’s way into the lyrics, since we live in New York and it’s worked it’s way in just like everything else in your life might work it’s way in. If it’s there in the lyrics, it’s probably not conscious. I think often with us, the lyrics are inspired by the mood of the music – at least that’s a common starting point.

Duncan: Your physical presence as a band is also an exemplary fashion statement. How does that relate to the essence and political qualities of your music?

Fisher: Thanks for calling us exemplary! I’ve never thought about how it connects to our music, especially in a way that a band like the Strokes looked like 70’s East Village dudes because their music was inspired by that scene. People just wear what they like… there’s really not a lot of thought behind it, though I do like it when a performer looks more like a performer and less like an audience member. Not that it has to be extreme.

Duncan: There are elements of light-hearted amusement in your songs. What does that mean to you as a band to incorporate that into the facets of your music?

Fisher: That’s just part of our personalities, and it works it’s way into what we do. I hope our music can be amusing and also meaningful to people. I don’t think those elements have to be separate. Though I’m not into They Might Be Giants joke-songs at all. That’s not the kind of amusing I like.

Duncan: How is it handling the multi-instrumental approach when it comes to touring? I’m sure with the residency, it will be fuel for a broader range of stage presence when it comes to what to play.

Fisher: When we do any shows we bring everything along. We’ve gotten used to lugging around a lot of stuff. I think I’m gonna make a check list soon so we can keep track of everything because it’s a lot.

Duncan: What do you feel are the most important aspects into what goes in a Suckers song?

Fisher: We try to make each song unique. We don’t want any of our songs to sound like anyone else’s songs, and we don’t want any of our songs to sound like any of our other songs. We make songs to please us and what we often like is heavily melodic, catchy, and weird.

Duncan: Where do you go from here?

Fisher: We’re going to go cook some hotdogs on the grill and relax with some casual beers.

Suckers