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Coming up from the indie ground floor of Portland, Oregon, The Thermals have risen to greater and greater heights by proving that they are a powerhouse to be reckoned with. Creating music that is both thoughtful and catchy, they have an immense fan base that goes from the smallest of record stores to the largest of music labels. Now on tour with their forth studio album, “No We Can See,” in tow, they are proving more popular than ever. DC will get to experience this magnetic presence on 5/13/2009 at the Black Cat, when they share the stage with Shaky Hands, and Point Juncture, WA. But before we get to that, this “power trio” was kind enough to answer a few questions for BYT:

BYT: Let’s kick things off with a completely frivolous question: what was it like being interviewed by John Norris at SXSW?

Hutch Harris: It was really cool actually. He was very friendly and apparently a big fan of ours. It was weird, since we grew up with him on MTV.

BYT: Bonus question, how old do think that guy is now?

HH: I have no idea how old he is, it doesn’t really matter. He has good taste in music and seems really into bands outside of the mainstream. We are going to film another interview with him, and play some songs, for an internet program he’s doing, when we go back to New York in a few weeks.

BYT: Since we are already in the way-back machine, would you list and explain one album that you would describe as your “coming of age” musically?

HH: The Breeders’ Last Splash. I was a junior in high school, I was smoking weed all the time, and I loved grunge and alternative rock. Not much has changed for me.

BYT: I noticed you cite your music often as “punk.” I know this is an exhausted question, but considering where you are from and everything you’ve achieved, what does that term mean to you, specifically in terms of this band?

HH: We try to never call it punk, mostly it’s other people who call it punk. Where we’re from, being punk meant you were DIY, not that you had a mohawk and a leather jacket with studs. The term means very little to me now.

BYT: In regards to the way you poke fun at the ever separating of genres, sub genres, and sub-sub genres, (I’m referring here in particular to your trouncing of the word “post”;), how do you feel that this affects bands and their creative mobility?

HH: Ok there we go. So yes we do call ourselves post-pop-punk and other funny shit, but really it’s just to screw with journalists, who usually have a good sense of humor, thankfully. Bands need to not
worry about what genre they are and just write good songs.

BYT: You’ve been on both Sub Pop and Kill Rock Stars, two very influential labels of my own youth. It feels like they are receiving more of the limelight these days. Do you think it’s because trends in music are ebbing more in their direction, because the people who grew up listening to bands on those labels are now in more powerful places as adults, because the newer bands they are working with are more entrenched in popular musical trends, or any combination/negation of the above?

HH: Both labels are incredibly smart and savvy. They have good taste in music and they sign what they like. They do good promotion and have a lot of good, experienced people working and promoting their records. As both labels have gotten older they’ve signed a lot more “pretty” sounding bands, and that shit SELLS. That helps them stay in business.

BYT: You have said that the album “The Body, The Blood, The Machine” was not so much about religion as it was politics and having meaningful lyrics. In this regard, what kind of response did you receive? Was it what you had expected, or did you get some real curve balls?

HH: More nut jobs than curve balls. There were some people were upset by that record, without really trying to understand it. It wasn’t anti-Christ, it was anti-Bush. It was about Christians who act
incredibly un-Christ-like. Who kill in the name of the Lord. A lot of people tried to get me to come back to the church, but there’s no fucking way that’ll happen.

BYT: In the same vein, “Now We Can See” is a record that reflects on death. It feels as if this is a very different approach to subject matter compared to the previous record. Do you view it this way, and how was the creation process similar and divergent?

HH: The process really wasn’t that different, but there was a conscious decision to not sing about politics or religion, because we really did them to death on the last record.

BYT: What was it like working with John Congleton, and how did it compare to, say, your first recording experience for this band?

HH: We loved working with John, we got along very well, and he has great ears, obviously. It was nothing like recording the first record. More Parts Per Million was recorded by me, alone, at my house, on a 4 track cassette with one microphone and one pre-amp. I wrote all the songs and played all the instruments. Kathy and I wrote the last two records together. We split up the instruments in the studio. She played drums and bass, I played guitar and sang. Kathy sings on the new record, too.

BYT: What are some things that are currently inspiring you toward the next step for The Thermals?

HH: Success and respect are always inspiring. So is being in love, and getting laid.

BYT: Finally, thanks for your time, I very much appreciate it, and I certainly hope your tour is going well. What is one track we can stream from “Now We Can See” that you all are particularly proud of, but fear may not get the attention it deserves?

HH: Thanks a lot. I don’t think you can stream any song that’s not getting enough attention. You can stream “Now We Can See” like everyone else. Thanks! xoxo Hutch

Black Cat
Wed May 13 8:00 $13 Mainstage
The Thermals
w/ The Shaky Hands
and Point Juncture WA

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