He's a founding member of progressive-punk trailblazers At the Drive-In, as well as a prolific solo artist, writer, actor and director. But what Guitar World readers...
He's a founding member of progressive-punk trailblazers At the Drive-In, as well as a prolific solo artist, writer, actor and director. But what Guitar World readers really want to know is...
It’s been 17 years since at the drive-in released its last full-length, relationship of command. Did the songs on the new record, in•ter a•li•a, come together faster or slower than they have in the past? —Miles Stiverson
I think it was different only in the sense that we hadn’t played together in a room like that for 15 or 16 years or however long it’s been. Overall I think they came together quickly because of the dynamic between myself and [frontman] Cedric [Bixler- Zavala].
To put it simply, I think all this stuff is really easy because there’s only one question that applies: “Does it move you?” If the answer is yes then the answer is yes, so you can say yes to everything. Everyone knows instantly whether something moves them or not. Everyone knows right away when you play a piece of music for them or read them a piece of poetry or show them a piece of film whether it’s boring or whether it awakens something inside that makes you feel something. I don’t know how other people write but that seems to work for us.
Can you pinpoint a specific moment when you realized that At the Drive-In was ready to record new music together? Was it during a particularly good show or did the decision come about more gradually? —Sam Woods
I think it was a natural thing. We went on tour together for all of last year all over the world, and as far as me and Cedric that’s just what happens when we