Interview- Fairmont

Band: Fairmont Interviewer: Julie Johnson Date: 12/12/04

GC: What is the name of your band and who are the current members?

FAIRMONT , Neil(vocals and guitar) Kevin(guitar) John(bass) Andy(drums)

GC: How did you become connected to make music?

We had all met by playing shows together in previous bands.

GC: What are your musical influences?

The Pixies, The Cure, The Smiths, Radiohead, Pavement, Alterna Indie Pop of the early 90's - Mathew Sweet, Juliana Hatfield, Liz Phair, D Generation and more as well as classics like The Beatles, The Who and the rolling stones.

GC: What is your live show like?

Intimate, energetic and sincere.

GC: Tell us about your own unique style of music?

Our music is autoboigraphical Dark Indie Pop, its unique musically and lyrically. Musically I have tryed to incorporate elements of jazz, rock , classic rock, goth , indie, alternative, pop, blues, etc. all into our sound. Lyrically I'm trying to tell my story, the story of who I am.

GC: What serparates your band from all the other bands out there?

Sincerity, no gimmicks, a love for making music and not caring what MTV or Major Labels think.

GC: How do you go about writing songs? I write constantly because life is happening constatly and new and bigger things piss me off every day. I sit down at my guitar and it just all pours out then I bring it to the band and we re arrange and polish ...

GC: Pick one of your latest song and talk about everything from writing it, meanings, the challenges of recording it?

The Monster You've Become our new single was written in the vein of bands like Radiohead and The Smiths, dark like a Radiohead song with guitar hooks and what not and sly sarcastic lyrics like you'd find in a Smiths song but less jokey and more from the heart. It was written about someone I don't like very much and the words just poured out and the song was written in probably a 20 minute time period. When the band got ahold of it and we made it more electric we did a little rewriting and took on a whole new sound, very different from a Radiohead or Smiths song, I also had in mind songs i had written for a previous band and I wanted to immitate some of the hooks i had liked in an earlier song I had written. Originally we pictured it as a dark heavy rock song however in the recording process it lost some of its heavier edge and tool on a whole new life becoming more of mellower Dark Indie song and with the guitar leads at the end of the song and piano added the song was elevated to much more then the original peice I wrote alone on an acoustic guitar...

GC: What is your latest news with the band?

Just signed with Renfield Records (www.renfieldrecords.com) and our new album Hell is Other People will be in stores this February.

GC: Where do you hope to be in 5 years with your band?

In five years I hope to have recorded a Platinum record. It may not happen but why dream of being good when you can dream of being great.

GC: How are people currently reacting to your music?

As far as I can tell the longer we are together the more people like us , can't ask for more then that ...

GC: What would be the top 3 reasons for listening to your music? Its catchy, its sincere, its a voice like you've never heard.

GC: What is your best experience as a band?

Probably touring the midwest this year , we got a very positive response all over,, that or one specific show at a venue in NJ called Maxwells where for an hour the crowd made us feel like rockstars.

GC: What is your worst experience as a band?

The Barking Spider Tavern in Cleveland Ohio. We drove all night to play a show in front of no one and to boot the guy told us we were too loud when our amps were on 1 then he shut the lights off in the venue when our friends took the stage and he told them they had no talent and to leave... that really sucked...

GC: What is most important to you in your band?

Writing good songs that someone besides myself can relate too.

GC: Do you have a personal favorite song, could be your own or other, and why? I think the very first real song I wrote and sang is my favorite, possibly my best as well , its called Rebuilding Home and I wrote it for my girlfriend because she had to move away from her home to be with me in NJ. I think it moved a lot of people, I still get more compliments on that song then any other I haave ever written,,,

GC: What was the hardest song to write and why?

I don't know that any song was hard to write , maybe just that first initial song,,, Certain songs just never come together and we usually end up not playing them but I wouldn't say any were hard or not hard to write.

GC: What do you think of the current gothic/ EBM/ Industrial/ noise/ synthpop etc scence today? <

I like Bauhaus, Joy Division and the Cure and maybe the Pink Dots but beyond that I don't knwo much about that scene,, unless you count NIN or Ministry and I'd say i'm a fan ...

GC: What music do you currently listen to, and why?

I listen to lots of different stuff , right now in my car are CD's by Elliot Smith , Bruce Springstein, Nirvana, The Shins, and Green Day ,,, Oh and I can't forget the Peanuts Xmas Album I listen to that alot - Vince Guraldi is a genius.. \

GC: How do you keep changing your music from album to album or plan to change it? I think our music is becoming more and more polished , I don't know if it ever changes stylistically but hopefully as we grow as songwriters our music is becoming more bearable for the listener.

GC: What kind of recording environment do you have?

We recorded our last album with a real producer for the first time and I think I hated it, I like having a little more control over things , so I would say in a very uncomfortable environment.

GC:How long did you spend on your latest effort?

It took about 10 months to write and 4 days to record and mix. Its our 3rd full length record in 3 years.

GC: What is the hardest thing about being in a band for this genre? the fact that we don't fit into a genre is more the problem

GC: Feel free to do any shameless self promotion here of you band, now is your turn to talk about anything you want about your band, ideas, or life in the band.

www.fairmontmusic.com

www.reinforcementrecords.com

www.renfieldrecords.com

www.purevolume.com/fairmont

www.myspace.com/fairmont

The music sort of speaks for itself...