It's "Today in Music."
I'm Adam.
I'm Alex.
And we are here in Manhattan, which you may hear outside
because Manhattan is loud.
And we are super excited so excited
because we are here today with Chvrches in the house,
spending some time with us.
Woo!
This is awesome.
Thank you guys for being here.
Hello.
Thanks very much.
Thanks for having us.
Yeah.
Yeah, man.
Right on.
Let's get excited.
Yeah.
Thank you.
How are you guys?
You good?
Great, yeah.
We're good, thanks.
Yeah, we don't come to this part of the city very often.
No.
So yeah, it was cool.
Cool.
Thanks for having us.
Yeah.
So new year, new music?
Mm-hm.
Yeah.
What can you tell me about the new music?
[INAUDIBLE] dancer.
[INAUDIBLE] related [INAUDIBLE].
We had an incident recently without too much, but--
No, because we're like super precious with those things.
But because you want it to be like a surprise, you know?
You want the element of surprise so
that when people get to hear the music, it's like, exciting
and, like, I don't know.
People still excited about music.
Yeah.
So then if you know everything about it before it happens,
it's not as fun, I guess.
But yeah, we have a new record that will be coming out in May.
And the first single for the record--
maybe it's out now depending on when people listen to this.
But yeah, it comes-- it goes on streaming
on the 31st of January, and it will be available everywhere
else on the 2nd of February.
And it's from the record.
It's from the record!
What's the name-- what's the name of that?
--crazy.
What's the name of that first--
That fast track is going to be called "Get Out."
OK.
Which we've established is much more fun to see
in an American accent than a--
Get out.
--Scottish one because if we say it,
we either do the glottal stop where you drop the t,
so it's ge ou--
I like that.
That kind of sounds way better.
--hard T's We're like, get out.
Have you seen the movie "Get Out?"
Yes.
We have, yes.
I thought it was amazing.
But--
It's unrelated.
It's not written about that.
But I thought it was great.
I saw it it in the summer twice?
Same, yeah.
Yeah.
Twice.
Our song's called "Get Out" because it says
"get out" a bunch in the credits.
[INAUDIBLE] ruin it.
Like, what we were we going to call it ?
We will name it [INAUDIBLE] recurring phrase.
It's as good a reason as any.
Well, I know that you're working with Greg
Kirsten on the [INAUDIBLE].
Yeah, we did, yeah.
Yeah, can you tell me a little about working with him?
He's worked with so many great artists.
We could be here all day talking about that guy.
He's a God, like, musically.
It's crazy.
Yeah.
I've never met anyone with his ability belt
in terms of like intuition and not
trying to force you down a road but understanding
what you're trying to achieve musically as a producer
and amplifying that and offering a way forward, like,
collaboratively.
He's a really special guy.
It's crazy.
I kind of just felt like we had another keyboard
player in the band.
You know, it wasn't like your idea
of what like a record producer is going to be like, you know?
I was just like, we were just going
to jam out some ideas where he would, like, start
playing around on a keyboard.
And we'd all be like, that's amazing.
Quick, quick, quick-- write something.
I think the best thing that I could say about Craig
is that when he starts something, immediately
I could write five songs over it.
Wow.
And there's something about the way he plays in the way
he voices chords and the way he reacts
to what you're doing in the room,
things just start to evolve.
It's like a conversation without speaking to each other.
That's really cool.
Do you guys bring completed songs into the studio,
or you're kind of like that collab--
Nothing, not even one note.
Every single thing done in the room.
Some producers like to--
I mean, we'd never worked with a producer until this point.
We considered it really important
to establish ourselves as writers and producers
first and foremost.
But then when the opportunity, third album, the opportunity
came up to work with people of that caliber, we were kind of--
we made the conscious decision to give it a go.
We could've done one session.
It didn't work, we wouldn't be having this conversation.
But it was a really special energy in that studio with them
that we just--
we had to do it.
And "Get Out" was the first song--
"Get Out."
[INAUDIBLE] day one.
[INAUDIBLE]
Yeah the first one.
The first notes.
[HUMMING] you'll know when you hear the song.
If you've already heard it, you know I'm talking about.
It's got a really strong riff at the beginning-- day
one, first note, first chords.
Just weird.
It just takes off in there.
Well, I was going to say that I guess first,
when we were talking about having the producer
conversation, I was a little worried about it
because I didn't like the idea of somebody kind of telling--
not telling you what to do but just kind of giving you--
there is a culture where people write songs and shop them
around and give them to people.
Sure.
And to me, like, there's no point
in us trying to do songs that sound
like x number of other female vocals on the radio
because I already exist.
And I don't think we were in the business of wanting someone
to write the songs for us.
But then it was just about finding the right person
to collaborate with.
And I think for me, because Greg has
done such a wide variety of stuff,
when you talk about the sound of Greg Kirsten, it's so broad.
Whereas there are certain other producers that I think
you know what their sound is because they write roughly
the same stuff for everyone.
Yeah.
And we did two records of like figuring out what Chvrches was.
And then we're like OK, so we know that.
Nobody can tell us what that is.
But where do you take that?
And I think that was quite a fun thing to do.
I think if you want x, maybe you go to a specific producer.
If you want y, you go to another producer
because those are examples of producers who do one thing
and do it really well.
Neither is wrong, but it's just different.
It was never going to be for us.
If you want to take your band to the next level,
if you want to take your creativity
and turn it into something special,
you go at a guy like Greg.
Yeah.
And I think that's why when you talk
about who he works with now, you only
hear Paul McCartney, Foo Fighters, Adele.
Which don't sound the same in any way.
Not really the same.
No, but it's all just greatness that [INAUDIBLE] yeah.
So it was a special opportunity.
He's like a kind of Jedi puppet master.
Like, he just--
Jedi puppet master is good.
Well, you know what I mean?
Like, he assesses the situation and is like, [INAUDIBLE],,
this is what this band wants to do.
Let's do that.
What about Dave Stewart?
Did he come in and collaborate with you?
Dave is amazing.
We ended up-- none of the stuff is on the album,
but I really love that guy.
He taught us a lot in a short space of time,
really like reminded us about the importance of art
and artistry in the music business.
He is still like a true artist.
Yeah.
He's obsessed with every aspect and every detail
of what he does.
He has this-- he has just a great mindset as well.
And he's always encouraging us to take risks and do stuff
that, like, is kind of outside of our comfort zone in a lot
ways, which was really useful because that happened quite
early on in the process.
So it kind of set the tone in many ways for what followed.
And we came up with some good stuff that, you know,
maybe will see the light of day some other time.
I hope so.
Just by the time we got to the end, we were like, huh,
these two things are quite separate.
Yeah.
I think he was like--
I don't really know if he would like to be called a mentor.
but I think he was really, really helpful person
to talk to you.
And he just kind of poked at you and made
you think about things.
Like, even while he was like, [INAUDIBLE]
the mix for a pop band.
But they were always focused on making art and music.
You guys kind of fall between these two worlds.
So rather than looking at as a, oh, well, we're not pop enough
for this but we're, like, too alternative [INAUDIBLE]
for this, like, he was like, why don't you
look at that as a cool, opportunity
Because it means that you guys get
to do the stuff that all these other problems don't get to do.
And he's like, why don't you think
about just the music and everything else
as like promo to like, hope people hear this song?
He was that, it should all be part of the same piece of art.
Maybe that sounds like what--
can I say--
I was going to say something.
I was gonna say wanky.
Maybe that sounds like wanky or arrogant or something.
But like, it makes a lot of sense
because he was like, why are you not just like it should all
be about the storytelling.
And it should all be part of the same story.
And then he was like, it's depressing
to see bands now not taking--
like looking at stuff as a and I'm
not looking at it as like a cool way
to like expound on the story of the songs.
And then he was like, that's what we always
did, me and Annie.
And we're like, write that down.
Yeah.
Anything that you and Annie did is fine by me.
I'll say that.
We didn't work with a lot of people on the album,
and and the stuff that's not Greg--
and there's one song by another really talented guy, Steve,
we did with him, Steve Mack.
But the rest of it was all our own.
And through that process--
--remix.
--working with taking the session with Dave
was about someone calling us and saying,
would you be interested in working with this [INAUDIBLE]??
And I'm saying, well--
No duh.
Maybe we were about to go with the source, you know?
Like that, music is in our DNA.
Mm-hm.
Like, has the kind of just juxtaposition
of artistic lyrics or emotional lyrics
and that production, his style of production,
is through everything we do.
And it was supposed to be just a conversation.
And it turned into writing.
And it turned into a friendship as well.
We'll go and have dinner with him.
He's a really--
he's always wise.
If you ask him a question, he's always wise, I think.
He's got some of the better-- and I won't do that here.
But he's got some of the best rock stories--
Oh, I bet.
--you could possibly--
To have a separate comment about it.
Off cam.
Yeah.
So you guys talked about that, you
know, one thing obviously that some pop bands don't
get to do it with bands in general, you
guys have been immortalized in a comic book.
Can you tell us about--
Yeah.
--that, how that all came together?
Yeah, I mean, that's just one of those things
that you definitely don't turn down when it comes your way,
an opportunity like that.
It's a real honor.
Yeah.
Well, and I think I had to give credit to these guys
because I feel like it's been so fun to be
able to live in that pop world but also live in this--
like, in our minds, we always think of it
as like, well, we're like an alternative indie band,
but we make pop songs or whatever.
And it's because these guys are such fans and appreciaters
of video games and comics and--
Just say it.
Well, like that--
Nerd culture.
Well, like, in a nice way.
Like, what's not "Portlandia" sketch
where they're like, [INAUDIBLE] I'm such a nerd.
And I was like no, that's offensive to real nerds.
But you guys are like real--
real dyed in the wool nerds.
Card-carrying nerds.
I think that's fine because you're--
[INAUDIBLE] love how creative all those things are.
And it's like--
I feel like because we talked about that
and people know that, then we kind of overlap
with that world.
And the people that were kind of bringing
Archie Comics into this new era had wanted
to put bands in the comic.
And then they asked us.
And we said yeah.
And they drew us to look like us but also cooler than we are.
And I totally am in it.
15% more.
Yep.
Yeah, you have to be 15% more angular in comics
that we are in real life, yeah.
I've never been into comics, so I didn't know that.
It's good to know.
But yeah, you should ask for that commission.
What do you guys have planned for--
for shows, for touring?
Like, what are you looking forward
to in the coming months?
--really looking forward to getting back on the road
and especially to do Governor's Ball here in New York.
Oh, nice.
That's gonna feel pretty scary but pretty awesome.
Yeah, really excited.
I'm just looking forward to playing
and then going up the road to the house.
It's unusual you get to play a show the gravity of something
like Governor's Ball and then just go home to your bed.
Yeah.
Like, we all relocated here for the start of this album process
and all just stayed.
It's great.
I love it.
I think we're kind of at the stage
where we're figuring out how to play the new songs live
and how we'll work that into the set with the older stuff.
And I think it's important for us
to want to stay faithful to the stuff that people like already
but also, you know, make it a proper live show
and a live experience.
So just trying to figure out how to squish all that together.
When you're in the studio, do you--
do you think about that consciously?
Like, how will this translate live?
And should we-- should we or should we not do something
on the track?
Not really.
I don't [INAUDIBLE] that much.
Yeah, it's more like, once the song is done,
then we're like, oh, that'll be fun to play live.
Like, it's more-- yeah, rather than trying to, like,
design these life moments--
Yeah. mm-hm.
--it's more like once you're kind
of sitting with the mixes or something,
you're like, well, that'll be fun.
Oh, I think that'll be a good fit.
I think nothing [INAUDIBLE] in our creative process,
nothing is happening outside of the moment, like, initially.
It's all happening spontaneously and just reacting
to each other in that kind of first instance.
Yeah.
And then, like Lauren says, down the way,
as it starts to materialize, you realize or you consider ways
to amplify your music for the--
literally for your--
Masses.
--the live--
Yeah.
--realm.
Are you guys going to rock some pyrotechnics and smoke
machines?
Of course.
How big is it going to be?
I don't wanna never say never.
Like, Yeah, for all of that stuff.
Like, Ian can fly he can be on a zip line with his guitar.
Well, because I feel like you'll be--
You're the singer?
I don't like to fly.
Pink has already done it.
And also, in my mind, he's like--
because I know what's on the record, I'm like,
I can-- there's a bit where I can imagine you on your--
with your guitar on a zip line.
That's how I would like.
Oh.
I'm playing that, by the way.
Sorry [INAUDIBLE].
So you're the zip line, then.
Alright I'm on the zip line.
He's offering me a song [INAUDIBLE]..
You're going to pay him off so you can play the bit
we were now talking about--
Yeah.
--properly, but--
You'll all see in time.
There's a bit that's really fun.
I'm-- I'm terrible [INAUDIBLE].
--be zipping across the ceiling.
I'm terrible at it.
[INAUDIBLE] your future [INAUDIBLE] zip lines.
Yeah.
Maybe you can both get it.
No one needs to fight.
You can go past each other.
You can do half and half.
You can do the first line.
He was [INAUDIBLE].
No he was too foolish.
He was foolish enough to also put bass guitar on that song.
So he's got to play it.
Cool.
I just let him because I--
Double neck-- double neck guitar.
Double neck.
--base.
No, no, no, no.
Don't offer him a way out.
Like, I'm terrible at guitar.
But when that bit comes on, I can--
I always-- when I'm air guitaring,
I always do a lot with my left hand.
Like, what am I doing?
I'm really tapping away.
--shredding.
That's mostly--
- yeah.
It'll be our job to--
I'll do it.
--just listening--
Nobody knows what we're talking about.
Yeah.
And this is also really boring because nobody's
heard this song yet.
Right.
So they don't know what we're--
Anyway--
Maybe we can [INAUDIBLE].
Pyrotechnics would be good.
I'm afraid of them, though.
I'm afraid of people being--
--that you'll catch fire.
Was that-- [INAUDIBLE]
That happens sometimes.
You need the fire marshal.
Did James Hetfield from Metallica--
Yeah, James Hetfield got set on fire.
Yeah.
With Guns N' Roses.
Michael got-- Michael was on fire too.
By Guns N' Roses?
No, not by Guns N' Roses.
That would be a story.
No, when they were touring--
Like, Guns N' Roses set Metallica on fire?
Awesome this just in.
Guns N' Roses sets Metallica on fire.
Sets Metallica on fire.
That's metal.
Speaking-- that's a great transition.
Speaking of fire, we're going to-- now
we're going to do rapid fire.
Quick fire.
Rapid fire.
Rapid fire questions.
Good interview.
We'll alternate, and then we can just go down the line.
Are they about Metallica.
So it would be like yeah.
All about Metallica, yep.
Oh dear.
First question.
Favorite Metallica album.
That's a good one.
Beatles-- Beatles or Rolling Stones?
Beatles.
Oh, Beatles.
OK, Michael Jackson or Prince.
Prince.
Michael Jackson.
Michael Jackson, 100%.
Oh.
Whoa.
You just have to say one or the other.
We get--
You don't have to be mean.
Yeah.
[INAUDIBLE] on that one.
Intelligence or sense of humor?
Sense of humor.
Huh.
It's unanimous.
OK, ninjas or pirates.
Ninjas.
I just want to say pirates to be [INAUDIBLE]..
Vampires or werewolves?
Vampires.
Wow.
OK, this is a big one.
"Star Wars" or "Star Trek?"
"Star Wars."
"Star Wars," yeah.
Didn't even--
"Star Wars."
--have to hear the other one.
Uh-huh.
Saxophone or trumpet?
Trumpet.
I don't like both, to be honest.
But let's go trumpet.
OK.
Wow.
Rivers or lakes?
Rivers.
Yeah, [INAUDIBLE].
Lakes.
Oceans or mountains?
Mountains.
Oceans.
Mountains.
Coffee or tea?
Coffee.
Tea.
Coffee.
Would you rather binge a TV show or watch a good movie?
Watch a good movie.
Binge?
Binge TV show, hardcore.
[INAUDIBLE]
I just added [INAUDIBLE].
All right, let's switch the order.
Favorite sweet treat.
Sticky toffee pudding.
Wow.
I'm not [INAUDIBLE].
It's an English-- it's a British thing.
Reese's Peanut Cups.
Lemon meringue pie.
Oh.
Dream collaboration.
Can it be somebody dead?
Sure.
It's a dream.
Robert Smith.
I don't know.
The two guys next to you.
You go first.
I-- oh yeah.
Bowie.
Jeff Buckley.
Oh.
You stole mine.
Ah.
Is a hamburger a sandwich?
Yes or no.
Certainly not.
No.
What?
Well, because it's a different--
Of course it is.
But it's a different kind of bun that's specifically for that.
it's still, like, two bits of bread product with meat--
What, so next thing you're like, I'm
going to eat a sandwich for lunch,
I'll know what you're saying?
Yeah.
Just getting a Big Mac.
I'm not having that.
[INAUDIBLE] going to?
I'm going to say no.
The hamburger chain that starts with an M--
like, they refer to it as a sandwich, [INAUDIBLE]??
But only the fish one.
No.
Don't they?
And the chicken--
great sandwich.
The chicken one is a sandwich.
Do you want a meal or just a sandwich?
I thought that was just like an American thing.
And I was like, [INAUDIBLE].
You've got two no's so far.
We got a--
Yeah.
[INAUDIBLE] final.
Definitely a sandwich.
That's it.
You're out of the band.
Ah.
Go away.
Off away.
With that all-important question, we will end our talk.
This has been fantastic.
Thank you.
That was fun.
Thank you so much for taking the time, you guys.
[INAUDIBLE]