Margot and the Nuclear So & So’s

With a sound as eclectic as their name, Margot and the Nuclear So & So’s are forging new ground in the crowded realm of indie music. The eight-piece from Indianapolis – piloted by Richard Edwards (lead singer, guitarist and primary songwriter) – are masters of creating dreamy and poetic tunes that are both endearing and memorable.

Margot’s March 2006 debut, The Dust of Retreat, earned the band a national audience with an impressive 12 song voyage. In October 2008, the band released their second full-length album. The record was split in two versions because of a dispute with their new record label (Epic) over which 25 recorded tracks would be on the final record. Animal, the band’s version, was a vinyl and digital release, while Epic’s, Not Animal, enjoyed a traditional album release.

During my conversation with Edwards, I discovered that he is a master of multi-tasking as he ran errands while discussing his music, the Animal/Not Animal situation and his love of dive bar shows. Perhaps it was his Midwest roots or shy disposition; even with Margot’s growing success, the Colts fanatic was still honest and humble as ever.

SSv: How much of you and your personal experiences do you incorporate into what you write?

Richard Edwards: It just varies. A lot of it is directly pulled from stuff. Sometimes it’s real stories or made-up stories. It depends how I feel that day I guess.

SSv: When you write a song based on a story, where does that come from?

Richard: Again it varies. It can be from somebody that I know or I’ve met or something fun to write about or sing. It could be all sorts of stuff – limitless possibilities.

SSv: I’ll be a little more specific. A friend and I were traveling to see some local bands in Indianapolis. We had Animal on and we both agreed that after listening to “As Tall As Cliffs” that it was just an amazing song. Is there a story behind it?

Richard: It was one of the older songs on that record. It was written a while ago. I think it was written during a period where I was writing downbeat folk songs. When I was kind of in that period it was like I was describing. “Broadripple [is Burning]” was written around that time. I don’t know what was going on lyrically in my life or anything like that, but I do remember I was writing a lot of songs kind of in that vein during that time.

SSv: Is there a newer song that sticks out in your mind that you feel like it moves or speaks to you?

Richard: I write a lot of them in that way. It’s easier to remember that stuff with new music I haven’t even recorded and just written down. Less time has passed between. I remember writing songs on the roof during the winter. It was a fun way to write a song. “My Baby Shoots Her Mouth Off” was really fun to write, personally. Those are the ones that stick out off the top of my head.

SSv: I noticed that a lot of your songs have a sort of darkness to them. Where does that element come from?

Richard: Just the world. I think there’s a trend in music that’s just like, “Fuck it and do it.” It’s great because if that’s the way people want to behave, it gets a little harder for me to do that. I hope there’s humor in the songs and things like that. I don’t want to write about committing mass suicide in the face of some sort of adverse world situation. I think it’s a really pretty rough time in some ways in the country and the world. It seems like it’s a little dishonest to not project any of that, just even in my music. I would just probably have a little fun if I could just play synthesizers and dance, but it doesn’t feel like a time for dancing really.

SSv: What’s the hardest part for you when you’re in the process of writing a song?

Richard: Once you get going with it, the whole thing is pretty easy. Getting going with it is the hard part, just the discovering a melody or lyric, which you can take a look at that all you want, but that’s just going to be placed with you whenever you decide to place it with you. That’s the hardest part. Recording it usually isn’t very difficult. Once you get that basic idea, it gets easier.

SSv: What do you find comes easier to you? The lyrics? The melody?

Richard: Generally, the melody comes easier to me. Depending on what kind of melody it is, it’s harder to write lyrics to a song with short phrases because I have a lot less space to say something. If the melody line is a four or five note melody line, I have to work really hard to get away from very bland and paste-in lyrics. With just a little longer melody line I can be a little more creative with lyrics.

SSv: How often would you say you nail the song lyrically on the first go around or do feel like it’s a process where you have to go back and edit things over?

Richard: I don’t do that much of that. I think I’ve done that with “My Baby Shoots Her Mouth Off.” I think that in nothing else, the songs are just about lyrics for a little while. When I pretty much shut down to attack writing lyrics for a song, generally I do it, and it doesn’t change much unless there’s maybe a line here or there. I don’t go back and edit lyrics too much so far anyway. That might change in the future.

SSv: What was running through your mind when Epic basically rejected Animal and came up with their own version?

Richard: I was just in a drunken rage. I was pretty pissed-off about it but subsequently calmed down.

SSv: Artistically, that has got to be frustrating.

Richard: Yeah, I think we knew it was a possibility that we could be victimized, but we did feel like we had to make sure we fought through that and did what the fuck we wanted to because I think that’s the way people should make music. Even with that thing failing, I have a hard time regretting how we did it because I don’t think it would be much fun to make music that’s being tailored to what would be played on the radio. It was frustrating because we worked so many months really hard on something we were really happy with. It was frustrating and sad for a lot of work for somebody to say it can’t come out.

SSv: In your eyes, how different are Animal and Not Animal? Are they two different animals?

Richard: Yeah, I think they are a lot different. A lot of people say they can’t hear much of a difference and that kind of surprised me. I think that “At the Carnival,” “Mariel’s Brazen Overture,” “My Baby Shoots Her Mouth Off” and “O’ What a Nightmare!” – those songs sound a lot different to me than “Broadripple,” “Hip Hip Hooray,” “Real Naked Girls” and “Shivers.” I think they are a lot different. I think they play completely differently – track sequence first of all, the songs that were omitted, the songs that were included – a bias I suppose.

SSv: I would agree that the song order is very important because it details how the final texture of the album feels.

Richard: Their album kind of starts up and then moves down. Ours kind of starts down and continues down until the very end. Ours is a pretty sleepy record. I understand some people not being totally into that, but I like it personally. It kind of meanders along and doesn’t really kick into Greed Day-ville at any point.

SSv: How do you think you’ve grown as a songwriter since your first record, The Dust of Retreat?

Richard: I think I’ve gotten better lyrically at conveying a certain sentiment or feeling without just vomiting it out. I can say things better metaphorically. I can make points in different ways. I think that helps with the storytelling because I’m not just having emotional content. There’s other details I can write about more effectively now. Melodically, in terms of song structure, I think I’m a lot better than I was. I’m capable of writing complex songs musically in a way I wasn’t before. All that stuff isn’t important if the song doesn’t have a certain something else. A lot of other people probably feel there’s stuff like that on the first record. It was a little more simple and emotional. In ways I think I’ve improved, but people probably don’t hear that.

SSv: With having eight members in the band, do you ever feel like there are too many “cooks in the kitchen” so to speak?

Richard: Not really too many cooks in the kitchen because we have a sort of brain trust that deals with a lot of the production and things, but it doesn’t get too messy that way. It’s a lot of people to have in general, in terms financially. The next record leans toward a different arrangement of stuff. It doesn’t necessarily have violin or things like that. It’s worked out that way so far. There could be tours of records where there’s five, six, three or 12, so we’re trying to be flexible about that number.

SSv: I love that you guys still take the time to play smaller shows. What makes those small shows worthwhile?

Richard: Sometimes they’re worthwhile because people don’t show up to see you play a bigger show. In Indianapolis or Chicago or New York we play those shows because, well, I don’t know exactly why. It feels more welcoming – all the people that want to be there maybe a little more. You’re closer to everyone. You only spend so much time in a back room before, and you’re closer to people. It’s just a different experience. It’s really fun to play the big shows if you’re playing a city where there’s a desire and you have a potential to draw that many people out to the show. It’s a different experience to play in a city where you play a bunch of big shows, but it’s fun to play at a dive bar and be a part of the crowd and the experience they are having and makes it a little easier to enjoy the night that way.

SSv: I know from a fan’s perspective, they appreciate it because it makes the music more real and creates a different feeling. It doesn’t make the music seem so distant. You’re on a big record, but you’re still able to do that.

Richard: That’s the good thing. It’s a big label, but we’re still a small band in terms of fan base and stuff like that. It’s a little easier I guess to do those things than it might be for a band on Epic that sells a little more.

SSv: When you’re on stage what is it like to look out at an audience who are really into your music and what you’re doing on stage?

Richard: It just depends where your mind is I guess. Sometimes, you’re not paying attention to it at all. It’s a distraction. Sometimes, it feels really good. There are different kinds of crowds. There will be a big crowd that’s really into it but very quiet, but you’re not getting feedback from them. There are crowds that are really loud. Maybe they’re giving you feedback, but they’re not paying attention.

SSv: Which type of crowd do you prefer?

Richard: I like it to be a little rowdy most of the time, as long for the quite songs there’s a more modest feeling. I like people that are really engaged in the songs you know. It’s like going to a movie or a comedy where you feel a little weird laughing because you’re in a room where people aren’t really laughing. It’s the same thing as in that setting where everyone is really free and experiencing it and laughing and gasping at the right moments. It’s nice to have that kind of energy around you.

SSv: Does the stress of being on the road every get overwhelming?

Richard: Yeah, the stress does. I think a lot of the time the health stuff gets to me before the stress does. It’s easy to ignore the stress to some degree because you show up, you set up and have a few beers. That’s not much of a problem. The road can get kind of unhealthy because you’re not eating as much and not sleeping as much. Sometimes at the end of the tour, the health thing is really a drag. Last tour, I felt like it was a really good tour, but I felt like I was constantly fighting big illnesses, and by the end of it, I felt so sick, I was just glad to be done with it.

SSv: What do you want to accomplish musically on down the road?

Richard: I’d like to make another record. I’d like to play a little better than the last one. I like to make each record better than the last one I did. That’s all you can hope for I guess.

SSv: In what ways would you make your next record better?

Richard: I don’t know. You have to hope the songs you come up with are slightly better at that time. I think we talked about doing a little different vibe to give it a different energy. I don’t know if that makes it better, but it makes it different.

Related posts:

1. Everything, Now!
2. Marmoset

Tagged as: Indianapolis

blog comments powered by Disqus