Latest / HEAVY Music Interviews / OF MICE & MEN Embrace Evolution, Emotion and Community Ahead Of Australian Tour

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OF MICE & MEN Embrace Evolution, Emotion and Community Ahead Of Australian Tour · HEAVY Music Interviews

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's Up.
• 0:00
  Speaker 2: This is Valentino, the drummer and one fourth of the
• 0:04
  Speaker 2: band of Mice and Men. Our new album, Another Miracle,
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: comes out in November fourteenth.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Pick it up.
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Where albums are sold and stream it on Spotify, Apple Music,
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: these aer, YouTube music wherever you want.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: Beautiful, Well done, Thank you so much. Speaking of the
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: new album, is there anything sort of special that you
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: could tell us about it that maybe no one else
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: knows yet?
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  Speaker 2: Hmmm, I don't know. I mean, unfortunately, we've been talking
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: about the album a lot, so I don't know what,
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: and we're pretty honest with our interviews. We've got nothing
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: to hide, there's nothing really, there's no veil of secrecy
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  Speaker 2: about our music.
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: I've just been kind of saying like, it's got just
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: such a great mix of crushingly heavy to beautiful, soaring melody,
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: to all the spectrum of emotions from happy to sad
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: to It's a journey, and I think something that fans
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: should take away from it is please listen to it
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: front to back. Start at the beginning, get to the end.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: If you're able to, please buy the album, look at
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: the linear notes, read along the lyrics. Go a little
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: bit deeper in a time where I feel like music
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: can be held at face value and just for you know,
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: quick immediate consumption. We make music that is deep and
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: layered and nuanced, and put a good pair of headphones
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: on and listen to these songs because it's dense. It's
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: not just drums, bass, guitar and vocals. There's so many layers.
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: We've used technology, and since we've been self producing, we
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: have nobody telling us no, so we're getting deeper. You know,
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: this is like a This is like a wedding cake,
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: but like ten wedding cakes stacked on top of each other.
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  Speaker 2: Like there's just layer after layer after layer after layer.
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: And if that's something that sounds exciting to our audience,
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: please do that. If it's not, just listen to it
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: and take it for what it is. Choose your favorite songs,
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: put them on a damn playlist, and go about your day.
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: But we like to make music that has layers that
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: is deep for that type of fan that likes that,
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  Speaker 2: because that's how we are. Like we're first and foremost
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: fans of music who have spent our lives practicing our
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  Speaker 2: instruments and learning how to play new instruments and trying
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: to develop our musical chops to be able to express
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: ourselves through music. And I think on our ninth album,
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: we're trying new things, experience quote unquote, experimenting with new
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: sounds and new technology in order to create music that
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: sounds like of mice and men, but sounds like of
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: mice and men in the future, you know. And with
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: every album, we like to elevate our performances and elevate
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: the music and the songwriting and challenge ourselves to make
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: something better than the last album. And I think that's
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: something that we strive to do and somehow man not
• 3:23
  Speaker 2: to toot our own horn, but somehow we do it.
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: You know. We finish every album and I go, how
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: the hell are we going to top this? And we
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: do because we try and achieve that through challenging ourselves
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: and collaborating with each other to create something that we
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: haven't really done before. And I think there's so much
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: new sonic landscape that we've discovered on Another Miracle, and
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  Speaker 2: we just can't wait for everyone to hear it.
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: Yeah, we could. And in saying all of that, is
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  Speaker 1: there a song on the album that is your particular
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: favorite that stands out to you.
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  Speaker 2: A song specifically. Yeah, I mean, the thing with the
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: album is it's such a collection of different feelings and
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  Speaker 2: emotion and vibes, and each song is different from the next,
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: you know, each song is a different almost like a
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: not a different style because it's all still like alternative
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: and metal and rock and like, but it all just
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: kind of depends on what we're feeling. Like Yeah, I mean,
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  Speaker 2: right now, right now, I'm really vibing with the song
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: Troubled Water. I've been playing that one, practicing that one
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  Speaker 2: for some upcoming tour dates that we have, and that
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  Speaker 2: song is like, it's got a sick groove, there's some
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  Speaker 2: cool drumming that. As the drummer, I do have to say,
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  Speaker 2: I'm really excited for people to hear my drum performances
• 4:47
  Speaker 2: on this album too. I got to get a little
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  Speaker 2: saucy on some of the songs and kind of pull
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: out some stuff that I haven't really done in a
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  Speaker 2: couple albums, And in my mind, that's kind of like
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  Speaker 2: what it's all about. But you could ask me later
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  Speaker 2: to day and I'll be vibing a different song. But yeah,
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: I mean, that's kind of the beauty of music, is
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  Speaker 2: you put a song on when you're feeling a certain way,
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  Speaker 2: you know, you put another song on when you're feeling
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  Speaker 2: another way. If you want to get real sad and
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  Speaker 2: and commiserate with somebody, you put on, you know, a
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  Speaker 2: really sad song or something. Or if you want to
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: feel empowered and and and aggressive and kick ass like
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  Speaker 2: you put on another song. And there's definitely all those
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  Speaker 2: different kinds of emotions on this album that I've said
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  Speaker 2: it before and I'll say it again with the Mice
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: and Men, there's something for everybody. There's not just We're
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: not just like one hunting knife, you know, we're a
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  Speaker 2: Swiss army knife. We have all different kinds of tools.
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  Speaker 2: Those tools are songs, and we have nine albums worth
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  Speaker 2: of material. Now that is, you know, there's something for
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: everybody in there because there's so many wide ranges of
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  Speaker 2: emotions in this human experience. And that's what we try
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  Speaker 2: and write about is just our own experiences that are
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  Speaker 2: not special to us. It's something that everybody feels. We
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  Speaker 2: all go through these wide array of emotions and we
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  Speaker 2: just do our best to try and communicate our feelings
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  Speaker 2: through song in hopes that maybe somebody will hear that
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  Speaker 2: song and feel a little bit less alone in the
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  Speaker 2: way and feel a bit comforted in the same way
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  Speaker 2: that this music continues to do for us.
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, great. And whilst all your albums definitely sound
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: like you guys, because of course they would, they all
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: do sound different. I don't know if you feel the
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: same way, but they all do sound different. Was there
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: a particular thing that inspired you guys with this album?
• 6:46
  Speaker 2: I mean with every album. As time progresses, there's new
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  Speaker 2: bands that we come to find that kind of inspire us.
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: There's new life experiences that inspire us. You know, a
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  Speaker 2: lot of this album speaking on behalf of Aaron, a
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: lot of this album was written before he found out
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  Speaker 2: that he was going to be a father, and so
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: there's a lot of songs about finding purpose in life
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: and what is the purpose of life and what is
• 7:10
  Speaker 2: time and what does it all mean? And then he
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: found out he was going to be a father and
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: then wrote these incredibly beautiful songs as a tribute to
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: the daughter who's now living and breathing, but was only
• 7:23
  Speaker 2: an idea and only just you know, a growing baby
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: inside his wife, you know what I mean, And like
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  Speaker 2: it's just so beautiful, these experiences that were able to
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  Speaker 2: share with our audience. And I think as we go
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: through life, finding ways to communicate that through song and
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: through music and through really vibrations and rhythm and just
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: all these kinds of like feelings. Music being the universal
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: language is something that we're always trying to better ourselves
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: at communicating. And I think with each album we are
• 8:06
  Speaker 2: going to always find a different way to communicate that
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: because those the songs that are created at those times,
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: they will always exist for that time and we will
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: never relive that moment. And so I think it's always
• 8:22
  Speaker 2: about constant elevation and constant progression. And not every band
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: has that ethos, and that's totally fine too, Like there's
• 8:30
  Speaker 2: no it's not like a shade, no shade to any
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  Speaker 2: other artist, but for us in our band, we're always
• 8:37
  Speaker 2: going to try and elevate the of Mice and Men's
• 8:40
  Speaker 2: sound and progress the of Mice and Men's sound, never
• 8:44
  Speaker 2: in a place that feels forced or different, because we're
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: we're all very much inspired by heavy music, we're all
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: inspired by emotional music. We love the music that we write,
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: and so we're always going to try and find new
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  Speaker 2: ways to ex bress ourselves that feels first and foremost
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  Speaker 2: fresh to us, where in turn, then maybe the audience
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: will be like, oh wow, I've never heard them do
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  Speaker 2: this before, but it still sounds like them because it
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  Speaker 2: is still us. And I don't know some bands, I
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: can't speak for them, but some bands kind of jump
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: the shark a little bit too much, and we just
• 9:23
  Speaker 2: kind of play to our strengths. You know, we're not
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: reinventing the wheel here. We're just kind of trying to
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: reinvent ourselves and write music that excites us. And what
• 9:34
  Speaker 2: excites us two years ago doesn't necessarily excite us still now.
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: You know, maybe a certain version of it will, but
• 9:43
  Speaker 2: there's going to be an elevated experience to it and
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: some nuances that we're going to try and change and
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: create in a different way with every new album. And
• 9:54
  Speaker 2: I think that's the way that we're able to make
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  Speaker 2: it to album nine and still love what we do,
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  Speaker 2: and still love the collaborative process, and still create music
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  Speaker 2: that feels meaningful because it is meaningful because it is
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  Speaker 2: our experiences and we aren't just writing about the same
• 10:12
  Speaker 2: thing over and over and over again or utilizing the
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: same I guess ideas behind that or tunings or I
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: don't know, all kinds of shit. You know, Like as musicians,
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  Speaker 2: we're always we always kind of want to try new stuff,
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  Speaker 2: but we never want to stray too far from the
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  Speaker 2: path that we have kind of like forged for ourselves.
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  Speaker 2: And we can only really thank the fans and the
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: audience for allowing us the opportunity into their lives and
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: letting our music be the soundtrack to their lives, not
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: just background music to cleaning their flats with or you know,
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: putting on in the background at work at you know,
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: a retail job or something like that.
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: Oh no, it's much more than that music.
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: Thank you so much, appreciate that.
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  Speaker 1: And you guys have been going for a while well now,
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: so definitely you guys have found that formula that works
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: and it resonates with fans. Like you were saying, it's yeah,
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: definitely more than just background music.
• 11:09
  Speaker 2: Ah, thank you so much. Yeah, I mean, well, music
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: plays such an important role in our lives that there's
• 11:16
  Speaker 2: absolutely no way that we could do any different, you know.
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: And as as fans first and foremost that then became
• 11:25
  Speaker 2: musicians that are continuing on a productive musical journey, I
• 11:31
  Speaker 2: think that it only makes sense that we are always
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: trying to like elevate our performances and bring new material
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: to the table and new exciting things that excite us
• 11:43
  Speaker 2: first and foremost. Yeah, and we've all collaborated with each
• 11:47
  Speaker 2: other for so long that we all kind of speak
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: the same language, and we speak the same language as
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: our fans too, because it's really connecting with them and
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: we don't have to try too hard to do that.
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: We just we just kind of do what we do
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: and we try and better ourselves with every album. And
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: it seems like the fans are really connecting with that
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: and it's an incredible feeling and we thank them so much.
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  Speaker 1: That's so lovely. And I've really got to talk about
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: how you guys are coming back to Australia and we're
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: so excited. How does it feel for you to be
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: coming back here?
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: Oh, we love it out there. You know. As soon
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: as we found out, we were like, yes, let's do it,
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: and they were like, but this is the schedule you're
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: gonna have, and we're like, if we can hit all
• 12:32
  Speaker 2: those cities and that's how we can do it, then
• 12:35
  Speaker 2: we're doing it. So it's gonna be some hectic travel
• 12:37
  Speaker 2: for us, but we love everyone out there and our
• 12:40
  Speaker 2: audience in Australia so much that we'll do whatever it takes. Oh,
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: and we're bringing our friends in Crystal Lake. We've been
• 12:47
  Speaker 2: trying to book shows with them for quite some time now,
• 12:51
  Speaker 2: so for our schedules to meet up and us to
• 12:54
  Speaker 2: kind of meet in the middle in Australia is going
• 12:56
  Speaker 2: to be pretty perfect and the perfect storm, if you will. Yeah,
• 13:00
  Speaker 2: And it's going to be a night of kick ass
• 13:02
  Speaker 2: music and awesome memories. And we'll be bringing music from
• 13:07
  Speaker 2: our whole discography, all of the fans' favorites, some of
• 13:10
  Speaker 2: our favorites, and some of the new songs too.
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: Yes, Yes, can't wait. Speaking of Crystal Lake as well,
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: they blend so many genres. Has that inspired or challenged
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: you in any way for this tour.
• 13:27
  Speaker 2: Not specifically to them, but we do love that about
• 13:31
  Speaker 2: their sound and we do think it's important, which is
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: why we've been trying to tour with them for such
• 13:35
  Speaker 2: a long time. Is they bring their own flavor of
• 13:40
  Speaker 2: metal and alternative music that is different from ours but
• 13:46
  Speaker 2: similar enough to where we know that both their fans
• 13:51
  Speaker 2: and our fans are going to have an incredible night
• 13:55
  Speaker 2: of music, you know, and to kind of have something
• 13:57
  Speaker 2: where we never want to tour with. Like granted, there
• 14:00
  Speaker 2: probably isn't a band that sounds like just like us.
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: You know, every band has their own sound, but to
• 14:06
  Speaker 2: bring together all these kind of sonic qualities that both
• 14:11
  Speaker 2: of our bands have, we think it really puts together
• 14:15
  Speaker 2: an eclectic and exciting night of music. And that's what
• 14:19
  Speaker 2: it's all about, is getting people out having a night
• 14:23
  Speaker 2: of awesome entertainment and coming out and just kind of
• 14:26
  Speaker 2: like losing it for a night, you know, and having
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: a good time. And they're the perfect band to bring
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: alongside us, and we're so happy that we were able
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: to make that work for sure.
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: Yeah, definitely, I can only imagine it's just gonna be
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: so epic. And you guys have evolved massively over the years.
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: How would you describe where the band is a creatively
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: now as opposed to back then?
• 14:51
  Speaker 2: I mean, much like people are. Can anybody truly say
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: that they are the same person that they were sixteen
• 14:59
  Speaker 2: years ago than they are today? You know, when we
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: started the band, we were in a much different headspace
• 15:04
  Speaker 2: from being musicians to people, you know, and I think
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: as we mature as humans. I think that changes the
• 15:16
  Speaker 2: way the music is too, and how we create and
• 15:19
  Speaker 2: all of the experiences that we've had in life, not
• 15:22
  Speaker 2: only just as people, but with different record producers and
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: different labels and different you know, like teams behind us
• 15:30
  Speaker 2: and all the things we've learned, we try and better
• 15:34
  Speaker 2: those things and elevate how we understand and then put
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: out music that still continues to excite us. And I
• 15:47
  Speaker 2: mean it it is hard to I guess, quantify that,
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: you know, or even like, you know, like take a
• 15:56
  Speaker 2: piece of take something somebody wrote, you know, like in
• 15:59
  Speaker 2: school sixteen years ago to something they wrote today. It's
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: going to be completely different. And I think it's kind
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: of all about retaining some of the some of like
• 16:09
  Speaker 2: the passion and you know, the love for music that
• 16:15
  Speaker 2: that has always been there. But I think the experiences
• 16:18
  Speaker 2: in our lives really dictate where we are today, and
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: that is very specific to each one of our journeys
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: in this band and then coming together and bringing all
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: those experiences and influences and inspirations to our music. And
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: I think even two years from now, when we probably
• 16:38
  Speaker 2: put out the next album, it's going to be all
• 16:40
  Speaker 2: new experiences and a whole new elevation of sound and
• 16:45
  Speaker 2: sonic textures and landscapes and stuff that are going to
• 16:48
  Speaker 2: feel new and fresh to us then that are only
• 16:52
  Speaker 2: going to be reflective of that time in our life,
• 16:54
  Speaker 2: you know. So, I don't know, it's kind of a weird,
• 16:58
  Speaker 2: a weird thing to refer but I guess if we
• 17:02
  Speaker 2: just keep doing how we've been doing it, which is
• 17:05
  Speaker 2: making honest music about our experiences, we're never going to
• 17:09
  Speaker 2: run out of material because life happens at one hundred
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: miles an hour all the time, so we're always kind
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: of trying to and especially now that we've been self
• 17:19
  Speaker 2: producing our albums, that stream of consciousness creativity rings more
• 17:27
  Speaker 2: true now than it used to when it would be
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: like life happens, life happens. We're not making an album.
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: We're not making an album. We're not making an album. Okay,
• 17:34
  Speaker 2: now is the time to make an album. We're always
• 17:37
  Speaker 2: making the new album because we're always writing music now,
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: and we're always being taking those inspirations and writing them
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: down now, and when it comes time to put together
• 17:50
  Speaker 2: the next album, we're kind of digging into our journals
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: or our folders of music and finding and creating things
• 17:58
  Speaker 2: at that time are going to be reflective of where
• 18:01
  Speaker 2: we are at that point in our life and as
• 18:05
  Speaker 2: opposed to maybe having something that feels a little more
• 18:08
  Speaker 2: forced of like, Okay, now it's time to write, well,
• 18:11
  Speaker 2: what do we feel like? You know, it's like, yeah, well,
• 18:14
  Speaker 2: we've been feeling certain feelings and maybe let's find a
• 18:18
  Speaker 2: way to express that in a way that is exciting
• 18:23
  Speaker 2: to us. And I think we're always going to do that,
• 18:26
  Speaker 2: and we've had quite a bit of practice doing it ourselves,
• 18:29
  Speaker 2: and not that we won't work with producers in the future,
• 18:31
  Speaker 2: because I think there's definitely a benefit to that, But
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: we're having a good time now collaborating with each other
• 18:38
  Speaker 2: and being our own producer and using each other as
• 18:41
  Speaker 2: producers to create the music that everyone's hearing, and it
• 18:46
  Speaker 2: seems to be resonating with the audience really well. And
• 18:49
  Speaker 2: we can't wait for everyone to hear the rest of
• 18:52
  Speaker 2: the album when it comes out next week, and I
• 18:55
  Speaker 2: think people are going to be really pleasantly surprised to
• 18:58
  Speaker 2: hear what we're able to come up with all ourselves,
• 19:01
  Speaker 2: you know. I think we have such a huge sense
• 19:04
  Speaker 2: of pride in that and appreciation for all of the
• 19:09
  Speaker 2: coaches producers that have, you know, kind of steered us
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: along the way to help find those things within ourselves
• 19:18
  Speaker 2: to then each other who kind of we challenge each
• 19:21
  Speaker 2: other and try to make the best possible music that
• 19:27
  Speaker 2: we can at that point in time. And so I
• 19:30
  Speaker 2: always say, like, whenever we're about to release an album,
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: like I was just listening to the album yesterday, I'm like, man,
• 19:36
  Speaker 2: how the hell are we going to top this? But
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: I said that about the last album, and somehow we
• 19:41
  Speaker 2: did it, And so I'm gonna stop questioning it. I'm
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: just gonna lead. I'm just gonna leave it up to
• 19:46
  Speaker 2: the universe. Yeah, and know that that life is going
• 19:50
  Speaker 2: to bring forth experiences that are going to influence the
• 19:54
  Speaker 2: next album and the next body of work. And I'm
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: not really going to worry about how it's going to have.
• 20:00
  Speaker 2: I just know that it will. And I think that
• 20:02
  Speaker 2: that's a good analogy in a way that we can
• 20:05
  Speaker 2: all look at. Life is live in the present, experience
• 20:08
  Speaker 2: everything now for what it is, and when it comes
• 20:11
  Speaker 2: time to express that and explain that and be creative,
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: you're gonna find a way.
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: You have to, you know, Yeah, definitely, it sounds like
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: you were just loving that self producing era that you
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: guys are in. Do you think that will continue for
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: albums in the future too, that they'll be self produced.
• 20:32
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I don't see why not. It feels
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: like we've really kind of gained our footing. We tried
• 20:36
  Speaker 2: it for the first album on Echo. There was stuff
• 20:39
  Speaker 2: that we liked about that, there was stuff that we
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: felt like we could do better, and much like then
• 20:45
  Speaker 2: to try and elevate that, we did Tether and that one.
• 20:49
  Speaker 2: There was still stuff that I felt like we needed
• 20:52
  Speaker 2: to work on there, and we hit a lot of stuff,
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: a lot of like Sonic New Sonic boundaries on that stuff.
• 21:03
  Speaker 2: And with this album, I feel like Another Miracle really
• 21:07
  Speaker 2: kind of blends those two together and creates something all
• 21:10
  Speaker 2: new and fresh. And I think that it's gonna be
• 21:12
  Speaker 2: an incredible starting point for the next body of work,
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: whenever that's gonna come. I mean, songs are already being
• 21:20
  Speaker 2: written right now. I don't know if they'll make the album,
• 21:23
  Speaker 2: but that's just kind of how it goes with us.
• 21:24
  Speaker 2: We're always writing, We're always trying to find inspiration when
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: it comes about, and yeah, I guess we'll just time
• 21:33
  Speaker 2: will tell what the next body of work will be
• 21:35
  Speaker 2: but we're really excited to get to share this one
• 21:38
  Speaker 2: with everybody and feel like we've really hit the nail
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: on the head with what we're trying to what we're
• 21:47
  Speaker 2: trying to share with the audience, you know, And there's
• 21:49
  Speaker 2: just so much there. It's such a journey. There's so
• 21:52
  Speaker 2: much yin to the yang. There's so much like melody,
• 21:55
  Speaker 2: but then there's like crushing heaviness and new tunings on
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: guitar and more musical drumming and like vocals that are
• 22:03
  Speaker 2: you know, Aaron does like an eighteen second scream on
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: one of the songs, and he's doing like multi layered
• 22:10
  Speaker 2: screams and multi layered melodies and just everything like it's
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: it's all about constant elevation, and I think we're always
• 22:19
  Speaker 2: going to try and achieve something like that with every
• 22:22
  Speaker 2: new song we write, and in turn that will help
• 22:27
  Speaker 2: shape whatever the album ends up becoming when those songs
• 22:31
  Speaker 2: ultimately become an album.
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I really. That's something I really like about
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: you guys too, is that you guys aren't afraid of boundaries.
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: You push yourselves all individually as well, Like you can
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: definitely hear it on your songs outside the box. And
• 22:45
  Speaker 1: I think that's what keeps you guys, has kept you
• 22:48
  Speaker 1: guys going after all these years, to be honest and look,
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: even if you feel after an album that something hasn't
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: quite worked, you guys seem to improve on that with
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: every consequential album.
• 22:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well it's out one and done for us, you know,
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: And I appreciate you saying that too, Thank you so much.
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: But really it's like if we didn't hit the nail
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: on the head, you know, fuck it, there's we'll do
• 23:09
  Speaker 2: another song. You know. It's not like, oh, we're done
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: writing songs. Like we're gonna write music forever, whether it's
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: in a Mice and Men or however, that's just how
• 23:18
  Speaker 2: we are. We all write music, and that's where musicians
• 23:21
  Speaker 2: and fans of music first and foremost. And I think
• 23:24
  Speaker 2: as fans of music, we get inspired by that to
• 23:27
  Speaker 2: want to continue to create, and the journey is what
• 23:32
  Speaker 2: inspires us. And so I feel like we're always going
• 23:35
  Speaker 2: to be doing that. And whether we find a collaborative
• 23:40
  Speaker 2: effort with a producer or we continue to self produce,
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: I think only time will tell with that. And we're
• 23:46
  Speaker 2: not opposed to working with producers. Yeah, but it seems
• 23:51
  Speaker 2: like us working together, just as the unit of four
• 23:55
  Speaker 2: of us has been working really well. And I think
• 23:58
  Speaker 2: that that's something that we take a lot of pride
• 24:00
  Speaker 2: in and we hope that the fans know that when
• 24:03
  Speaker 2: they hear these songs from A Mice and Men, it's us,
• 24:07
  Speaker 2: you know. And in a time where where a lot
• 24:12
  Speaker 2: of people need, need, or want to rely on others
• 24:15
  Speaker 2: to help them write their music, that's totally cool. Collaboration
• 24:19
  Speaker 2: of music is awesome. But we're really having a good
• 24:22
  Speaker 2: time collaborating with each other and that's enough for us
• 24:25
  Speaker 2: right now, you know, and hopefully that that connects with
• 24:29
  Speaker 2: the fans, and it seems like it has been so far.
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: So it's an exciting time and we're happy to get
• 24:35
  Speaker 2: to share this music with our fans, and we're really
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: excited to get to come out there and play some
• 24:41
  Speaker 2: of this new music for everybody out there in May. Man,
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: it's a long ways away, though it sucks. I feel
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: like it's like I wish it was in like February.
• 24:48
  Speaker 1: Yes, yes, I know, me too, but look what I mean.
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: I feel this way. I feel like things are moving
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: so quickly, like I can't believe it's the November already,
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: Like that is.
• 24:58
  Speaker 2: Crazy, I know, seriously.
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: Yeah, so it'll be here before we know it. I reckon.
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, look at the time. Okay, last few questions.
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: What sorry, if of Mice and Men had to cover
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: one totally unexpected song on this tour, what would it be?
• 25:19
  Speaker 2: Unexpected song? Dude, I don't know.
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: I don't know.
• 25:30
  Speaker 2: Unexpected?
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: Yeah, a song maybe you really like that you have
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: always wanted to play live that's not your own?
• 25:37
  Speaker 2: Oh uh, Nirvana Lithium would be a cool one, yes,
• 25:43
  Speaker 2: which I mean Nirvana is pretty low hanging through. Everyone
• 25:46
  Speaker 2: loves Nirvana. But or Lithium or heart Shaped Box, Yes,
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: one of those. I don't know, putting a putting a
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: metal We like putting one of Mason men edge on
• 25:58
  Speaker 2: our covers, so in the past if you've heard them.
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: We don't really like covering songs just straight up, you
• 26:05
  Speaker 2: know what I mean, Like we want to put our
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: own spin on it. We've done a couple and yeah,
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: I think I mean, while Nirvana are legendary, I think
• 26:14
  Speaker 2: that that could be something cool. I don't know, maybe
• 26:17
  Speaker 2: maybe there's something there. We'll see.
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: Well, you can credit me for that, and no, I
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: also think with those songs though as well, they're not
• 26:26
  Speaker 1: like their most popular songs, so you can get away
• 26:29
  Speaker 1: we're covering. It's not so much slow hanging fruit in
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: my opinion.
• 26:32
  Speaker 2: But okay, cool, Well, that's good to know. I appreciate that.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: Okay, And last question, when you think about of Mice
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: and Men's legacy, what do you hope fans remember.
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: Most community and just that conversation that we've had for
• 26:55
  Speaker 2: such a long time with each other, from the band
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: to the audience, and from the audience to the band.
• 27:00
  Speaker 2: You know, the only way that we've been able to
• 27:03
  Speaker 2: last nine albums and sixteen years is because of our
• 27:08
  Speaker 2: audience and because of our fans that continue to listen
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: to us, to listen to us, that continue to buy
• 27:15
  Speaker 2: our albums and support the band and come out to
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: the shows and experience this and bring their friends and
• 27:21
  Speaker 2: to tell people and to have their friends experiencing it
• 27:24
  Speaker 2: for the very first time. And some people have been
• 27:27
  Speaker 2: coming to see us since our very first time out
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: in Australia in twenty twelve or thirteen, I think was
• 27:34
  Speaker 2: one of the first times we went out there.
• 27:36
  Speaker 1: And.
• 27:38
  Speaker 2: It's just incredible and we owe all of this to them,
• 27:41
  Speaker 2: to our fans, and I think that what people can
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: expect from A Mice and Men is that appreciation and
• 27:49
  Speaker 2: having that community that when you come to an A
• 27:51
  Speaker 2: Mice and Men show, you're there with family. The people
• 27:55
  Speaker 2: that you're in the audience with are people just like yourself,
• 27:59
  Speaker 2: that that have those same feelings as you, that connect
• 28:02
  Speaker 2: with music that same way. And knowing that those people
• 28:05
  Speaker 2: us that are on that stage are exactly like the
• 28:08
  Speaker 2: people in the audience because we are fans first and foremost.
• 28:12
  Speaker 2: We've just practiced our instruments for a very very long
• 28:15
  Speaker 2: time and and it's still challenging for us, you know,
• 28:19
  Speaker 2: but it is something that we've built unintentionally a community
• 28:26
  Speaker 2: of fans and appreciate appreciate appreciators of music that I
• 28:33
  Speaker 2: think is something that is an incredible byproduct of this
• 28:38
  Speaker 2: alternative style of music. You know, it's not for everybody,
• 28:41
  Speaker 2: it's not. It's becoming more mainstream now, but it's because
• 28:45
  Speaker 2: people want something deeper, you know, they want something more nuanced.
• 28:49
  Speaker 2: They want to feel seen by.
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: Music.
• 28:54
  Speaker 2: You know, they don't just want to mask all the
• 28:57
  Speaker 2: bullshit that happens that we experienced as humans. They want
• 29:01
  Speaker 2: to face it head on, and I think there's something
• 29:04
  Speaker 2: beautiful about the community that this music has created and
• 29:08
  Speaker 2: continues to create. And I hope that our fans know
• 29:12
  Speaker 2: that they are part of something much larger as are we,
• 29:16
  Speaker 2: you know, and it's really because of all of them
• 29:19
  Speaker 2: that we still get to be here and do that.
• 29:21
  Speaker 2: And so we just we live with endless gratitude towards
• 29:25
  Speaker 2: our fans and our audience, and it's something that we,
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: you know, that we always want to pay forward and
• 29:32
  Speaker 2: show our appreciation and live a life that expresses that
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: love and appreciation to them, because without them, it's not
• 29:41
  Speaker 2: it's not sustainable to do this, you know. For us
• 29:44
  Speaker 2: to be able to have a career doing what we love,
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: to sell these records, to be able to make this music,
• 29:50
  Speaker 2: to be able to do what we do, it's all
• 29:52
  Speaker 2: because of them. And we can't thank them enough. And
• 29:54
  Speaker 2: we hope that they know how much we appreciate them
• 29:57
  Speaker 2: and will continue to do this for our selves and
• 30:00
  Speaker 2: for them every chance that we get moving forward, and
• 30:03
  Speaker 2: know that it's one hundred percent us. This is this
• 30:07
  Speaker 2: is our everything, and we appreciate all of them so much.
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: Oh, we feel it, and we love you guys just
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: as much, and I hope you feel that too when
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: you're up there.
• 30:16
  Speaker 2: Absolutely.
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: That's also the analogy you use of family like in
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: the community is really great. I have to say from
• 30:23
  Speaker 1: a fans' perspective, being in the crowd at one of
• 30:26
  Speaker 1: your shows, I feel safe and there have been so
• 30:30
  Speaker 1: much Yeah, there's been some bands that I've been to
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: and not felt that way, and you know, it doesn't
• 30:34
  Speaker 1: feel like a community, but definitely, yeah.
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: Well thank you. You know, that's what we took from
• 30:40
  Speaker 2: our favorite bands, and we could only hope that we
• 30:43
  Speaker 2: don't have to go too far out of our way
• 30:46
  Speaker 2: to achieve that, because it comes from the music, and
• 30:49
  Speaker 2: it comes from the intent, and our intent is pure
• 30:51
  Speaker 2: and it's honest and it's not bullshit. It's it's you know,
• 30:55
  Speaker 2: we're just sharing our experiences as humans in hopes that
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: everyone else can feel that level of scene and safety
• 31:04
  Speaker 2: that we feel from our audience, you know, and from
• 31:07
  Speaker 2: our favorite bands. And we just hope that people can
• 31:11
  Speaker 2: take that away from our live shows. So when we
• 31:13
  Speaker 2: come out there and may we just we hope everyone
• 31:17
  Speaker 2: comes out. Get your tickets early, you know it really
• 31:20
  Speaker 2: from the buzz, this has been creating. It really feels
• 31:22
  Speaker 2: like this is going to be a special time out there,
• 31:24
  Speaker 2: so get your tickets early before the shows sell out. Yes,
• 31:27
  Speaker 2: and we're going to be bringing songs from our whole discography,
• 31:31
  Speaker 2: all your favorites, some of our favorites, some of the
• 31:34
  Speaker 2: new music, and it's going to be just an electric
• 31:38
  Speaker 2: night of awesome music and celebration of community and of
• 31:44
  Speaker 2: family and of this community that we've been building for
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: such a long time and that this alternative music can build.
• 31:52
  Speaker 2: And we just feel so fortunate to be a part
• 31:55
  Speaker 2: of it, and we cannot wait to get out there.
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: Oh we're so so excited. Valentino, Thank you so much
• 32:01
  Speaker 1: for your time today.
• 32:02
  Speaker 2: Christ of course, thank you.
• 32:04
  Speaker 1: It's been a pleasure.
• 32:05
  Speaker 2: Thank you.
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: Hey, me too.
• 32:07
  Speaker 2: It's it's not enough time these thirty minute like little windows,
• 32:10
  Speaker 2: but I appreciate your time definitely, and looking forward to
• 32:14
  Speaker 2: seeing you guys out of the show.
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: Yes, all right, thank you so much. Have a good
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: day alright.
• 32:19
  Speaker 2: YouTube take