Q&A: Sean of the band Murder Majesty
I first met Sean in 2005 at the Showcase Theatre in Corona CA where I was performing. Aside from being one of the 5 or so people at the show (Along with Aaron, Valeriebot & Meagan J!) , he was pretty cool and we kept in touch over the years and became friends. Nowadays, he sings in the band Murder Majesty, straight outta Las Vegas, and he also does tour booking as well! He found time in his busy schedule for a lil' Q&A action.
Q:give us a little background on Murder majesty. how did it start, what was your role in it, how the name came to be, how long you guys have been around, fun facts.
Sean: Murder Majesty has been around for about 2 1/2 years now. I moved to Las Vegas from Orange County because I was sick of living with my mother whenever I wasn't on tour with my old band The Shilling (wwwmyspace.com/fucktheshilling)
and I thought 24 was an appropriate age for me to make a scenic change and to grow up. Well I already had a friend living here from Orange County who knew a few punk rock kids in town so after going to a few bars, my friend introduced me to a guy named Beavis who was soon to be our first drummer. He was busy playing in a punk rock band and I had success playing ska/punk with my old band and he wanted to venture down that road and knew a few people who were also into that kinda shit and so Murder Majesty was born. We decided on the name because out of every option we came up with, the name seemed to be the catchiest and fit the style.
Q: what's the latest project you guys have released and what are you working on right now?
Sean: We recently came out with our debut full length a couple months ago entitled "Start From Scratch" on a great up and coming east coast label called Unable Records. We're currently transitioning a new drummer into the lineup with all the member problems we've had over the year so we have only tossed around ideas for new songs. We haven't put any on paper.
Q: What's the songwriting process like for you guys?
Sean: Well for songs structures and backbone, me and our bassist are pretty much the inspiration behind the music. We both compose the music, then I usually come up with a harmony and then the lyrics are usually much better structured when there's a prewritten vocal harmony/pattern.
Q: Do you have any favourite songs, and why?
Sean: I have plenty of favorite songs but they aren't from us. hahaha. I like a lot of stuff from my favorite ska band ever Slapstick and pretty much everything written by Operation Ivy. Jesse Michaels is my favorite vocalist not for his voice but strictly for his lyrics. He's a poetic genius with a lot of undertones in his lyrics. You just have to use you head to figure out what the songs about. As far as favorite voice, I'd have to say Brendan Kelly from Slapstick/Lawrence Arms/ The Broadways. My favorite song that we have has got to be Goodbye because the whole song from the lyrics to the drums to the horns is very well arranged and I think its the catchiest.
Q: What other bands or artists do you like listening to?
Sean: Well for me personally, I don't have a wide spectrum of stuff I listen to. It pretty much boils down to ska, punk, and black metal. Some of my favorites recently have been Mute, Leviathan, Nokturnal Mortum, Teenage Bottlerocket, This Is A Standoff, and We Are The Union. Told ya it's a simple yet wierd mix.
Q: Do you have any funny or crazy tour stories you can legally share with us?
Sean: Well on our last tour, we encountered a few problems in the state of Arizona. After our show in San Diego on the way to Tucson, I got out of the van on the side of the freeway to stretch while someone took a pi** and then my stomach all of a sudden felt like it dropped (you know like in the movies where you hear a kerplop when the person has to take a s**t real bad) well that happened to me so i tried to walk it off but after 5 steps I had to go worse then before so I tried to round everyone up but just couldn't hold it so i dropped one on the side of the freeway. An hour up the road. Our drummer got prosecuted for marijuana posession. Awwwww what a day.
Q: what do you like to eat when youre on tour? what are the problems with getting decent food on the road?
Sean: When we're on tour, its mostly cold canned food like ravioli. Fast food is eaten often too. Or if we're hungry enough and we have the money truckstop buffets. Decent food is non existent on the road unless you're a big band and catering is included in your rider.
Q: you also do booking. How did you get involved with that and do you have a roster of bands you book, or how does it work?
Sean: I started booking shows in California when I was 12 for touring bands and after moving to Vegas, it's just kind of evolved.
I also help out my friends with tours because it's fun for me, as long as I have time. I do work for a booking agency which has a limited roster but I just handle dates I'm dealt.
Q: There's been lots of changes in the industry since we first met. Do you like the changes? Where is the music biz now and where is it headed? is that a good or bad thing?
Sean: I don't like the changes because it's put some of my good friends out of work with lack of records sold meaning no money for labels which means no money to pay employees. The music business now is exactly the same as where it always has been meaning kids still get their hand on records they like whether they buy it or steal it (from a store or online) but their is still as much of a desire for new music as there was 20 years ago, it just doesn't show in record sales. This economy and lack of funds in peoples hands does impact every bands draw at shows and such but if the money was still just as abundant as it was 10 years ago, shows would still be as crowded because people still want to go to shows, they just have to spend their money on necessities like food and alcohol.
Q: what's the music scene in Las Vegas like compared to other places? what's good and what's bad about it?
Sean: The music scene in Las Vegas sucks. We're way oversaturated with music. There's like 300 clubs, 300 shows a night so theres so much competition that shows don't do as good here as they would Orange County or Phoenix. Most clubs are also 21+ which sucks, but we as a band do our part to play a lot of all ages shows because the minors are the ones who really care for the music scene for the most part and appreciate what were doing.
Q: What does the future hold for you and murder majesty?
Sean: Hopefully not new members! :)
Random topic round.
Topics: jorts, crocs, tshirts so big they hang down past the knees like a mumu.
Sean: tight emo clothes are in! Look at the way I dress haha.
Topics: casinos, strip clubs, gambling, brothels
Sean: casinos are great if you dont lose money. Free drinks are nice too. So are tits!
Topics: rubiks cube, board games, simon, guitar hero, rock band
Sean: The best way to a girls heart in our kids generation is be great at either rock band or guitar hero.
Please check out Murder Majesty at www.myspace.com/murdermajesty
Q:give us a little background on Murder majesty. how did it start, what was your role in it, how the name came to be, how long you guys have been around, fun facts.
Sean: Murder Majesty has been around for about 2 1/2 years now. I moved to Las Vegas from Orange County because I was sick of living with my mother whenever I wasn't on tour with my old band The Shilling (wwwmyspace.com/fucktheshilling)
and I thought 24 was an appropriate age for me to make a scenic change and to grow up. Well I already had a friend living here from Orange County who knew a few punk rock kids in town so after going to a few bars, my friend introduced me to a guy named Beavis who was soon to be our first drummer. He was busy playing in a punk rock band and I had success playing ska/punk with my old band and he wanted to venture down that road and knew a few people who were also into that kinda shit and so Murder Majesty was born. We decided on the name because out of every option we came up with, the name seemed to be the catchiest and fit the style.
Q: what's the latest project you guys have released and what are you working on right now?
Sean: We recently came out with our debut full length a couple months ago entitled "Start From Scratch" on a great up and coming east coast label called Unable Records. We're currently transitioning a new drummer into the lineup with all the member problems we've had over the year so we have only tossed around ideas for new songs. We haven't put any on paper.
Q: What's the songwriting process like for you guys?
Sean: Well for songs structures and backbone, me and our bassist are pretty much the inspiration behind the music. We both compose the music, then I usually come up with a harmony and then the lyrics are usually much better structured when there's a prewritten vocal harmony/pattern.
Q: Do you have any favourite songs, and why?
Sean: I have plenty of favorite songs but they aren't from us. hahaha. I like a lot of stuff from my favorite ska band ever Slapstick and pretty much everything written by Operation Ivy. Jesse Michaels is my favorite vocalist not for his voice but strictly for his lyrics. He's a poetic genius with a lot of undertones in his lyrics. You just have to use you head to figure out what the songs about. As far as favorite voice, I'd have to say Brendan Kelly from Slapstick/Lawrence Arms/ The Broadways. My favorite song that we have has got to be Goodbye because the whole song from the lyrics to the drums to the horns is very well arranged and I think its the catchiest.
Q: What other bands or artists do you like listening to?
Sean: Well for me personally, I don't have a wide spectrum of stuff I listen to. It pretty much boils down to ska, punk, and black metal. Some of my favorites recently have been Mute, Leviathan, Nokturnal Mortum, Teenage Bottlerocket, This Is A Standoff, and We Are The Union. Told ya it's a simple yet wierd mix.
Q: Do you have any funny or crazy tour stories you can legally share with us?
Sean: Well on our last tour, we encountered a few problems in the state of Arizona. After our show in San Diego on the way to Tucson, I got out of the van on the side of the freeway to stretch while someone took a pi** and then my stomach all of a sudden felt like it dropped (you know like in the movies where you hear a kerplop when the person has to take a s**t real bad) well that happened to me so i tried to walk it off but after 5 steps I had to go worse then before so I tried to round everyone up but just couldn't hold it so i dropped one on the side of the freeway. An hour up the road. Our drummer got prosecuted for marijuana posession. Awwwww what a day.
Q: what do you like to eat when youre on tour? what are the problems with getting decent food on the road?
Sean: When we're on tour, its mostly cold canned food like ravioli. Fast food is eaten often too. Or if we're hungry enough and we have the money truckstop buffets. Decent food is non existent on the road unless you're a big band and catering is included in your rider.
Q: you also do booking. How did you get involved with that and do you have a roster of bands you book, or how does it work?
Sean: I started booking shows in California when I was 12 for touring bands and after moving to Vegas, it's just kind of evolved.
I also help out my friends with tours because it's fun for me, as long as I have time. I do work for a booking agency which has a limited roster but I just handle dates I'm dealt.
Q: There's been lots of changes in the industry since we first met. Do you like the changes? Where is the music biz now and where is it headed? is that a good or bad thing?
Sean: I don't like the changes because it's put some of my good friends out of work with lack of records sold meaning no money for labels which means no money to pay employees. The music business now is exactly the same as where it always has been meaning kids still get their hand on records they like whether they buy it or steal it (from a store or online) but their is still as much of a desire for new music as there was 20 years ago, it just doesn't show in record sales. This economy and lack of funds in peoples hands does impact every bands draw at shows and such but if the money was still just as abundant as it was 10 years ago, shows would still be as crowded because people still want to go to shows, they just have to spend their money on necessities like food and alcohol.
Q: what's the music scene in Las Vegas like compared to other places? what's good and what's bad about it?
Sean: The music scene in Las Vegas sucks. We're way oversaturated with music. There's like 300 clubs, 300 shows a night so theres so much competition that shows don't do as good here as they would Orange County or Phoenix. Most clubs are also 21+ which sucks, but we as a band do our part to play a lot of all ages shows because the minors are the ones who really care for the music scene for the most part and appreciate what were doing.
Q: What does the future hold for you and murder majesty?
Sean: Hopefully not new members! :)
Random topic round.
Topics: jorts, crocs, tshirts so big they hang down past the knees like a mumu.
Sean: tight emo clothes are in! Look at the way I dress haha.
Topics: casinos, strip clubs, gambling, brothels
Sean: casinos are great if you dont lose money. Free drinks are nice too. So are tits!
Topics: rubiks cube, board games, simon, guitar hero, rock band
Sean: The best way to a girls heart in our kids generation is be great at either rock band or guitar hero.
Please check out Murder Majesty at www.myspace.com/murdermajesty
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