Motion City Soundtrack’s Tony Thaxton talks to The ‘Campus

By Brett Sowerby

Posted on Monday, April 28th, 2008, 12:00 am

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Tony Thaxton, the drummer of Motion City Soundtrack, answered questions in preparation for opening at the upcoming Honda Civic Tour at the Alfond Arena.

The Maine Campus: You guys have a pretty crazy tour schedule, do ever get sick of it? Do you get tired?

Tony Thaxton: “Oh, there are definitely days when it gets a little old. But at the end of the day, I am doing exactly what I want to be doing for a living, so I can’t really complain.”

TMC: When did you know you guys kind of made it big?

TT: “Did we? I don’t know if I’d say we’ve made it “big”. We don’t get played on the radio. We’ve gotten to play on a handful of TV shows. That’s about it. But, we are getting to pay our bills playing music, so we are happy. If we were able to get to the next level, we wouldn’t complain. It’d just be a nice bonus.”

TMC: Have you been to Maine before? When, why and what did you think?

TT: “We have played Maine twice before. Once at a club in Portland, and then a college show once before. In all honesty, even though we have been, we didn’t really get to see much. So, I don’t know if I can fairly give an opinion. It seems nice though! Hopefully we can see more this time.”

TMC: File-sharing has been a huge issue this year at the University of Maine, with a few students on campus being prosecuted by the RIAA. It seems almost anyone under the age of 35 is probably guilty of file sharing. How do you feel about the RIAA and how they are attempting to preserve the traditional method of selling records? Do you feel they are helping you sell records and make money? How do you feel about what Radiohead did by offering a “pay what you want” option to download their album? Have you considered this? Do you think it will catch on?

TT: “Radiohead really did something interesting. I think we would certainly be open to trying anything really. The music business really needs to figure things out. File sharing is such a mixed thing. On one hand, it makes it so easy to check out a band. If you heard a band’s name and want to hear what they sound like, it’s so easy these days. But, now, no one is selling records. It seems the days of selling 10 million records are over. For anyone.”

TMC: What’s the worst show you’ve played?

TT: “A basement show in Lansing in 2002. It was before Justin had cleaned himself up, and he got incredibly drunk before we played. When he started singing, I thought he was joking. It seemed like the stereotypical drunk bad acting in a movie. Not a fun night.”

TMC: What’s the worst interview question you’ve been asked?

TT: “‘What’s the worst interview question you’ve been asked?’ Joking. It was too easy, I’m sorry. How about the weirdest one? I was once asked, ‘If you met a stick man, what would you say to him?’”

TMC: Who have you been listening to lately and what was the last album you bought?

TT: “Lately I’ve been listening to the new Raconteurs, Flight of the Conchords, and Nada Surf. I think the Raconteurs record was the last thing I bought. I didn’t even know it was coming out. I was stoked. And the first track Rules!”

TMC: Most people ask what artists are most influential to your music, but what songs do you think have influenced you the most over the years?

TT: “Even though I don’t play anything like this, probably my favorite drum song of all time is ‘Hot For Teacher.’ Alex Van Halen rules. My favorite song of all time is probably a tie between ‘Blizzard of 77′ by Nada Surf and ‘Bicycle Race’ by Queen. And I love everything Ben Folds does.”

TMC: Do you have anything you like to do before a show? Any rituals you do? Any lucky underwear or necklaces you like to wear to shows?

TT: “Nothing too crazy. I just warm up on my practice pad for a while and do a lot of stretching. Stretching is most key. No stretching is bad news.”

TMC: How is playing with Panic? Do you think the two bands mesh well together? Were you fans of their music before you started touring with them?

TT: “I really like the direction they took with their new record. There are some great songs on that record and they sound great live. It’s a great tour for us to be a part of.”

TMC: How do you feel about playing the “Honda Civic Tour?” Do you think it has any element of selling out associated with it? Is that even a worry for you?

TT: “People always call bands sellouts for just about anything they do. I don’t worry myself about that. I just go out and play, and try to do what we want to do as a band and hope people like us.”

TMC: What’s your favorite thing about your fans? What’s your least favorite? Do you have any “crazed fan” stories?

TT: “Our fans are pretty loyal. We have great fans who come out to so many shows. We even have fans who not only travel from city to city to see us, but state to state and even country to country. It’s pretty amazing.”

TMC: Do you have advice for aspiring musicians?

TT: “Practice! If you are in the early days of your band, get out there and play any and every show you can. Expect a lot of shows to suck, and for no one to be there. But that will lead to more shows and better shows. It’s all a growing process. If you work hard, it can pay off.”

Tickets are still available for Friday’s show for $20 at umainetix.com. Thaxton will be drumming for Motion City Soundtrack, along with three other bands: headliner of the event, Panic at the Disco, Phantom Planet and The Hush Sound.