Riding Shotgun With Measles Mumps Rubella
Measles Mumps Rubella -- no longer just an unpleasant shot for schoolkids! You might already know this type of MMR for their impossibly danceable electropunk. I can't help but feel all warm and fuzzy about Measles Mumps Rubella. Even though they're no longer D.C. residents, it still feels like they're local boys done good. That they can make me dance, even while in my chair at work, is just an added bonus. Read on to see how Chuck, Robert, and Mark feel about all things Poison, Patchouli, and D.C., and get excited because they've got big things planned for 2006. As an added bonus, you can see MMR live Saturday, March 11 at DC9 ($10).
Fill in the blanks:
Touring is:
Chuck: Going out on the road and playing different
cities.
Robert: Did he get that one right? Yes! Big money! No
whammies!
Our first gig was:
Robert: My Birthday.
Chuck: Fun. Oh, maybe I shouldn't answer this one, since my last band, All Scars, actually headlined the bill that MMR debuted at. The first gig I did w/ these guys after 2 practices, was phenomenal, it just clicked.
Our favorite venue to play is:
Chuck: In dark clubs, where people are sweaty, bumping and grinding.
Hygiene on a tour is:
Chuck: An option. That is the wonder of patchouli.
Our favorite thing about touring is:
Chuck: What happens on the road stays on the road!
City with the best audiences:
Chuck: Are the most fun to play.
The band member most likely to disappear after a show is:
Chuck: Myself, since i am studying all facets of
magick.
Robert: It's true, ever since we brought Doug Henning
on as a roadie we've never been able to find Chuck for
load in.
The tour bus/van smells like:
Chuck: A potpouri of bad jokes, horrible truck stop
snacks, and the sweet smell of full grown unbathed humans.
Robert: It's because we always buy the "Full Grown
Unbathed Human" scented pine tree from truck stops.
Laundry is: a) washed regularly, b) washed
irregularly, c) we go shopping a lot:
Mark: Laundry, much like the band itself is seldom
washed on the road. Surprise!
Chuck: Our stylist goes to each city before hand and
purchases us the hip clothes of the natives. Robes
don't have to be washed that much, since we are not wearing
anything underneath.
What's the most unusual item on your rider?
Mark: Tell me more about this thing you call a, "rider." Sounds interesting.
Chuck: I have always thought that Ryan's request to
have all of his food have the same shape is unusual,
although he may argue that my request to have 3 black candles in a
black velvet draped room is strange. I have been
asked not to talk about the other stuff I ask for... to each
their own.
Robert: For me I have requested that for every show
his holiness the Dali Lama must be front and center.
So far, it's never happened so I have a lot of
lawsuits I am currently filing against promoters.
Who controls the music in the touring vehicle? And
what are you listening to at the moment?
Mark: Who controls the music? Nobody in particular. At
times, when I'm driving and tired I'll ask the guys to
throw on something more upbeat in order to keep the
ol' eyelids open. That might be anything from Manu
Chao to the Zombies. Aside from that, we're all cool
with listening to whatever.
Robert: We always try to change up what we bring.
There are a few staples that seem to be pulled out
pretty consistently. Spacemen 3, lots of Tropicalia
records, I think the van itself might own a copy of
Murray Street by Sonic Youth. At the moment I've been
listening to the new Amadou & Miriam a bunch. Are You
Really Lost by Matias Aguayo has been one of my
favorite Kompakt records to come out in a while. The
New Psychic Ills record is really great, and I just
picked up both Congotronics 1&2. I could go on, but I
shouldn’t take up too much space.
Chuck: I'm listening to a lot of John Zorn, Boredoms,
Ikue Mori, Orthrelm, Afrirampo, Nisennen Mondai, Mike Patton, Sun
Ra, Nautical Almanac, and Throbbing Gristle, to name a
few.
Your new favorite watering hole after being on tour?
And/or the best place to get greasy, hangover-curing
food?
Chuck: Being an atheist monk, I refrain from going to
watering holes unless it belongs to nature. Usually
not enough time to hang over food, for I eat it too fast.
Most amusing memory from your current or most recent
tour?
Chuck: Zaggy's Zingers, on the hour at the top of the
hour. Look for the podcast in the near future. Ricky
Gervais, watch out!
Please name the city you wouldn't ever play in again? Or, if not a particular city, which venue makes your skin crawl?
Chuck: Cloud city was a blast until Lando Calrissian
sold us out for some cash. Wu Tang was right, "cash rules
everything around me..." I don't think we have ever
played the Skin Crawl. That might be the only S & M
club I haven't gone to yet.
What bands have you enjoyed touring with in the past?
And which bands would you love to tour with?
Chuck: I have been in MMR for a short time, during
this time the Lesbians On Ectasy/Le Tigre tour we did was fun.
Shows w/ Eyes Of The Killer Robot, Nisennen Mondai, &
Psychic Ills have been fun. I would love to tour w/
the Boredoms, OOIOO, Fantomas, or the Melvins.
Apart from the obvious cd, what's the merch item of
yours you think people should shell out for?
Mark: T-Shirts! T-Shirts! T-Shirts!
Chuck: we have made t-shirts, but besides that, I am
usually cheap but good at being bad, if you know what
I mean.
Have you been to the top of the Washington Monument?
Mark: Although I grew up and lived in D.C. for years I
never made it to the top of the Washington Monument.
Now that I'm living in New York, I'm on a mission to
not go to the top of the Empire State building. I
think that people that go to the top of the Washington
Monument think that they're above everyone else, and I
guess they are. Sounds elitist.
Robert: I think I have been up there as a child,
although I have more of a recollection of the really
long line.
Chuck: Ok, everyone's on this topic since that movie "Brokeback Mountain". Well, I have thought about
being on top of it, but thought it might hurt the first time.
My daily mantra is "pain is enlightment, love is the law." Love who you love.
Robert: that joke was pretty painful… I must now be
enlightened… zing!
How has New York been treating you?
Chuck: New York hands treats to you all year round,
you just have to be aware of what treat you want to take
and not to hesitate to take it.
What do you miss most about being in D.C.?
Mark: Walking to shows instead of riding the subway
for an hour to get to one,(that is if the subway is
running at all).
Chuck: The 50 different Ethiopian restaurants, Malcolm
X drummers, the echo dome at the Canadian embassy (I
don't know why more people don't go there. It is D.C.'s only
outdoor sound sculpture), oh yeah, our friends who
still live there.
What's the biggest difference between making music in
D.C. versus making music in New York (any aspect -
inspiration, production, live gigs…)?
Chuck: Personally, I play out more w/ a wider range
of people. The freak flag is flown in every area of the
world, we find each other where ever we are and unite.
Mark: Well I think it's easier to get a practice space
in New York than in D.C. In D.C., it's like, "well we
used to have practice spaces and group houses, but now we
have million dollar lofts instead."
What does 2006 hold in store for MMR?
Mark: Show and more shows. We've been laying dormant
for far too long it's finally time to get out and hit
the road.
Robert: Much more recording as well. We’ve recorded a
brand new song for a single that should come out this
summer. So far I think it’s the best thing we’ve ever
done. We’re also shooting to finish up recording a
second album’s worth of songs by the end of the year.
No more of this waiting two years to do another
record.
Chuck: New recordings, releases, tours, handshakes,
slang, movements!
What would you like people to be saying about MMR in
50 years?
Chuck: I would like for them to say that MMR sound is
timeless. Either that or MMR is the best music to
have sex to.
Mark: It would be great to hear people ask, "isn't
that the shot you have to get before you go to
college"? Oh wait, people already say that. Mission
accomplished.
Robert: “I saw them when they turned 80, they were
better when they were in their 70’s”
Please recite a line of poetry:
Robert: There once was a man from nan… sorry that’s
too obvious of a joke huh?
Chuck: "vast endless nothing that branches out into
realm beyond realm. This and these are mine, together they
are nothing..." -Sun Ra
And finally, it's BigYawn's round. What's your poison?
Chuck: Brett Michaels, CeCe Deville, Rikki Rocket, &
Bobby Dall. Why, is there another Poison out there?
For even more Measles Mumps Rubella, go to www.measlesmumpsrubella.com, or www.myspace.com/measlesmumpsrubella.