Interviews

Midtown

Interview with Gabe on Nov 30, 2000 by Archive Bot

PB: Please introduce yourself, and tell the biggest disappointment you have ever suffered?
MT: Gabe Saporta, and the biggest disappointment must have been getting kicked out of my old band.

PB: Which band?
MT: The Shitty Fuckheads. That's the name of the band… yea.

PB: How hard has it to come back from the accident that injured your friend Stacey and how is she now?
MT: It would have been very hard, but having everyone support us and help us out made it a lot easier for us. People were really cool to us, and helped us in any way that they could. Whether it would be to donate money, or like our friends Jonathon and Gabe who do this magazine called CRVM, they basically came up with their van and took us on the New Found Glory tour. So, that made it a lot easier and it could have been much, much worse. Stacey recovered really quickly, and was very luck so we were all very lucky.

PB: What's with the denim?
MT: What is with the denim? What do ya mean? My jacket is corderoy actually!

PB: You got the jeans on though!
MT: The jeans you're wearing…… oh you're not wearing jeans.

PB: I'm not emo….. I tried.
MT: Denim is so last year hahahahaha. Denim's always cool, and we've always worn jeans or like sometimes we wear Dickies ya know. We were never fans of the baggy pants, not that there's anything wrong with baggy pants…… but ya know we feel that clothes were meant to fit on the body. So they should fit at least relatively well and jeans do that ya know. The stretch out very well and they conform to your figure, so jeans are cool. Jean jackets are kinda cool. They were a little fashionable. We started wearing them, and we kinda set the fashion ya know. We started wearing them, then everyone took it from us. Hahahahah (sorry katsum). It started off that when we started the band Tyler and I got jean jackets. Then Heath and Rob did and it was over. So now I have a corderoy jacket and Tyler is wearing a sweater so….. Corderoy is like the new jeans basically.

PB: Do you pee in the shower?
MT: Do I pee in the shower…… NO! I tried to and I couldn't.

PB: Hahhahahahaha
MT: When I was younger Madonna was on David Letterman and she said how everyone pees in the shower and I was like "I don't pee in the shower", and I tried to pee in the shower and I just couldn't do it, and one time I got pee shy. I never get pee shy but one time I got pee shy. Have you ever gotten pee shy? 

PB: Yea, when people are trying to sneak a peak in my urinal.
PB: I know Drive Thru and MCA are somewhat one in the same, but I learned your next release will be on MCA. What will that do for you guys as a band?
MT: I think it will be very awesome for us. The people at MCA are like really cool ya know. Major labels in the past five years have changed a lot and instead of trying to be a machine that takes something real and repackage it into something that's marketable to all these people, they are really letting it grow by itself. They are basically being a bank so a band that wants to work themselves has the means to do what they need to do. The bands are a lot smarter and the people that work at the labels are much smarter. Before, they tried to make bands. They took something that was a real band and repackage it. I'm excited about that and I'm excited our record is going to get into stores because a lot of people tell us our record is really hard to find. I'm excited to have some push behind us…. We basically have been going by ourselves. We have been touring for the past year and a half traveling the country promoting ourselves. It'll be good to have some more people working for us and some extra hands. Drive Thru is great but they are limited in what they can do ya know? So I'm definitely looking forward to being on MCA.

PB: Are you excited about appearing on The Real World and how did that come about?
MT: Well…. We're not playing on The Real World and that didn't happen, but basically the way it came about was they were supposed to come to our shows and film but it never materialized. I guess they were like we don't want to use The Real World to promote a band. I was just at The Real World house last night. Our friend Rachel who we knew before she was on The Real World…. We met her at a show when we were on tour a while ago and we just became friends with her. She used to live on Hit Street and Rob's last name is Hit so it's really funny. When we met her she's like I'm going to go try out for The Real World they're here at my college and I was like whatever ya know. I didn't think she'd make it ya know? She made it all the way so it's like all of a sudden you're getting infamous. She wore t-shirts a bunch of times and I think New Found Glory were at the house too. They were just there causing trouble. See the whole thing is The Real World wants you to be scandalous, and we're like not a scandalous band ya know? So like we're really boring and really have nothing to go on their to do. I think Ian was at the house running around with his shirt off. Ian always does that kind of stuff so he can get away with it.

PB: The album "Save The World Lose The Girl" is very air guitar inspiring. I have lost the girl, but want to save the world. Do you have any suggestions?
MT: You should never be friends with someone you break up with. Totally not dude seriously.

PB: Do you want me and the ex to get it on tonight?
MT: Me and you? OK! Hahhaha What are you doing dude I would never do that. How are you going to be friends with someone you broke up with. "Hey I just went out with this really cool guy", so what kind of friends are you. I would never be friends with them.
Ex GF: Why can't you be on my side?
MT: Because this is my brother ya know? Pee shy! But how can you save the world? Whatever you wanna do just put your heart into it. That's what we did with music.

PB: If you could be a superhero who would you be, and tell your special power?
MT: I'd be Wolverine because I always wanna have fuckin claws coming out of my hand. There's always something I like about having like secret compartments somewhere with things coming out. I want one of those guns where a knife comes out the top. I need cool hair too. Hahahah

PB: New Jersey gets made fun of all the time. Are you guys proud to be from the Garden State and why?
MT: Oh fuck yea! New Jersey got made fun of in the 80's because it was like the toxic state ya know? The truth is when you go into New Jersey from New York it smells like shhhhhit! Ya know…. you just come to expect that and there are parts of New Jersey that look great and smell wonderful and stuff. I don't live in any of those parts, but where I live doesn't smell bad or anything. New Jersey is great because it's the most densely populated state which means there are so many kids and so many bands … and the scene is so great. That's why so many great bands come from New Jersey like Lifetime, Saves The Day, Bruce Springsteen, and Bon Jovi hahhahahah ya know. Seriously, Bon Jovi started off playing small clubs in Jersey and so did Bruce and the thing is it's like there's such an awesome music scene. We are close to New York and all the people that live here and there's a lot going on, a lot of people, and I don't know it's just awesome. There aren't really any cities in New Jersey which sucks but it's close to New York and Philadelphia which is a great thing.

PB: Many bands have made it "big" out of New Jersey such as The Bouncing Souls, Catch 22, Saves The Day, and the list goes on. How do you feel you relate to the other successful Jersey bands?
MT: The only band I don't know personally is The Bouncing Souls so I can't really say anything about those guys. All I know is that they used to say they were from New Jersey now they say they're from New York, so I don't know about that. I don't see a lot of New Jersey pride there. All the other bands so New Jersey pride like Big Wig who we grew up with in the scene, Saves The Day……. Something very interesting is that I tried out for Saves The Day a while back. I'm sure you guys know I'm on the Saves The Day cd cover kissing that girl. I did try out for Saves The Day. The first show I saw them at was a record release show, and all they had was a tape out, and this was the time when this whole type of music was brand new ya know. I was just thirsting for it and I wanted to do something similar to that, and wanted my band to do something like that. They just embodied everything I wanted in a band and thought "wow these guys are so incredible", and they were all cool and vegan and stuff, they were all straight edge at the time, and I was all straight edge at the time but they weren't like tough or whatever you mean. I totally love Saves The Day and I totally love all of their songs, and to become good friends with those guys is really awesome.

PB: I've heard from my anonymous sources that Drive Thru Bonnie makes some of the best brownies known to mankind. Can you please let those who haven't tried them know just how much they are missing out. How can we get our hands on some?
MT: The interesting thing is that you'll never be able to get them because you'll need to buy them with "Bonnie Bucks" . Those dollars have her face on them. Bonnie's great and she makes good brownies, and since I'm vegan she makes good vegan brownies and….. I like it when she makes brownies because they taste sooo good and plus I know they come from the heart because she's so sweet.

PB: Would you rather sleep in the streets of Asbury Park, NJ overnight or be in N'sync and why?
MT: I'd definitely rather be in N'sync . Who wants to sleep on the streets of Asbury Park…. It's nasty! It's the most disgusting place in the universe. It used be a beach town and used to have an amusement park in it, then I don't know what happened. Something must have happened like some economic disaster because there all these buildings that were started and just left there. If anyone goes to New Jersey and has a chance to swing by the boardwalk…. It's crazy. It seems like everyone picked up and left out of nowhere. I really would like to find out what the hell is going on down in Asbury Park! I'd like to do some research ya know. I should know since I'm from Jersey but I don't. I'm assuming the beaches were flooded, or there was some economic thing, or they found like toxins or something.

PB: You guys are all vegetarians and I was wondering what is behind the decision. Is it a moral or health decision and why?
MT: For me and the majority of the band I think it's a moral decision. Tyler cares about being healthy… I don't give a shit about being healthy I can care less. What's important to me is that I try to live my life according to principles and the laws of reasons, and I don't want to do anything I really can't find a reason for. I don't want to be hypocritical in my choices, so basically without getting too far into it….. There is really no principle that allows you to eat an animal that wouldn't also allow you to eat a retarded person. You want to equate what things are without what they look like because you don't want to judge something on its outer appearance. Like if you saw aliens who are just like humans but didn't look like us, you would almost say its already to kill them. You want to separate what's relevant from what's not relevant and I think the relevant distinction people draw to is reasoning. Animals have reasoning, but a lot of people don't have reasoning and we still give these people the right to life to. I want to continue to do that and I don't want to be hypocritical and I want to give us the right to life and want to give animals the right to life too.

PB: Why do you think the label "emo" has been thrown around so easily. What the hell is "emo" , and it Midtown emo, semi-emo, pop punk, or power pop with nuts?
MT: It's really weird for me. Like the whole classification thing is really strange because it's lame in a lot of ways, because it has almost become a fad. In a lot of ways it's also necessary because you need to have language and be able to call things certain things and to be able to understand what these words mean. The thing is for me when I was growing up emo for was like Embrace when people were going crazy and stuff. Then when the Promise Ring came out everyone was like….. that's when the whole emo surge happened when emo was cool, now emo's not cool anymore. Emo is like on a MTV and little kids think its cool. When the cool kids thought emo was cool was when The Promise Ring came out, but now the cool kids don't think emo is coo anymore so it's strange how it works. I think the reason it came out it was back in like 1995 is because there were all these bands in the punk scene….. There's my brother… he just got a stupid tattoo on his stomach. He got a Bane tattoo. It says rules not reasons… I mean reasons not rules. The thing is that he's not tough at all. What was I saying?

PB: EMO….
MT: Oh yea…. Emo ok. So like I think it's just basically that people like punk music and people like underground music and at the time when emo came out, the music was very jokeish like the NOFX stuff and Pennywise stuff, and people didn't really find a meaning in it. I think it's just serious punk, and think a lot of these bands are just singing pop-punk music. When pop-punk first came out a lot of these bands were singing really cheesy songs with the girls names in the title, then people got serious about it and having a little screaming in there in ok.

PB: I know a lot of your last album was about a bad relationship you were involved in. What do you look for in a friend?
MT: I think a very important thing to look for is people that are true to themselves and honest to themselves and honest to the people around them. People who aren't putting on a front, and people who know what their short comings are and aren't embarrassed to say what they are. Oh and of course trust and loyalty. I think those things come across. I think the problem with friendships and relationships is that people are insecure about if the friend doesn't like you as much, or the friend doesn't think you're cool or something like that. It's always something about insecurities, so if you have someone that is secure about themselves and doesn't start shit all the time you'll be fine. It's tough because it's hard to be close to someone, and to have those kind of relationships. It sucks!

PB: I have heard such great things about Mark Trombino, please let me know what working with him is like and how he helps make you guys sound even better?
MT: Working with Mark Trombino is great because first of all he is a fucking genius. He is really experienced. He really has a lot of great ideas, and he is just a genius and an artist. The great thing about working with him is that not only does he have the technical expertise but he also has a lot of great ideas so when we come to him, we have all four different ideas and we make them into one idea. We come to him and it's like a whole new side of ideas and stuff. This time we will have more time to work with him, and we didn't have a lot of pre-production time last time. A lot of the ideas he came up with, he came up with in the studio. So hopefully, this time we'll be able to make up some ideas before hand.

PB: Do you write the lyrics?
MT: Yea. On the last album I wrote all the lyrics.

PB: Dolly Parton or Britney and why?
MT: I don't know… I have no idea.

PB: You don't like boobs?
MT: No….. not at all. Especially fake boobs. 

PB: Europe has become a frequent stop for Midtown. How does the scene there differ from that of the U.S.? I heard the kids there are more appreciative of the bands?
MT: I don't know about the kids being more appreciative, but I know they eat up their American shit like hell. It's definitely easier for us since we are from America. Automatically we get cool points, we get crowds, we get everything. We get all the benefits because punk rock is like an American thing right now or and English thing so it's like a little weird. The thing that's really cool about Europe is that they really know how to treat bands. The network they have for touring is excellent. The promoters are great, and even the smaller bands they treat really well. We ate better than we ate in our entire lives in Europe ya know? They have showers in every club, and in clubs here you can't even find a fuckin clean bathroom. You drive around all day and you come to a club and can't even take a fuckin shit ya know? It totally sucks, and I wish all those people from Europe would come over here and be like "this is how it's done", because they really know what they are doing. The band we were touring with the Donots are an awesome band and come from the same place culturally and ideologically that we come from and they have the same goals as we do. They want to go about what they are doing with a lot of integrity and they just make awesome music. The Europe tour is like the best one we have ever done.

PB: How was it to play with International Noise Conspiracy?
MT: Fuckin great. For me it was like….

PB: I have the poster at home from the show.
MT: How'd you get the poster?

PB: Bonnie
MT: Oh….. Bonnie….. For me it was great first of all because I like playing with bands that I really like, and there are only a few bands I'm a really big fan of and International Noise Conspiracy is one of them. To be able to tour with New Found Glory was awesome, and to be able to become friends with that band is awesome. They are just really nice guys and that goes by itself, and on top of that………… The Noise Conspiracy, I consider them one of the most important bands of our time right now. Not everyone can do what they're doing and we can't do what they're doing. It's just like I really admire them, I respect what they do, and I agree with a lot of their ideals. They have a really good approach and it was very monumental playing with that band.

PB: Isn't your cd licensed in Europe?
MT: Yea….. by Burning Heart so we are kind of label mates with Noise Conspiracy so we are very lucky. All these bands I grew up with and I was fans of and all these people I got to meet. That's the best part of being in a band. If you start a band because you love music and love being in a band it's like the greatest thing because you get to meet these people that have influenced you, and get a chance to be a part of this that you were always a fan of when you were younger. It's a reward in itself ya know. I think this is the only reason someone should want to be in a band. Some people see this as people with connections and means to and end. An end to be rich and famous. My end is this within itself. This is the gratifying part about it. If I become rich and famous, WHICH I'M NOT GOING TO, whatever monetary reward I get or however many records we sell, all of that is just like extra. I do appreciate it and I don't blow it off, and I know we are very luck to have all the fans come and see all of our shows.

PB: Lastly, do you have any "shout outs" for any other fellow bands?
MT: Yea the Donuts that I talked about everyone should check them out at their website www.donots.de, The Movie Life great band, this band called Thursday we played our first show with them ever their awesome. They are doing something very unique and I think they are going to get huge. I think everyone should jump on the band wagon now so you can be the cool kid on the block before all the other kids know about it, and it will no longer be cool to like Thursday. Whose another good band I want to shout out?

PB: H20?
MT: I don't need to shout them out. They're fuckin great, but I want to shout out the bands that don't have any recognition. This band Counterfit that has a new album out on Negative Progression and they sound like Hot Water Music and this band from Long Island… The Reunion Show a new band with really good pop.