Motel Motel

By Kristin Day
mixer

Friday, July 31, 2009

Motel Motel has turned a few heads in music halls and with national press alike with their own brand of folk rock; They're also raising a few questions. Like, what exactly is alt/country?

“Alt/country works pretty well with the CD we have now,” said their newest member Erik Gundel. “I like to think of it as Prague country ... It's hard to describe your own music.”

It's definitely harder to describe this band's folksy yet modern sound, but it's all a part of some of the latest music trends as indie-rock bands push their way into the mainstream. With Motel Motel's latest album, “New Denver,” they've been compared to Cold War Kids and hailed by the likes of the New York Post, The Huffington Press and the New York Press. Spin Magazine declared their single “Coffee” a Song You Must Hear Now.

But Gundel said the press attention is secondary to gigs, practice and working on their next album.

In late June, the New York-based musicians brought their tour to the Carolinas, sharing the stage with Greenville's own indie troupe, Lonnie Walker. They played the latest reincarnation of the Spazzatorium before heading to Wilmington.

mixer: You haven't played North Carolina much. Have you tried anything stereotypically southern while you've been here?

Gundel: We haven't had much time to go out and do stuff. The heat's been different ...¦ I wouldn't mind getting some barbecue.

mixer: How has it been travelling with Lonnie Walker?

Gundel: It's great. They're awesome. It's nice to have a regional band to play with around here ... It makes a big difference to have fun guys to travel with.

mixer: You've had a really successful year. How has it been handling the extra attention?

Gundel: It hasn't been too crazy. We're just working hard.

mixer: Do you feel like indie rock is starting to get more mainstream recognition?

Gundel: A lot of big indie-rock bands are making their way on the charts, like Grizzly Bear and Animal Collective. But their music hasn't yet started to influence popular music. You don't really have pop groups or singers making the indie sound, so in that ear it's still divided. I'd like to hear Jay-Z have an indie-rock rhythm. ... I feel the really, really good independent bands are getting noticed. Like Fleet Foxes.

mixer: If Motel Motel could rule the airwaves with another indie band, who would you want it to be?

Gundel: I'm sure there are a lot of bands ... (but) Sharon Van Etten. She's a singer from Brooklyn, N.Y.

mixer: So where are you guys with the new CD?

Gundel: We're still in the writing stage with the new album. We'll be in the studio in late July or August. Then in September we'll be in England (for the End of the Road Festival). It was really nice of them to invite us, so we just took the plunge and bought the plane tickets.

mixer: What was it like playing at the South by Southwest Festival (held each year in Austin, Texas)?

Gundel: It's a pilgrimage every band has to make ... ¦ That was crazy. We played probably eight shows in four days. Some good, some bad. It was definitely an experience.