Transmatic – Interview

Into the Transmatic with singer Joey Fingers!

How has life changed in the last year?

Since December to now it’s been a metamorphic stage for us as individuals and as a band.

Was there a smooth transition from being on an indie to Virgin?

It was surprisingly smooth. I’m the kind of person that always expects the worst, and I’m still waiting for that to happen. (laughs)

Did it just happen or were you looking to get signed?

We were looking for it. Did we realistically think it would happen? I don’t know. I just played music, and really, it did sneak up on us.

Everyone dreams of being a rock star or in a band. Was this process what you thought?

Mixing the record was at times a demoralizing experience, but at the end, to hear it, everything made sense from three months of hell.

How old were the songs?

Some were old, a couple I finished writing the last day in the studio. I like letting things run down to the wire.

You like the pressure of the situation?

Yeah, that inspires me.

There is the old saying in music that the first album took the artist their whole life to write. Do you feel like that?

I don’t. I heard people say that too. I’ve written so much music over the years that aren’t these songs, and we write so many songs that I’m ready for the new record. I always have something new to say.

Does it bother you that what you are thinking today people won’t hear for two years?

It is strange. It’s a very strange system, how long it takes to filter through. By the time these get out, you are on to something else.

Do you ever listen to the album now and wish you added things or did this or that?

I have a hard time listen to the album, to be honest. I tend to be ultra-critical.

I think most musicians are that way.

If you aren’t watching your own quality control then no one else will.

Is that a bit of suffering choosing songs, because it’s like having to choose between your kids, who to keep and who to let go?

It is. I write stuff on my own, aside from Transmatic, that is ultra-personal and I don’t think I could ever put that out for people to hear or play it for people. Some things you just want to keep sacred. As much as this is a business, music, it is still a personal art.

What inspires your sound?

We listen to so much, the whole band together really covers the spectrum. I try to understand when I get with these guys how this is the sound we come up with. (laughs) I still don’t understand it.

Is there anyone you hear today that makes you want to just grab a guitar and write a song?

Pete Yorn’s latest album is just great.

Do you listen to stuff from the ’70’s?

Yeah. My dad was into Jim Croce. I learned his greatest hits album from beginning to end. From that into Kiss.

My dad listened to Johnny Cash, so I went from that to Kiss.

Johnny Cash played at the Viper room a few years ago, and we just played there and I stood there and was like, ‘Wow, Johnny Cash played here.’

As a part of Transmatic, do you try and look to the future or stay in the present?

I live for the moment, because the less expectation I have, the less disappointment I have.

So no goals?

We have goals, but I try not to let them fixate and let them float around the back of my mind. If I think about it too much it’ll be torturous, and I want to have fun before I die.

+ charlie craine