1. What would you consider Rooney's biggest musical influences to be?
We're all influenced by different things, so it's hard to say what the overall main influences are for the band. I was attracted to song writing because it's way to create and communicate different emotions. I like songs that make me feel something, whether it's happy, sad, longing, excited, fun, etc. That's why my listening is diverse. I like visual music and movies with memorable musical cues. I don't listen to a lot of new artists cause I'm still learning about so many great artists and albums from years back. So much great music in the world, so little time. I just want to make music that satisfies me and excites the listener.
2. How is Eureka different from Rooney and Calling the World?
Eureka shows the many sides of the band and also is a more accurate representation of our musicality and maturity. We've grown up in the music business, signed right out of high school and hit the road at an early age. We dealt with unfair pressures and many obstacles that would've killed some artists. I like the pressure of having to deliver the goods, but I didn't feel appreciated by the company we were bonded to. Eureka is the beginning of a new phase in our career. Things are in our hands more than ever and I think it had a strong positive affect on the writing process of Eureka. It's hard to be in a band and have to appease your mates, but it's part of the journey. I feel the album is our best sounding album to date. We produced and engineered the album and were the only people in the studio. We had to be critical of our own ideas and edit ourselves, which is difficult, but I feel we make something unique and exciting. We've maintained the "Rooney" sound that our fans like and we've shown a fresh side to the music we create.
3. What is your favorite song from Eureka and why?
I really like Only Friend. I would sit at the piano every night and play the chords over and over, making up the melody as I went. I didn't have any words and didn't know what to say. Eventually, the words just came out...I like when that happens. I like that the words are less literal, but still tell a story. They compliment the music well. I really like show tunes and this one has some of that old show tune feel.
4. What is your favorite song out of all of the albums and why?
It's hard to pick one, they all have something I like. It's nice to have reached our third album. The live shows will be mixed with different material and will be fun to piece together. Playing I'm Shakin and When Did Your Heart Go Missing are always a good time on stage and make me proud of be the writer of those songs. They're crowd pleaser and I love crowd pleasers.
5. How do you choose which songs become singles from the albums? Why did you pick "I Can't Get Enough" to be the first single off of Eureka?
We've had success with more rhythmic songs, especially internationally. We're still in the music business, trying to sell albums and make new fans and grow our world. I Can't Get Enough is upbeat and fun and I hope it excited people.
6. What is your favorite Rooney video? Why?
Our new video for I Can't Get Enough is one of my favorites. We've always done straight performance videos or videos with performances built into the plot. The I Can't Get Enough video uses a lot of visual effects and animation, which is something I've always wanted in our videos, but never had a chance to use. I also like the video for Tell Me Soon, which was banned from TV. Apparently the girl was too young and I don't come off well in it. But, it's a really cool video and an original concept.
7. How did you decide on Eureka for an album title?
We sat around throwing names into the hat. Nothing stuck and no one was happy. The artist who did the album artwork found an image of the Great Seal of California and on it it said EUREKA. We loved the image cause it fit our California vibe and the name was already a part of the image.
8. I recently saw the behind the scenes footage of the "I Can't Get Enough" video. How difficult was it to work on roller skates? How did the band decide on a roller rink?
The idea of roller skating in the video came to me while listening to the song a thousand times in the studio. The verse has a smooth, sliding around rhythm and I thought it would be cool to sing while skating. I worked with the director, Marcus Herring, on a few SOLOBOB videos and I knew he would be able to make a lot happen on a small budget. He's great with post effects and has a dense knowledge of film and music, so his references we spot on. I used to rollerblade in elementary school and I'm pretty good on ice skates. Ned is also a good skater and Taylor and Louie picked it up fast. No one fell and everyone looks pretty comfortable on skates. It was amazing to watch the real skaters in the video, the professional. I also went to check out the roller rink the night before the shoot and was exposed to the fabulous world of roller skating. It's coming back, big time!
(and one last question unrelated the the album--what's your favorite book? I love reading and I'm always interested to hear what other people like.)
Check out:
This is Your Brain on Music
Henderson the rain king
Plays by Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams
Check out the writer Henning Mankell
Okay, Robert Schwartzman is beyond awesome for this. How many bands will encourage fans who write for blogs to conduct email interviews with them? Not too many. The fact that he goes through the emails and answers all of the questions BECAUSE HE WANTS TO makes him a fantastic human being. I'll stop freaking out now.
He also sent this
http://ilgrock.com/rooney/mp3-
which you can get in several different places, but still cool that I have the direct link for this site now.
I really want their new album, Eureka, to come out. I've already preordered and will be waiting for it until June 8th when it comes out (and hopefully I get it on that day). And I'm waiting for them to post tour dates. And for their new video "I Can't Get Enough" to come out. Have I been obsessing over this band for weeks? You bet. Are they worth it? Hell fucking yeah.
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