Fran Chismar: Thank you for taking time out for me. I haven't had a chance to see you live, but I
have gotten to see videos. One thing, it's hard not to focus on your drumming
and your technique, so I was hoping you could talk about how you developed
that, how that came about.
Lauren Brown: Totally.
I grew up as a tap dancer most of my life. Not as a drummer, even though I
always wanted to be a drummer. We were in another band called He's My Brother,
She's My Sister for a long time. In the start of that band, we had a drummer
and I would tap dance alongside of the drummer. I was a -
Rob Kolar: Percussionist.
Lauren: Percussionist
of sorts. Then he chose to leave the band, and instead of getting a
replacement, it was (Rob) that suggested to me learning to play the drums, but
keeping the tap.
Rob: We
talked about it and you were maybe a little unsure.
Lauren: I
wasn't sure.
Rob: I think
we as a band said, "You can do this," and she locked herself in a
studio for literally like three months straight everyday.
Lauren: I
just went crazy.
Rob: It was
a weird thing because there wasn't really anyone she could learn from. There
were moments where you would work with drummers, but they would have to almost
rethink their drumming to suit (Lauren).
Lauren: Dancers
also count differently, so I was on a different count system. I was also on
this understanding of, because my feet go at the same time while I play the full kit, so I was always trying to understand some sort of choreography
almost. Coming at it from that kind of perspective versus more of a musical
perspective. We both land in the same place, but we have to come at it with a
different viewpoint.
Rob: The
language is a little different.
Fran: Are you
playing a traditional kit, though? Is it more toms? Do you use the snare at
all?
Lauren: Yeah. My
kick drum is the standard kick drum, and I play that with my right arm. I play
the floor tom with my right arm. My right arm is going with those two, and then
my left arm is doing a cymbal and a snare. My feet are doing the high hat.
Fran: It's a
completely different feel.
Lauren: It is a completely different feel.
Fran: They
talk about Ringo and how he's in the moment and feels it.
Lauren: Absolutely,
and his skills are never the same. He's awesome. My steps start from my toes
and they end in my fingertips. It's how I see every bar of music for myself as
a drummer, in a weird way. I don't know if I've ever even explained that to (Rob).
Fran: Does it
change for you? Do you find yourself playing the same song differently
sometimes?
Lauren: Yeah,
I do.
Fran: If you
have a certain feel, or you're following along with a change and -
Lauren: Absolutely.
Maybe not even a sense where what I'm doing changes. Sometimes my tap can
change a little bit, but I have more freedom with my tap than I do with my
arms. Also, levels of intensity, where I want to pull back, when I want to add
into it. I used to do theater at NYU, so I think I come at it too with that
almost emotional perspective, like what is Rob trying to say in this song, how
does he like to perform this song, and how can I bring the drums into it and
also -
Fran: Your
physicality.
Lauren: My
physicality and tell a story.
Fran: Rob, do you
feed off that?
Rob: Absolutely.
A lot of times, it can be exhausting as a performer. I'll come to her and
almost absorb some of that energy. Every step, there's a few times where I'm
playing and maybe I'm struggling to find some emotion and I'll always come over
to her and play right next to the drums and it's almost like a recharge.
Fran: That's
awesome.
Lauren: Almost
with the drums, and I think in rhythm too, and you must feel this as a rhythm
guitarist, you can get into a trance with it. I think that's the best part of
rhythm at least for me. When your brain works, but in a totally different way
than it works as a human being walking around in this world. People associate
it with how your brain is with sex and how your brain is in various other
activities, but I definitely feel that way.
Fran: You have
that going on live. Now you're in the studio recording. Is it hard to recreate
that or is it just like another live performance for you?
Lauren: Depends
how we're choosing to go at each song. I know with the He's My Brother stuff,
it was all live. I would just get into the recording room with no
click, it would just be me playing live. This band, we break it into parts a
little more.
Rob: We're
approaching the recordings, at least on this first album, more like a dance
record, in terms of really locking in the groove, having things much more tied
to a certain tempo or click, and then -
Lauren: Building
it out.
Rob: The
tap, though, is one thing that we like to layer on top and let that move and
explore a little bit more on top of that. There's definitely a grounded rhythm
that includes her live drumming and samples interwoven.
Lauren: It
always has to be something that I can understand as a drummer. We can never put
a drum beat in a song that I can't make sense of or it feels foreign to me,
doesn't feel like a natural way.
Rob: What we
do with our live set is the first half, we play with no tracks, just the two of
us raw.
Lauren: More
like punk, a little rockabilly.
Rob: It's a
funky, punky, rockabilly experience. The second half, we expand the sound,
incorporate baselines, and keys that I recorded, and sample drums and meld the
two worlds.
Fran: Do you
always see this being a two piece?
Rob: I think
so.
Lauren: I
think so.
Rob" We
would love to have guests collaborate, maybe bring on bass player for a tour,
but at the moment, there's a lot of freedom. It's very easy for us to connect
and build the show that we both envision, and we're very much aligned, which is
really great.
Fran: Pretty
much in tune?
Rob: Yeah,
to what we like and where we want to go with this.
Lauren: We
can play tight shows because we can hear everything on the stage. As opposed to
playing with other bands, sometimes I would be in the back, and you end up
feeling isolated.
Fran: Is it
too much almost?
Lauren: It's
too much. Not for everybody, but for me.
Rob: I think
some bands get fortunate where there's just natural balance. We've been in
experiences where there's been a lot of competition within a band, where
sometimes it's not always about supporting the song, and it can sometimes be
about someone's own experience versus the collective.
Fran: I really
think less is more sometimes.
Lauren: I
do too.
Fran: Sometimes
when you strip it down to the bare essentials, you get more. I'm really shocked
at how many bands I go to see and I'm thinking they're a five-piece, and
they're a three-piece. Then you're like, "Oh, I don't see this working as
a five piece at all."
Lauren: Totally.
Fran: As
someone that's never seen you or heard you, but just heard about you, I could
see how someone would think what you do (on drums) would be schticky. Then you hear it,
and you realize there's so much substance to the music that it's completely
not. It's a different feel.
Lauren: Also,
that I'm just as much of a drummer. I think a lot of people see that it's tap,
and "Oh, it's a tap dancer and a girl. It's this gimmicky kind of a
thing." Then you see it live, and it's like, "Oh, no. I'm a
drummer."
Rob: The
funny thing about it too is it was never planned, so it just evolved and
happened. It's not like you had a choice in the matter. If you wanted to sit
behind a drum set, you could.
Fran: Could
you?
Lauren: Yeah.
Rob: You've
learned it, but where you feel at home and where you excel is within this world
that you've created.
Lauren: When
the full body is going.
Fran: I can
imagine. It's something that you've created. Given that, influence wise, for
what you've created, do you have any influences, or do you have to backtrack?
Now you do what you do, so now you incorporate what you hear.
Lauren: That's
actually really true. That's how I look at it now. I think my influences are so
spread apart, it's just as much as I'm a fan of certain performance artists, as I am of certain dancers, certain drummers. It's a combination of
everything. Now, I think you're right. I think now as a musician, I look for
inspiration in even more diverse ways.
Fran: When I
listened to you, the first thing I thought of influence wise, it reminded me of The Cramps.
Rob: Interesting.
Lauren: Awesome. We
love that.
Fran: I heard rockabilly. Who would you say
your influences are?
Lauren: The
Cramps.
Fran: I heard The Cramps. That's the first thing I thought of.
Rob Kolar: That's
awesome. I think, I do love The Cramps, I think I'm influenced by similar
artists Iggy Pop, the Clash.
Fran: They're
definitely performance.
Rob: Right.
There's a darkness that I'm drawn to. Maybe it stems from a love for The Doors and Jim Morrison to certain goth bands and the Cure. A sense of someone's
despair in certain instances, but also a love for punk.
Lauren: There's
a rawness to it. I think we're both a fan of that. Honesty on the stage and in
music. Whatever it is is whatever it is. It lives in the imperfect and we're
okay with that.
Fran: What I
was going to ask was, based on all of that, you kind of went in the direction I
thought you were going to go, because I always try to do my research coming in,
and I couldn't find a lot on the two of you. What was your upbringing like? To
hear someone say that they're influenced by Iggy Pop to Jim Morrison, I
immediately assume you're West Coast. Am I right? Here on the the East Coast you
hear the Velvet Underground.
Rob: I'm
also massively influenced by the Velvet Underground.
Lauren: You're
a mixture of England and you're a mixture of Los Angeles.
Rob: Yeah,
that's what I would see as my upbringing. Then, a year in New York, but that
was kind of a sprinkling. (Lauren) is East Coast.
Lauren: I'm
East Coast. I grew up in Boston, but I spent my formative artist years in New York.
The downtown theater scene, and really studying performance art in college.
Fran: The two
of you got the best of both worlds. You're bringing New York and LA together.
Rob: And
then we traveled it all.
Lauren: Absolutely.
Performance art is so associated with that stuff too.
Rob: It very
much is about, especially with The Cramps, the look and the feeling, and
sometimes even the menace of the aesthetic. There's some showmanship to that,
and that's one thing we do love about some of those bands. We're very
influenced by the Glam Rock scene, like T-Rex and David Bowie.
Fran: New York
Dolls?
Rob: New
York Dolls. Sweet even, some of the more poppier bands of that era are
massively influential to us. It varies.
Lauren: This
is a really fun interview. Thank you for doing this. I'm really enjoying this,
Fran: You're
involved in so many projects. You have
He's My Brother She's My Sister. You did
the scoring for (TBS's) The Detour, KOLARS, Lemon Sun.
Rob: It's
technically not over, but Lemon Sun and He's My Brother have melded into ... we
play songs from both those bands.
Fran: You have
so much going on. Is it the diversity of it that does it for you? Is it one
project over another? Do you need them all going on for you, or do you find
yourself in a zone in one project, or you need all of them to fuel each other?
Would you not be satisfied if you had to pick one?
Rob: Probably.
I think it's nice to at least have the option there, but I think definitely now
at this point, the KOLARS and the scoring balance my world.
Lauren: Not
completely have a panic attack.
Rob: You get
to play very different roles. As a composer, I'm satisfying someone else's
vision, which can actually be quite liberating when you're in a project when
you're so in your own head. In that case, I'm there to support. I'm there to
almost play a role as an actor of music. What can I bring to the table? Direct
me and let me give you that piece of music that going to elevate your vision as
a producer or director. With the band, we get to express ourselves and be
creative from our souls, from our spirit.
Fran: Do they
bleed into each other?
Rob: They
do.
Lauren: Totally.
Fran: Do you
go from working on the scoring, and then come back and go, "Man, I just
had a great idea"?
Rob: Absolutely,
or something like, "Oh, that should be in the band." I was talking to
Lauren recently how I think our music is going to start evolving in a slightly
symphonic scoring direction, incorporating the rock-and-roll, because I'm
starting to learn some of those traits.
Lauren: You
already have that new song right now we're playing with that's a six minute
song that almost feels like you are playing a score.
Rob: It goes
through different movements.
Lauren: As
opposed to that perfect little three-minute song that has that bridge and has
that -
Rob: I think
that will be something. Also, with the show, some of our songs get used in the
show, or in this recent season, we've made a little cameo as band in this
weird, seedy, New York club.
Fran: Given
what you do, what's the wring process?
Rob: I think
it varies.
Lauren: I'm
more the editor, I would say.
Rob: Well,
that's very true. Lauren has a big role to play, once I've composed a sketch,
she really goes, "That's not really working."
Lauren: The
editor is the naysayer.
Rob: Or I'll
be like, "Lauren, what do you think," and very rarely is there a time
where her opinion is said, it resonates, I change it, and I don't go,
"She's right. This was better."
Lauren: That's
really nice.
Rob: It's a
really wonderful relationship in that, because she also doesn't try and
encroach on my process. It's much more of a sounding board. Let me put my
influence, let me tidy it up, let me tailor. Here's the suit -
Lauren: I'm
a tailor.
Rob: Lauren
tailors it, and now it fits right.
Fran: What I hear is that you couldn't do what you do without each other, which is pretty
awesome. That's unique. So many bands you see, one person's the band. They go
solo. It continues on. You're married too, correct?
Lauren: We're
married too. I think we also enjoy working in partnerships. I think we both
have always felt that way. We like working with a partner. It's not like a
solo. In other things that I've done, because I've had theater companies that I
started at and created plays, and I've always liked working with one other
person. Not a group, but having that buddy that like, "Let's share the
vision that I understand."
Fran: I'm sure
that can have challenges too.
Rob: Sure.
Fran: It
depends if you're not seeing eye-to-eye.
Rob: Even we
have conflicts. We don't always agree. We actually do very often agree.
Lauren: But
we still also know other person is coming from a place that we relate to. It
doesn't ever feel like I don't get where you're coming from.
Rob: Right,
the intentions
Lauren: It's
always like, "I get where you're coming from. I disagree with it, but I
get where you're coming from."
Fran: (Lauren) said
you were coming from a performance art background. Did (Rob) always know
you wanted to be a musician? Was it always, you were a musician when you were young, or did
it come on later in life?
Rob: As a
kid, I wanted to be a professional hockey player, in Los Angeles, which is
absurd.
Lauren: Wasn't
expecting that answer, I bet.
Fran: No. Did
you play hockey?
Rob: I did.
Lauren: He
still does.
Rob: I still
do actually. I captain a team in LA.
Fran: I got to
say, and as you get older, you continue to play you have the people that no
longer have the skills that they once had and get chippy. I worked with a lot of people
that played hockey as adults, and they just ended up hurt all the time.
Lauren: He
does.
Rob: I do.
Lauren: I'm
surprised he has his teeth right now.
Fran: Any bruised ribs?
Lauren: He's
broken ankles.
Rob: I've
broken ankles. We played South by Southwest one year -
Lauren: Remember
that boot? Oh my gosh.
Rob: I was
in the giant boot and crutches.
Lauren: It
was a nightmare.
Rob: With
the crowds everywhere, it was kind of insane. It was hockey, but after a while, it
transitioned to music as this outlet for emotions and social commentary and all
of these things that I was feeling passionate about. As time evolved, it felt
like a calling.
Fran: Do you
play more than guitar?
Rob: I do. I
play piano, guitar, bass, a little bit of drums, and produce.
Lauren: Our
tracks, which is all the other instruments, he's played every single one except
for the drums.
Rob: Which
we arranged together in a lot of ways.
Lauren: Yeah,
but everything else is you.
Rob: Yeah,
pretty much.
Lauren: You
actually said you're a better bass player than you are a guitar player.
Rob: I
prefer to play bass, but I do play bass on the tracks. They're just not live.
Fran: For He's
My Brother She's My Sister, you were in a band with your sister, correct?
Rob: Yeah,
the four of us.
Fran: Were you
doing that together growing up? Was it something you both -
Rob: No, not
at all. We fought so much as kids, it was pretty wild. Screaming in our house
constantly. We decided later in life that it would be fun to do a side project,
like an acoustic kind of band. It was one of those weird things where the thing
you just do for fun somehow takes off and turned into us touring, and becoming
a pretty successful indie variety band.
Lauren: Nothing
up until this point ever felt like a plan. I'll say that. Even sitting here
right now, this was never, none of it for me anyways.
Fran: Considering
you're married and this is a lot of what you do together, when you're not
musicians, what do you like to do?
Rob Kolar: Outside
of music?
Fran: Outside
of being a musician.
Rob: We love
traveling.
Lauren: Love
traveling. We just went to Egypt and Turkey.
Fran: I could
see how that becomes tiresome sometimes too. You're going from town to town.
You may no always get to see where you're at.
Rob: That's
true. It's a very big part that people forget sometimes. This
year, we went to Egypt and Turkey, and that was a really fascinating,
eye-opening experience for us. Seeing the Pyramids, but also seeing the
cultures and having experiences with people of very
different backgrounds and religious ties. I think that stuff really excites and
inspires us.
Lauren: It's
so hard. I feel like the arts take up our lives, all of our interests. From
film to literature, to even politics. We like that whole world.
Fran: What
type of films are you into? If I had
to say pick a favorite film, or top three?
Rob: I'm a
big Stanley Kubrick fan.
Lauren: I'm
a huge documentary geek.
Rob: I
couldn't pick a singular film, but a director ... Kubrick and Milos Foreman are
two of my favorites.
Fran: What's
your favorite Kubrick?
Rob: Probably
Clockwork Orange but -
Lauren: I
think that's both of us. It's influenced so much from style.
Fran: It's
such a great, just visually, and the darkness of it reflecting the black humor
in it too.
Lauren: Yes,
it's that blend.
Fran: Are you
David Lynch fan?
Rob: Huge,
love David Lynch.
Fran: I was
going to say I see the similarities.
Rob: Yeah,
Blue Velvet, I think, is a masterpiece.
Lauren: You
know what's weird? My favorite Lynch film is The Straight Story which couldn't
be more opposite from these other films -
Rob: But
that's very you.
Lauren: That
sweet, wonderful story. I know. I always think about that movie. That had a
profound effect on me.
Fran: When
will we get new music? After I
saw your video, I wanted more, and I couldn't get more. I was like, "I'm
going to see it, but how do I binge ahead of time?"
Lauren: We
kind of like that. We want you to want more.
Rob: We're
putting out a vinyl full album in probably March, more or less.
Lauren: We
already have six of the songs for it all ready to go.
Rob: We want
to try to release more frequently than previous bands, and maybe smaller
releases, more often.
Fran: I like
that. I definitely like that. I think the audiences attention span has gotten
much shorter. If you're hitting them more often, I'm definitely more in tune
that way.
Lauren: I
think so as well. New content, visually, always trying to grow.
Fran Chismar: Visually,
the video I saw was in the desert. I was like,
"Man, that's exactly what I was thinking." If I heard the song -
Rob: After
reading about what the band is on paper, and seeing it, it matched.
Fran: It
matched.
Rob: Oh
good.
Lauren: That
makes me really happy. That's what I'm really interested in right now is having
this cohesive vision. The songs fit the videos, fit the styling. Nothing feels
random.
Fran: It was
what I hoped for, if that makes sense.
Lauren: Awesome,
that makes me really happy.
Rob: That's
really a great compliment, thank you.
Fran: Meeting
you was very intimidating for me only because, like I said, trying to do
research, I couldn't really find a whole lot, and I liked what I heard. I like
what I saw, but I didn't know anything else about it.
Lauren: Who
the fuck are these people?
Rob: That's
kind of great. I remember when the Strokes first came out, that was something I
loved about them.
Lauren: I
was like who the fuck are these guys.
Rob: A
little bit of mystique, and a little bit of ambiguity.
Fran: Which is
very cool.
Lauren: Which
is cool in this day and age.
Fran: There's
definitely a mystique, and it made me even more curious, and I can't wait to
see the show.
Lauren: That
makes me really happy.
Fran: One
question we always ask, and it's just to be silly, and we always get some great
answers. This should be interesting. Who spends more time on their hair?
Lauren: Rob,
let's be honest.
Rob: Which
hair?
Lauren: Again,
let's be honest.
Fran: Not
manscaping.
Rob: Yeah,
it's true (laughing)
Lauren: I
think it's the same person for every way that you put it.
Fran: One last
question. As you're traveling around, what are you listening to on the ride?
Lauren: NPR
is what I'm obsessed with right now, but that's because it's this week. It's
not every week.
Rob: Recently,
we discovered Nick Gilder, who is this seventies English glam era guy, and
we've been really into his music. He has that one song.
Lauren: Hot
Child in the City.
Rob: Which
is his hit.
Lauren" But
the other ones are so much better.
Rob: There's
some other fantastic tunes, so we want to cover one of his songs coming up. In
fact, we've been thinking a lot about doing a covers record of a lot of our
heroes and some of the artists that have passed that we love. That might be
either the next record, or the following one, is to do a full on covers record.
Fran: In your
style?
Rob: In our
style, yeah.
Fran: Given
the influences that you've mentioned, I would love to hear that. That would be
an on-taking, because I would love to hear you take on some of the glam.
Rob: The
mixture, a little punk, a little glam, a little folk, a little rock.
Fran: Do you have anything that you would like to pitch. Do you have any big shows coming up? Any big projects coming up? Anything that you want to make sure the people know about?
Rob: Just the album that's coming out next year.
Lauren: I think the only thing I want to pitch is that people just keep listening.
Rob: Oh, you mean more of a message pitch.
Lauren: Yeah, just keep listening, check it out, and if you're into it, spread the word. There's no real events I want to pitch.
Rob: I thought you were going to say that people keep listening to each other so they find common ground.
Lauren: I should have said something like that. I just said keep listening to us. What a horrible thing to say. Oh my god. Vanity, right? Fran,
it has been so awesome talking to you.
Fran: It has
been wonderful talking to you, It's been a pleasure. Thanks so much for taking the time.
Lauren: It
was a pleasure. This was great.
Rob: It was
fantastic.
Lauren: It
was really fun.
Fran: I can't
wait to see the show tonight!
See you when the needle drops!
Fran
Recent Articles By Fran
See you when the needle drops!
Fran
Recent Articles By Fran
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