Interview with Apes & Androids
Words: Michael Spadoni

Appearing:
March 29, 2008
The Cuban Club, Ybor City

REAX:  When you started working on A&A's material, did you believe in suffering for art or hoping you would get discovered?
Apes & Androids:  I don't think we'd gotten far enough along to worry about that stuff. The material for the band just grew naturally out of our relationship as friends and I think just throwing as much stuff in as we could- stuff we think is cool.

REAX:  Do you believe musicians play better when they're hungry?
A&A:  We like to eat sushi before a show. Just picture us all sitting around a fancy table, daintily feeding each other small pieces of raw fish.

REAX:  When Apes and Androids formed, there seemed to be a grand strategy to become the biggest rock band in the world and to be the most extravagant in every way. A&A:  Was there really a master plan which has resulted in your current status - did you approach it as businessmen rather than musicians?
A&A:  Hahahaha! No!! I mean it's important to be aware of the business side so you can make sure someone's not stealing all your money, but to everyone out there wishing to make money with a business, I'd say that a rock band is probably not a very good choice.

REAX:  Lots of bands set out wanting to be on top, what gives you the edge?
A&A:  Whatever we've accomplished so far I think stems from our being pretty tough on ourselves in the studio. We throw out a lot of ideas and we wrangle with the ones we keep until they're really the best they can be. Then we take that attitude to everything we do and we involve ourselves in all aspects of the operation. It makes things arduous at times but I think in the end we're happier because we can ensure things are done the way we want. One really important thing I think we've learned is that nobody understands our vision and our desires as much as we do, so we try to make as many decisions on our own as we can.

REAX:  How do you practice your elaborate stage act? Are there lots of mirrors in your house?
A&A:  The big secret is that everything is always on the verge of total collapse. Somehow we manage to pull it off each time, but it's all held together with scotch tape and paper clips and rats nests of extension cords.  Oh and um.. . PRACTICE?! haha I wish we had the time to practice that stuff, but it's always just an idea and the first time we actually do it is on stage at the show. Smart.

REAX:  When Apes and Androids are eventually judged, would you want to be regarded as having contributed tangibly to the fabric of rock n' roll, like, say, Queen or Elvis Presley?
A&A:  I think we're happy enough to be in the same sentence with those fools.

REAX:  I'd like to know what you think about these people: Jimi Hendrix, Liza Minnelli, Led Zeppelin...
A&A:  When I watch film of Led Zeppelin's concerts they are completely glorious.  I know that sounds cliche but there's something completely divine about them when they're up there singing, totally convincingly, about nordic lore and vikings. Plus John Bonham must be a god. No mere mortal can pound like that!

REAX:  Do you feel very powerful on stage and is that one of the reasons for your enjoyment of your success?
A&A:  I don't know about power, but there is nothing quite like the ecstasy one experiences when shooting a hand held confetti launcher... you should definitely try it.

REAX:  What's your favorite form of entertainment?
A&A:  Music is the greatest! Maybe music with lasers and confetti...

REAX:  What about the theory, held by some, that rock stars in your position should use their power to try to shape the world for the better?
A&A:  I think we're all excited to do that!

REAX:  Do you think Americans idolize rock stars because there is no royalty here?
A&A:  I don't know but if that's true, then that's just another in a long list of reasons why Americans are the coolest. USA! USA! Long live King Springstein!

REAX:  Do you have any responsibility to an audience once they've bought the album or left the theatre?
A&A:  Start planning the next show!

REAX:  What's your best song so far?
A&A:  We're really excited about the new stuff we're working on.

REAX:  What has been the highlight of your career with Apes & Androids?
A&A:  In a way, every show we play becomes my favorite. There was this one thing we did though, on Halloween in 2006.  We performed Thriller at Midnight. We used After Effects to, frame-by-frame, turn the Thriller video into 3D, and we synced our performance to a screening of it (we gave out 3D glasses to everyone in the audience). Then we had a troupe of zombie dancers in amazing zombie makeup and custom costumes come out and they FLAWLESSLY performed the entire dance sequence. It was all we could do to keep playing because they blew us all away.  That whole thing took an incredible amount of work and planning and coordination and it went off perfectly. I think we were all pretty ecstatic at the end of that.

REAX:  THANK YOU for being so fancy!!!
A&A:  You're welcome.

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