Matt, you mentioned that you’re working with a band and some more people on this project. I noticed you worked with Chad Hugo on one of the tracks. What was that like-working with someone from N.E.R.D.?
Matt: It was cool man. It was very surreal. We started the Internet project as something to occupy time. And to see it actually develop into something real-actual and legit where we have established legendary musicians wanting to work with us… it was definitely surreal. And Chad is responsible for some of the greatest songs ever made. It was really an honor.
I saw in another interview that you guys wanted to get away from an electronic sound and go towards more live instrumentation. What’s the inspiration behind that?
Matt: When people come to our shows for our first album… the first album sounds like the second album when we perform it live. So it was inevitable. We kept doing the first album at shows and people really liked it, and it was like we couldn’t go backwards. We’re doing live shows now. And we were saying it wouldn’t be right to make another album without what we did at shows. It’s the reaction we get at shows.
Syd: There aren’t that many Soul bands anymore. We really wanted to feel that void.
So I feel like there’s a gap that you guys are trying to close between the album vs. a live show for your fans.
Syd: Yeah there’s a lot of gaps that we’re trying to fill. There’s the gap between the s**t our parents listened to and the s**t we listen to. There’s the gap between older more established artists and Soul bands and us. Then yeah, the gap between the first album and the second. All the hidden tracks are pretty much Electronic. Those were just us really sticking to our roots. We’re just trying to make something that you could listen to with your parents and grandparents.
You actually sent a Tweet asking people to bring their parents to the show.
Syd: (laughs) Yeah, I think their parents would like it better then they would. My mom is the biggest fan of the album that I’ve met so far. My mom will tell me if she doesnt like something in a heartbeat and tell me exactly what she doesn’t like about it. She wanted to be an engineer like me. She was a DJ in college and all types of stuff. I grew up to the music she was listening to so I’m very influenced by her.
You just talked about the stuff you listen to vs. the stuff your parents listen to. What’s on heavy rotation between both of your iPods?
Matt: Well I’ve been listening to a lot of De La Soul lately. It’s a lot of music that I listened to in middle school or high school-old, fun music. Just random s**t I be finding from friends and stuff like that.
Syd: Yeah, we’ve been listening to this band called Freaky Love Joints. We really just try to find things to get our hands on. We’re in that stage where we’re looking for new music to listen to, to be inspired. We’re getting back in the studio this weekend.
Damn, that’s awfully soon.
Syd: Yeah, we’re just in a discovery phase right now.
I’m sure you guys will develop a concept for the project as you start working on it, right? Or have you decided on that already?
Syd: I mean we have an idea for this next project. It wont be an Internet album. It will be what PNL was supposed to be. We weren’t supposed to release it on SONY. We weren’t supposed to sell it. I wasn’t supposed to be singing on it. All those songs were supposed to be for someone else to sing. We couldn’t find anyone that could execute the songs the same. For this [next] project we want to just make beats and throw ’em in whichever direction we can and see what we can come up with.
