Interview with Max from GoodBooks

Artrocker.com: You're a band that are well respected for standing out from the crowd musically, a lot of bands attempt to be all things to all men and kind of end up in the middle of nowhere but you really do seem to have the ability to impress an indie kid, an Electro fan, a straight pop fan or even a hip-hop fan. What is it about a Max, Leo, JP and Christopher four-piece that excites the people?

Max GoodBooks: I think it's the same thing that excites us about it - the juice is in the combination. Each band member brings a unique character into the studio or onto the stage, and there's a real chemical reaction when these four elements meet each other. Rather than being the kind of band where each member is a clone of the next, we constantly challenge and surprise each other, and that's what keeps our work vibrant and alive. The spark is in the differences between us, not in the similarities.

Artrocker.com:Your new single is called 'The Illness'. What is 'The Illness' and what's the cure?

Max GoodBooks: The illness is the modern predicament - I guess every generation has a predicament. It's a murky cocktail of everything we think is wrong with 'people today', and a reflection of how much we (the band) see each of these faults in ourselves. The chorus lyric 'you'd die for applause/but could you live on for no reward?' came from an idea at the end of The Catcher in the Rye; that the immature man wants to die nobly for a cause, whereas the mature man wants to live humbly for one. And it's asking whether perhaps some of the people who claim to feel strongly about something are just using it as an excuse to attribute glory to themselves. 'Could you live on for no reward?' is basically asking whether these passionate voices would still feel as passionately without an audience. There's a hint at the assumed glory of the suicide bomber in there. The cure? Humility - a state that any band member will always have a troubled relationship with - and a rejection of apathy. I hate apathy; it's just a lazy refusal to engage with the world around us.

Artrocker.com: A recent blog stated that you "Love Scotland". I too love Scotland. Particularly Edinburgh, what's your favourite part of Scotland and why?

Max GoodBooks: Well, my experiences of Scotland are limited - last week was the first time I've spent good time there. Edinburgh was amazing - one of the most picturesque places we've played. And the crowd was good and the gig was good, which is always nice. The ale was great there too; I convince myself that the primary purpose of touring is to taste local ales, and then there's the secondary consideration of playing shows. I think I'll agree with you on Edinburgh just because of the incredible views. But I'd like to go right up to the very north some time - to the parts where tours don't reach.

Artrocker.com: You're out on the road with Hot Club De Paris at the moment, what are you looking forward to most on this tour?

Max GoodBooks: My digestive system giving me an 'all-clear' after last night's curry. There's a touring rule that when in Birmingham, you have to eat at Manzil's curry house. And I have never in my life eaten anything as strong as the lamb curry I had last night. I'm just looking forward to getting into the proper swing of touring to be honest; it's been a bit of a stuttered start; the first night was in Liverpool on Friday then we had Saturday and Sunday off right away. And tomorrow we've got the video shoot for the next single, so that'll break it up again. I think London should be a highlight; I went to a gig at Bush Hall for the first time last week (Teitur) and it's a wonderful venue, very GoodBooks. So I'm looking forward to that. And Manchester tonight should be good too; there's always a feeling that you're tapping into a rich musical heritage when playing in Manchester, and you have to treat that with some respect. It's a very exciting town, another of my favourite places that we've been to in the mobile library.

Artrocker.com: You're spending a lot of time on the road at the moment. What do you miss the most when you're out and about?

Max GoodBooks: I miss solitude; you're never quite on your own on tour. Obviously we're still sharing rooms etc, and so there's never any own time. You miss the simplicity of food at home; you can't just have a bowl of cereal on tour, or just make a coffee, or cook some pasta. Everything has to come from the Wild Bean Café or M&S Simply Food. But you get used to it; I used to sing in a choir as a kid, and we did quite a bit of touring there, so for me it's a really natural way to live for a few weeks. I have bigger issues with coming off tour; for the first few days after we get home each time I begin to get all excited and worked up around 8.30-9 in the evening, which can be very frustrating if there's no gig to let it out at.

Artrocker.com You probably prepare for this question every time you release a record; so who are we to not ask the most obvious question in the world? Read any good books lately?

Max GoodBooks: I'm reading Immortality by Milan Kundera at the moment; my sister gave it to me for Christmas, and I started it then left it in the van at the end of the Maccabees tour, and I only found out it was at Chris's house yesterday, so I'm glad to have that back. It's wonderful, a really insightful study of the way we are. I think that's what the greatest art does - teaches us something about ourselves, or illustrates some aspect of us in a new way or from a new angle. And that always impresses me, when someone's able to create a book, film, picture, song or anything that teaches without seeming teach-y or getting boring.

Artrocker.com: What's next for GoodBooks?

Max GoodBooks: There's another single on the way, with b-sides that we absolutely love, so we're doing a video for that tomorrow. That should be with you mid July. We're readying the album now too - we've got the audio side of things wrapped up - 12 tracks all finished, all in order with all the right gaps and everything. So we're doing the artwork and sleeve design etc which is all pretty exciting. We're finding out about gigs and festivals for the summer in the next few days, but hopefully we'll be very busy. And the writing goes on, as ever. And then there's the feature film...

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