of the South Florida Scene is a weekly column devoted to the
artists thriving within Broward and Palm Beach counties featuring
interviews with the folks making it happen. This week, West Palm Beach's the Clementines.
The Clementines have a "song" on their MySpace page titled "Unbridled Enthusiasm" -- two seconds of Jerry Seinfeld laughing maniacally, asserting himself with a "Yeah!" It's meant to be a joke, but it fits in just fine with the rest of the indie-pop set's lighthearted, just-as-likable material. In fact, they're veritably adorable. Chimes, bells, and sweet vocals -- vocalist/guitarist/synth player Andrew Marr nonchalantly belts out lines like "I want to be loved by everyone." This is delicious pop nostalgia -- not just for the '80s but for superperfect moments. Marr, fresh from a vacation, answered some questions about being a Borrough pop band and when, exactly, we can get our hands on their EP.
New Times: Who are the Clementines? What are your names, what do you play, and where are all of you from?
Andrew Marr: We
have had a couple of different drummers, but there have been three of us
since we "officially formed" and started playing out about five months
ago. It includes myself (vocals, guitar, organ/synth), Dylan Smart
(guitar, vocals), and Daniel Bean (bass guitar). I am from Connecticut,
about a half hour outside of New York City, Dylan is from Northern
California, and Danny is from Florida.
Andrew, is the
Clementines primarily your project? How did the band come to be? Were
you, or any of the current band members, working anything else prior?
Yeah,
I mean it definitely started out primarily mine. Dylan and I were
actually roommates before he started playing with me. It just so
happened that I was going through some changes with the band and had to
kind of start over. Dylan agreed to fill in for a show, and it ended up
just developing from there. The guitar parts he writes have fit really
well with most of the ideas that I've written. Danny came on a bit later
and kind of pulled everything together for us. He really added some
needed experience and is really good with song arrangements. I have been
songwriting on my own for years but never released anything or put a
band together. Dylan was also working on his own solo stuff. Danny
actually played guitar in Surfer Blood when they were still called TV
Club.
You list your genre as "Burrough pop" -- what's up with that?
The
term "Burrough pop" was inspired by a friend's cat, whose name is
William S. Burroughs (after the writer). The cat listens to a lot of
catchy/intriguing pop music, which is kinda what we are going for...
You have such a light sound, but the lyrics are pretty emotive. What's "Everything Will Be Okay" about?
I
guess I would say that I pull random feelings and thoughts from my
personal life and also from the fantasy I sometimes like to live in and
lump them together into something that hopefully sounds good. That song
is no different from the rest...
When can we expect your upcoming EP? Who are you working on it with? Is it self-produced?
We
don't have a release date yet. Sometime this fall would be nice. There
is still talk of doing a full-length, in which case it would probably be a
bit later. We are just working with a couple of good friends and ourselves
as of now. Up until this point, it has been self-produced. Somebody said
Scott Storch was interested in producing, but that could just be a
rumor...
You play a lot of shows. What do you love and hate most about being a local South Florida band?
I've
only really been involved in the "scene" down here for the last six
months or so, but even in that short time, I have seen some growth. It's
fun to be a part of something that people are invested in making better.
I think the biggest downfall of being here is the lack of touring bands
coming to our area. It would create a lot more exposure for local acts
if we could get some bigger acts to come through town to open up for.
What have you been listening to -- currently and always?
I
try to keep up with the other local bands and keep up with songs they
release and whatnot. Blond Fuzz, the Jameses, Guy Harvey, Sumsun, and the Dewars are all supertalented. There's so many good bands coming out
every day; I love it. You should check out this group called I Am the Programmer.
Its creator, Ryan L. Abato, puts out a free downloadable podcast once a
month with a ton of bands that you might never hear of otherwise.
Villah Nah out of Helsinki is one I really took a liking to. I've also
recently been listening a lot to Grizzly Bear, the Morning Benders, Best
Coast, Real Estate, the Smiths, the Shins, Vampire Weekend, and Harlem
Shakes.
Any upcoming shows you want to mention?
We
have a show on August 27 at a new venue called Little Munich in Lake
Worth. We are also supposed to be featured on this month's podcast that I
was talking about earlier. The podcast will be available on August
31, which is also the launch date of their website, iatpaltitudes.com.
Lastly,
were you referring to yourselves as vampires on this Facebook
announcement? "The Clementines are playing Respectables on April 29th.
Come check it out and support your favorite vampires. March 25 at
12:32am."
True Blood. I think Dylan wants to be a vampire...
The
Clementines, with Battlehooch. 9 p.m. Friday, August 27, at Little
Munich, 806 Lake Ave., Lake Worth. $5. Call 561-932-0050, or visit thehoneycomb.com/littlemunich.html.