SBN: Hey guys, can you please introduce yourself and what you play?
TMP: Hey Switch Bitch, we’re The Montauk Project and we play big rock music.
SBN: For those readers that are new to The Montauk Project, can you give a brief description of your sound and name a few bands that you guys are “for fans of”?
TMP: Take your Black-Blue-Purple styles filtered through 90’s alt and Seattle sounds then take it forward a couple decades, thats our sound. If your jam was something along the lines of Alice in Chains meets Black Sabbath you’d probably dig us. For fans of Soundgarden, The Black Angels, psychedelia and classic old-school guitar jams.
SBN: You’ve been a band for a few years now and it seems like this year with the release of the new record you have broken out of the local scene and have gained momentum. What are some steps you took to do this?
TMP: We’re constantly pushing our music. We gig a lot. Usually once a week every week. Our momentum is a by product of our consistency. Recording a full length has definitely motivated our most recent run. It was a milestone for the band and for us as individuals to be able to look at 10 finished songs on one album. You see a lot of up and coming bands with 3 or 4 song EP’s and a “Single”, but not too many with a 10 song full-length album. That takes some work and some discipline.
SBN: Being that we have an in-house studio, we’re always curious about artist’s recording experiences. Who did you guys track, mix and master the record with?
We tracked the album ourselves at our home studio. Our friend Matt King helped us track and mix the album and we mastered with Gary Oleyar at Sonoma Beach studio in Jersey.
TMP: Does anything stand out as noteworthy of the recording process that you’d like to share with us (ex: unique tracking methods, ways of getting sounds) and do you feel your live sound and energy is captured in the record?
Its an ever growing process recording yourself at your own place and pace. It became more routine the further along we got with the album and we’d all agree that the later tracks felt more organic than the earlier tracks. The equipment we used is nothing spectacular. Pro tools, Focusrite preamps, SM-57’s, but we’ve got a pretty awesome live room.As far as live sound and energy is concerned, I don’t think we have truly captured that yet. We’re totally DIY and its all a big learning process. It gives us something to strive for with the next one.
SBN: You guys just played South By Southwest (Austin, TX), is this the furthest you’ve been with the band as far as touring goes?
Yes, but we just got a van so hopefully we’ll get on the road again a couple times this summer.
TMP: How many showcases did The Montauk Project land at SXSW, how did you go about booking the shows and do you feel the band gained forward movement from performing at SXSW?
We had two unofficial shows booked when we headed to Austin. One we booked with the help of our publicist and the other through a NYC talent buyer who we have played with in the past. We ended up playing five shows that week, the most memorable being at the House of Vans Half-Pipe stage which we booked once we were in Austin.
I think momentum is gained whenever the effort is given. SXSW is supersaturated with music. As far as that goes, we made some new fans and definitely got a few heads bobbing but our forward momentum is a by product of the work we do back in New York. Austin Psych Fest would be a great fit for our band. Just based on the bands we saw associated with that, we would kill it! A slot in that fest would be a good indicator of our success at SXSW.
SBN: If you were given the opportunity to open up for any band of your choice, who would it be?
TMP: Led Zeppelin in 1971…But opening for Sabbath would be pretty cool too. We hit a similar note to Reignwolf.
Opening for Portugal the Man would be pretty great, and of course The Black Angels, considering Psych Fest and all!
SBN: What are some long-term goals of the band and where do you see yourself in a year from now?
Musical success is our long term goal, meaning financial independence (no more day jobs), and world tours. We’d like to travel the world to play music and live comfortably.
TMP: A year from now, who knows, we’ve been together for three and we’re sort of just rolling with the punches. Bigger stages. We just landed a slot at The Great South Bay Music Fest. Its a pretty big deal for us being from Long Island. BB King, MOE and Taking Back Sunday are the headliners. Hopefully more things like that are in our future.
SBN: Can you please list all of your social media sites so new readers can follow you, and if you have anything you’d like to say to readers and fans, please do so. Thanks for chatting with us, and best of luck!
www.themontaukprojectmusic.com
facebook.com/themontaukproject
