In 1992 a great band known as “Magnified Plaid” was born in Bremerton, Washington.
Mike Herrera, Yuri Ruley and Tom Wisniewski,now known as MXPX, have continued to bless many through cassette tapes, cd’s and now MP3! MXPX was my first love in music. My first tattoo was an MXPX “pokinatcha” punk. And now I am so proud to say that I have continued to stay a huge fan of this band! On April 3rd, the band will release a new full length album called “Plans within Plans.”
Mike took time to answer a few questions about the new album and I am happy to share them with you!
OH! Before you start reading….One of you lucky readers of this blog will win autographed MXPX poster! How to enter for a chance you ask?!?! All you have to do is leave a comment expressing how excited you are about the new album or share your favorite MXPX story!! We will then choose a winner and contact you!
Good Luck and enjoy the interview!!! <3
1. What makes this album different from the previous albums?
It’s new now and perfect for it’s place in time. But really it feels more real and raw.. but not in the way you’d think. I really can’t speak for it, the album hopefully will speak for itself.
2. How long was the making of this album?
There was no set schedule for recording and we started the process before I had even written all the songs. If I had to add it all up and take wild guess, I’d say about 4 weeks worth of recording time. But really we made this record over a span of over half the year in 2011.
3. What are you most proud of when it comes to it?
The energy was captured, the sounds are honest. This is what MXPX sounds like right now. I’m proud of that and I hope Plans adds something worthwhile to our legacy.
4. Besides Tom, Yuri and yourself, where there any guest vocalist or musicians featured?
There were… and you can watch our videos up on MXPX Video Blog to get a better understanding of who, what and why!
5. It’s been a few years since an MXPX full length was released. How was it creating music with the whole band again?
We all really got a rush out of laying these tracks down together.I just loved producing this record and recording with the guys is always so easy!
6. What is your favorite song? And Why?
Screw Loose because it’s like a nail shot into the brain.
7. The first song released, “Far Away” has a little bit of a harder sound to it. Is this a theme with the rest of the album?
The only theme here is FAST. Everything else has an ebb that flows in and out of the songs.. hard, melodic, saturated, sparse, frenetic, and balls to the wall. But I’m on the inside looking out… so who knows.
8. What was your favorite memory with the band while making the album?
Ordering lunch…
9. I know that MXPX fans are excited for a possible tour to come along with the release of “plans within plans.” Is a tour in the works?
Yes, MXPX Original will be doing some one off special live performances and the MXPX Allstars lineup will be touring all over the world here and there. I’ll be starting out in Europe and the UK in March 2012. More shows will be announced soon. Or already..
10. What are your hopes for the release of this new album?
I hope people will come out to the the live shows.. Live shows is where punk rock is born and bred. I’m just happy that we’re getting such positive reviews from the real MXPX fans out there and even the casual fans are digging the new stuff. What more could I ask for?
I am truly happy and excited about this release!
I’m usually a picky person when it comes to artists who have been around as long as MxPx have. A lot of times they sort of just die off and are no longer relevant. But just hearing “Far Away” needless to say I can’t stop listening to it. Kudos to them. I’m a pretty big bass guy so I totally dig the bass track to that song. I remember seeing a studio video that they posted where Mike was trying to figure out how he was going to lay down the bass track for that particular song.I have high hopes for this album, especially since the dudes from one of my favorite bands: The —– made a guest spot on it.
stoked beyond stoked!
I <3 mxpx!