Interview — Sweet Interference

Skratch Magazine

Sweet Interference makes music that sounds like Oprah getting into a fist fight with Maya Angelou with the ambient background noise of a baby in a blender. At least that’s what Alex Marsh (bass), Chris Cortelyou (rhythm guitar/vocals), Jon Owen (drums), Mick Sexton (lead guitar), Moira Annelin (vocals) and Nicole DeMambro a.k.a. Nikki Dee (vocals/keyboard) say. But if that colorful analogy doesn’t do enough to conjure up the sounds of this Washington, DC band then think of them of as a blend of Indie, Emo, alt-country and rock.

Skratch: How long have you been together:

SI: Going on 3 years with some line-up changes along the way.

Skratch: Give me an idea of what one would expect from your live show.

Jon: The dark, angsty vocal delivery of Nikki Dee counterbalanced with Moira's fey operatic shimmer, pounding drums, dueling guitars, phat rolling bass lines with piano and a bleating Moog keyboard.
Chris: Suits and ties for the guys, dresses from the ladies and lots of turning your head to see everything going on.
Moira: We perform our songs true to the way they sound on our recordings with some changes to enhance the live show. You can expect to think that there are a lot of people and a lot of instruments involved in creating the SI sound.

Skratch: What do you guys do off the stage?

Mick: I usually enjoy sodomizing Chris or Jon with Alex's electric toothbrush. Oh, you probably shouldn't print that ‘cause Alex doesn't know yet.
Jon: We usually stop and get a bite to eat at one of the soulless and putridly lit fast food or chain restaurants that line the suburban highways. We're not big drinkers. On occasion, we may knock a few Pabst Blue Ribbons back.
Chris: We go to Hard Times Cafe and complain about the service and then sing their praises when they finally bring us their amazing chili. We also enjoy going to Star Bucks, 7-11, Panda Express, Chipotle, Roy Roger’s, Taco Bell, Wendy's, A & W, and hanging out with Jimmy at La Tasca in Old Town Alexandria.
Moira: Talk about the band, have boring day jobs.

Skratch: Where do you enjoy touring? Any good stories?

Moira: We would enjoy touring very much, I think.

Skratch: What are you favorite two lyric lines from your recent songs? Tell me a little about them.

Jon: "You know that she doesn't care about anything but your money and her wrinkles"-- men often perceive women to be materialistic and vain.
Chris: “I would never lie to you, the sky is anything but blue”--
cause it is so true from a scientific point of view and adds so much meaning to the song from an emotional stand point.
Moira: "Visions of stabbing my table companions, can’t let them find out"-- I just love the violent, passive aggressive tone of this song. The facade of acting happy and calm around people when you really just want to kill them with your bare hands. Who hasn't been there? “The light of the moon will make all your desires come clear”-- Being a night person, this really speaks to me. Everything is easier to express under to the cover of night and cheap beer.

Skratch: What other special talents do you guys have aside from music? Any hobbies?

Mick: Moira and Nicole are both brilliant when it comes to cake farts.
Jon: I enjoy creative writing, going to rock shows, and many sports. Chris is an excellent landscaper and horticulturalist. Nikki Dee is a brilliant film editor. Alex enjoys relating stories from his misadventures at Starbucks. Mick is a natural comedian coining new sexual terms to describe deviant sex and Moira likes shopping, judging from her motley assortment of outfits.
Chris: Skiing, golf, and bowling.
Nikki Dee: I’m a bit of a Jack-of-all-trades, but I really like photography. You should check out my Flickr stream sometime.

Skratch: Any secret crushes you care to divulge?
Jon: No crushes.
Moira: Our rhythm guitar player is super cute.

Skratch: Politically, where does the band stand?
Jon: I get the sense that most of the band isn't that politically fervent as only Moira and I attended Obama's inauguration. I'd say moderate left.
Chris: We are left of center.
Moira: We stand where all the cool little rock kids are currently standing because we just want to be popular. Right now that appears to be pretty far to the left.

Aside from being a "rockstar", what are your dayjobs? What are your goals?

Jon: I work for the NIH Legislation office and used to be a part-time film projectionist. My goal is to become an accomplished writer and respected artist and meet the right girl.
Chris: We all work for the same waste collection company where we met.
Moira: Day jobs are boring. The goal of everyone in this band is to be a rock star.
Nikki Dee: I work a full-time contracting job in DC, when I’m not there the rest of my free time is divided between the band and working part-time at an Apple retail store. As for goals, right now I just want to get out of debt. It seems to be my primary motivation these days.

Skratch: When all is said and done, how do you want to be remembered as a band and as people?
Mick: We hope we've inspired current pedophiles everywhere to kill themselves.
Jon: I want this band to be remembered for its angsty yet playful and whimsical music, its authenticity and its lack of pretension, it's really just about the music. The personalities come through as being unique.
Chris: We want other people to know that it is OK to be frustrated with this world, cause it's a hard life and you gotta get up every day and keep going just to get by.

Skratch: Who in the band is more likely to be a pyromaniac, a teacher, and/or a Olympic swimmer?

Jon: Nikki Dee is the pyromaniac, Moira is the teacher and Alex is the Olympic swimmer since he's so light.
Chris: Mick is most likely to be all those things.
Moira: Pyromaniac-this seems very likely for most of the band. One of our dreams is to have flames bursting out of the bass drum. Teacher-Mick, he has much knowledge to impart on future generations. Swimmer-Sadly me, back to my roots.

Skratch: Last words/final thoughts/Anything you would like readers to know about you?

Chris: Our band weighs more then your band.

For more information on upcoming show dates as well as music and blogs, hit up Sweet Interference http://www.myspace.com/sweetinterference.

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