The Interiors

The story goes that, on the day after Chicago indie rockers The Interiors signed a record deal, vocalist/guitarist Chase Duncan’s hand was smashed by a metal door. A metal door that Chicago’s notorious wind took like a sail, leading to the amputation of part of one of Duncan’s finger. No one quite knew what would happen with the band or the record deal. 

“The event itself was pretty gory and one of the more traumatic things I've experienced,” Duncan recently explained to me. “It was a very difficult time for the band, as we weren't sure whether I was going to actually recover well enough to play guitar. In the end everything obviously turned out fine and I'm definitely a better person for having gone through all of that turmoil. When it's all said and done, sometimes it's good to have hard things foisted upon you so you can find out what you're made of.”

Before that same finger-smashing-year came to a close, The Interiors - Duncan, bassist Collin Jordan and drummer Brian Lubinsky - were back to rocking. And recording.

“That record was more of a group oriented affair in its conception,” Duncan explained. “I would bring in my song ideas, usually a riff, some changes and a basic vocal melody and we'd jam on them over several months, shape out a basic structure, and I'd add lyrics last.”

Soon enough their eponymous LP (best described as Stax-influenced rhythms, grandiose drumming, big hooks and eccentric classic indie rock riffs) was recorded and ready to hit record shelves everywhere, quickly becoming a critic’s darling. Both Pop Matters and Under the Radar, to name just two, took to the recording in a major way, calling it an underground classic - even comparing it to the records of the late 90s indie rock heyday.

Looking over the band’s tour history since the release of their record, it’s evident that they’re fully committed to their craft, hitting the road hard for a long while. They remained almost constantly busy, in fact, until they purposefully slowed down to start on another record.

“The process has changed for the more recent material. It’s pretty much just me writing the songs now,” Duncan told me. “Collin is an accomplished musical engineer who owns a mastering studio in Chicago called the Boiler Room. So, needless to say, that affords us tons of wiggle room in how we approach recording. All of our recordings are essentially extremely hi-fi home recordings as a result, this because Collin has to basically live at the studio when we make them.”

And, while most indie rock sounds just right when recorded modestly in the basement (think GBV, Harlem, The Soft Pack, etc.), The Interiors have a bigger sound. Not The National or The Arcade Fire big, but certainly on par with the most hi-fi Walkmen or Spoon recordings you’ll hear. Darker in mood, though. At least thus far.

“Most of the darkness in our songs has to do with the fact that I was pretty appalled at how the country was being run under the former administration. Although I tried to make the lyrics as universal as I could, it's a pretty political record,” Duncan said when asked about the brooding tone of The Interiors. “It was also a fairly dark time for me personally, as well, so I'm sure that informed the decision to write about all of the awful things happening outside of myself. Transference, is it? Britt Daniel, can get a witness?”

Speaking of Daniel, Spoon is a band The Interiors have often been compared to by critics. This in mind, I asked Duncan every band’s least favorite question: “Tell me about your influences.” Ugh.

“Between the three of us I wouldn't even know where to begin listing influences. I tend to be influenced by whatever I'm into at any given moment,” he said. “I think one thing that makes our sound interesting is that while we're definitely a rock band that's probably most similar to the type of music the three of us listen to least. I think that's where the rhythmic peculiarity comes from in particular, because we're lifting more from jazz, afro-cuban and reggae type stuff than rock music.”

Since we were doing the obvious questions, I decided to ask Duncan about the beginnings of his very rhythm-based band. He played along nicely.

“Brian and I had been playing for a couple of years under a few different band names with a couple different bass players and, briefly, as a two piece. We met Collin through an ad in The Reader,” he told me. “Brian was in a band out of Chicago called Fire Show, and before that he was in a band in Cincy called Kilowatt Hour. Collin mainly played out as an orchestral player - he has a degree in percussion. He's on bass now, of course.”

So, to finish the trifecta of obvious band interview questions, I asked Duncan to explain how his upcoming Fort Wayne show with Castles and Streetlamps for Spotlights came about, also asking him to tell me a bit about any future plans The Interiors might have. Once again, he obliged me, explaining that Collin “somehow knows Jason.” Jason Davis, that is, of Streetlamps for Spotlights and Off the Cuff Studios fame.

“Also, we have been wanting to do more regional stuff and Collin mentioned knowing a guy in Fort Wayne, so we hopped on it,” he explained. “Booking shows on the road can be difficult, so having friends and contacts is always the best place to start. This is the first of many small regional excursions. We've spent a lot of time touring up and down the East Coast and playing NYC in particular, so, for now at least, we'd like to focus a bit more on the Midwest.”

Hopefully Fort Wayne makes an impression, because I get the feeling that The Interiors are, come new album time, going to get more and more love from critics. And fans, eventually, too.

“We're actually putting the finishing touches on a really awesome five-song set called Teeth right now,” Duncan said in closing. “I'm extremely proud of it and we'll certainly be playing all of those songs at the show. It's scheduled to be released May 3, but hopefully we'll have something to sell at this show.”

Fingers crossed. True indie rock gold this solid is hard to come by in this era of confused experimentalists and dumbed-down bedroom geniuses.

Written by G. William Locke