(Made in 1985 Remix) time - More Where That Came From

VIDEO: B&M FEATURED ON “WHAT’S YOUR MUSE?”

Interview: In the Now Magazine

• excerpted from In The Now Magazine’s web version of our interview, posted 8/9/11
• http: //inthenowinterviews2.webs.com/bardandmustache.htm
• In The Now Magazine: What is your name and current position in the band?
• Bard and Mustache is comprised of Gregory Bortnichak (Bard) and Erin Murphy (Mustache). In our current live setup, Bard commands the cello and vocals and Mustache covers the guitar and vocals.
• In The Now Magazine: Tell us about the history of the band. More specifically, when was the band formed, how did you meet, and have there been any particular highlights or low points in your career, any crucial events that have taken you where you are today?
• It was July of 2010 and one of Bard’s other bands, Sparta Philharmonic, was touring the country, and met Mustache at a show she was promoting for SP at a venue in Sarasota, Shamrock Pub. We talked all night and made plans to meet again on the premise of adding strings on the record-in-progress for Mustache’s band, The Equines. During those recording sessions in January 2011, we decided to produce a non-Equines piece, “I Am Not,” that Mustache had been working on as an acoustic bonus track. The song got leaked and took on a life of its own. A few weeks later we were together as Bard and Mustache, with a tour booked and EP recorded. Everything seems to have taken us here -we both have been busting our raggedy arses in a slew of musical projects, and this one just seemed to have that cosmic fairy-dust charm. No low-points- we love doing this and feel very lucky to be doing it together.
• In The Now Magazine: Do you remember how the idea of forming the band first came up?
• In the weeks leading up to Bard’s January recording session, we had mused over the idea of pairing down our separate projects into a two-piece format, mainly for shits and giggles. Bard had an attentiveness to a number of songs Mustache had written and shelved, as the songs weren’t necessarily a good fit for the Equines. The revival of those songs seemed to find a Goldilocks-like home in the two piece arrangement, especially with Bard’s unconventional and very emotive cello work.
• In The Now Magazine: How long after you formed was it until you played your first live show?
• Two days? We just got together for one or two sittings to rehearse for the record and then booked a show the next day at the Shamrock, where we had first met.
• In The Now Magazine: What are your memories of the performance?
• We played with Fancy Rat, the local band SP had played with back in July. The bar was packed with folks that were familiar with our separate projects and were intrigued by the whispers of this new project. The show itself was a rather surreal experience -one of the best performances either of us had ever had with any group, which was surprising, pleasantly, because we had literally just started working together days before. As Paul McCartney said about his old home, “very strange…”
• In The Now Magazine: Tell us about the band’s name?
• Mustache had made a list of silly band names just to pass the time on the road to pick up Bard before their recording session in January; the play-on-words of Beard and Mustache (which both reside quite permanently on Bard’s face) integrated Bard’s poetic sensibilities and Mustache’s somewhat unconventional view of femininity.
• In The Now Magazine: What is your latest album and why should people buy it?
• We just released a 5-song EP called “Falcor’s Burning Belly.” Bard had recorded cello in the studio for “I Am Not” and we wanted to release an EP based on that single. We added three other live one-take recordings from our rehearsals as well as a club remix our friend Scott Braun did for us. We feel that the record is unique because it is so intimate -the whole thing seems to be a document as well as an exploration of the space between the two of us where we come together to create and unify. We are so pleased with the way they came out -even the experiments and improvised portions. The record stands as an honest exchange that can be expanded upon for future releases, but we both find it very gratifying to revisit those initial sessions, and that feeling of first discovering that space between each other.
• In The Now Magazine: How would you categorize the style of the band? And did you ever consider or try playing other styles of music than the one you are playing now?
• Without placing too much weight on any particular descriptors, Bard and Mustache could perhaps be categorized as neo-folk symphonic soul. Our current musical interpretation is our first, and both of us have many ideas of expanding our sonic palette in the future with new songs and new orchestration, but we both feel it is important to concentrate on our current sound with as attentive of an ear as possible until that point of reinvention.
• In The Now Magazine: Can you share with us one or two of your favorite moments with the band?
• All of them! More specifically though, we just played a show at Spike Hill in Brooklyn and most of the audience was comprised of friends from our respective hometowns that were, coincidentally, visiting New York that weekend. None of them had heard our project, which is quite a departure from our separate projects, and everyone had such complimentary things to say after our set. Some said this was the strongest they had seen us perform musically, as individuals, and for us to look at the timeline from the birth of this project to the fruits of a performance like that was so exciting for both of us.
• In The Now Magazine: Does the entire band contribute to the writing process?
• Currently, we are working off of an extensive back-catalogue of material primarily from Mustache’s dusty vaults -all songs that are great in their own right, but just didn’t work in the context of the Equines. Bard has contributed compositions as well, but at this point, prefers to augment Mustache’s songwriting work. We have definitive plans, however, of co-writing the material for future records in the coming months -it’s just been difficult to make that work living so far away from each other.
• In The Now Magazine: How important do you rate the lyrical side of your albums?
• We both feel that lyrics are extremely important. Both of us love to write and are very lyrical people in general. However, our styles are very different, and we enjoy the interplay between Mustache’s narrative work and Bard’s more interpretive or impressionistic leanings.
• In The Now Magazine: What are your current tour plans, if any?
• We are currently in the bosom of our first tour, skirting around the northeast for another week. We’ll be touring the southeast in April and then back up north in May – the two of us are so ready to take our songs on the road and share them with whoever will listen.
• In The Now Magazine: Describe your live performance?
• Two people singing to each other. We would dance together, but our instruments get in the way… : -/
• In The Now Magazine: Let’s talk a little about the band’s equipment list. What is everyone playing and do you have endorsements?
• No endorsements yet, but we are taking applications! We are currently seeking sponsorship from McDonald’s -their dollar menu is truly the one thing that makes touring possible for us. Mustache plays whatever guitar she can get her hands on. Bard plays only the finest in Fender guitars and amplifiers (hint, hint, Fender), as well as a mid-1990′s German cello w/ a David Gage pickup that is beat to shit, but plays way better for it.
• In The Now Magazine: What one CD should everyone have in their collection?
• Mustache: Beat Happening – Dreamy. Every single song is a fresh lollipop.
• Bard: Diabologum – #3. The best and most radical amalgamation of sound-collage, hip-hop, and punk rock that no one (in this country, at least) has heard.
• In The Now Magazine: Tell us about your local music scene?
• Bard is a vagabond and has been heavily involved in local scenes in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Doylestown PA, but probably feels most strongly tied to and influenced by the music scene in the small town of Sparta, NJ, where he grew up. He ran a DIY venue called the Zoe House which became the epicenter of a music community that has been strong for over a decade but is just starting to get national recognition with bands like Delicate Steve, Sparta Philharmonic, Future Future, and The French Kings. Mustache had rooted herself in the scene of her hometown in Sarasota, FL. Three years ago, it was little more than a disjointed group of colorful characters storming open mic nights at country-themed restaurants. In that short time span, though, everyone in that group is now a prominent part of the current scene, which has become an incubator for innovative, genre-bending indie bands that are now touring and gaining an impressive amount of attention. Just recently, Mustache opened a venue called the Closet, which is a co-op with a vintage shop. The Closet is too small for attendees to not pay attention; people that go there truly go for the music. Most of the audience members at shows are fellow musicians or dedicated audiophiles, and that sense of community and intent listenership has created a destination for out-of-town bands to tour through.
• In The Now Magazine: Why do you think people are into your music?
• We love what we do; we are both honest and don’t hold anything back in our music. I think people appreciate that -especially in a live setting. We both tend to get pretty taken away with performing together.
• In The Now Magazine: If we were to look at your Ipod, what would we find in your music collection?
• Bard: Tons of punk and indie-rock records, a fair amount of folk music, local bands that don’t get much attention but really should, as well as a lot of late-romantic classical music and post-bop jazz. I just got both the Dylan and Beatles box sets and have been totally obsessed those too.
• Mustache: Due to a series of unfortunate accidents, most of my collection has been wiped clean… but the great thing about that is that the new library is almost all local bands or touring bands I’ve had the pleasure of playing with. It is really special to get to know a band inside and out through their record and then be able to shake their hand and share a decent conversation in person.
• In The Now Magazine: Would there be any one band or musician that would surprise us that you are listening to them?
• Janele Monae, 2 Live Crew. We both also have a weakness for the top 40 hit “like a G6.” Not saying we’re proud of that… just honest.
• In The Now Magazine: Where can our readers find your band on the internet?
• Readers can find our music at www.bardandmustache.bandcamp.com and our show schedule at www.facebook.com/bardandmustache.
• In The Now Magazine: Thanks for answering these questions. Do you have any last comments or words of advice for the readers of In The Now Magazine?
• Never underestimate the power of sharing your snacks with someone. Be kind, rewind. All you need is love…