Als Nada Surf 1996 mit „Popular“ einen ersten Hit landeten, hätte wohl kaum jemand gedacht, dass die Band hinter diesem Novelty-Song so langlebig sein würde. Mit der neuen Platte „Moon Mirror“ sind Nada Surf nun schon beim zehnten regulären Studioalbum angekommen. Insbesondere ihre beiden Alben aus den Mitt-2000ern, „Let Go“ und „The Weight Is A Gift“, haben für diese bis heute anhaltende Bekanntheit gesorgt – wobei „Let Go“ mit seinem wehmütigen, leicht folkigen, countryesken Indierock immer noch mein Favorit ist. „Blizzard Of 77“ und das Dylan referenzierende „Blonde On Blonde“ haben den Test der Zeit bestanden.

* Your three favorite punk singles/songs?

„What is punk?“ is one of my favorite questions to ponder. I favor the widest definition but for the sake of this interview I’ll stick to the classics : )

The Saints — „I’m Stranded“

The Ramones — „Cretin Hop“

The Oblivians — „Bad Man“

* A record that will make you dance#

le tigre — „Decepticon“

* Your favorite song lyrics

„I need you more than I want you / and I want you for all time“

Jimmy Webb, „Wichita Lineman“

* The best „new“ artist/band right now?

I’m really into The Other Half right now, a band from Norwich, UK. They’d probably call themselves post-something? I met the drummer in a little gift shop where he works. I’m leaning to a punk rock answer, but I like so many kinds of music, so there are many other best bands, which is great!

They’re super-high-energy, kind of like an amped-up and faster Fugazi, with declarative lyrics. It’s not the kind of music I play when I pick up a guitar, but I love listening to it when I need to get stuff done.

* Your favorite song about rebellion/revolution?

Speaking of Fugazi, maybe their song „Suggestion,“ which one could argue is about revolutionizing the way men treat women on the street. Another one is „Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere“ by The Who. It’s such a perfect condensation and encapsulation of youthful individuality — Pete Townshend was going to do things his way, and did!

* Your favorite song this year so far?

„Hear The Children Sing The Evidence“ by Bonnie Prince Billy, Nathan Salzburg and Tyler Trotter

* Your favorite movie about music, and why?

I saw a great movie recently about the Newport Folk Festival, called Festival. It was shot between 1963 and 1966 and has great footage of The Staple Singers, Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger, Howlin‘ Wolf, Son House and more. One of the best parts is seeing what the concertgoers looked like. It’s obvious that youth culture was in the middle of an explosion. You can see the identity of the 60s take shape, morphing into itself. You can see some people who are just in that moment starting to change, and others who are far into their new trip. The other best part is seeing how relaxed Bob Dylan and Joan Baez were and how much they liked spending time together. His version of „Mr. Tambourine Man“ in the film is totally breathtaking.

* The best song you’ve ever written / recorded?

Probably „Inside of Love“

* Death Cab For Cutie, Flaming Lips or Pavement — which one do you prefer and why?

I love all three of those bands, but Pavement is my favorite. Aside from loving the words and the hooks and the sound and the shapes, there’s a unique high-wire aspect to their recordings — you can tell that they’re making at least some of it up as they go along. It’s thrilling because every improvised word feels exactly right, every off-the-cuff solo is a suprising keeper. I think their albums are timeless. I was really lucky to see them on the Slanted and Enchanted tour. In the middle of the show their drummer Gary Young emptied garbage bags of leaves from Central Park all over the stage.

* Your favorite german song/record?

I’m looking through my emails from a German journalist called Jan Wigger. I can’t find the one where he tells me about his favorite songs by Blumfeld. I listened at the time and thought they were so good. I’m going to say one of those is my favorite because it probably will be because Jan was always right. I met him in Hamburg in the late 90s. We became very close. He passed away earlier this year. I don’t read German but I know he was a fantastic writer because he was a fantastic talker.

* Your favorite record of all time?

The Velvet Underground — Loaded

(Antworten: Matthew Caws – Gesang, Gitarre)

„Moon Mirror“, das neue Album von Nada Surf ist bereits erschienen: