The Maine Interview with Pat Kirch and Kennedy Brock

Photo By Laura Means. To view these rest of the photos from the show, please visit http://tinyurl.com/themainethiscentury

The Maine has been one of my favorite groups, ever since they covered Akon's "I Wanna Love You" on Punk Goes Crunk. When their first full length,Can't Stop, Won't Stop, was released it rarely even left my CD player the entire summer. I was especially impressed by their combination of catchy and clever lyrics, that had be humming all day. Their newest release, Black and White, provides the same catchy hooks, but is accompanied by a much more developed sound. I had the privilege of speaking to Kenned Brock (Guitar) and Pat Kirch (Drums) about their newest album, before their show in Atlanta...
How has the tour been going so far guys?
Kennedy: Its been amazing.
Pat: Its just been one surprise after another. The second we think that it can't get any better it does.
So the tour is called "An Evening with The Maine", how long is your set each night?
Kennedy: We play ninety minutes each night. Its crazy.
That's a pretty long set, is that tiring sometimes?
Pat: We thought that it would be a lot tougher than it actually ended up being.
Kennedy: It has been pretty easy. Maybe not easy, but fun!
So you have the new album out "Black and White", which has been getting great reviews and selling like crazy. How does it feel to put out such a well-received album?
Pat: Yeah, its insane that so many people have already gone out and supported it already.We are just really lucky.
Kennedy: We were very excited on the day that it came out. We were doing a lot of stuff, doing a lot of promotion and watching the iTunes charts.
Pat: It is awesome to see that hard work that we put in over the past few years, and are continuing to put in now, that it is paying off in little ways here and there.
Can you tell me little about the writing and recording process behind "Black and White," maybe how it differed from your previous album?

Kennedy: I think that the biggest difference, at least in the writing process, was that there was a lot more writing and preparation for this record. On the last one I think we were feeling out what we wanted to do, and finding a solid sound that we liked. I think on this one we had a lot more time to go with the sound that we wanted to be.
Pat: We had been on the road for a few years and kind of realized what worked live, and things that didn't. So I guess we are just older, and hopefully wiser in that aspect.
On this album, a great deal of songs on this album were co-writes. How was that experience?
Pat: John wrote some songs with some other people. Him and Jared would go with an idea and got kind of an outside ear on structure, and things like that. Then he would bring that back to us, and we would work it out as a band. Which is kind of how we wrote the last record too, with John coming up with an initial idea and then bringing it to us and we would work it out from there.
With all of the success you guys have had, how do you stay grounded?
Pat: I don't think it is anything we think about, or anything that happens, its just we are who we are. We are who we have always been, and we are just a bunch of friends out on the road playing every night. Now just more people come out and watch it, which does make it more fun.
Kennedy: We are just having a good time.
Pat:Nothing has really changed.
Any specific influences behind "Black and White"? Anything that you guys were listening to a lot of during the making of the record?
Pat: I would say number one was Tom Petty. We were listening to a lot of Tom Petty, even watching a documentary that's like three hours long, spanning his whole career. Just kind of seeing how someone who has been putting records out for thirty years and sustain it that long. That is the ultimate goal for us. Its never about right now, its about setting ourselves up for the future. I don't want to be back in school in five years. I want to be doing this same thing, but to like five times more people.
How important is social networking to you guys?
Kennedy: It was a big part of our success in the beginning, very crucial.
Pat: I think that it can be kind of an artistic thing, its all about how you present yourself. I think that is how people hear your music, and they incorporate other thing and visuals when your music is playing. Social sites can definitely attribute to that.
So I heard you guys will be tour in Australia?
Pat: Yeah, in February.
It this the first time touring overseas for you guys?
Kennedy: We have gone over to the U.K. and then we are going back to the U.K. soon. Then we are doing Indonesia and Hawaii. It is unreal.
Perfect day, windows down, what are you listening to in your car?
Pat: Third Eye Blind
Kennedy: What's that Tears for Fears song? "Everybody Wants to Rule The World."
This is just something that I have always wondered, being a big fan of you guys and the first album "Can't Stop, Won't Stop." So, girls do what they want, boys do what they can. What does that mean?
Pat: To me it means girls are going to do whatever they want, and boys have to do whatever they can to make it work.
Kennedy: I think that in general guys try to pay attention to how girls do things, instead of the other way around. I think that it is a way of life.
What is next for your guys after the tour?
Kennedy: Lots more touring!
Pat: We are going to go home for a couple of weeks and write some more music. We are going to shoot a new music video and then go back on the road. Just continue to write more music and play it for people.