Is it legal in California to marry an entire band?

Because if it is, consider this my premature proposal to any or all members of Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s. Have you ever been on a really awkward and uncomfortable first date? You know the kind where you accidentally insult your date’s dead grandma (Yes, I’ve done it)? Well, a night with Margot is completely the opposite of that.

Margot is that goose bump inducing “come over and watch a movie while I do my laundry” date. The one where movie watching and laundry washing are replaced with lots of making out and…other stuff.
I went to their show at the Casbah in San Diego on Memorial Day and was able to hunt down Margot’s drummer Chris Fry. He was kind enough to give me a few moments of his time and answer some life threatening questions I had about their 2nd album, “Animal!” set to release Sept. 21st, 2008.

(Not July 29th, like Wikipedia says…damn.)

First and foremost, why the hell isn’t ‘Payphone’ on the new album?!?! I heard a rumor about a month ago that it would be making its debut on Animal! but Chris shot down my hopes and dreams and informed me that that was not the case. He went as far to say that ‘Payphone’ is not that popular of a song and that none of the band members even suggested it as a track. I blame Epic records. I don’t know why but it only seems natural to blame the new ginormous label for the things that make me unhappy. And Margot might be the only saving grace of my relationship with Epic. Any friend of Margot’s is a friend of mine.
I asked Chris why they abandoned their prior label V2 records for Epic and he said V2 became strictly a catalog label and no longer produces new music. What label lets Moby and the White Stripes become free agents?? Bad move V2…bad move.

What was my absolute favorite thing about their show, you ask?? It had to have been the amazing/awkward, semi sing-along during ‘Quiet as Mouse’. I’m serious, that really happened. I’m not joking. About 2/3 of the way through the performance, Margot breaks out into ‘Quiet as a Mouse’ and when they hit “When I woke my back was broke from lying on the floor” the music died and the voices carried the song. The crowd knew the freakin’ words people! In San Diego? How cool is that? And yes, I was singing too.

So my suggestion to you, is to go to one of their shows…and then go to another. The set list always changes so you will not be disappointed, trust me. And as long as Casey Tennis is on stage you will not be bored either. By the way that guy moves I wouldn’t be surprised if he was a part of the Miami Sound Machine in a past life.

They’ll definitely play some favorites from “Dust of the Retreat” and they’ll also give you some “Animal!” teasers. Check out “I Will Be Your Lightning Rod” on YouTube. This song is a fair trade for ‘Payphone’ in my opinion.

Oh, and if you go to a show, stalk Richard Edwards and ask him why he’s obsessed with The Royal Tenenbaums and let me know what he says. I need an answer and I need it now. Click on pictures for some MNSS goodness.