by L. Jeanette Strole
Movies With Heroes are a band with an unswerving idea of where they are going. Track one on their new album “Years” bursts out with the twitching, energetic chorus that echoes the mantra, “This is our time, we are the future.” A statement like that can’t be made without a sense of direction, and it certainly seems that Movies With Heroes have seasoned their sounds with the flavors of trials and hard work.
Each song has a fresh, poignant balance of guitar-drenched vigor, quirky timing, and dynamic drums, embedded in pop-ethos that transcends the distance between bland and interesting. Jeff Royer, Keith Wilson and Jeremy Bentley - former highschool cronies - have been making music for a great deal of time. In 2000, they took the name Movies With Heroes, after a few earlier incarnations, and are stronger than ever. Vocalist and guitar player, Keith Wilson confesses, they have definitely come a long way from their formative days, and perhaps the album title is a subtle nod to the years of developing their cohesion and unity. “We started to get better, and get a feel and a focus for song-writing and who we were as writers and as friends.”
He reinforces that “In the last few years we have discovered how much we enjoy applying our own unique brand of song craft to a ‘pop’ song-writing format. The confines of a pop song can bring out great things, and we have felt at home in that process.” This is not bubble-gum pop, though, but rather intelligent, independent rock in the vein of Built to Spill, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Modest Mouse.
Self-producing and recording the last album gave the band extra flexibility to finish the tracks on their own terms, at their own pace. “It allowed us to be more careful with vocals and other details, rather than rushing.” The new record was completely produced by the band, with the exception of a couple of retrospective tracks from their earlier career that were handled by Jay Sorrentino (Suddenly Tammy!) and Greg Williamson (Sunny Day Real Estate.) Their earnest approach puts them at a level of professionalism, and depth. “I suppose it may be obvious to some, but I have written a great deal about the band itself and how I feel it is wrapped up in my whole calling, vocation, destiny, what have you. Much of the recent material has a theme of longing, an earnest search for purpose and meaning. I am not interested so much recently in complex poetic imagery and the clumsy and vague language that can bring with it. I have decided to simply write about what is going on with me in a way people can hopefully grab onto.”
Friendships, family relationships, and science all provide MWH with sources of inspiration. “I am somewhat of a wildlife and science nerd, and I am endlessly amazed and inspired by all things in the created world. Music is a huge inspiration. There is nothing like seeing one of your favorite artists live to prime your creative engines for writing. Other forms of art as well are inspiring. A great book or a great film fill my mind with new imagery and ideas that fuel the creative process.”
Undeniably, MWH has elements of distinction that propel them out of the muddled glut of bands in the music industry. Their home on Urban Achiever Records also gives them the right kind of attention and dedicated management that a band needs to excel. “I think we dodge a specific category of a specific sub-genre, and remain relevant in a certain scene while writing music that is genuinely more broad than those confines. We are not following the loud-soft formula that ‘emo’ has been operating on, nor writing songs about high school romance and geek alienation. If you look at our lyrics or go to our show, you'll see that we often have something to say. That is such a generic claim, but I believe it to be true, and I also think it is unique to an extent today, which does set us apart.”
“Our optimism or unwillingness to quit or crumble in the face of discouragement has been a gift that will ultimately carry us through. The close friendship we have cultivated as a band is a big part of that as well. Our manager, Bill, who has joined us recently has already provided enough guidance and wisdom that I am sure we would owe a large part of any future success to his commitment and guidance as well.” Movies With Heroes has the right attitude, talent, and a new full-length album chock-full of songs with bite. Clearly, the ingredients for success are all already on the plate.