Last week I had the chance to sit down with two members of the Christian mall-core band Family Force 5. These guys were perhaps the most ridiculous "musicians" that I've ever met. Insisting that I call them "Chapstick" and "Crouton," the interview revolved around dragon and robot talk, with the guys constantly plugging their own Myspace.
TBC: You guys released your debut album through Maverick Records, who boast such names as Story of the Year, Jack's Mannequin and the Wreckers. At some point does it become a little intimidating to keep up with all the other successful artists on the label?
Chapstick: Everyone on the label is just really cool. The guy from Jack's Mannequin is a very cool dude. We don't really feel any competition with other artists on the label because we are really into the whole community thing. We really don't even sound like any of the bands we're touring with now, but it's cool as far as networking and picking up new fans.
TBC: How did the deal with Maverick work out?
Crouton: An A&R guy from Maverick came out to an Atlanta show a couple years ago. It was a crazy show, everyone was dancing, and they approached us-at that time we were also talking to Jive and Atlantic. The A&R guy had came out on a whim because he heard there was a "cool band" in town.
Chapstick (obnoxiously): HONK HONK, cool band, dude we are really cool!
Crouton: We just put the same show we put on normally-the most amazing live show ever!
TBC: You've claimed in other interviews that your live shows contain elements of the White Stripes and the Beastie Boys. Since those bands are so different, how do you think your music reflects elements of the two bands?
Chapstick: Just because it's a party when we play. The White Stripes are good with telling stories and their songs connect with the fans on an intimate level-that's what FF5 likes to do. We're out there spitting water and giving high fives and dressing up like dragons, throwing guitars around our neck. We try to connect with the fans in an intimate way like the White Stripes do and bring the party like the Beastie Boys do. Most people say it's like 5 ADD kids that didn't take their riddilin and broke into the Red Bull truck and drank all the Red Bull. Although, I think milk is my favorite energy drink.
TBC: People have described FF5 as energetic, fun and clean. Are those ideals your aim?
Crouton: Dude, we just like having a party and we love to perform. It's such a blessing to actually do what we do. We just like to have a good time and we're all pretty clean dudes. There's nothing wrong with being clean. You don't have to be nasty to have a good time.
Chapstick: We want it to be like a KISS show as far as entertainment and a Carmen show in terms of like, quality.
TBC: Who are some artists/bands that you feel are doing positive things for music right now and putting creative music out there?
Chapstick: I've been listening to Muse a lot. I think Muse is absolutely incredible. Their live show is incredibly unique and their songs are just really creative. Great tones and a tasteful sound. LCD Soundsystem, we really like them. Jonezetta. Imogen Heap. Postal Service. We're talking to Jonezetta now about doing a tour this fall.
Crouton: IMOGEN! Call us, let's do it.
Chapstick: Family Force 5 - we'll play with anybody. That's the cool thing about having the sound we have. We'll do Warped Tour, or like total Christian contemporary music tours. Metal crowds, hip-hop and funk crowds, we just have a blast doing it. It's a speck for people to gander at.
TBC: How do you want people to remember FF5 after you career is said and done?
Crouton: I don't want anybody to remember me. (nervous laugh).
Chapstick: I want to be known as the coolest dragon slayer that wasn't a wizard.
Crouton: And maybe people can think about unicorns when they think about FF5.
Other guy: Really the ideal situation is if somewhat thought of a big voltron robot, where we were five lions who became one robot with a unicorn on the top of the head and it slayed dragons.
Crouton: Every time that they said FF5, we would connect and come and avenge anything that was coming their way. That's how we want to be remembered - a big robot.
TBC: Oook. A positive robot though?
Chapstick: Definitely, a positive robot.
TBC: A positive, CLEAN robot, right?
Chapstick: As far as the clean stuff goes-we're not a band that is aiming to do things in a very safe manner. We just do what we do and the fact of the matter is that it's clean. So our goal isn't to avoid stepping on toes, or to avoid offending anybody. We do FF5 and clean is an aspect of it. We strive to be like Christ as much as we can in our daily lives, but we know that we mess up just as much as anybody else.
TBC: ...And by clean I actually meant clean in the cosmetic sense, not rusty.
Crouton: Yeah you don't want to be a rusty robot.
Chapstick: Well oiled.
Crouton: Yes.
Just when I thought the interview had reached its peak of ridiculousness....
TBC: How did you come up with the name FF5?
Crouton: We came up with the name because we were like, "What name would sound like a giant robot?" It has no significance.
Chapstick: We actually have a "hype-guy" named Zannadoo who comes on stage and blows a conch shell and says "Family Force 5 Connect." Then we connect to make this huge mega robot that fights mullet monsters.
TBC: Do you kind of pull a Power Rangers influence from that combining of power?
Crouton: Not really power rangers.
TBC: Captain Planet?
Crouton: Captain Planet is a little earthy. I think Captain Planet tends to hug trees.
Chapstick: (defensively)...and there's nothing wrong with that at all. The thing is, we would instead use the trees as guitars and then plant them afterwards
Crouton: ...to make our own universe of rock.
Please note that I purposefully left out all of the self-promotion that these guys did during their interview. True musicians make music with the right intention of creating art, and then there's Family Force 5.
This article was written by Matthew Reynolds, writer and CD reviewer for the Belmont Vision and freelance writer for The Tennessean. See his personal blog here for more music reviews.
