Under the Radar?
Jackie A. Chapman - February 19, 2007
Punk band Relient K seems to get bigger and bigger with each new album. mmHmm (2004) brought the band to new heights, debuting at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and since selling over half a million copies. The band has also been featured in a number of high-profile tours (Vans Warped, MxPx) and television appearances (The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, MTV's TRL). Yet Matt Thiessen (vocals/guitar/piano) takes it all in stride, suggesting that the band still hasn't broke big—though that's not exactly Relient K's goal either. On the eve of the release of the band's fifth album, Five Score & Seven Years Ago, we had a few moments to talk to Thiessen about how the band remains true to its Christian roots amidst all the new opportunities.
Last time we talked, you had mixed emotions about playing the Vans Warped Tour with Good Charlotte and Simple Plan. Did that tour work out the way you expected it to?
Matt Thiessen: Yeah, we were a little apprehensive about that. We didn't know how well things would go over as far as [our sound and what we stand for]. We anticipated that we would be the black sheep on the Warped Tour because of our beliefs. But really we were the black sheep because we were the only band that didn't "scream." No bottles were thrown at us, or anything like that. I feel like a lot of bands—Sixpence None the Richer, Switchfoot, P.O.D.—have really paved the way for us. So while many of those bands on the Warped Tour didn't share our Christian beliefs, I guess they were just intelligent [or open-minded] enough to tolerate us and be cool with it.
Did you win any new fans?
Thiessen: Maybe. But the Warped Tour is the exception to the rule [of gaining fans on tour], because there is so much going on all the time. It's harder to see direct results. It's like a big circus with multiple stages and bands playing at all times. But overall we have seen growth as a result of all the touring.
You've also played with MxPx. [Lead singer] Mike Herrera said in an interview that, "You can't go wrong having Relient K on the ticket." Yet you still think that Relient K seems to be flying below the radar. How can that be?
Thiessen: It's all relative, of course. If Relient K shows up at the right "big" show, playing with MxPx or whoever, there might be a fan there that knows our band, but it's still not like we're Fall Out Boy or All American Rejects. We're on the radio and MTV, but we don't get pushed as much as they are. Those bands are far more recognizable. So, in that sense, we're still under that radar. I can go to the mall, and no one knows who I am. Not that we're pursuing that. We've never been out to say, "Mommy, we want to be famous someday." We love what we do and our favorite part about being a band is writing songs and having them mean something to somebody. That's all that matters to Relient K.
What are your upcoming tour plans?
Thiessen: We're going out with Mae and Sherwood. It's this little headlining tour with two bands that are really good friends of ours. I think it could be my favorite tour that I'll have done. Mae is on Capitol now and they had the same producers on their record that we did.
As Relient K reaches mainstream and Christian listeners, how much do you consider the audience—reaching believers vs. non-believers—as you write songs?
Thiessen: I don't think about any of that, honestly. I've always been about writing the things, the subjects that I want to write about. Have we changed since day one? Yes, we've change because we've grown up as people, maturing into adults. Have we changed the way we are inside? No. I love writing about what I believe in, but I'm not a preachy person in general. So why would I do that in a song? The music becomes an expression of who we are as people and as believers.
You've always had a way with words and expressing those beliefs uniquely. Can you explain your talent for songwriting?
Thiessen: I don't know. For me it was a self-educated skill and I'm still trying to find a way to find a better song. I see it like painting. You find art that you like and create something like it, but you don't rip it off. I look at some [musicians] for lyrics, like Paul Simon or Mike Herrera (MxPx), and let them influence me. A lot of it comes from the spirit. I'm a huge fan of Jon Foreman (Switchfoot) and how he writes, getting the brain and heart to work together.
As time goes by, though, you get better at your own skill. The more you do it, the better you get at it without ripping things off. Yet I think there is definitely a science to it. Look at a poem—it might rhyme, it might not. Some tricks I've learned are that clever rhymes make you sound smart. So for me, say there's an idea I have that becomes one line to a song. I'll want to set up that point with a rhyme in a line before it. You come to find ways to deliver a line—to deliver a point better—and leave the reader with something. It's a blank canvas that you can do what you want with it.
What was inspiring you to write on certain topics for this record?
Thiessen: There are a couple themes. I always write about what I'm going through, and there are a couple things about forgiveness on the record—about making sure we're not holding any grudges against people. Writing is the way I vent about how I'm getting over being hurt. Though one person or another did hurtful things, I'm smart enough to know that I can't hold a grudge against them forever. I use growth and grace to push myself there. I also have a good thing going with my girl, and I couldn't really help but write about that too.
Forgiveness and girls … how do you balance the happy songs with the roughly honest ones on a record?
Thiessen: The songs are potpourri, and sometimes they seem like a thrown-together mess [laughs]. The fans that know our band best kind of expect that. The song sequence [on Five Score] came out as a result of playing around with it. I liked "Forgiven" and wanted it up front, and "Must Have Done Something Right" is the first single, so that had to be near the top as well. We mix up the serious with the sugary happy. If all of our songs sounded the same, it'd be a very boring record. That's why punk rock bands usually throw in an acoustic ballad—it's always nice to stir up [the angst] with something more lighthearted.
You mention "punk rock band." What, if anything, has influenced any evolution in sound on Five Score?
Thiessen: I don't know; it kind of picked our sounds for us. We definitely have the pop songs and are influenced by that, but we've also incorporated more piano and we use banjo on stage in live shows. We feel that almost everything's been done in some way, so we like to try new things. But we really don't consider ourselves innovative.
What is it about three-minute pop songs? Do you aim to write that way?
Thiessen: Well, you have to look at your strong points [laughs]. None of us in the band are going to write a crazy guitar solo—and frankly, people don't buy our albums for that. We don't record big vampy guitar solos. We're not just going to experiment with guitars. I'm very ADD and I like pop music. I just start singing, and I like to get in and get out of a song. We're fans of that format, but then there are moments that you get to explore too.
Is that where the 11-minute "Deathbed" on the new album came from? Exploring? Is there a story behind it?
Thiessen: Right, every other song had been finished, so we looked at this as our time to have some fun. I just sat down to write it and that's what came out. There's no real story behind it. It's simply a 75-year-old man on his deathbed looking back on his life.
But it has 115 tracks in it—I picked up the trombone and the French horn, our producer Mark [Townsend] played ukulele and percussion, and we have two great guys who make it sound like we had a big string section. Jon Foreman was even gracious enough to sing a part I wrote for him. It's one of my favorite parts on the whole album.
Is the future bright for Relient K?
Thiessen: That's a good question. We have the new album and we worked hard on it, but it's the fans that confirm all the hard work. We don't take all this too seriously. It's fun and it's great to be on top and be a positive influence. Plus we love touring. But we know it's not going to last forever. Still, I think that's the brightest thing you can hope for.