We're Saint Motel - and we released our major label debut album, saintmotelevision, on Friday, October 21st!

We are here to answer all your questions on music, life, the universe, and art.

You can also check us out on our website, or on the social media: www.saintmotel.com Twitter - https://twitter.com/SaintMotel Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/saintmotel Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/saintmotel/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/saintmotelvideo Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/1dWEYMPtNmvSVaDNLgB6NV

PROOF https://www.facebook.com/saintmotel/photos/a.261193826522.142835.9122571522/10154133492186523/?type=3

Comments: 215 • Responses: 58  • Date: 

Coxy_1646 karma

Is the SaintMotelevision album art just an overhead view of the My Type EP art??

saintmotelband32 karma

;)

Aboveground_Plush20 karma

Do you think it's clever when your fans rework your lyrics into questions in an attempt to be humorous? Your honest feedback, please.

saintmotelband22 karma

LOLZ. good one!! that's My Type of answer : )

saintmotelband9 karma

Dak - I see what you did there :)

bhawx1016 karma

What were some of your favorite bands to listen to growing up?

saintmotelband33 karma

When we first started playing together we listed to a lot of David Bowie, Talking Heads, and The Who

Aboveground_Plush5 karma

Growing up? How about currently?

saintmotelband13 karma

We listen to all sorts of music. A consistent pre show song you will hear us listening to back stage would be, "Tour de France" by Kraftwerk

coffeeho9615 karma

are y'all going to release any traditional music videos, or strictly 360 virtualizers? it would be sick if there was a visual album, please beyonce our asses

saintmotelband29 karma

Official music videos for sure! "Move" music video coming out NEXT WEEK!!!

RustedChainsaw13 karma

Can I still enjoy "Born Again" if I'm Jewish?

saintmotelband10 karma

Aaron - you are in good company

saintmotelband10 karma

Hahaha of course!!!

KeithXDow10 karma

After you played that gig in the Hamptons and went back to the house to swim in the pool and smoke where did you put the bowl? The dude needs it.

saintmotelband3 karma

Aaron - Oops. Word, I'll mail it.

doppelganger977 karma

Do you really make the best French toast?

A weird, interesting, funny fan memory?

How do you guys think you've changed as a band from way back to ForPlay to now saintmotelevision

saintmotelband4 karma

Aaron - yes. We finally learned how to play our instruments. Kinda...

RustedChainsaw7 karma

Any idea why EA games keeps coming to you guys for FIFA songs? Not complaining but "Move" bumps you up to 2 tracks!

saintmotelband18 karma

We are attempting to be the first band to be on 20 FIFA soundtracks !!

crowelad6 karma

Hey guys, love your music and you are so much fun live, you have so much energy on stage. Just wanted to know what happened to that incredible tiger keyboard you had at Lolla? Was devastated when I didn't see it at your Indy show.

saintmotelband11 karma

Our tiger is out living in the wild again...but will most likely find us again someday in the jungle

emilynava5 karma

I'm so in love with the art for this album and the album's packaging, the overall aesthetic, etc. Who designed this? What was the thought process behind the creation of the design?

saintmotelband4 karma

A/J - I designed it with a guy named Matt from the label. The concept was a continuation of where we left off with the EP art. The initial design was slightly side angle and the diver was an older man. After many drafts, the art became less and less busy until we arrived at the simple, clean design we have now.

Coxy_165 karma

I noticed that when performing Born Again live, AJ you sang "now I've cleaned up and found Jesus, and SHE'S waiting...". But on the album you say HE'S. Idk if I heard that wrong, but if you actually did say "she", why the change?

saintmotelband21 karma

A/J - I'm not exactly sure why I've been doing that but I kind of like it...

172945927164 karma

Hey guys! I'm a huge fan and was recently at your show at Bogarts in Cincy! Just a few questions:

What is your favorite song to preform?

If you could choose any song in the world to play in your set, what would it be?

When will the saxophone/trumpet players become official members of the band?

saintmotelband6 karma

A/J - I don't play faves personally. Each song has its own unique place in the set. Some are sweeter some saltier depends on what flavor the set needs at the moment...

ShitKickers4 karma

Why does Greg Erwin have such strong calves? Is it all foot slappy paddle stuff, or is it his sweet Fixie gear lifestyle?

saintmotelband5 karma

implants...

Camsy344 karma

Hey there! Thanks for doing this AMA.

  • What inspired you to create this album?

  • What was the most challenging part of writing/recording the album?

  • Any great stories that happened you want to share?

saintmotelband9 karma

  1. We couldn't stop at just the EP could we ?!?

  2. Trying to finish it while we were on tour.

  3. LA2NY was written on an airplane, Move was one of the first songs written and last songs produced, Happy Accidents was really an accident, saintmotelevision is the name of a storied event we tried to throw in LA a couple years ago...

saintmotelband7 karma

greg - AJ can certainly talk a little more about the inspiration and writing, but as for great stories.....well, we made this record over the course of a couple years, in a multitude of amazing and not so amazing places, all over the world. From a desert compound surrounded by absolute nothingness, to a beach house in santa barbara, to a back room in a shitty german nightclub. it's all over the place, and I know that's why it's so special to us as a band. we are def. not the band destined to lock themselves away in a dark studio for 3 months, and emerge with a record in our hands : ) it's just not as fun that way!

Fun-ghoul3 karma

Hey guys, I've been a fan ever since I first heard Benny Goodman and was thrilled to see you guys live at Bakersfield's Free for All about a year ago. I've always wondered with musicians and bands, do you remember playing shows like that? Or does it kinda fade from memory if nothing particularly interesting happens? We're not exactly the most interesting town but I hope we at least left a good memory!

saintmotelband3 karma

Aaron - I definitely remember Bakersfield. Home of Korn!

emilynava3 karma

Hey guys! You had mentioned in the Song A Day video for Sweet Talk (that was filmed in my city 😉) that it was inspired by Daydream/Wetdream/Nightmare. Was there an exact moment you recall where you decided to move forward with this idea and turn this into Sweet Talk?

saintmotelband3 karma

A/J - I can't remember exactly when unfortunately but I can tell you the lyric subject matter came about while we were touring the UK

coffeeho963 karma

do you like coffee?? it's for a friend

saintmotelband2 karma

100 percent

trinketsformiles3 karma

Hi! So glad you were able to fit in an AMA as your tour is wrapping up! I went to your show in NYC the other day, all around amazing set from both you guys and Weathers + Hippocampus.

What I'm curious about is what attracted you guys to the retro aesthetic and sound that makes up a big part of your style today? Also a quick merch question, do you think the saint motel hats will be available online at some point? Missed my opportunity to pick one up at the show, but I really dug the design and would be interested in picking one up.

Hyped to see what you guys will be up to next :)

saintmotelband4 karma

Dak - hats will be available online at one point.

saintmotelband3 karma

Dak - to answer the other question, we didn't sit down and decide how exactly we would look and sound. It has just happened in the most organic way. It's a result of our collective style. But we're glad you like it :)

juggilinjnuggala3 karma

What is your dream collab, and what's your nightmare collab?

saintmotelband3 karma

Aaron - Aliens.

koreanleather3 karma

Hey pals, I've been wondering how many songs have you written together? Roughly how many songs are in the "vault" and how many are still not quite finished yet?

saintmotelband11 karma

Aaron - almost all of our songs are outsourced from China and Bangladesh.

oreo_cadester3 karma

Hey guys, huge fan, I'm actually coming to see you guys tomorrow in Charlotte and I have the backstage pass and I'm so pumped to meet you guys.

Anyway, my question is compared to Voyeur was Saintmotelevision harder to put together and what was the hardest part of putting your newest album together? It seems like there is a lot more going on in your newest album compared to your past albums and I was curious if it was actually harder to put together.

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - hardest part was getting a dang release date! Took foreeeeevvveeerrrr.

Taylewis2 karma

Hey Greg! One question.... How you like your eggz? Fried.... Or?

saintmotelband2 karma

Poached. Thank you for your question.

coffeeho962 karma

do you remember the fans you meet? or are we all one collective, enthusiastically devoted blur

saintmotelband3 karma

Aaron - if a fan comes up to me and clucks like a chicken, I always remember them.

ircanadia2 karma

What's up, guys? Big fan of your music!

What has been your most memorable show to date?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - that time we played on the moon

TheHound69692 karma

What are your nerdy guilty pleasures?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - gushers

RectimusPrimal2 karma

Would you rather fight 100 duck sized humans or 1 human sized duck?

saintmotelband10 karma

greg - UMMMM i would go for the duck sized humans........i reallllllly realllllLLLY don't ever want to see a human sized duck. i mean... whoa....

saintmotelband9 karma

Dak - we'd rather take on 100 human sized ducks

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - I like turtles...

dougi32 karma

I work as a lighting tech for a handful of local production companies in my area. Over all of your shows, from your very first ones to today, have you accumulated any funny/cool/frustrating stories or experiences while working with production staff?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - soooooo many stories!

emilynava2 karma

who were some of your biggest musical influences while making this album?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - Gloria Gaynor, Air Supply, Petula Clark, and Rammstein

bhawx102 karma

Remember playing Taste of Chicago with Weezer? I was there!

saintmotelband3 karma

Yes. Yes we do!!

the3ysmen2 karma

What has been your favorite music video to create? You seem to be a very theatrical band when it comes to music videos (having so many).

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - Unofficial My Type video

Silver_Tuna_Tonight2 karma

You guys are stylish, where do you get your threads from?!

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - Italy

saintmotelband2 karma

Mostly Ross ;) jk. But seriously the one thing we all own and love are Peter Nappi boots - from nashville! :))

conformingonamonday2 karma

  1. What was your favorite song to record/favorite part of recording saintmotelevision? 2.Is there an Omnichord (or Q Chord) on Slow Motion or is that a keyboard patch?
  2. Will you ever play Dear Dictator live again? 4.What's your favorite song to play live?
  3. Have you considered coming back to Summerfest in Milwaukee?

Thanks for the show at the Rave in Milwaukee a couple weeks ago! (we apologize for the ceiling being too short)

saintmotelband10 karma

greg - Dear Dictator is one of our absolute faves... we still jam it in soundchecks : ) it will never officially be off our list of possible live jams : )

FunCancel2 karma

What are your thoughts on lyricism in regards to the "business" aspect of music? It seems like a lot of musicians face the dilemma of having to make music that is catchy/accessible while also making music that is "from the heart" and something they enjoy.

I ask because I ran the lyrics of your single "Move" through a word counter, and found that there are only about 6 unique words in the entire chorus and only about 50 unique words in the entire song. The word "gotta" alone is spoken over 36 times. Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the song, but I am wondering if this is fulfilling music for you to make considering it contrasts so much with your other works like "Daydream/Wetdream/Nightmare", "1997", and" Puzzle Pieces".

Anyways, thanks for doing this! You guys make dope tracks!

saintmotelband3 karma

Aaron - we are constantly trying to simplify our music because simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

Coxy_162 karma

Destroyer is marked as 'explicit'. Although I don't believe there's any fowl language in the song. So why mark it as so?

saintmotelband12 karma

great question! we were actually wondering the same thing.. maybe the powers that be don't like all that talk of destroying hearts?

saintmotelband10 karma

A/J - I noticed that too! It's because it used to have obscene language but it hasn't in a long time. It's just an error and should be fixed soon.

emilynava2 karma

What was the song that took you the longest to finish on saintmotelevision and why?

saintmotelband5 karma

A/J - I think it was Destroyer? There were probably 20 different mixes/versions of this one. Maybe some day we could release all the versions and you could hear the growth of the song from demo to completed master!

coffeeho962 karma

what should i eat for lunch?

saintmotelband3 karma

Tuna salad on wheat. No tomato.

NextCornField2 karma

Who's going to make the college football playoffs this season?

saintmotelband8 karma

DEFINITELY the Pittsburgh Parakeets

kdenningAZ2 karma

Hey dudes! I saw you in AZ and I meet guys. When will we get the pics?

saintmotelband5 karma

Which ones?

bender9272 karma

If you had to recommend one track to people who don't know you, which would you choose and why?

saintmotelband7 karma

Aaron - At least I have nothing. Lyrically strong

Silver_Tuna_Tonight2 karma

if you could have dinner with anyone in the world who would it be? And what album would you put on in the background?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - Klaus Kinski. Mahler

Silver_Tuna_Tonight2 karma

if Saint Motel were a real Motel - what would the rooms look like??

saintmotelband5 karma

They would be 100% different from room to room. from jungle theme to space shuttle.

saintmotelband3 karma

Ritz Carlton presidential suite

Chloefields2 karma

What song took you the longest to write?

saintmotelband2 karma

Destroyer

VisforVeritas2 karma

I just missed you guys at the Varsity Theater :( Did you enjoy Minneapolis? Hopefully you'll come back through soon!

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - we had a blast!

jazzllanna2 karma

I love the album. I just wanted to say I personally find the songs very positive and fun. Do you plan on keeping your music going in this direction? Is this the sound of your band or do you think it is more of a reflection of your life at the moment?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - we hope to constantly evolve our sound

UrJustMyType1 karma

Hey guys! So excited to have you doing this im such a big fan. Whats your favorite place to visit on a tour or one place you've wanted to tour and never have?

Also so excited you guys are finally playing in Ft Lauderdale in Dec! Ive waited years to finally see yall. Any chance of hooking up your biggest fan in Florida with a M&G?

saintmotelband2 karma

Aaron - Gorman is quite exotic.

coffeeho961 karma

Any ideas for your next album? 🙏

saintmotelband6 karma

it's already recorded :) JK... no it is not.

ccwm1 karma

When will you guys release My Type and saintmotelevision on vinyl?

Shout out to Dax for being so nice after the show at weekend 2 at ACL. Didn't mean to interrupt your time with family but the security guy was about kick me out!

saintmotelband2 karma

My Type EP is already out on vinyl!!! and preorders are avail for saintmotelevision... and will ship in the near future ! vinyl is crazy to make, apparently! we can't wait to get a copy either : ) )

chgbfm1 karma

Hey guys, fairly new fan but have listened to your albums on repeat for a few months now. My favourite songs of yours are probably Puzzle Pieces, Ace in the Hole and Cold Cold Man.

Just wondering if there are any plans of Canadian dates soon? Would love to see you play near Toronto! Congrats on the new album, it's a fun listen.

saintmotelband4 karma

Aaron - oh we'll definitely be back, eh.