Star Apps: Richard Edwards from Margot & the Nuclear So and So's
Margot & the Nuclear So and So's frontman Richard Edwards speaks like he sings, calmly and deliberately. The band, from Chicago and Indianapolis and named after a Wes Anderson character, has released its sixth album, "Sling Shot to Heaven." The 13 tranquil tracks are highlighted by Edward's soothing finger-picking and hypnotic, Chris Martin-esque vocals. I chatted with Richard Edwards about the new album, the "Lazy" single, social media, and his favorite apps.
Richard Edwards of Margot & the Nuclear So and So's
(Credit: Megan Connelly)
It's common knowledge that you named the band after the Gwyneth Paltrow character in "The Royal Tenenbaums." Are you still a major Wes Anderson fan?
That got talked about pretty early. I guess it's been a few years since I was super up-to-date. But I think seeing the movies as a kid was very striking, kinda like seeing Woody Allen for the first time when I was younger -- just being pounded over the head with a vision that probably just really appealed to the 19- or 20-year-old me. It probably does a little bit now, too, but I don't know how much.
Did you and co-founder and former member Andy Fry really meet at a pet store?
We actually made that up a long time ago. I think we actually started the band at a show. We had met going to shows and stuff and had the same friends. I think his friends had seen me perform around town and talked to him about it. He then heard recordings and got interested.
What is your current recording process?
I write the songs, and then I bring them in, and the band as a whole produces together.
There's a shot of the Golden Gate Bridge on the album cover, and the first track is called "Hello, San Francisco." What does San Francisco represent to you?
I don't profess to know a lot about it, but when you cross that bridge, it's instant happiness. That's what it represents to me, a point in the tour where you have this euphoria after crossing the bridge.
Sling Shot to Heaven pays tribute to the euphoria that touring San Francisco brings.
What inspired the album's first single, "Lazy"?
The song started about something else. I think I was writing about two couples that were arguing in a documentary I was watching, and that got to be a song, where it came off pretty enough that it made sense to rewrite the lyrics about something more personal. So I wrote about a couple going through a meltdown together, maybe depression, and using each other as life rafts to some degree.
Is that where the laziness comes in?
From my perception, they're just embodying what other people think they're doing. Maybe it looks like laziness to other people, but maybe there's more going on.
This video is both "Lazy" and animated:
"Lazy" (animated) from Richard Edwards on Vimeo.
Speaking of laziness, do you do your own social media or pawn it off on others?
I do, yeah. I guess sort of by necessity and sort of by trying to make a site that feels community-oriented, as personal as I can without it being creepy or something weird.
What are your top five mobile apps?
1. I mess around with writing screenplays, so I like Final Draft.
2. SoundCloud, I guess, for the music. I use it more as a selfish tool for my own stuff.
3. There's a TinyScan app that is great for scanning in receipts.
4. Hulu -- that's nice to watch Criterion movies on.
5. A split between WatchESPN and HBO Go, because being able to stream shows or basketball games, especially if you're traveling, is great.
Catch Margot & the Nuclear So and So's on tour.
