Bursting with heart and stamina, five-piece power-poppers The Susan Constant seem to blend everything great about the 80’s/90’s alternative rock canon into unbelievably catchy three-minute sonic missiles. Making liberal use of clean guitar leads sprinkled with keys and synthed-up accents, as well as lead singer Paul Sennott’s prodigious voice, The Susan Constant may just inspire you to toss out your old REM and Smashing Pumpkins albums to make room for Rayonnement, their debut LP and Shapes, their recently-released EP (don’t actually throw those out, but put The Susan Constant right next to them). TSC has spread their influence far from Boston, from the festivities of Austin and SXSW, to the hobbit-and-Gollum-filled hills of New Zealand (right? Those things are there, right?), but they always enjoy rocking out in their hometown. Up next in our three-part preview of August 23rd’s show at the Middle East Downstairs, The Susan Constant.
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What was the inspiration behind naming your band after a colonial ship? I’m tempted to quote Anchorman and refer to “old, old wooden ships,” but I’ll restrain myself.
Paul: Restraint duly noted…I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for the title of British Sea Power’s first record, The Decline of British Sea Power. When our former bass player and I were batting around ideas for the name of a new project, which eventually became this band, I suggested we focus on that nautical idea. Later, he was poking around online and saw an article about a ship named The Susan Constant. He figured it was the name of the captain’s wife or something. Turns out, her name was not Susan! Intrigue! And our band name was settled.
Ever get worried that a lot of your fanbase will be made up of colonial history buffs? I spent some time Googling the name and the Wikipedia for the ship has a link to your website.
Emily: Sometimes I have these nightmares where the whole crowd is wearing those tricorner hats and no one can see and everyone keeps getting poked in the eyes by the corners- but other than that I don’t worry too much about it.
OK, now that I’m done asking dumbass questions about your name, how did you all go about forming the band? Were you all from around Boston or did you happen to sort of migrate here?
Jim: Jason and Brian grew up together. The rest of us basically met at college in Worcester and have been playing in different bands together for almost a decade. Emily migrated to Boston from Arizona and joined in on the fun earlier this year after our original bassist Mark had a baby and became a responsible adult.
What were your favorite records/bands to listen to when you started playing?
Emily: I started playing classical music when I was 8 and at that time in my life I had the privilege of sharing a wall with my older sister. So I got to listen to whatever music she wanted to blare from her radio – a lot of Spice Girls, Hanson. Oh she was really into Silverchair for a while so I know a few of their albums. I didn’t really have a chance to listen to my own music until she moved out….years later.
Jim: If I had to name specific records, I’d say Toad The Wet Sprocket Fear and REM’s Automatic For The People were my go-to albums when I started playing music – these turned into The Dismemberment Plan’s Emergency & I and Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity in college. In general, I would say the musical tastes of our youth ran the gamut from ska/punk, to metal, to pop, to emo, to showtunes. Wait, never mind on the showtunes. That being said, we’ve always had an appreciation for Tom Petty, Elliott Smith, Morrissey, Rick Astley, and other really stellar, timeless songwriters.
I was a newbie to the Rock N’ Roll Rumble this year, but you all are alums from last years. What was your experience at the Rumble like? How do you feel it represents Boston’s music community as a whole?
Paul: It was the best, the absolute best. And it can be credited with launching a ton of friendships with other bands and it certainly helped expose us to new fans. Anngelle Wood should be given the Nobel Peace Prize for uniting the local rock scene for three weeks each year.
Your first big release was Rayonnement, a full length LP. Why did you go this route instead of releasing an EP or two first?
Jim: I think mostly it was because the last couple projects we were each involved with had gone the EP-only-route, and we were stoked to have the material and the time to do a full length. Also, we figured it would take more than five songs to pull off a title like Rayonnement.
Just from listening to your LP and EP, I hear a lot of original alternative in it (REM) but also just some straightforward, 80s-90s pop rock influences (Goo Goo Dolls, etc.). What do you think drove your sound in this direction?
Paul: Thanks for the REM comparison! We’ve always been fans and we definitely do fall into that straight ahead rock-pop realm. Because you mentioned Goo Goo Dolls, though, we can’t be friends anymore. Sorry. (Paul then attacked me with a baseball bat).
What has the biggest moment for the band been? (show, radio play, etc.)
Jim: We sold out our EP release show in January, but playing SXSW this year has got to top the list. We had the unbelievable experience of opening up the first night of The Outlaw Roadshow to a packed house, and then got to hang out and listen to some ridiculous bands from across the country AND eat cupcakes with Adam Duritz and Ryan Spaulding. Spending a few days in Austin as a band was also a great bonding experience.
What was it like to get radio time overseas, and to have your music stretching that far out of the country?
Emily: It’s always cool to know that someone somewhere in a different country is listening to your stuff. We just hope no one is holding out for the world tour.
Describe the oddest show you’ve ever played, be it in Boston or anywhere else.
Jim: We once played a show at a teen center in New Hampshire. There were a few kids who seemed to be into our set, but EVERYONE flipped their shit for the group of 10 year olds doing Blink 182 covers who were on after us.
What’s the most random/strangest subject you’ve written lyrics about for one of your songs?
Paul: “Tennessee” off of the Shapes EP, is a fictional musing about a guy and a girl on a road trip to a mutual friend’s funeral. During the trip, the guy tries to start a romantic relationship with his travel companion.
What does the rest of 2013 hold for you guys?
Emily: We’re currently working on a video for “Midwestern You” with Kevin James, who also did our video for “Locked Up”. We have a few really fun shows lined up too! Other than that we’ll get back into writing mode and start thinking about our next record.
If you had to pick one annoying movie character to have with you on a desert island, and you had to pick one, who would you choose? I would pick Jar Jar Binks just so I could have the pleasure of killing him, but that’s just me.
Jim: Great question! It’d have to be Brandt from The Big Lebowski. That way, every time one of us suggested a new way to get off the island he could reply, “That had not occurred to us, dude.”
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Not sure why I even need to say this anymore, but you should probably go to the Middle East Downstairs on Friday, August 23rd, to see The Field Effect, The Susan Constant, The Deep North, and Velah. Check out The Susan Constant’s releases, Rayonnement and Shapes, and stay tuned for the final installment of our preview!