The Mire are a regular band of party animals.
Post metal songs are a lot like foreign art films; the shorter, the better. Brighton's up and coming face-melters, The Mire, get that. No ten-minute build-ups, no song titles that require a dictionary to understand, and no four minutes of feedback fillers. If these guys played indie rock, they'd be Minus the Bullsh**.
Instead of impressing their listeners with how impressed they might be with themselves (and, by all accounts, they deserve to be), The Mire writes dense, texturally overwhelming songs with a minimalist's restraint and a professor's ear for melody. I corresponded with vocalist and guitarist of The Mire Robin Urbino to find out a little more about this band of mysterious metalliers.
BS: As is the case with many progressive bands, post rock and metal groups often despise this categorization they are typically lumped under (I hope I'm not already on your shit list for using those bad words!). The connotations of the terms involved seem to speak to a sort of pretentious, overly indulgent approach to music that is almost immediately off-putting. I hear certain elements of the post metal sound in your style, but none of that fluff. Despite playing within a fairly unconventional genre you manage to create music that is oddly accessible.
RU: Thanks. I've heard a couple of other people also point out our apparent 'accessibility' and I guess this is down to the fact that we never really went into this project with traditional 'sludge' or 'post metal' in mind. Melodic elements are very important to us, just as important as the harder aspects of our sound. We certainly don't feel any responsibility to uphold the generic conventions of post metal, whatever they might be.
BS: Your new EP "Volume: II" has been out for little over a month; I must say, it is one sexy collection of songs. What has the response been like thus far?
RU: It's been surprising. As a small scale iTunes release I certainly wasn't expecting it to reach as many people as it has, let alone get reviewed by blogs and webzines already. Our label had messed us around for a long time and there was a point where we thought Volume: II would never see the light of day. The fact that it's finally out there and people are enjoying it is genuinely awesome.
BS: I noticed from a little research that you work as a studio engineer. Did you record or produce Volume: II?
RU: I recorded Volume: II at my home studio and I've been producing and engineering for the last few years. One of the cool things about self-producing is that you naturally have a lot of control over the sound of the record and you're free to experiment. It's not perfect, but I'm happy with how it turned out in the end. I'm just relieved that I can still listen to it now and not hate it. When you've heard your own songs hundreds of times in a studio, dismantled and in hundreds of different configurations, that's definitely a healthy sign.
BS: Is there any significance to the masks you guys wear? When I first saw your pictures I immediately thought of Animal Collective; needless to say you couldn't sound less like them (and that's a good thing). You're quite the mysterious bunch.
RU: The masks were a one shot thing, we're not like Mushroomhead or anything! The point was to have a photo where the band was totally anonymous. As an introductory image I think it highlights the fact that who we are is not really important, the music should tell you all you need to know about us.
BS: One of the elements of your sound that is most immediately striking is the heavy layering of acoustic guitar over abrasive distorted riffs. How does this translate to a live setting?
RU: Some of our songs are arranged slightly differently live but since most of the acoustic detail on Volume: II is usually an overdubbed variant of one of the main guitar parts, performing the songs live isn't a problem. When we can, we try and perform the songs as true to the record as possible. A good example would be last month when we opened a set with the first track on Volume: II which contains violin. Our guitarist Stan actually plays violin and he performed the part live.
Volume: II's leadoff track, "Shadows"
BS: Another point of interest that comes across very strongly in your music are your vocals. Most bands of your ilk put a minimal emphasis on this aspect of their sound, however, it materializes as driving force in The Mire's music. It boggles my mind that you can command your very different styles of vocalization with such ease. I would never think that someone with such a filthy bark (and I mean that only in the best way) could deliver such entrancing melodies.
RU: Thanks man. For me the vocals and music kind of go hand in hand. I can't really get a grip on a song until I've got some sort of vocal melody or rhythmic idea, that's usually how it works. The contrast between harsh and clean vocals has interested me for a while and I'm fascinated by vocalists who can do both in a way that sounds original and legitimate. Tyler Semrick-Palmateer of the now defunct Mare is probably my all time favourite; absolutely demonic harsh and jazz perfect clean vocals.
BS: Do you have any plans to tour in support of "Volume: II" and can we expect a full length any time remotely soon?
RU: We're planning to tour the UK in May and we'll be playing as many shows as we can during 2011 in both the UK and maybe Europe too. We're currently writing a full length and we're really exited about the new material so hopefully it won't be too long until we record it. Time will tell…
BS: Thank you for taking the time to answer my ever-wordy questions. Best wishes man.
RU: Thanks buddy, appreciate the support.
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To stream Volume: II in it's entirety and/or purchase it visit www.myspace.com/themireuk/music/albums/volume-ii-17240723
Man it's so sad to see a band which such talent and promise split up. I'm a new fan of the mire and I can't stop listening to their music. Thing is to they are so underrated man. Jesus! So underrated no one might even see this comment. Oh well.... Such is life I guess.
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