Chamomile Cafe is buzzing as I sit down and make myself comfortable, early. I get out my notes and questions as I tuck in to some pasta and an iced coffee. Before I know it, it's two in the afternoon and Malcolm and Kane walk through the door, waving over at me. I get up to hug them and sit back down as they order some tea - the British quintessential. We exchange some kind and genuine how are you's, how was your morning, what did you get up to, before getting into the real questions:
ME: Where did the name more* come from?
KANE (to Malcolm): I wanna hear you tell this story.
MALCOLM: We had been looking around for names for a while and it's a lot more difficult to come up with than you'd expect it too - now of course, you see names everywhere, like oh that's a good name. I have a list of names-
KANE: Let's see it.
MALCOLM: I can't - but Kane was looking over his girlfriend at the times shoulder and there was this 1968 movie poster called More. We tried to watch the film, but only got ten minutes into it. It was pretty poorly acted, but then we got the rights to the name.
KANE: We were shocked. At first we were More, without the Asterix, but we ran into the problem of not coming up when people searched for the word more. So we thought about how we could change it without changing the spelling. Now it's kind of irrelevant, we could probably go without it.
MALCOLM: I don't mind it, it looks like a brand.
M: I obviously saw you perform as a beginning act for Yoke Lore. How did you get approached or book that?
K: When we came out here for this trip we partnered with Communion that do curating and setting up shows, so they've set up all the shows. I think Yoke Lore is with the company Everybody's and so that was assembled through those collaborators.
M: Did you enjoy doing the show?
K: Yeah, it was great.
M: How is your guitar?
M: I actually might fix it today. Oh man, I was thinking about it this morning.
M: In comparison to LA, how have you felt London has been in terms of the industry?
M: It feels much more open to the style of music we're making. People are creative in a way - for instance, Everybody's. They're attempting to help us pursue the exact creative path we want to take, we get very specific sometimes so it's nice people get it and it feels right.
K: For the most part, compared to LA, people are more concerned with the work and less the extra curricular stuff. It tends to be the other way around, where people are dealing with identities and aesthetics.
M: Do you feel its more creative here? How so, if so?
K: We definitely feel inspired here.
M: But it's more so personal.
K: London has very little in common with LA, we're creative anywhere we are but it particularly inspiring here with the change of pace.
M: To me, your music sounds like it has a mix of inspirations like seventies, indie, etc. who would you say is your biggest musical inspiration?
M: Innovating is typically the beacon, that's where our direction is going towards. We have specific loves and interest in music and film, a lot of which are shared, but I feel it's a lot more of a broad feeling.
K: I feel like we're more inspired by artist's careers. That will like inspire and contextualise what we're doing and where we're going. Having a sense of dealing with a body of work is most inspiring.
M: It tends to be more conceptual, what we like.
K: It takes so long to form so much of this stuff that you have to have a false sense of value or purpose.
M: How did you guys form more?
K: We met at a bar that I was going to frequently, and there was this guy who I would see there that essentially introduced me and Malcolm. He introduced him as his good friends younger brother and we missed each other a few times, we were working on solo music and Malcolm was new to town.
M: Can we look forward to any more music coming up soon or any other projects?
M: Always. We're in a writing period right now, attempting to find the constraints that will provide us with concepts for the next cycle. We don't know this in this contemporary sphere it's difficult to predict if you're going to release singles or EP's or an album. It's partly why we came to London, we wanted to work with people we probably couldn't in LA.
K: We find that we identify ourselves as artists that have differences with record to record period orientated artists. Instead of trying to manufacture the change, its better to change up the process, which is why we came here.
M: Why did you start making music, what drew it to you in the first place?
K: My dads a musician, so I was exposed to music and live music as soon as I could you know, leave the crib. My path was being a session musician like my dad was, which was just about tallying up as many records or sessions you could get, but within a little tiny bubble world that's become more irrelevant as times gone on. Once I met goals there, I realised I wasn't happy, so I just started doing music on my own, shortly after that I met Malcolm.
M: I grew up in Alabama. There's not a lot of opportunities for performing, so I started musical theatre but I never fitted in with the other kids. Eventually I found music but I wasn't confident enough to say oh I want to join a band. I wrote a few songs with a couple friends and then I went to architecture school and I loved it but I eventually realised there was a ceiling there. So I dropped out and moved out to LA and fell in love with music.
We ended up derailing and speaking about our first concerts, which led to me embarrassingly admitting that I saw McFly live when I was four. That enlightening conversation then further led to a conversation about MTV.
M: was MTV as good for new musicians as it was here?
M: Definitely. In Alabama we had one radio station that wasn't country that you could listen to. It was always Britney, Cristina, etc. But then my brother showed me MTV, and that was the firs time I saw Gorillaz.
K: Was it Clint Eastwood?
M: I think so. Everybody around me was a lame ass, I mean, I was going to church on Sundays, you know?
K: I discovered like all my music through that stuff.
M: I feel like I got most of my music love and inspiration from my parents. do you relate to that?
K: Yeah.
M: Do you have siblings?
M: I do, a younger sister.
M: I feel like she will probably have a lot of her inspiration from you. I got a lot of mine from my brother. Something interesting I read which was the things you listened to when you were eighteen to twenty are who you will listen to forever.
K: It sounds right. But we both have to expand, there are artists we have to avoid because we love them so much.
M: The Beatles.
M: Is there a particular message you want to communicate to fans or listeners with your music?
K: It's a good question because we've never really spoken about it but I think there is always a message, but I think there is one less by design and more an example of being courageously expressive.
M: Vulnerability. Like everyone, we speak about love. We attempt to get out of our own box often. I don't know if that's some sort of lesson we're trying to embark, maybe it's a bit narcissistic to be like 'I have something I can teach you'. The more specific you are, the more it relates.
M: Do you write from experiences or make up stories, characters?
K: I wish I knew how to do the second one. I don't know how to do that yet but I'd like to.
M: I think it is the same for both of us that a song is just a song it's not ultimately truth, you can maybe only write truth a couple times in your life.
K: I think when it comes to personal experiences, my favourite lyrics are microcosmic little things that are blown up to such a degree that its innately dishonest. David Bowie spoke about putting himself through tumultuous experiences but it burnt him out, and then he found a way to do it through the people around him.
M: I like to end on a couple of fun ones.
I went on to explain tarot cards and how when I write books, I link them to certain cards sometimes.
Do you have something like that?
K: That's such an interesting question. I love that question.
M: I put a lot of weight on peoples shoes.
K: Peoples shoes? Really?
M: I feel like you can define somebody, or their era. It tells you how feminine, masculine, comfortable they are, etc.
K: I never knew that about you. I think there is one, it seems like there are four kinds of sways I write. Four kinds of lyric, or song. They go into a folder in my head. I'm sure they're representative of how I digest stuff, my emotional digestion track. I wonder what formed those categories, but I do have a sense they exist.
M: I have a better answer than shoes. Architecture is the same exact process as writing a new song. It's designing a space. It's the exact same. Why do I need to be contemporary? Can I add something historical?
M: What kind of film would you love your music to be in or think fits, can be pre existing or made up?
K: Oh man, that's also a great question. We were just watching social network last night and were reminded the score provides in that movie but I don't know that our music is particularly score like. But I also like a soundtrack to documentaries.
M: Documentaries are my answer. There was a time where I think there was a strong movement with sad singer songwriters in LA and I see those songs fit into a lot of film and television right now but I think we attempted to contrast that for some time, so for some reason I think our music would fit some 2005 romcom.
K: I love a good romcom.
M: Me too, I can hear our songs in Wedding Crashers. I would rather it not be that answer but it's the truth.
K: We wanna say something that's like arty and dark, but it would probably be something with Julia Roberts.
The rest of our meeting spiralled into conversations about London, my studies and Take That. We shared stories, smoked a bit, and had some very nice food. Malcolm and Kane are such kind, interesting people with unique, large personalities, of whom welcomed me into their arms as a young, arguably still new, person in this industry without any judgement or withholding. Their music is brilliant, and they are also great live, so if you have the chance, check them out whenever you can.
Comments