Silversun Pickups: How a musical double date led to 'classy sh*t'

Voodoo 2009

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By Kaiya Morrison

When you think of partying into the wee hours of the night with rock stars, do you think of an after-hour dance party on a tour bus, jamming out to Prince? Yeah, didn't think so, but this is exactly the kind of thing you would expect to see from the members of Silversun Pickups.

"We actually get along pretty well," Chris Guanlao, drummer for SSP, said. "It helps that we've known each other for so long, so touring is more like us hanging out. If we didn't have Silversun we would still be hanging out at each other's houses and drinking. We don't really get into fights; we get into weird crazy party modes."

Best known for their two hit singles "Lazy Eye" and "Panic Switch," the saga of Silversun Pickups all began with roommates Brian Aubert (guitar, lead vocals) and Nikki Monninger (bass, vocals) in a California apartment.

"They started the band with their significant others and called the band A Couple of Couples," Guanlao recalled. "Brian was dating this girl who was the drummer, and we've all been friends for years, so I was just waiting in the wings because I kind of knew it was going to happen. So when they needed a drummer, it was just a natural progression for me to move in.

"Maybe six months later, Nikki was dating this guy who was the other guitar player. When they split up, we decided to get a keyboard player and someone who could get weird sound effects, so that's when Joe [Lester] jumped in," he added. "Once Joe came in, that really solidified the line up."

The band gained momentum after signing with Dangerbird Records and released its debut full-length album, Carnavas, in 2006.

"From the beginning they've been so supportive with us," Guanlao said about Dangerbird. "When we first signed to them no one knew who they were and no one knew who we were, so it's like we both grew up together."

Guanlao continued to explain that Dangerbird was incredibly supportive while the group was working on Swoon, their latest album released on April 15, 2009, even though they took two months off of touring to write the album from scratch.

"We really looked at the album as if we were making a film," he explained. "We had a first, second, and third act, but by no means is this a concept record. Whenever you're working in that mentality, it's going to end up sounding more cohesive."

Working their way back to a concept first presented on the EP Pikul, but removed from Carnavas, the Silversun Pickups decided to bring back the inclusion of strings on Swoon.

"We had a cello player on Pikul, and we used to have that for our live shows, too, but we decided to stray away from that with Carnavas and keep it just electric," Guanlao explained. "I remember from the very beginning Brian saying that we were going to use strings again, so very early on we knew we were going to include it.

"I don't think we ever realized how much strings we were going to use. It really classed our shit up," he added with a laugh.

Though not overpowering, Swoon does include a 16-piece string orchestra, which, as one can imagine, is something that has to be removed from the live show.

"Obviously we can't afford to bring a 16-piece orchestra with us on tour, but we take the key elements that are important to the songs and we manipulate it with guitars and the keyboard to make it sound like strings."

The Silversun Pickups will end their US tour at The Voodoo Experience on the first day of the festival, Friday, Oct. 30. They will play the Voodoo Stage in Le Ritual at 6:40 p.m.

"We've never been there or even played in New Orleans," Guanlao said when asked if they were looking forward to the festival. "We're going to have some time off, so hopefully we'll get a chance to hang out a little."

To learn more about the Silversun Pickups, visit online at silversunpickups.com.

Originally Published: Issue 821 - October 28, 2009

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