Interview with Super Mash Bros.
So who exactly are Super Mash Bros? Care to disclose any info that can’t already be found on myspace, etc.? Any hobbies, jobs etc.?
Nick: I am Nicolas Fenmore. I enjoy intraday stock trading, cooking, wine, and suits.
Dick: I am Dick Fink. I enjoy biking, naps, burritos, and cut-off jeans.
How did you each get into mashups and how long have you been doing it? How did you find each other?
Dick: I DJd parties with my friend in highschool and met Nick through some mutual friends.
Nick: I’m a classicaly trained musician and he’s a computer geek, and we got to talking at a party and realized the collaboration was perfect. We’ve been making mashups for around 4 years now.
Software? Hardware?
We use Ableton Live 7 to make the albums. When we play live we use two laptops running Traktor, for a total of 8 decks. We also use M-Audio X-Session Pro midi controllers.
What inspires you? What kind of music do you like? Favorite artists? Favorite mashup artists?
Nick: I’m inspired by Dick, and the lakers. My favorite DJ at the moment is probably AM but i’ve been listening to a lot of Laidback Luke since I got back from Miami. Those kids love their house music, haha.
Dick: I’m inspired by Nick, and unicorns. My favorite DJ(s) are probably Flosstradamus. I’ve been listening to a lot of Brian Eno…ambient stuff. We like every kind of music out there, from Alice Deejay to Mahler. Really, anything that you can play at a party and at least someone will turn around and go “No Way!”
Explain your process of mashing…where do you get ideas? How do you choose songs?
We always try and use clips that the average person would easily recognize; that is really important to us. We try and only use samples that are, or have been significantly popular. Once we find the clips that we like, we analyze which will go together best in terms of the keys of the two tracks and how far apart they are in bpm. Normally, we don’t like to stretch samples too far from their initial tempo/key. We really find all of our samples by raiding the iTunes’ of just about everyone we know.
From your track and album titles, I can see you guys value humor. Were you guys the class clowns at school?
Nick: Haha, I don’t know if we were the class clowns, per se, but definitely the kids having too much fun in school. As far as the titles go, we usually make them up the day we finish the album. Most of them are references to jokes we have with our friends.
What is playing live like? Do you prefer it?
Dick: Playing live is an absolute blast. We played at some colleges last spring and it was just out of control; we had so many people on stage at Gettysburg that it sunk into the grass. It can get a little bit hectic trying to DJ while people are grinding up on you and spilling drinks on your laptop, but its an occupational hazard. We definitely prefer playing out to sitting at home, even though Fenmore’s mom makes the best food ever.
How much time do you spend on your music? What are you doing in your free time?
Nick: We probably spend more time EQing and leveling our tracks than actually creating the mashes. Our first album was done in about 2 months while the second took a little while longer. We are both college students (UCLA/Lewis&Clark), so we’re pretty busy with schoolwork.
Favorite song you have made?
Nick: This Is Definitely Not The 405
Dick: Jaein Off On My Day Off
Tips for aspiring mashup artists? Or tips on how to get started?
Nick: Start out simple, don’t try and be too fancy with it. We find that often the most fun and danceable mashes are usually just an acapella over a looped instrumental. We always try and focus on the dance/fun factor before the technicals.
Dick: Also, think about how the tracks sound together. Just because you have an awesome instrumental and an awesome acapella doesn’t mean they’ll make an awesome mashup.
Plans for the future? Any goals? What can we look forward to?
Nick: We would really love to play coachella and do a nationwide college tour. That, and we’ll think about cranking out another album next year.
Album art for All About The Scrillions? When can we expect that?
Nick: We had a great concept but our photographer got yelled at by security at the place that we were shooting at and that’s the cause of the delay.
Dick: We’re working on it!
Can we expect longer albums as well?
We hope so!
Favorite pizza topping? Favorite candy? Favorite Color?
Nick: Extra Cheese. I say no to candy, gotta keep them pearly whites! Purple or gold, yeah I know… how predictable, right?
Dick: Bell peppers. Reeses peanutbutter cups or kitkats; tough call. Turquoise.
Any other comments? Shout outs?
Dick: Happy 14th David!
Nick: Hi, mom!
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