Insulinfunk Interview with Myk Porter of Swarm of Bats
by Matt DeBenedictis ~ November 24th, 2009. Filed under: Interview, Music.
Myk Porter, he’s been around the musical block, so to speak. He screamed his early years as the frontman for a Cleveland, Ohio hardcore band in the early ’90s, then in 1996 he formed the band Brandtson, a grit melding of hooks and DC infused indie rock. Brandtson did their time touring all over the world releasing five full lengths and two Eps, but then around 2007 after some tours opening for bands half their age and some grating van breakdowns the band went silent. No updates, no official word.
Soon after the silence Porter began putting up songs online of bedroom recordings under the moniker May This House Be Safe From Tigers. The dazzling pop of Brandtson was no where to be found. This was a lo-fi darkness wrapped ina blanket of Bauhaus. Earlier this year Swarm of Bats began to play, a band featuring all former members of Brandtson, sans drummer/vocalist Jared Jolley. We caught up with Porter via e-mail to get the scoop on the Bats,as well as find out if Brandtson is alive at all. Spoiler, no. But Swarm of Bats is breathing and sharpening its teeth.
I have to get this out of the way. It’s the elephant in the room so to say. But there were digital rumors and talk that a new Brandtson album was to happen last year. What happened? Is Brandston alive at this point?
Yeah, Turn Me On Dead Man. That album just never got past the demo stage. We really wanted to make it happen, but I think the fact that we couldn’t seem to get it together was evidence enough that Brandtson was finished. After 11 years I think it was just time to move on. Everyone was so worn out after our last year of touring in 2006, I remember we rolled back into town on a cold day in December, unloaded the van and went our separate ways for a couple months. We played our last show in February of ‘07 in Cleveland, and that was it. Brandtson was very consuming for all of us, I think because we loved doing it so much. There just comes a time when you look back and realize how much of life you missed in the last decade.
We never really planned on ending Brandtson or breaking up the band, it just kind of went out naturally. We’re still the same best friends as we ever were, and that’s what it was all about from the beginning anyway. I think it’s safe to say that Brandtson is a thing of the past.
Soon after Brandtson was no longer a band in a van your solo project May This House Be Safe From Tigers appeared. It was devoid of the pop and the flirting hooks of Brandtson, and pointed to the darker side of 80’s post punk, which you’ve always been known as a fan of. Was Tigers something you’ve always wanted to do?
MTHBSFT was a few things for me. It started as a few songs that were floating around in my head that I needed to get out. I had a lot of time on my hands since we weren’t touring and I was experimenting with recording on my computer. So it kind of evolved from there. I can’t say it was was something I’ve always wanted to do, it was just something that gave me an outlet to mess around with writing, recording, and video. Basically a creative outlet to keep me sane while I was getting used to not being on the road.
What is the Swarm of Bats?
Swarm of Bats is the real deal. An onslaught of sight and sound invading at least four of the five senses. Loud, noisy, raucous rock and roll with no respect for conventional norms. With no concern for album sales, downloads, critical acclaim or what anyone else thinks, Swarm of Bats is what it is because it IS. Love it or hate it, take it or leave it.
Swarm of Bats seems to be a visual band using lights and video live. Was that always planned to be a part of the band?
There wasn’t actually a lot planned about the band at all. The four of us (Matt, John, Adam and myself) got together because we all wanted to play again. More than anything we missed getting together every week and making music together. That and playing out on a Friday night. We wanted to do something raw and unpolished. Real and unfettered. The video stuff was an idea that came up and we thought we’d try it. We used to see a lot of that kind of thing back in the day, but don’t see much of it anymore. We thought it would be fun to incorporate another dimension to the live show. This band is a platform for all of us to explore all of our influences, all of our ideas. There’s nothing more satisfying than being in a band for all the right reasons, where creativity is the motivation.
Was it odd to look over and not see Jared [Jolley] behind the kit? You guys had written and played together for so long.
It’s definitely a little strange to not have Jared there. He was the only drummer I’d played with since like ‘96. He wasn’t really into being in a band and playing out live when we put Swarm together. He’s been working on some music of his own, so hopefully we’ll hear some of that soon. We’re all still such close friends, so it’s not that odd, just different.
Is a recording planned to surface beyond online listening?
Yes. We’ve recorded an 8 song ep called There is No Tomorrow, and are in the process of deciding how we’re going to release it. We hope to get it out on 12″ vinyl as well as a CD. We’ll either press it ourselves and sell it at shows and through the web, or we’ll team up with a small independent label.