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Dec 23, 2010 By Under the Radar Staff Artist Surveys 2010

For Under the Radar’s 8th annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to 2010. Pick up a copy of Under the Radar’s Year End issue for interviews with: The Antlers, Bon Iver, Caribou, Club 8, Delphic, Rose Elinor Dougall, Gayngs, Hot Chip, Lost in the Trees, Love is All, The Love Language, Mogwai, of Montreal, Okkervil River, Yoko Ono, Owen Pallett, Plants and Animals, Mark Ronson, Superchunk, Tame Impala, Vampire Weekend, Sharon Van Etten, and Vivian Girls. Here’s a survey from Kev Baird of Two Door Cinema Club

Top 10 Albums of 2010

Not really in any order…

Four Tet: There Is Love in You

The National: High Violet

Bad Veins: Bad Veins

Caribou: Swim

LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening

The Black Keys: Brothers

Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Blood Red Shoes: Fire Like This

Stars: The Five Ghosts

Wild Nothing: Gemini

What was the highlight of 2010 for either you personally or for the band?

We’ve been lucky enough to be part of a lot of very cool things, but I think our highlight definitely has to be releasing our debut record. It was kind of like we’d properly laid down our intent.

What was the low point of 2010 for you?

When someone threw beer over my favorite effects pedal.

What are your hopes and plans for 2011?

We’re going to be touring until about April/May. Before 2011 is over we want to have the next record finished and well on its way or finished in the studio.

What are your thoughts on President Obama’s job performance in the last year? Has your optimism, if you were an Obama supporter, waned?

After studying American Politics in school I probably should have taken more of an interest. I think from touring all over the world for the duration of his presidency I have lost a lot of touch. He seems to be doing all right yeah! Doing a better job than I could.

What are your thoughts on the Tea Party movement?

I think in essence they have a point. It’s not a new idea. I think their demands would be rather hard to achieve, though. In these kinds of circumstances I think there are more important things that people should be putting their energy into. There are contradictions in their argument. How can a state such as the United States reduce its enormous debt by lowering taxes that its citizens pay? In my opinion it’s “perfect world ideal-ology.”

With the Internet making every artist’s music potentially available to a wide audience, is it now easier to find listeners or more difficult because you have to compete with so many other musicians?

It is definitely easier. These days you can post things you’re listening to on MySpace or last.fm directly to your Facebook where all 1,000 of your friends who you don’t even know can listen to what you are listening to. You don’t have to be an established band to get fans. If you know how to work the socials to your advantage you’ll benefit.

Who would you rather listen to—a totally original musician whose compositions are groundbreaking but difficult to listen to or a musician whose songs are immediately enjoyable but derivative? Why?

The latter. Music shouldn’t be about what’s cool or not. I listen to music that I enjoy.

In the race to find new bands, are too many unworthy bands being hyped up by music blogs and websites? How are music fans supposed to filter through all these new bands being hyped?

Things have come into this new generation. People are finding the music for themselves and less and less listening to the stuff they are told to by the big institutions. It’s definitely the age of the independent blogger. There are definitely a lot of terrible bands doing reasonably well because of hype, but hype is a curse as well. Hype seems to lower the shelf life of bands, especially if it comes around before they release a record.

If your house was on fire, what would you grab as you were running out?

I unfortunately don’t have a house. I have a suitcase so if that goes on fire I’m fucked.

If you could relive one day of your life, which would it be?

The day I was born so I could start over.

What’s the strangest fan encounter you’ve ever had?

When a whole class of medical students in Paris grew moustaches because I had one.

If you had a bucket list, what would be the Top 4 things on that list?

1. Go to the carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

2. Get a platinum record.

3. Punch an A list celebrity in the face.

4. Sleep with an A list celebrity.

Who was your first love and do you still keep in touch with them?

Beer and daily.

Is there anything that most people are able to do that you can’t (such as drive a car, swim, ride a bike)?

Draw.

(www.twodoorcinemaclub.com)