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Jan 22, 2015 Web Exclusive By Mark Redfern

For Under the Radar’s 12th annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to 2014. We asked them about their favorite albums of the year and their thoughts on various notable 2014 news stories involving either the music industry or world events, as well as some quirkier personal questions.

Check out our Best of 2014 print and digital issues for answers from alt-J, Camera Obscura, Chromeo, The Dears, Death From Above 1979, Deerhoof, The Drums, The Flaming Lips, Glass Animals, Hookworms, Sondre Lerche, of Montreal, Ought, Owen Pallett, The Rosebuds, Strand of Oaks, Teleman, Sharon Van Etten, The War on Drugs, Warpaint, Woman’s Hour, Wye Oak, Zola Jesus, and others.

Here are some answers from Anna Fox Rochinski of Quilt.

Top 10 Albums of 2014

Rather than ranking albums, here is a list of artists who released albums this year that I have really enjoyed, many of which we have met and played with during six months of touring, and those who I haven’t, I hope to cross paths with soon:

Weyes Blood, Kevin Morby, Daniel Bachman, Angel Olsen, Steve Gunn, Temples, Mac DeMarco, Mary Lattimore/Jeff Zeigler, The War on Drugs, Woods, La Luz, Morgan Delt, Doug Tuttle, St. Vincent, Ryley Walker, Connan Mockasin, Allah Las.

Singles:

Jessie J/Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj: “Bang Bang”

Shira: “Handlebars”

What are your hopes and plans for 2015?

We are hoping to release a new record!

U2’s new album was downloaded for free into millions of users’ iTunes accounts without their permission. Was it a wonderful gift to music fans or an invasive action that devalues music? Also, which artist, other than you, deserves to have their album automatically downloaded to half a billion people more than U2?

I’d like to see half a billion people end up with Moondog on their iPhones and see how that goes.

Did you take part in the ice bucket challenge? If not, why not? Grimes declined due to animal testing issues, was the grief she got for that deserved?

The fact that money was raised is always great, I just think it’s funny that people have to add this extra step that has nothing to do with anything. But it’s also just cute and comical, so whatever.

What’s your craziest theory for what happened to the missing Malaysian Air flight?

I don’t know, maybe Steven Spielberg has it in his backyard and is prepping a treatment as we speak, paying the passengers weekly stipends to keep them quiet. But probably not.

Mark Kozelek was criticized in 2014 for insulting his audience (calling them “hillbillies” for talking during his set) and for making fun of The War on Drugs when their sound bled over to the stage he was playing. What responsibility do performers have to be respectful of their audiences and fellow bands?

Whatever they feel like, really. The dude got attention, which is what he wanted. Would Jim Morrison have gone down in history if he hadn’t pulled his dick out? People love stunts and insults and pissing and yelling. If someone’s an asshole, someone’s gonna write about it and get some catchy soundbites and that’s what journalism feeds off of

“Weird Al” Yankovic was back in a big way this year. If he were to lampoon any one of your songs, which one would you want it to be? What would the “Weird Al” version’s lyrics be about?

I loved “Weird Al”‘s golden moment this summer. He is officially granted my blessing to do his version of any Quilt song. He rules.

What’s the most uplifting or heartwarming fan interaction you’ve ever had?

I signed a boob in Atlanta this spring.

What’s the topic no one asks you about in interviews that you wish they would? Conversely, if you could get journalists to stop asking you one question, which would it be?

Journalists ask the same questions over and over and over about Boston, our influences, art school, and “how we formed.” This information is so easy to find out beforehand. Pretty much any question that diverges from these topics is interesting to us.

Who from your youth (such as a former bully, an unrequited love) do you most hope pays attention to the fact that you’re now a successful musician?

Ren and Stimpy.

Which musician or celebrity did you most have a crush on as a child or teenager?

David Cassidy.

Which subject do you wish you paid more attention to in school?

History, for sure.

What was your first concert experience like (who did you see and who did you go with)?

New Year’s Eve, 1998, Aerosmith on their Nine Lives tour. I was in 6th grade and took my mom.

In 2024, as part of the Mars One program, four people might be sent to Mars with no hope of ever returning to Earth. Are they completely crazy or brave? Would you ever consider such a thing?

That’s awesome, they’re badasses. I wonder if it will really happen. Dude.

Which Golden Girls character are you most like?

I’m Rose, Shane is Blanche, John is Dorothy, and Keven is Sophia. For sure.

What advice would you give to a musician who is writing and recording a follow-up to a critically acclaimed and successful album in terms of dealing with the pressure and delivering an album that meets expectations?

Haha, I don’t know, just be yourself. Know what you need to work on and make better, but don’t get all insecure and do silly things because of it.

If you could travel through time, which historical event would you most like to alter the outcome of and why?

Haven’t you seen the classic Hollywood blockbuster The Butterfly Effect, starring Ashton Kutcher? We all learned that there’s no telling how shitty everything would be if one tiny detail in the past was altered.

What was your most disastrous haircut experience?

I haven’t had a proper haircut in ages, actually none of us really have…

Which unique location on Earth would you most like to perform in (for examples, the top of the Eiffel Tower or at the North Pole)?

Maybe an olive orchard in Greece, or Antarctica, where you have to be a scientist to live.

What out-of-date technology do you most miss?

The Mac Classic II, the Gigapet, landline phones.

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