Crumb Trails on Memory Lane
Juliyen Davis — Tell me about the process of making the album. I know on this album you used Silly Putty and in the past you’ve used a condom to get the sounds you were after. Are you in the studio and there just happens to be Silly Putty in these moments, or are you guys pulling up with a box of crafts to every recording session?
Bri Aronow — Sometimes it's just playing around in the studio. It's hard to pinpoint a clear intention.
Lilia Ramani — I feel like we always get into shenanigans.
What do you hope people feel listening to the album? What do you think about when you listen to it?
LR — The songs in this album give me a warm feeling — it’s upbeat, energetic, light, and not so heady. Maybe that was an intention going in, but who knows? Even if you go in with an intention, how it comes out can be different from how you perceive it and how people process it.
BA — I definitely feel like from the beginning, this was an outdoor album — green and vibrant — as opposed to Ice Melt, which is a pandemic album and much more inside and closed off in a dark room vibes.
A few moments from past tours made their way into the album. What are your favorite memories from past tours?
LR — Just the fact that we've been on tour for so much of our twenties, it makes its way into the music. But this album specifically, three of the singles were Crumb tour lore, “Crushxd”, “The Bug” and “(Alone in) Brussels”.
BA — And it’s funny because “Crushxd” and “The Bug” are seedy and gross moments from touring.
LR — But there's such extreme highs and extreme lows on tour, it makes sense that a song would come out of those emotions.
BA — “The Bug” and “Crushxd” specifically have been around for a really long time. They were really written, or we had attempted to record them, for Jinx and Ice Melt. There’s something about coming to peace with these darker early touring moments. It really feels like we're passing it on in some kind of graduation, or turning a chapter.
You were inspired while on tour but you recorded the songs obviously when you got back and could get into a studio. How do you hold onto those emotions and those moments when you come back together and hit record so long after? Do you try to recapture it or do you embrace how you’re feeling in that moment of reflection?
BA — There's something that's preserved from the moment for sure. Even for a live set, we play songs from 2016 through now. There’s something about those that’s stuck in the past.
How do you feel getting ready for another tour soon?
LR — We haven't done a tour directly after putting out an album before, which is exciting because we'll be propelled immediately into playing the thing live. But I feel like our past two European tours have had a lot of bad luck, so honestly I'm cautiously excited. We've never toured there in the summer, so that'll make it fun.
BA — Yeah, this one's a little different because we're playing a lot of festivals outside.
How do you find comfort while on tour?
BA — It's nice to have a day off to chill in the park, be outside, and eat some good food. I like a good bowl of soup.
Do you have a go-to gas station order while on tour?
BA — Gas stations in Texas are wild.
LR — Yeah, have you ever been to Buc-ee’s? They're only in Texas. They're like malls and they have everything. Also, we dipped our toes into Taco Bell last tour, which was a first for me. I was really anti Taco Bell but if you have to choose between McDonald's and Taco Bell, sometimes Taco Bell wins.
Summer break was my favorite time growing up and this album brought me back there. And in a way this is another one you guys don’t get off, but how would you spend it if you did? Did you have a favorite summer break activity growing up?
LR — I was never a camp person. I hated camp. I would go for a week and then call my mom asking her to pick me up. I went to a Christian music camp once that was particularly crazy. I think that scared me off for good. But I don't know what I was doing. I was just in the city.
BA — I also hated camp. Honestly, I liked being outside, just swimming and hiking and that kind of thing. Now I love going to the beach, sitting in parks and walking around the city.
You both grew up in NY, right? Were ice cream trucks a thing there?
LR — They definitely used to be way more prevalent, but they're still around.
What was your order?
BA — Choco Taco.
LR — I would do a vanilla cone, no sprinkles.
Is there anything you’re longing for?
LR — I want to unplug from the city and be in nature and not on my phone and see what that does to my brain. I haven't left the city in a while.
BA — Lila wrote about craving home and stability and connection for the album. That was a thread that a bunch of us were feeling and have been manifesting the last few years. We are much more secure in our homes and ourselves than we were a few years ago. This is the first winter in a while where I've been in the city. Something about it feels really nice because I've been wanting to be in one place for a long time, but now it feels like it’d be nice to step away.
I love the “AMAMA” video, it feels like such a special moment. Did your grandma get a chance to see it?
LR — My aunt said that she was gonna play it for her, but I need to follow up on that. She’s in her 90s, lives in Malaysia and has pretty bad dementia — she kind of lives life on a loop in her own world. It’s kind of funny that she became the center of the album and she's not even aware, but it also makes perfect sense.
My grandpa's got Alzheimer's. It’s tough.
LR — It's crazy though because songs are some of the only things she remembers. She still randomly sings songs from her childhood.
It makes me think of how certain smells bring up memories no matter how deep they're buried. It’s kind of magical how music just sticks with you.
I was looking at the album artwork. Is it a quilt?
LR — It's loosely inspired by these Afghan handmade rugs that Abe, our creative director, and I have always been fans of. They tell stories and folklore. And I guess this was the album version of that.
