SPARTA
_03.16.03
^{interview with paul hinojos}

You guys have been having some growing success. Has this had any effect?
No. I don't really look at it as any kind of success. We are just doing what we want to do. I think when you start thinking of yrself or yr band in a different way, then you are done when that starts happening

What do you think of the other bands on Sno-Core (Glassjaw/dredg/Hot Water Music)?
Actually we handpicked everything. We took over the whole tour planning. One of the things we wanted was have certain bands on the bill and bring the tour to our hometown in Texas(El Paso). We were really excited about that. I think it is a really diverse bill. You have dredg who is really experimental, who I believe steals the show every night. They are really awesome to see. Hot Water Music too, they are a great band. Then you have Glassjaw....and every band is really different. I think if people show up with an open mind it will be a really good show.

Is the opening act for Pearl Jam a dream come true or just a really good opportunity?
This is our second big arena tour. We took one with Weezer, and we think it is important to do tours like that because we can play shows like this (small venue) for years. People that show up for these shows know what to expect. But every once in a while you have to go out and play for people that wouldn't buy yr record or listen to yr band, and maybe you can turn them onto something new. That is why we took the Weezer tour and that is why we took Pearl Jam. To me it's a band that has been around for a long time with a lot of credibility and they've been doing things their way since day one. It is going to be a good tour and a different crowd for us. I think that's important.

Do you ever get tired of the questions/remarks about At the Drive-In?
I only get mad when the whole interview turns toward that because if you want to do an interview with At the Drive-In, then you missed the chance two years ago. I don't mind when you get one or two questions.

Are you still in contact with Omar and Cedric?
Yeah

Are you into The Mars Volta?
Definitely. I hung out with them about two months ago. Yeah we are friends. We were friends first, I've know them since we were little kids.

Do you ever think of a Sparta/The Mars Volta tour?
It is so hard to get two bands to tour anyways, and our schedules are always the opposite. We are here and they are the opposite side, when we are there they are here. Probably not, but you never know, maybe some festival we are both booked at.

Have you guys been making any new songs or material?
Yeah we actually have been. When we write our songs, everyone has their ideas and we record them onto this computer when its time to come together and make songs, everyone takes ideas from everyone else's ideas. That's the way we write. It is all equal power and equal say. It goes like a circle and keeps going till we come up with something.
We just recorded a song for a Jawbreaker compilation. A lot bands do it the same but maybe a little faster, but we totally went for a different version of it. We will probably start on a new record in November. We still have a lot of touring to do, its hard, the world is so big.

Does the same writing process go for lyrics too?
Yeah. Everyone has their notebooks and when its time for the lyrics we all just trade notebooks. It's a lot like William S. Burroughs cut and paste. It eventually funnels down to one thing.

Does it ever bother you that a lot of people don't catch the meaning in the abstract/deep lyrics?
No. It doesn't bother me. Because there can be a song that can speak to you in anyway and if that is how it is then that is how it is to you. There is no preset thing, that's how music should be. I have been listening to a lot of Sigur Ros and they don't even have lyrics, but I hear stuff and I can hear him saying something but I know he is not, but to me he is. I don't care if people don't get the lyrics, whatever they get out of it, that's what is cool.

Are there any other bands out there you would be interested in touring with?
We have been trying to tour with Team Sleep. But Chino's schedule is always crazy. We actually confirmed three weeks with them last year but at the last minute it was dropped. I just got the Team Sleep record too and it is really good.
But there are so many bands out there. I am more stoked though about where I am now. I'm really psyched about being out with these guys, this tour is really cool. Most tours you usually don't get to meet everyone till the end and by then its over. This tour we wanted to make it like one big family, so on the first day everyone got together and ate and hung out. So we all know each other by now.

What is with Texas pride?
I don't know...Texas is weird. Maybe it is something in the air. There is something there. For us we lived all the way to the west bordering Mexico. It is a unique place. It is really tough with lots of poverty. Seeing that everyday reminds you that you've got to work in order to get where you want. It's like you have got to fight for what you want. From there, no one cares about that city. But that's how all of Texas is.

Is there any specific theme to Wiretap Scars?
We had a hard time coming up with a title actually. The only thing we felt was that if felt like a lifespan of somebody. It had a birth, then up and down, then death. Tony our drummer did a thesis on Lebanon where he is from, and it was called ScarCity. So we wanted scar in it and eventually ended up with Wiretap Scars.
More than anything we all think backwards. So the meaning always comes later. To us Wiretap Scars means like this time of our life.

In the vocals I hear a Robert Smith Cure influence. Is this an influence and who are some others?
Yeah it is. There are so many from the four of us. Musically a lot of old rock like Zeppelin. Anything to drum and bass and electronic stuff. Every few years we get into something else. I always seem to be influenced by something new at the time.

What are some of yr favorite songs to play live?
We have been trying to play "Echodyne Harmonic" which requires a third piano. Last night in Columbia we finally did and it worked, so I am having fun with that cause it's new. There are a few songs that weren't on the album but only on the Japanese version, those will be on our own vinyl. So I'm looking forward to pulling out those songs.
From our regular set, the song I enjoy playing most is "Glasshouse Tarot," just because it has a lot of stuff in it.

Are you planning on any new singles or maybe a video for Air?
Yeah actually we did a video for Air. We did it ourselves. We have two DVDcameras and we took our footage and pieced it together ourselves. We took it to a friend who made it look better than just how we did it. We don't know if MTV will play it or anyone else, but it will be on our website if anyone is interested.

You guys have a mixed cultural background. What do you think of the war?
I think it's bullshit. We are not a political band, but it just seems like we have our hands in everyone else's business all the time. There is always an alterier motive such as oil. It is just obvious that nobody wants this, so I just hope nothing happens. It sucks that we can't really do anything, but only someone was supposedly elected is making the choice. It just makes me sad that is out of everyones hands. I just really hope nothing happens.

Any last words?
Its just been really fun. I hope the people that go to the shows have an open mind for all the bands. I hope they come early to see dredg especially. I think they are a really awesome band.

Thank you
Thank you

*sorry paul for not getting any good photos of you...being this is your interview*

(interview/photo: travis lawrence)