LA’s Silversun Pickups are already having a huge summer. Their single “Panic Switch” reached number 1 on the Billboard Rock Charts, and the band will be touring Europe before returning stateside to play the big summer festivals like Lollapalooza and All Points West in August.
We ran out of time to feature Silversun Pickups on the show before the season ended, but I still got a chance to ask lead singer Brian Aubert a few questions. Because my brain has little space left to come up with any thought-provoking questions about the indie-rocker’s influences and such, they’re all about pop culture. Let’s hope he’s got DVR and a subscription to Entertainment Weekly on the tour bus…
Q: Which of this summer’s blockbuster movies do you think have the best chance of being in your DVD collection one year from now, and which look like they will be considered torture in some circles?
Brian Aubert: Up and Drag Me To Hell have good chance of joining the collection. Anvil! The Story of Anvil is definitely gonna make it. Go see that movie. As far as torture, Terminator Salvation probably ranks as one of the most painful films I’ve seen in a bit, however, it does have an amazing Mystery Science Theater aspect to it which could be a funny late night with the right crowd. Yipes…
More questions and the video for “Panic Switch” after the jump.
Q: Being from LA and having toured the country, what is the worst or weirdest celebrity run-in you’ve ever had?
Brian Aubert: We’ve had a few of them. Generally they are really nice experiences. The weirdest one was years ago, before we had any albums out, the LA Times reported a celebrity sighting of Andy Dick going to see us at a club. It was more odd that the paper even knew who we were. Must’ve been a slow week…
Q: Because these days Hollywood is hell-bent on taking every beloved childhood toy, movie, book, and TV show and turning it in to a movie or remake, what’s one thing from growing up you’d like to save from ever being exploited?
Brian Aubert: I remember really loving the reruns of an anime show called Robotech. I really hope they don’t touch this. But who knows, look at Battlestar Gallactica…
Q: Who is one celebrity (current or washed up) you’d like to have join the band? (Let’s assume they all have some kind of musical talent.)
Brian Aubert: Hmmm. I think it would be quite fun to have Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem from The Muppet Show back us up for a few shows. Are they washed up? i think not…
Q: If we took the women from each of Bravo’s The Real Housewives franchises (Orange County, Atlanta, New York City, and New Jersey), put them in the Thunderdome and made them fight to the death, which city’s cast do you think would emerge victorious?
Brian Aubert: I have never seen any of these shows. I would assume Orange County could win it. They are more machine than woman…
My thanks to Brian for taking time out for us. For more from Silversun Pickups, check out their website. Swoon is in stores and on iTunes now. Watch the video for “Panic Switch” right here:
