Getting Tangled Up

Have you ever heard of matrimony rock? Me neither, until recently. Enter Austin's the Long Tangles, a band you need to hear/pay attention to. This is how the band formed, way back in January of 2010:

Earl and Courtney met on a sultry evening in New Orleans in a seedy bar. Neither one of them would have guessed that they would eventually form a rock band, especially by the way Courtney treated Earl with undeserved disdain. The Long Tangles formed in January of 2010 as a drums/keys/vox Indie Rock/Indie Pop/Matrimony Rock duo.

God had other plans for these guys! (Or Xenu, if you're so inclined). 

So I talked to Courtney of the Long Tangles recently about things to do if music doesn't work out, NOLA and SXSW. Also:  how precisely it was they came into being. read on!

UC: So what were you up to in New Orleans?

Courtney: We went to a friend’s wedding! We second line’d, ate a lot, danced a lot, and enjoyed the splendors of walking around the Quarter with Bloody Marys in hand. There was even some misbehaving with old friends (read: unsuccessfully trying to sneak into another wedding), but that’s how weddings go, I guess. It was glorious! Earl grew up in New Orleans and for the many years he was there was up to a great deal. I, on the other hand, moved to there as my first real act of being a legal adult and went to school. For awhile post-school we both lived together in a ridiculously full house, waited tables, livin’ the dream. There was a lot of po-boy eating and bike riding involved. Earl’s band (Amerigo) was pretty dang successful so he spent a lot of time rehearsing and playing while I spent a lot of time loading in and out. Being a band girlfriend is unglamorous.

well aren't they good-looking!

UC:  Explain how you formed as a band.

Courtney: Like I said, being band girlfriend is unglamorous and I wanted to load my own gear for awhile. Earl agreed that it seemed silly that we were living together and playing our own instruments but not together. At first we were afraid of stepping on each other’s toes and hurting feelings. We definitely did that, but then we learned how to work together as bandmates instead of as boyfriend/girlfriend. Earl and I have played together in at least three other bands over our long tenure of together-ness. Following the end (due to the other members moving away) of our previous band, The Heirs, we decided it was time to set up shop by ourselves. We took it on as a challenge with just two members to see if we could do it. I’m pretty pleased with the way we’ve done it, but we’re starting to incorporate other members. To not grow is to become stagnant, right?

UC: How would you describe your music to someone unfamiliar?

Courtney: Matrimony Rock/Indie Pop keys/drums duo. Typical responses - Oh! Mates of State! Oh! Quasi! Oh! Matt & Kim! We just say, “Yeah, like that.” We don’t take offense to being compared to bands we like. It just so happens that the set-up is similar and each band is in a different state of matrimony.

UC: What are your plans for the summer?

Courtney: Heavens. That’s a great question. I’d like to go swimming a lot and record another album. The pieces are falling in place and I’d like to play outside of Austin a little more. We got a request to play in Germany! We even received a translation dictionary in the mail to help us prepare. That was thrilling but it’s kind of a long drive. I was thinking more like San Antonio, Waco, Houston, New Orleans, and so on. I’d like the Euro tour to happen at some point, though!

UC:  You guys are a very good-looking band. Ever consider modeling?

HAHA! Wow, thanks! People get paid for that? If so, count me in. I used to tell Earl he should be a hand model. Being a chef ended that dream -- though, I do still think he has the handsomest hands around. Being 5’2” I don’t know how well I’d fare. I could model children’s clothing!  

So make sure to check out the Long Tangles, who are as sweet (well Courtney is!) as they are attractive and talented. Their most recent album, Finer Things, came out in October of 2011.