Chris Motionless Talks: A Decade’s Worth Of Motionless In White
As we close the chapter on another decade’s worth of music, let’s circle back to the pivotal years of 2010. A new era blanketed over the scene, delivering a handful of fresh Metalcore bands who’s debut albums would send them into a stratosphere of success, including that of Pennsylvania’s finest Motionless In White.
Offering their 2010 Creature’s, their sound mirrored the demands of the scene but their outrageously dark/gothic style style evidently set them aside and opened a gateway for outcasts of society to find solace in their unusual aesthetic.
Paying forward their talents into four more astonishing albums, we reach them at the end of the decade with their fifth studio album ‘Disguise.’ Now, shedding long swoopy hair locks and tight band shirts, they’ve become a refined powerhouse of musicians who are about to take 2020 by storm.
Reflecting on the years before and what’s to come, Chris Motionless opens up.
Straight off the bat, we’ve been living in the ‘Disguise’ era for the past sixth months. You’re about to close this decade on this fifth album, what’s your personal feeling toward the album and fans reaction?
Chris: “Yeah this is definitely the best reaction I would say we’ve ever had with the record. Each record that’s come out has had its own version of criticism and praise, we’ve tried to learn from the criticism and interpret opinions. With this record, the main focus was the lyrics and I definitely think the reaction was been the greatest we’ve seen. On this tour specifically, fans reactions are ten times greater to the newer stuff than they have been with the older stuff. It’s cool to play old songs and have fans not have to wait for the old songs, it makes us feel like we’re not as tethered to have to play the old stuff. “
“It does seem like more and more people are starting to feel okay with expressing themselves in a world that’s becoming more expressive.”
Speaking of that actually, I know with this album there’s a few callbacks to the 'Creature' days. With today’s industry being so saturated, do you feel pressured to still have to fit into the “Motionless In White mold” of your old sound, lest not to upset fans? Chris: “We’ve certainly had a career of upsetting fans in some fun ways, but somehow for every record that comes out we always gain more happy fans. We put out a record in 2012 where I’m pretty sure we lost 50% of our fan base because of how different the record was but then we gained a different 50% of new fans. It’s cool to see people liking us doing more experimental stuff, but we do pay attention to the fan base a lot and we want to make them happy as well as ourselves. There lies 'Undead Ahead 2', a callback to those 'Creature' days along with the artwork resembling the similar 'Creature' artwork. It’s all a nod to those days that we’re not ashamed of in anyway.”
I want to jump onto another note for a second, today is Friday the 13th so I feel it most appropriate to ask this. If you had a murder song, what would it be?
Chris: “Wow, that’s a really good question. I’ve actually really enjoyed the moments in horror movies or thrillers where there’s a killer killing to classical music or orchestral music. Let’s go with 'Moonlight Sonato' that would be an awesome song to just slice someone.”
"That blue tick mark buys you such a greater reach because people want to listen to you, so why shouldn’t you use that for something positive?”
On the topic of all things spooky, your style has been an iconic staple in your career and in the scene. But as we step into another decade of mainstream culture, Emo and Goth has become mainstream. Do you think it’s become easy for people like you and your fans to dress the way you do? Chris: “Within the alternative realm there is more acceptance but still in the outside world there’s still a lot of resistance. When your mind is closed off to alternative lifestyles because your so engrained in your life of normality, I think that’s when it’s a problem and you need to work on it. But it does seem like more and more people are starting to feel okay with expressing themselves in a world that’s becoming more expressive. I don’t feel like I’m gonna walk down the street anymore and get called the F Slur, as much as I used to.”
Touching on the outside world, recently the UK had its own general election and it seems like music and politics go hand in hand. As someone who’s been vocal about ongoing issues in their own country on tracks like ‘America’, do you think it’s important for bands to be vocal about politics or does that open a gateway for bands to piggyback on “the politics trend?” Chris: “(speaking about piggy backing politics) That’s why we’ve never taken it further than one or two moments or songs because I don’t ever want to go down that wormhole. We’re more about global issues of so much variation and politics is one of those global issues. Musicians, artist, celebrities can reach such a wider range of people and in my opinion, I think there’s a responsibility on people who have a greater vocal reach to say something that can help affect our world in a greater way, from veganism and environmental help to politics. That blue tick mark buys you such a greater reach because people want to listen to you, so why shouldn’t you use that for something positive?”
Rounding off now, you released your first album in 2010 and launched into a decade’s worth of success. Releasing hit after hit after hit, do you struggle at all to connect the same way you used to with writing and making music? Chris: “It’s a good question because I was actually thinking about this the other day and I was like “wow, what the hell am I gonna write about on the next record?” But we speak about personal experiences, global observations, there’s so many things that are relevant to our existence that as long as people don’t get tired of hearing about those things that are time relevant then I guess we’ll always have something to write about. Two years I’m gonna feel different and be a different person than I am now so of course I’m going to write about that. We have longevity in what we chose to write about.”
You can listen to their latest album ‘Disguise’ on ITunes or Spotify.
Interview - Yasmine Summan
