Russian Futurists' Slam Beard-Rock 'Bummer' Songs - Spinner

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Since Russian Futurists founder Matthew Adam Hart released his internationally acclaimed 2001 debut, 'The Method of New Love,' Canada has become a citadel of indie rock social scenes. But on the heels of his first full-length album in 5 years - 'The Weight's on the Wheels,' which skillfully mixes emotional prose with danceable beats - Hart is putting out a visit to his compatriots: lighten up!

"You've got all the beard-rock stuff right now in Canada," he gripes. "I get that you're upset, but you don't necessarily get to throw yourselves sound that way. A lot of my songs are depressing as hell, but as farsighted as you put it over something buoyant and poppy, it's not necessarily going to go like you're actually crying when you're singing." "I'm happy when people can join with the bummer side of the songs," Hart continues, "but I first need to join on the light side instead of just strumming guitar where it's so obvious and the whole tone of your call is down. There's so many bands that do that - especially in Canada. If you let something to say, and it's something that's not super positive, you don't get to make the actual musical component sound that way, too. First and foremost, I want listeners to say, 'Hey, that's a catchy song.'" Watch Russian Futurists Perform 'Register My Firearms? No Way!' Hart's pop-oriented artistic vision is now being enhanced by Grammy Award-winning producer Michael Brauer, who has previously worked with the likes of Coldplay and John Mayer. It may be a far cry from his early days recording music from the confines of his bedroom, but Hart is capitalizing on his development as a player and songwriter. "Ever since I did this book with a proper studio and a proper producer, I now recollect of the songs I do at home as demos, whereas before they were finished songs," says Hart. "I mean, it was large for a lot of years, but now I'm into having people hear what I'm saying. If you put all that sentence and movement into writing lyrics - you kill yourself over this - and no one can see what the f- you're saying anyway, [why trouble?] You might as well let people see the process you put in." The head of Brauer's influence on Russian Futurists has certainly come up, but despite what Hart considers an advance in good quality, the frontman assures fans that the show is exempt from any second party agenda. "Michael said right off the bat, 'I'm not hither to exchange your record, because if I view it was s-, I wouldn't be working with you,'" Hart says. "It's a harder job as a manufacturer to get someone come and have you a dreadful record, and it's your job to fix it."

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"I'm sure a lot of mass will say one album is better than the other - people that preferred me doing bedroom stuff all the time," Hart continues. "But then there's other people that have never heard of me that [might get a fan] because 'The Weight's on the Wheels' is a lot easier of a listen. "I only need to establish a good pop record; I never save a book with a mission statement, I hardly like making pop songs that aren't your average, regular, straight-up song."