Interview: Modern Chemistry’s Brendan the Navigator and thepaintingcompany branch off together

Think of indie-pop duo Modern Chemistry as an enormous oak tree. On its branches, there hang varying facets of their creativity, from pithy songwriting to silky production style. Nestled inside, lingering on their own branches, there lies two fresh buds: Brendan the Navigator (Brendan Hourican) and thepaintingcompany (Joe Zorzi). Collaborating separately, evidenced through a split single release, allows the pair to forage for their own inspirations, while also relying on one another, tangled and co-dependent.

Brendan the Navigator’s “Animal” soothes the skin, as thepaintingcompany’s “just a little off!” pummels the eardrums. Together, it’s a healthy dose of a heady musical elixir. “We’ve been making music together for a long time,” Zorzi reflects. When Hourican would send over “these amazing songs with his vocals already on them,” it “just didn’t make sense for me to take over singing them or for us to change the DNA of the band.” Instead, the band fractures apart, a decision that works brilliantly to uncover further depth to their work. Zorzi adds, “I am constantly writing new music and I just have hard drives filled with songs that I love and want to finish.”

A mixtape, featuring both tracks, is slated for later this year and will also include several other artists and musicians. Zorzi remains tight-lipped about who, yet the anticipation is already building. Considering how long they’ve been working together, it’s no surprise to hear Modern Chemistry’s work has expanded from being “excited that people were into our music and wanted to see us play” to realizing “that we could really create any kind of music we wanted,” says Zorzi. “If you listen back and hear our evolution, I think one of the most evident things is that the presentation feels more uniquely us.”

In our dual interview, Brendan the Navigator and thepaintingcompany dig deep into their respective singles, courage, getting stuck in your head, and AI.

When did it become clear you needed to write “Animal”?

Brendan the Navigator: Lately, it has been a goal of mine to try and write things that are gonna help me process life. I guess, that’s pretty standard for artists, but I’ve been really trying to get into that lately. This song started as a stream of consciousness about this thing I was going through. And ultimately ended up as a way to look at a situation with a certain honesty.

The song has a fluid nature to the melody. Did it always feel it needed to have this vibe?

Brendan the Navigator: The melody came from me playing the chord progression over and over and recording a freestyle of nonsense sounds over it. Sometimes that’s the best way to write for me. I like to try to turn my thinking brain off and just let something come out of my mouth. I guess that lends itself to having a fluid melody. And also goes along with the whole idea of being an animal. And not thinking too much.

“Animal” is such an interesting way to phrase the emotional core of the song. How did that image come to you?

Brendan the Navigator: I think that was a way for me to describe how I felt like I couldn’t control certain parts of myself. And maybe a way to forgive myself for not being able to do so.

Unrequited love is such a tough thing to overcome. Do you still harbor some of those feelings?

Brendan the Navigator: Of course. I think everyone does. I try my best not to “harbor” them, but they’re there. And speaking of forgiving myself for these feelings, I think that’s really what the song is about. It’s about letting yourself be okay with feeling things that you wouldn’t even want to say out loud.

What did you learn from this situation?

Brendan the Navigator: I’m not sure if I learned anything, but I hope it helped me be a little more honest with myself.

Do you find yourself more courageous now that you’ve written this song?

Brendan the Navigator: A little bit. I feel embarrassed and courageous all at the same time.

Why do you call yourself “pathetic and creepy” when talking about it?

Brendan the Navigator: I guess, this mainly comes from those first few lines about “watching your tv from the street.” It’s just a silly line that acts as a metaphor for how it makes me feel uneasy about how obsessive I can be.

What moment sparked “just a little off”?

thepaintingcompany: So, I was going through a bunch of random clips on my computer, and I stumbled upon a half-finished version of this song. I couldn’t stop listening to it. I honestly have no recollection of making the original clip. At the time I found it, there were a few other tracks I was already planning to put out. But I connected with this song so much, I knew I had to finish it and make it the first single.

How did you set about building what the song would sound like?

thepaintingcompany: So, I don’t really remember writing the initial bits of this track, but it already had such an anthemic vibe, and the rest just kind of fit in. It was really just about structuring it out and accentuating the vibe that was already there. I was feeling inspired by HAIM and MUNA, for sure.

The textures and experimentation after the two-minute mark really stand out. How did you arrive on that portion, in particular?

thepaintingcompany: Yeah, that went through a bunch of different iterations. I kind of wanted it to be a playground for me to get weird with sound design. I knew it needed some vocals, but I wanted them to feel different. So I did a bunch of weird stuff, reversing certain points. And then I had this ridiculously long and confusing drum solo that I really wanted to put in there, so it was just about balancing other sounds around it.

“What if I lost my cynical state of mind / Got a secret I’m traveling between lines” is a standout lyric. Was this a pretty easy write?

thepaintingcompany: I had the skeletons of a melody already laid out but it took me a little while to actually get the right lyrics. The verses are kind of a collage of thoughts, scrambling through my mind.

How often do you get stuck in your head? And is there anything you do to take yourself out of that state?

thepaintingcompany: Just in my day-to-day life, I’d say pretty often. It depends on what I’m focusing on, really. It usually helps to just get moving in one way or another. Sometimes, I’ll look at my to-do list and try to knock off a small task or two, and that can get me in a better space. Meditation is great, too. I’ve also tried to make it a point to be more purposeful about what I’m doing. With streaming services, TV, and music, it’s so easy to just throw something on and not pay attention to it. Or, look forever and never land on an actual choice. So, I’ll try to sit down with a plan. Like, “The National just released a new album. Let’s take 45 minutes and listen to this on good speakers with the lyrics in front of me.” There’s just so much room to passively listen or watch, and it just becomes noise. Making these more intentional decisions brings a bit of clarity.

With social media, not staying in the present (and instead obsessing over likes and RTs) is the state of things. Do you think we’re beyond the point of no return in regard to social media and online life?

thepaintingcompany: I’m not ready to give up on the world yet. I think we’re at a point where we need to get better at taking breaks from the internet and technology. I don’t think it needs to go away, but we’re so often stuck in these virtual worlds that we forget to look up and handle our day-to-day lives. I haven’t figured out the solution yet, but I’ll report back when I find the answer.

How do you feel about the recent surge of AI and tools like Chat GPT? Do you foresee AI taking the place of creative people?

thepaintingcompany: We’re about to see some huge changes in the world with AI. I don’t think it’ll take the place of creative people. But I do think it will change the way people work and eventually change the way we look at creativity and what “counts” when it comes to being an artist. There’s probably going to be a lot of good and a lot of bad. I don’t let it worry me too much as a musician, though. My main goals are always going to be getting better and making things I love.

Follow the duo on their socials: Twitter | Instagram