Interview: My Son the Doctor leave it all on the stage

My Son the Doctor has been performing and writing songs together for nearly a decade. Their commitment to the work and each other proves that the indie-rock band—forged by Brian Hemmert (vocals), Joel Kalow (guitar), Matt Nitzberg (bass), and John Mason (drums)—is not going anywhere. Only now releasing their debut album, Glamours, it has “taken us time to find our sound,” the band tells B-Sides & Badlands.

Across Glamours, the quartet zero in on earthquake-sized sounds that pulse inside the skull. Once you get used to their sonic touchpoints, the band’s aesthetic goes down smooth, like a blended caramel melting in your mouth. That’s not to say the 10 tracks don’t possess a fang-toothed bite, because they do. Songs like “Pink Banana” and “A Shonda” incisively cut into the skin and make you think and feel. Written over two years, the group tested the songs out during 50 dates of live shows to make sure they were on the right track.

“We hate when bands we like put filler tracks on albums, and we wanted to be 100 percent sure we could stand by every track,” the band shares. “If it takes an extra year to put out a good album, it’s worth waiting. It also takes time to queue the songs and prep for press and everything, which unfortunately pushes timelines back, too. LP 2 can hopefully happen faster!”

While we wait, Glamours is here to shake up the status quo. Zig-zagging across static musical lines, radiating an impressive rebelliousness, My Son the Doctor holds nothing back. They boldly forge their own path, leaning into reckless behavior and an understanding that all they have is now. “The album hopefully feels like the live shows where we honed the songs. By the end of that writing period, a few of the oldest songs we actually ended up cutting because they sounded like a different band. We all just turned 30, so you can probably hear our desperation to be liked, too. Is that too honest?”

It’s that honesty that makes the band a special one. Without it, Glamours would fade away into obscurity like the light vanishing over the horizon at dusk. As it stands, My Son the Doctor holds on for dear life as they create a unique space in the indie scene.

Below, the band discusses capturing the live show on their debut album and lessons learned.

They say you have your entire life to make your debut album. Do you feel like you’ve lived an entire life since you started this journey?

We write music fairly non-stop; it’s the best part of being a band. Most songs hit a point where we feel they aren’t interesting enough to complete, but every few weeks, we’ll finish something that feels worth playing at a show. We don’t love our early EPs, so we gave ourselves the authority to try out these new songs at shows over the past few years. The 10 songs on Glamours are just the ones that stuck. There’s a huge heap of discarded MySTD compost still stored on Google’s ether.

Is there a common thread that connects the album or do you find this to be various snapshots in a scrapbook?

There probably are threads, but none were intentional.

Listening to the album makes me feel like I’m watching your live show. Why was capturing that energy important for your first outing?

Capturing the energy is kind of the whole game. I don’t think anyone will ever accuse us of perfection. There’s a lot of forgettable music out there that’s played perfectly to a click track and quantized and tuned and all that.

Which song was the trickiest to come together?

We learned the term ‘demo-itis’ when recording ‘Barry Bonds.’ We had fallen in love with a demo version of the song and kept hitting our heads against the wall. Turns out, the demo version was worse, but we drove ourselves crazy just overanalyzing it.

Was there anything you had to change from your live show to the album?

We played it super similar to the live setup. It’s weird not all being in the same room, so we would huddle together before takes and slap each other.

What did you learn through making this album – about yourself and your artistry?

We learned that we have no idea which songs of ours are better than the others. Also – you get 3-4 good takes to record a song before you hit diminishing returns.

Do you find art meaning more today than it has ever been in the past?

Not really, to be honest.

What’s the toughest lesson you’ve learned over the years?

Oh man, they’re all tough. You have to be merciless with your own material – kill your babies. No one wants to hear your extended outro or fourth verse. MySTD believes in one grand rule: no songs should exceed 3:30.

Follow My Son the Doctor on their socials: Facebook | Instagram | Website