Michael Van London

Media

“Frame By Frame” – The Scarlet Coast

Videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSPlQK85DI0

Music

PRESS

Frontiers Magazine 2012 “American Blood & Guts” Interview

Michael Van London is an LA-based, out singer/songwriter who has fronted his bands The Bombs and The Black Beverly Heels and has recently embarked on a solo career with the release of “American Blood & Guts.”. His music has been featured on MTV, made officially available in Rock Band, and he’s been spotlighted as Spotify’s “Artist of the Week”. I sat down with Michael over an exotic sampler platter at Nobu to recap the whirlwind 2012 was for him.

Frontiers: Michael it’s been quite a year for you. Tell me about some of the highlights.

MVL: Well I got most of my record in the movie “Struck By Lightning” directed by the fabulous Brian Dannelly and written by and starring Chris Colfer and featuring Rebel Wilson among an amazing cast. That was a really huge thing. I played the El Rey this year. That was a big deal for me.

Frontiers: How did the movie deal come about?

MVL: Until recently Brian and I were neighbors. Shortly after he signed on for the movie we were walking our dogs downtown and he asked to hear the new record I was working on. I told him I didn’t think my music would fit in with a Glee-type movie and he said that the story Chris wrote was a real departure from Glee. It was way more of a black comedy than any kind of Hollywood teen flick. So I gave him the unfinished demos of “American Blood & Guts” and he really liked them. He was really crazy about “Feel Love” and he used “Sound of An Amp” for the American trailer and “Downtown” for the European trailer.

Frontiers: And those songs are featured in their entirety in the film with “Sound of An Amp” extended to accommodate the crux of the film – which is highly unusual.

MVL: Is it?

Frontiers: Mary please. Most people just get a snippet buried in the mix of a party scene if they’re lucky.

MVL: Yeah, they were prominently featured which was pretty fantastic. “Feel Love” leads the film out through the credits. Plus I got a cameo as the janitor which was fun.

Frontiers: You also found yourself in the rare company of a handful of artists who were considered for an Oscar nomination this year. What was that like?

MVL: Well kind of a major let down but also kind of a gigantic personal validation. Like, wow, maybe I’m not crazy. I actually can do this.

Frontiers: You can play the game on their board.

MVL: Yeah. I actually got to that level somehow and I just never ever thought I would. When you see your name between Jon Bon Jovi and Norah Jones and Adele it’s hard to believe that it’s even real. I didn’t expect to win but I thought I had a chance to be nominated. God It would have been amazing to hear an orchestra play my songs but… well, maybe next year. I have two other films with Brian that I’m working on this year. This year my goal is to release another solo record and win that fucking Oscar!

Frontiers: Right on – good luck. So it’s no secret that the Internet has changed the playing field for musicians. Metallica fought it, others celebrate it. How do you approach the changing industry?

MVL: Bringing your fan base directly into what you’re doing is really important. I’ve had great response with contests – one to design my music download card I handed out at the Tribecca premiere and another to design the cover of the “Downtown” single. I love the winner – it was the old 70s’ kind of art where you’re drawn on the cover – like Air Supply or something

Frontiers: You’ve found people out there willing to loan you their talents rather than steal your product.

MVL: Absolutely. I did another contest where I asked my fans to submit a video for any of my songs from “Struck By Lightning.” The prize I offered was to be my date to the red carpet premiere of the film. The submissions I got were amazing, gorgeous and inspired – I was really blown away. I second-guessed myself when I was like ‘use your own resources to make me a video and if you win you can fund your own trip here’ – it took a lot of balls to do that and I thought ‘oh God I’m going to come across as an asshole’ but then I thought, I’m doing it because it’s a cool project to put out to your listeners and I wish somebody would have done that when I was twenty-one.

Frontiers: Yeah when I was twenty-one a “Make The Video” Contest was a 3-month million-dollar promotion on MTV.

MVL: Right. I wish there would have been a “Make The Video” contest to win a trip to the Grammys with the Bangles back then. I would have been like, “I’m winning this shit!”

Frontiers: What’s your Industry pet peeve?

MVL: Autotune. If you can’t sing, be a fucking doctor or something.

Frontiers: Well congratulations on a banner year. What’s on the horizon?

MVL: Well I’m working on a new record and writing songs for movies, I’m planning a west coast tour in the Fall and after that a month-long European tour.

Frontiers: Fantastic. Will the new record be in the same vein as “American Blood & Guts?”

MVL: No, no, no. You’ve got to keep changing. I’d like to do something totally different. I start thinking about album titles to help me create a vision and then I can write more cohesively under that umbrella.

Frontiers: Any title contenders?

MVL: Yeah, I’m thinking want to do a Rock & Roll record called Black Leather Jacket.

Frontiers: Well a black leather jacket is pretty much the icon of Rock & Roll. That and the Marshall amp.

MVL: Yep. Both are on my current album cover.

Frontiers: Good point Rockstar!

*See Michael Van London at the Redwood Bar (http://www.theredwoodbar.com/) on March 24th with Eric Himan.