By Nicholas Jason Lopez
While 2020 served as a “pause button” on the music industry, 2021 has been all about pushing “play” once more, such is the case with The Static Age.
With a new LP on the way via SBAM Records and SAY-10 Records after a recent split release with label mates Love Equals Death, they’ve kept themselves quite busy.
The Music Bugle had the chance to speak with bassist Adam Meilleur about what they’ve been up to lately and more.
Music Bugle – How did you guys decide the band name?
Adam Meilleur – Well, it is a reference to the Misfits, but it’s not a tribute name. While the Misfits are a huge influence and one of my all-time favorites, we were drawn to the idea in the name and of course, we have our own interpretations about the meaning behind it. Andrew, our singer/guitarist, was a big proponent of the name and after tossing out other ideas, we decided to go with The Static Age.
Music Bugle – How would you describe your newest music?
Adam Meilleur – Hmm, well, it definitely has all the hallmarks of stuff we’ve done in the past, but we’re not resting on our laurels. There’s some more aggressive songs, alongside some more atmospheric stuff that we’ve never attempted prior and we also tried some new recording techniques. I’m excited about it and so is the rest of the band. Looking forward to birthing it into the world.
Music Bugle – What are three of your favorite all-time albums?
Adam Meilleur – Ha, I could go on and on about this question. Talking about my favorite records is one of my all-time favorite things to do. It never gets old. It is hard to give a top three, though. I do have a top 10, but I never put ’em in any kind of order, so the three that I’ll give you come from that group of 10, so here goes – the first is Minor Threat’s ‘Out Of Step.’ I could’ve been cheap and said the Complete Discography release, but that’s cheating. The second would be The Damned’s ‘Phantasmagoria.’ One of my all-time favorite bands and influences. Third would be The Cure’s ‘Pornography.’
Music Bugle – Who are you listening to right now, music-wise?
Adam Meilleur – The ‘South Of Heaven’ LP from Fotocrime has been a record in heavy rotation for me during the last year. It came out just as the pandemic hit and it’s been a record I have yet to tire of and it’s probably my favorite record of the past year, new or old. Other records that have been in heavy rotation have been ‘Badmotorfinger’ by Soundgarden, ‘Alphabetland’ by X, ‘The Complete Anthology’ by the Germs, ‘November Coming Fire’ by Samhain and a ton of John Carpenter. His ‘Lost Themes’ releases have been a real treat and ‘Lost Themes III’ was just released and it’s fantastic.
Music Bugle – How have you been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?
Adam Meilleur – Well, professionally, it’s been tough. I’m a cook and I was laid off pretty much at the start of it in early March of 2020. When I caught wind that I was likely to get laid off of work, anxiety really started to set in, so I had to make a daily schedule/ritual for myself. It worked, but I’m glad to be back at work with some semblance of “normalcy,” whatever the hell that is – (Laughs) – and even since being back, it’s been very up and down, but I’m glad where I work wasn’t shuttered permanently, ’cause a lot of places were unable to weather the storm and that’s a shame. Personally, I did my best with it. I’m not a social butterfly anyway, so that aspect of it was easy for me, but I did miss not readily being able to connect with band mates for a drink, or a practice. We did start practicing again in July, I think? However, even then, we were very Covid-cautious, so it probably wasn’t the great time or release that it could’ve been. I did my best to be creative musically. I started writing songs for a project I’m working on, so that was cathartic. I’m a heavy thinker, so having all the time to just “think about shit” started to take its toll. Like I mentioned earlier, I just did what I could to stay sane.
Music Bugle – What’s something that you wish happened more in today’s music industry?
Adam Meilleur – Well, I’m no expert on much when it comes to the music industry, but I’d love to see a more equitable approach when it comes to working relationships between bands, labels and streaming services. Bands, artists, etc., deserve more.
Music Bugle – Where do you go when you need an escape?
Adam Meilleur – I love biking and especially with the events of the past year, I spent a lot of time getting away on my bike listening to music or podcasts. I’m also a huge movie buff, another thing the last year has torched, but I enjoy nothing more than going to the movies. Movie theaters have always been a great escape for me since I was a child. The idea of movie theaters going the way of the Dodo is a hard pill to swallow.
Music Bugle – Away from music, what’s something that people might be surprised to know about the band?
Adam Meilleur – Hmm, Andrew currently pursuing his PhD might be the most surprising. Not to the people that know him, but definitely for people who might only know him for his work with music. That really might be the biggest thing. Everything else might seem small in comparison.
Music Bugle – Does social media help or hurt musicians?
Adam Meilleur – I think in the past year, it’s been a huge help. No question about that. That said, I started playing music and playing shows when our social media was heading to the local Kinkos – they’re FedEx stores now, right? – where we made our flyers, then set out on the town for the evening with a staple gun to plaster the town. That’s how you got your name out there. That and touring. Ya gotta be smart about both. It’s too easy to just sit at your keyboard and just because you have x amount of likes on a picture you recently posted, or have x amount of people who have indicated online that they’ll attend your show, doesn’t mean a whole hell of a lot. Don’t just be an internet band. I think I appreciated the music scene I was a part of more cause I literally had to put in the keg work. I’m nostalgic for how it was – (laughs) – but I just think you need balance. Like everything in life.
Music Bugle – If you had to pick your own theme song, what would it be?
Adam Meilleur – “Nervous Breakdown” by Black Flag.
*Photo Credit – Dan Lambert*
