Band of the Week: Motionless In White

Bringing a sense of theatre back to screamo, Pennsylvania sextet are putting the 'posi' into 'positively brutal'

Posted Monday, 8 November 2010 in

Motionless In White have only just released their debut album 'Creatures' but they're already making a serious name for themselves.

Blending huge choruses with vocalist Chris Motionless [note: this might not be his real name]'s trademark screams and some seriously chugga chugga guitar action - c'mon, everyone loves a bit of the chugga chugga - Motionless In White are one of the leading lights on the Fearless Records roster. And that's why we made them Band Of The Week. Because they are ace.

We've got some free tuneage for you to stream below via Soundcloud, and if you still remain to be convinced of their inherent mega-ness, check out this interview with Chris.
Motionless In White - 'London In Terror' by RockSoundMagazine
Introduce yourselves: who's in the band and what do you do?
"I'm Chris Motionless and I sing and scream. Angelo Parente plays drums, Ricky Horror playa Bass, TJ Bell and Ryan Sitkowski play guitar and Josh Balz plays keyboards."

When was your first gig and what was it like?
"Our first gig ever was when myself and Angelo started the band a long long time ago. We had a totally different lineup than we do now and we mixed originals and covers together in our set. We played at a carnival in our area that's obviously pretty family oriented and we were the only band with screaming so it was kind of funny to see peoples reactions to the music. However I guess it was good enough because we won't second place being that it was a battle of the bands. Not bad for a first show I guess."

Name three albums that made you want to be in a band...
"Bleeding Through - 'This Is Love This Is Murderous'
It Dies Today - 'Caitiff Choir'
Underoath - 'They're Only Chasing Safety'.
Bleeding Through has been my number one biggest influence and inspiration in music since the day I heard them and they changed my life."

When was the point you realised being in a band wasn't just something fun to do but a viable way to spend your life?
"When we started touring I realized more and more of how there's a lot more to being in a band that what you might think early on. When we signed to our first label Masquerade Records and went through all that stuff things changed even more and then signing to Fearless was even crazier. Being in a band is great but the more involved you are with money and contracts and touring... It seems like if you aren't ready for it... It could ruin your life. Fortunately for me we all wanted this bad enough to where its a pleasure to be doing this every day. If I didn't have this band I would be completely lost."

What's the furthest you'd go to promote your band?
"Hmmmm I've never been the crazy guy in the band to do stuff like that. I always believed in making sure you take the time to talk to your fans and let them know you're a real person and not some jerk-off rockstar who hides on their bus and hopefully they will see that you care about them and will hold on to your band for a while. Some of other guys in the band have done some pretty crazy things to spread the word though. They've walked around Warped Tour almost naked with a megaphone yelling our band name, they've also offered free kisses at the merch table if you bought stuff... we are definitely dedicated!"
Motionless In White - 'Abigail' by RockSoundMagazine
What's been your favourite moment so far in the band?
"Getting the email that said Bleeding Through was going to take us on tour. As I said earlier, they have been one of the only two bands (along with The Smiths) that have ever changed my life so drastically because of their music and shaped who I am today. My biggest goal throughout this bands existence was to tour with them and getting that email was beyond a dream come true. The tour was amazing and I got to sing with Brandon every night and just... wow. I was like a starstruck little fanboy for days."

How will you describe MIW to your grandchildren?
"I would tell them to watch the movie Edward Scissorhands. I feel like the emotions of our bands music identify with that movie a lot. Hence why I wrote the epic last song on our record about him. I think visual references work better than spoken word so having them check out that movie would be the best way I can think. Although I never plan on having kids! Ewwww! So I guess I'll never run into this problem."

How do you want people to feel during a MIW show?
"Alive. I want people to react and feel something they never felt before or feel like they've come to a place where they belong and it's cool for them to be themselves. That's what this band stands for and I want people to feel that in our music."

What's the biggest argument you've had as a band?
"Probably when we were in the studio recording 'Creatures'. We were under a LOT of stress with time. Shit just kept going wrong with the equipment we were using, and tensions were really high. When it came time to record guitars I was really picky as to what guitar tone I wanted and I spent an entire day with our producer picking out the tone and still wasn't pleased. The next day we went right back to it and that's when people were fed up with me and started flipping out. We had a HUGE argument during our lunch break but I still refused to let up since I knew that if we could achieve the tone I wanted then I KNEW everyone would be stoked on it. A few hours later we FINALLY got it and it turns out where everyone in the band and our producer ended up thanking me for putting up a fight because they all liked what I was going for the most. I was just glad that it had such a positive outcome - we got what we all wanted and didn't just settle."