Interview: Mason Mercer

Mason Mercer is a musician from New York. With the release of his new album, God’s Creatures, set for June 9th, Mason is looking to have a jam-packed summer, and Legendary Kids Press was recently able to catch up with him about the release, his beginnings in music and his touring plans for the summer.
How would you describe your music to those who have never listened to your music before?
Hi, Clare!
My music sounds like Nelly Furtado meets Electric Wizard. It’s got a brooding aggression and violence, but is coated with a catchiness that feels like being outside on a nice day. I want it to be harsh enough that someone could skateboard to it or endearing enough that you could cook your friends/family a meal while listening! I have certain music that I listen to while cooking.
What made you want to get involved in music?
I originally wanted to try out music because all the “cool” kids I had went to elementary school with had later become popular locally by playing in bands. I wanted to be cool too, so when I was a freshman in high school, my best friend, Jordan, and I bought a cheap keyboard at a garage sale in our neighborhood. Eventually, all the kids in the neighborhood got together and started making terrible music together. Slowly, I learned how to play and have stuck with it ever since!
New York has a pretty strong music scene. How has it helped in your growth as an artist?
One word: balls.
In New York, no one really cares if you play music or not, so you really have to be willing to play for people who could care less, and still give it your all. Also, you have to be bold in your connection acquisitions. The more you assert yourself, the more results you will see.
A few of your songs were featured in Post-Game Ritual. How did it feel to have your music showcased in a short film?
Oddly enough, my music has been featured in a lot of short films. It’s become a thing that happens a few times each year. It’s weird because before I started playing music, I furiously wanted to be a movie director, so now that people ask to use my songs in short films, I feel like I’ve come full circle.
Post-Game Ritual was def my favourite short film my music has been involved in. The director and me really see eye-to-eye creatively and ironically enough, he actually appeared in my music video I’m releasing next week. I love that anyone would want to collaborate creatively on something and so I try to say yes as much as possible to things like this.
So if you are reading this and you have an idea of something creative we could do together, try me!
You’ll be releasing your new album, God’s Creatures, this June. What was the recording process like?
Recording God’s Creatures has been a blast. I record all my music in my bedroom and in the case of God’s Creatures that consisted of two different bedrooms that I lived in while recording.
My recording and writing are pretty synonymous, so they sort of move at the same rate and, for whatever reason, it moves pretty slow. I really enjoyed recording this one because I didn’t feel as rushed as I normally do. I’m getting better at forecasting how much time will be needed to finish a project, so I gave myself enough time to do this music as not to feel rushed. Creativity is sort of like going pee. Many conditions must be met before the pee can flow.
I’m very much influenced by the vibe when I’m playing music, so my room has slowly evolved into a shrine of creativity. Almost every inch of my room is covered in decorations of some sort, whether it be old action figures, or pictures of animals or runners, or fighters or art my friends have made. I like having candles and incense around the room too and, of course, I have the classic early 20s identifier-year round white Christmas lights strung up. I used to sleep in my closet to give [myself] more room in my room for my music, but I felt it took too much utility out of my room and in some way removed the soul from it. So I moved my bed back to my room and there is definitely a more warm feeling in there now.
My room is without a doubt my favorite place to be on earth - insert lyrics here from Weezer’s “In The Garage” or The Beach Boys “In My Room”. I feel like a ruler in his own personal kingdom in my room and am brave enough to experiment with creations that don’t ever have to meet the outside world. I like DIY recording for the same reason: complete control. I use one mic at a time and record one instrument at a time by myself. I mainly use this condenser mic I got off Craigslist for cheap. I don’t think you have to have the nicest equipment to make things sound nice at all. It’s all about learning how to make things sound nice. I even record on the built-in microphone on Apple headphones sometimes. I like the convenience they provide and the quality has interesting quirks.
Mason Mercer - Little Guy (Official Video) from Mason Mercer on Vimeo.
The atmosphere of recording helps me focus more on creativity. A new favorite technique I’ve employed on this release is recording samples on the voice memo recorder on my iPhone. In all of my travels, I hear cool noises that I want in my songs, so I record them on my phone and import them into samples later on. On God’s Creatures, you can hear noises from my crossing the line of a 10k, watching a building be destroyed by a wrecking ball, cooking corn grits and a wide assortment of animals I met in my travels (I love animals).
How would you say it differs from 2014′s Slobber?
God’s Creatures is different in that I wanted the songs to be more acoustic guitar-driven and guitar focused in general. I wanted the songs to not be so hectic and have a lot more breathing room. I wanted to focus on subtracting the unnecessary rather than filling every space. Simplicity was def a work hung as a mantra on this one.
As for the lyrics, I took a different approach. Through the year since Slobber, I would be inspired for a line or a lyric intermittently. I keep an ongoing journal/note hybrid on my phone and on my computer. I transcribed all these loose lyrics on there. Then, when the songs started coming together, I started grouping lyrics that had similar messages and vibes together into full songs. This way, every single line has a backstory and a meaning that is so much deeper than a contrived busting out of all the song lyrics in one sitting. This spaced out the lyric writing, so that it took place over a much longer period of time and thus was not rushed, and I always had words when I needed them. I actually had too many lyrics this time! I’m also really freaking happy with the lyrics this time.
Are there any tracks you’re especially excited for everyone to hear?
The song “Creation” is kind of what I always wanted this music project to sound like and the lyrics say stuff I’ve always wanted to say. It talks about the advantages and freedoms you are granted access to by being a weirdo/creative-minded person who doesn’t give a crap about fitting in the mould of society’s son.
Where do you find the inspiration for your lyrics?
If I need motivation or encouragement in a certain area, that usually is a likely suspect for future lyrical content. If I learn a lesson that I want to build a monument to so that I remember it and that others can learn the lesson too, it’s likely it’ll become a song.
In general, I want my songs to be uplifting because that’s what I respond to most in music that I listen to. I can fall in love with a song that I’m not crazy about musically if the lyrics are encouraging to me. In God’s Creatures specifically, I talk about a handful of things. During the writing of this album, I took on a personal goal: to train MMA enough to be able to win a fight. I learned a lot of lessons striving toward this goal - which I met, by the way - that have universal applications (see my song, “Little Guy”). I really have tried to focus on contentment and enjoying every moment for what it is and not always being starving for fame or success and appreciating the moment while still in the moment. So I wrote “A Lot Has Grown Since” about that. As stated before, the song “Creation” is about the advantages that I, and many others, enjoy by being a non-conforming creative and unusual person.
Last year, you toured extensively around Europe. What stood out to you about the experience?
The strange marriage between similarities and fife rented in culture, and how friendly people were. We played at this famous squat in Berlin, which was one of the mot interesting places I’ve been to in my life. I thought the freedom of travel from one country to another is eye-opening. Trying vegan “bangers and mash” in England, going to a secret forest dance party in the Netherlands, riding bikes and falling asleep in a garden and waking up covered in slugs in Paris.
Sorry, I answered this question from a point of nostalgia. It was an amazing experience.
Do you have any touring plans for the summer?
I am doing my first full US tour with my “youth-crew” band, Free At Last. I’m going to Asia too, but for travel. I’m not playing any shows there. I’ll be playing solo shows sporadically throughout the year in unrelated places, just depending on where I am spending my time at.
What do you want people to take from your music?
A lot of current music is so crisply produced that it feels like it never had to go through the birthing pains of being created and has existed since the beginning on time. I want my music to feel “made”. I want people to listen to it and understand that a human made this. This concept mirrors the message of my music, which is that you are the one who “makes” your life. Opportunities don’t scoop you up and take you without you asking them to. You have to create your opportunities, and your escape.
Any last words?
Keep fighting. Keep swinging. Don’t let them win!
God’s Creatures will be available for purchase June 9th. You can follow Mason on Facebook and Twitter.
