1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
Keeping busy playing tons of music! This is our second release this year and we went into the studio in April so have a few more in the bag that we're itching to finish up so we can continue to assault your ears. Trying to write some new material in between frequent gigging and we all have our other projects - Seth is the mastermind behind the breakbeat/funk/psych mashup Ghost Funk Orchestra, Josh heads up the dirgy and very heavy Sludge Judy, and Greg plays in garage punk outifts Lumps & Glass Slipper. Lots of projects always!
2.How would you describe the musical sound of the newer material?
Over the years we have become heavier, for sure. Definitely pushing hard on fuzz and loudness to try n rattle as many bones as possible. We are trying to keep things interesting, writing with weirdo chords and linking up for syncopated parts to really hit big. Some of the newest material is a little skronky, which should be really fun.
3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
It ranges - ostensibly, many of our songs are pulpy - Yuengling Malmsteen is about a haunted house for example - but a lot of them have underlying themes that relate more to mental health, stress, overwork, laziness, etc. With our next batch of recordings, some of these themes are more overt - one song to be released is obviously about the stresses of living with anxiety, one is about the state of the world, and then one is about pooping on tour. So you can't take all the levity out of it.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'The Mad Doctors'?
The idea of the band started as a big theatrical project - originally it was supposed to be like a surf rock Alice Cooper with crazed experiments and a big production. The idea was that we would do mad doctor experiments on stage and the name came from a favorite B-movie - The Mad Doctor of Blood Island. No big meaning, just a couple dudes that like shit movies.
5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Thankfully there have been a ton of great shows! Our LP release show for 'No Waves, Just Sharks' was easily one of the best. We had a packed out room full of friends and everyone was just going totally bananas. We had blow up sharks and people crowd surfing and the majority of the venue was a pit. And we played with three of our favorite bands here - The Royal They, Stuyedeyed, and Crazy Pills. It was totally amazing.
Our stage show is super high energy. There's a lot of thrashing around and headbanging, screaming and getting beer cans thrown at us. Tons of fun!
6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Totally - we're doing an east coast tour 11/8-11/18 soon to be announced. Our next Brooklyn shows are 10/6 at Brooklyn Bazaar for the split release with Heavy Traffic and 11/8 at Our Wicked Lady for our tour kickoff.
7.Currently the band is signed to 'King Pizza Records', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
King Pizza is our label - we started it to release our first LP Snake Oil Superscience when we couldn't find a label interested. Instead of just putting our our record, we decided to try to make it more of a thing. We had a bunch of friends who were making killer music but didn't have a support system so we created one. We really wanted to form a part of the scene here in Brooklyn that we felt was our home. So we work with new and up-and-coming bands to create an atmosphere where bands can play and put out a record and reach a new audience and feel like they have a big community to be apart of.
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your recordings by fans of underground music?
Fantastic! We have definitely had a lot of support in faraway places like Australia, Germany, Spain, Italy. Thankfully people have been really excited about us and diggin it and we're diggin that!
9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We are trying to figure out what the next steps are - trying to constantly figure out new ways to make great tunes. Our tastes change and we are always striving to keep writing interesting stuff. I think for the newest material, we are trying to write more vocal hooks and vocals for all three of us to sing, which is new for us. Definitely staying fuzzy and nasty but playing with some other elements to see how we can take it even further.
10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
We all kind of listen to different stuff so it ranges from modern hardcore to garage punk to sludge to Latin jazz. All of our friends are big influences on us, pushing us to write cooler and interesting stuff. The Royal They, Trampoline Team, Sun Voyager, Vamanos, Absolutely Not, Rat Hammer plus bigger bands like Red Fang, QOTSA, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. Tons of stuff.
11.What are some of your non musical interests?
We all love movies for sure. And we tend to eat a lot - seafood, Korean, burgers, wings. Pinball, video games, BBQing, swimming in the ocean. Sitting in a chair and drinking beers with buds.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for talking to us!
Keeping busy playing tons of music! This is our second release this year and we went into the studio in April so have a few more in the bag that we're itching to finish up so we can continue to assault your ears. Trying to write some new material in between frequent gigging and we all have our other projects - Seth is the mastermind behind the breakbeat/funk/psych mashup Ghost Funk Orchestra, Josh heads up the dirgy and very heavy Sludge Judy, and Greg plays in garage punk outifts Lumps & Glass Slipper. Lots of projects always!
2.How would you describe the musical sound of the newer material?
Over the years we have become heavier, for sure. Definitely pushing hard on fuzz and loudness to try n rattle as many bones as possible. We are trying to keep things interesting, writing with weirdo chords and linking up for syncopated parts to really hit big. Some of the newest material is a little skronky, which should be really fun.
3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
It ranges - ostensibly, many of our songs are pulpy - Yuengling Malmsteen is about a haunted house for example - but a lot of them have underlying themes that relate more to mental health, stress, overwork, laziness, etc. With our next batch of recordings, some of these themes are more overt - one song to be released is obviously about the stresses of living with anxiety, one is about the state of the world, and then one is about pooping on tour. So you can't take all the levity out of it.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'The Mad Doctors'?
The idea of the band started as a big theatrical project - originally it was supposed to be like a surf rock Alice Cooper with crazed experiments and a big production. The idea was that we would do mad doctor experiments on stage and the name came from a favorite B-movie - The Mad Doctor of Blood Island. No big meaning, just a couple dudes that like shit movies.
5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Thankfully there have been a ton of great shows! Our LP release show for 'No Waves, Just Sharks' was easily one of the best. We had a packed out room full of friends and everyone was just going totally bananas. We had blow up sharks and people crowd surfing and the majority of the venue was a pit. And we played with three of our favorite bands here - The Royal They, Stuyedeyed, and Crazy Pills. It was totally amazing.
Our stage show is super high energy. There's a lot of thrashing around and headbanging, screaming and getting beer cans thrown at us. Tons of fun!
6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Totally - we're doing an east coast tour 11/8-11/18 soon to be announced. Our next Brooklyn shows are 10/6 at Brooklyn Bazaar for the split release with Heavy Traffic and 11/8 at Our Wicked Lady for our tour kickoff.
7.Currently the band is signed to 'King Pizza Records', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
King Pizza is our label - we started it to release our first LP Snake Oil Superscience when we couldn't find a label interested. Instead of just putting our our record, we decided to try to make it more of a thing. We had a bunch of friends who were making killer music but didn't have a support system so we created one. We really wanted to form a part of the scene here in Brooklyn that we felt was our home. So we work with new and up-and-coming bands to create an atmosphere where bands can play and put out a record and reach a new audience and feel like they have a big community to be apart of.
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your recordings by fans of underground music?
Fantastic! We have definitely had a lot of support in faraway places like Australia, Germany, Spain, Italy. Thankfully people have been really excited about us and diggin it and we're diggin that!
9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We are trying to figure out what the next steps are - trying to constantly figure out new ways to make great tunes. Our tastes change and we are always striving to keep writing interesting stuff. I think for the newest material, we are trying to write more vocal hooks and vocals for all three of us to sing, which is new for us. Definitely staying fuzzy and nasty but playing with some other elements to see how we can take it even further.
10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
We all kind of listen to different stuff so it ranges from modern hardcore to garage punk to sludge to Latin jazz. All of our friends are big influences on us, pushing us to write cooler and interesting stuff. The Royal They, Trampoline Team, Sun Voyager, Vamanos, Absolutely Not, Rat Hammer plus bigger bands like Red Fang, QOTSA, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. Tons of stuff.
11.What are some of your non musical interests?
We all love movies for sure. And we tend to eat a lot - seafood, Korean, burgers, wings. Pinball, video games, BBQing, swimming in the ocean. Sitting in a chair and drinking beers with buds.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for talking to us!
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