Murder FM

Paint it black

Texan rockers Murder FM got more than they bargained for when they hit these shores for the first time. Music-News.com gets the lowdown (and an obligatory lick of paint) from singer and guitarist Norman Matthew ahead of their ultimate show at Camden’s Underworld

With black paint, duct tape, scissors and rope in their tour luggage, Murder FM had some explaining to do when they were held by customs on arrival to the UK. Not the best start for the Texan four-piece who had already encountered a flight cancellation, long delay and detour en route from the US. "It felt like we were going to get stopped," says frontman Norman Matthew, who is sporting lashings of black body paint ready for the show. "It was clear when we came off that plane we were foreigners. We call it in the States 'fresh off the farm'. 'Here they come', you know?"

And the band felt even more like strangers in town on opening night, which was their official UK debut. First stop was Nottingham where "everything that could go wrong did go wrong", all made worse by people regaling them with horror stories about the local area and its crime scene. "It was terrifying because everything was new to us," admits Matthew. "Everyone would scare us in every possible way. We were like: 'This is worse than where we’re from? Are you sure? Have you looked at us?'."

But the real shock came when the band took to the stage. Having garnered support from Scuzz TV and given their track Machine Gun Kisses to Rock Band 3, they were expecting to be known, but not to receive such an overwhelming reaction. "There's nothing tangible on our band yet," says Matthew, "so when we walked out on stage and started playing, the kids in the front are singing Machine Gun Kisses. We’re like: 'What the hell is going on?'." Every night the reaction got bigger and better, and Matthew couldn’t believe it. "We have been so lucky," he says. "We're so grateful."

Murder FM came together two years ago when producer Beau Hill (RATT, Alice Cooper) suggested rescuing a collection of songs Matthew had penned for former industrial group Never 3nough. "He’s legendary," says Matthew. "How do you say no?" So the EP Anthems for the Used was recorded. Matthew recruited bassist J6, guitarist Matt X3ro and drummer Brandon Arpin and they went on to tour with the likes of Korn, The Used and Dommin in the US.

When the chance to support The Defiled in the UK came about, Murder FM jumped at it. As one of their favourite bands, Matthew believes they also have a lot in common. "We like to think of ourselves as the American version of The Defiled," he says. "In this new era of music and this new music model, we both kind of roll the same way. We get out there and we do it ourselves, we don’t need anybody behind us. Even if it’s a little harder, it’s going to happen."

Indeed, it's happening already for Murder FM. They have "way too much material" and will put out an album on a new label in 2012. There are more US dates this year and a UK return is planned for as soon as January. "I came over here with no expectations and it has been amazing," says Matthew. "It’s just crazy to think that we haven’t been and there’s already that sort of reception."

But it seems not everyone’s convinced. "My mum always makes fun of us," says Matthew. "She came to one of our shows and we’re painting ourselves. She goes: 'You know if you just wrote better songs you wouldn't gave to do that.' She's hilarious."

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