Sherwood: Mike Leibovich Interview

We Talk To Keyboardist Mike Of Californian Indie Band Sherwood

Mar 22, 2007

Currently touring with Relient K and Mae, Sherwood are creating a name for themselves as one of the first bands signed to MySpace Records. We talk to Mike from the band.

When someone as influential as the creator of one of the biggest networking sites in the world shows an interest in you, you must be doing something right. When that person wants you to be the lead band on his newly-formed record label, you really must be doing something right. This is exactly where Californian indie band Sherwood find themselves, as the first band to have their album released on MySpace Records.

With the new album, A Different Light, having just been released and receiving both positive reviews and excellent word-of-mouth, we catch up with keyboardist Mike Leibovich from Sherwood and ask what it's like to be an indie band with over 150 million potential fans...

Mike Leibovich Interview

Suite: You're currently on tour with Relient K and Mae. How have you found that?

Mikey: It's been really great. This is our fifth show with them and we'll be continuing throughout the rest of March and April, so it's a great tour.

Suite: And how have you found the fans? Relient K fans seem a slightly different audience to play for you.

Mikey: They've been pretty receptive. I mean, we definitely get the feeling that we're the opening band and therefore the one that the least amount of people know, or have come to see. But I think we're winning the crowds over with our songs and live show. We know we only have thirty minutes to win them over, and so far it's going really well. People are actually waiting afterwards to tell us they enjoyed us, and I love that.

Suite: You recently signed to MySpace Records. How much of a difference has that made in recording your new album to the first?

Mikey: It's been amazing, a huge difference. When we were actually contacted by MySpace, we had about eight or nine different offers, but none of them really seemed right for us as a band. I mean, we were still trying to decide what we actually wanted to do – since our record contract before this was a one album deal, we knew we didn't want to go back to a small indie label, but at the same time we weren't ready for a major deal either. So anyhow, we get a random email from Tom (the founder of MySpace), and it was like 'Hey, are you guys really unsigned?' and we're wondering whether this was a hoax, or did someone hack into Tom's account (laughs)!

Suite: I can imagine – it's not every day you get an email from Mr MySpace!

Mikey: Exactly, that was our thoughts! But it came from his profile, and so we wrote back not really knowing what to expect, and within a couple of weeks, we were in L.A. and having a meeting with him, one of his A&R guys and the person who was to become the general manager of MySpace Records.

Mikey: Yeah, it's been a good road. I mean, they've signed two or three other bands to the label, but ours is the first record to come out, so I guess we're like the test case for MySpace Records.

Suite: I imagine being on MySpace Records gives you quite a bit of publicity too?

Mikey: Definitely. But the really good thing is that they have really competent staff as well, which helps enormously. They've hired a lot of good people there, and we really like them. Their viewpoint is that they want to be a serious record label, and the fact that they have access to one of the largest marketing tools in the world is a great starting point.

Mikey: Oh, for sure. You can't beat that kind of awareness, and it's helped get so many people in the know about us.

Suite: And along with MTV beginning to take notice, it's all good for you with getting Sherwood's music and name out there.

Mikey: Oh yeah, it all helps. I mean, at the moment, we're still trying to hone our sound, and concentrate on the good balance between pop and indie. At the minute, I feel that our audience is maybe more youthful, so shows like those on the MTV network are allowing us to reach that particular market. The people that were into our band three years ago were probably around college age, and maybe some of them move onto other things as they get older. With our music, and the age group we attract, I definitely think it makes for a more enthusiastic crowd.

Suite: Do you think that's because of the age group, or your style of music too?

Mikey: I think it's a good mixture of both. We're just starting to get into a more dance music vibe, and that's coming out in the new songs. They're more rhythmic, and since we always want our shows to be really fun, it's a natural progression from song to performance. We'd been listening to a lot of Beach Boys, and they just exude an air of happiness, and that's what we're about too.

Suite: You definitely have that vibe about you, with the harmonies on your songs.

Mikey: Yeah, that really comes from Dan, our guitarist and main songwriter. He really believes in the harmony side of songs, and it's brought a really strong addition to our sound from what we were doing three years ago. It's not something we really set out to do; it's just evolved more into our songs as we've grown as a band. I think it's something a lot of bands miss out on, mostly because they can't do it. That's not to say they can't do it in a conceited way, just that their music doesn't really allow for it, so it's a nice addition for us.

Suite: It really comes across in your live shows too - you don't seem to lose any of your sound as many bands often do when playing live.

Mikey: Well, we have three singers on stage, and we have a great sound engineer who's really capable of making these vocals come through. It's one of the benefits of being the opening act, we get a little bit longer to set up and do the sound check and everything, so we're pretty happy with the sound we get live.

Suite: You worked with Lou Giordano, who's worked with the likes of Taking Back Sunday, Pere Ubu and Husker Du amongst others. How was that?

Mikey: Oh, he's great. He's definitely a legend, at least with some of the bigger bands that he's produced, like the Lemonheads, Taking Back Sunday like you say, and Goo Goo Dolls. He kind of became almost like an uncle to us. He's so organized and methodical, but not inanely so. We went to him and said 'We're coming to you because you're known as a really good rock producer, and we want to make a rock record, but we're not an aggressive band'. We really wanted to bring out this other side to our music, and we felt with his experience we could achieve that. The end record is something we're really, really happy with, and it was fun to make.

Suite: Fun seems to be an accurate word for Sherwood – is it important for you to ensure that as hard as getting yourselves known may be, you still have fun along the way?

Mikey: Definitely, and I think we do that. We're a band that likes to think outside the box, so to speak, and make sure that not only does that come across in our records and shows, but any videos we do too, so our fans can join in.

Suite: The videos you have up on MySpace seem to attest to that. How did they come about?

Mikey: Well, we had these meetings with the guys behind MySpace, and said we have these ideas that we'd love to try out. Our guitarist Dan actually directed our music video for the single Song In My Head, so we've always been aware of the video process, and keeping footage and outtakes to show as well. We're just really normal guys, and there's no reason for us to be pretentious, and it's really important for us to keep that, and I think the videos allow us to keep having fun and show that we're still the same guys we were three years ago.

Suite: One that caught my eye especially was the one you did, with the emo horse. How did that come about?

Mikey: Oh yeah, the horse with the emo mane (laughs)? Well, that one came about when we were staying with our drummer and his family in January. The area's just beautiful, and right next door to their home there happened to be some horses, literally in the neighbour's back yard. So we were just walking through the field one day, and Dan said it'd be great to do an interview with me in front of the horses. I did say we think out of the box (laughs)! So of course, I said we had to feed them too, so we actually spent about an hour just feeding the horses and talking, and it took the video to another level I think, it turned out really great.

Suite: It's definitely a very watchable video, but what also comes across is the easy banter between you guys.

Mikey: Well, we're all friends, which I feel is important. We met in college four years ago, and we pretty much hit the road straight from graduation, and it's just been a great ride ever since.

Suite: So you have this tour for the next six weeks – what do you have planned after that?

Mikey: Well, right now we're actually looking at possibly going over to the UK, though nothing's confirmed on that yet. However, we have just confirmed we're going to be the main support for the Motion City Soundtrack tour in the summer. That's going to start about the end of June, and hopefully we can get enough momentum by the Fall to try do our own headline tour. We're really keen to do that, but at the same time we want to wait until we feel it's the right time.

Suite: The single comes out in a couple of weeks. Do you have any plans on what the next song to be released will be?

Mikey: Well, we're going to see how this one does first. The plan is to really try and hit college radio and concentrate on that approach, and leave normal radio for a little while yet. For us, it's really about building our career, taking the indie route, being on the road, and I feel that college radio is a great avenue to reaching the kind of fans that I think our music is for. We're not really about just throwing a whole load of our stuff at the wall, so to speak, and the whole 'if it sticks it sticks, and if it doesn't, drop them' attitude. We're happier to build our fan base and take the longer, but ultimately more rewarding, route.

The copyright of the article Sherwood: Mike Leibovich Interview in Indie Music is owned by Danny Brown. Permission to republish Sherwood: Mike Leibovich Interview in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.