How long have you all been doing music?
Doug: We [Scott & Doug] started playing guitar and drums respectively when we were real little. We took private lessons and made noise in the house ever since we were old enough to do it.
Dennis: When I was in middle school, I was in chorus. My voice was so high, I was in the first soprano section with all the girls. I used to get made fun of all the time. Then-I used to want to direct movies-then I picked up the guitar and it was so much fucking easier. It was just instant.

What's your songwriting process like?
Doug: We never labor over songwriting, it just flows. And Dennis writes all the lyrics.
Scott: Dennis can come up with amazing melodies that are finished on the spot, I've never seen anything like it. Plus, everybody does what they do well, and we all accept what the other one does.
Dennis: We don't really have our hands in each others'… pants. And I think we've all had experiences where we've been very frustrated. Now we're in a band where we can do whatever the fuck we want-the inmates are running the asylum.

The EP is beautiful, but I was really impressed by the fullness of your sound live.
Dennis: We hear a lot of criticism, "You need a bass, you need background vocals." But working with those limitations actually makes you sound fuller, because you're finding ways to say, "All right, how are we going to make this sound big without a sampler, without a backing track, without anything?"

How much do you think about style?
Scott: The Realistics really downplayed style, and the band we [Scott & Doug] were in was out there-glam, makeup, like David Bowie weird stuff. So when Dennis and I got together, I was like, "I'm downplaying it, I'm tired of all the weird shit."
Dennis: And I was like, "I'm putting on a dress!"

What about the backlighting?
Dennis: People say, "I had to kind of turn away because the lights blinded me," and I'll say, "Great!" Because then you're really listening to the music, you're having a more sonic experience than visual.
Doug: We wanted to have almost an anonymous appearance, so that it doesn't matter how cute the guitar player is.
Dennis: [to Scott] Very cute. And people are always like, "You know, if record labels come out and see you guys with the backlighting, you're never going to get signed."
Scott: If someone doesn't want to sign you because of your backlighting, there's a problem.

How much do you think about "making it"?
Dennis: In New York, you have to starve, you have to live in a crappy apartment, you have to suffer. Because then you've really earned your stripes. If you've been in a band for six months and get signed to Columbia, go fuck yourself. Go on tour and eat peanut butter out of a jar with a plastic fork, then get your record deal.
Scott: But if we get a record deal right now, we're okay.
Dennis: Yeah, I wouldn't mind. But we've paid our dues. And other people's dues, too.

So what's the next step?
Scott: Madison Square Garden.
Doug: World domination.
Dennis: Remember what we said about record labels? [Moves in closer to the tape recorder] We really want to get signed.

Tell me a fun band story. Pressure's on, go!
Dennis: What about the time… like, two shows ago at the Mercury?
Scott: We had already gotten to the Mercury, and Doug was going to park.
Doug: I had a rental van for all our gear. I went two blocks from the Mercury, I'm making a turn, and a lady pulls out and smashes right into me. And I'm like, "You're kidding me." I'm standing in the middle of the street, the woman's yelling at me, nobody speaks English except me, and I got a gig to play! I had to wait for the police to come. An hour goes by, all this is rectified, I'm driving down the street and I pull up to park, and I scrape against another car. It was like Spinal Tap.
Dennis: Then we had this amazing show! When things go wrong, we have amazing shows, so we're always hoping for some high drama.
Doug: But as serious as our music is sometimes, we're like little kids.
Dennis: We laugh so much. I don't care if you're the darkest band in the world, if you can't laugh with each other, just quit.