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>> Maxïmo Park are in the business
of changing lives

ONE FITS ALL SIZES: Maxïmo Park

by LORRAINE CARPENTER

“It’s been an epic journey from Portugal to France, which involved a delayed flight and then a delayed car taking us to our food,” says Maxïmo Park singer Paul Smith. “We were just stuck in a massive traffic jam in a very small car, but that’s the average day for someone on tour, I’m beginning to learn. Now, I’ve just finished my dinner, I’ve got a little bit of red wine and somebody’s flying a kite in a field near Paris.”

A serene end to another hectic day in the life of this Newcastle quintet, also featuring guitarist Duncan Lloyd, bassist Archis Tiku, keyboardist Lukas Wooller and drummer Tom English. Following their Mercury Prize-nominated, Platinum-selling 2005 debut, A Certain Trigger, Maxïmo Park’s sophomore release, Our Earthly Pleasures, recently reached #2 on the British charts. Smith has described the record, produced by Gil Norton (the Pixies, Foo Fighters), as a hybrid of the Smashing Pumpkins and the Smiths, though their angry-young-man dynamic is more akin to Elvis Costello and the Jam, suits and all.

Whether their career will mirror any of the above mentioned bands is of little concern to Smith, who’s not one to obsess over “breaking America,” as so many British bands used to. And it doesn’t bother him that they can sell out a pair of shows at London’s Brixton Academy one week, and play to 30 people in a dive in Philadelphia the next.

“Some nights are good, some nights are bad, but each night you put the same amount of effort in and go away pretty satisfied with what you’ve done as a person,” says Smith, chastising the type of musician who phones in their performance in towns deemed less important than the big urban centres. If anything, Maxïmo Park relish North America’s small towns and outskirts—Smith has fond memories of having pictures taken with the namesake of the Mean Gene’s Burger franchise somewhere in the American Midwest, a former wrestling figure who took a liking to the Brits.

“I’m just really excited about going and seeing what I can of the country,” Smith enthuses. “It’d be nice to have a really devoted crowd every night, and if we haven’t, then we’ll work towards getting there, even if it takes another few albums and another bunch of tours. I just feel very confident about the power of our band in a live setting, and our records as well. On all levels, I’m a very hopeful person.”

When it comes to other people’s music, Smith describes himself as an “excitable” consumer, wont to be profoundly moved by new discoveries, such as Nick Drake when he was younger and, more recently, Mark Kozelek. If Maxïmo Park has a fraction of the impact that Kozelek is currently having on him, he’ll be pleased.

“We’re five individuals who are just inspired by music and wanna inspire other people to listen to ours. It seems like we were made to make these pop songs that sound like us, and we’ll continue to do that whether there’s 10 people in the room or… I mean, we’ve played to 100,000 people with the Rolling Stones. We’re just in the business of changing lives.”

With Monsters Are Waiting and
the Oohlahs at la Tulipe on
Friday, July 13, 8 p.m., $15