PUMPED UP KIDS - FOSTER THE PEOPLE

Mark Foster is front man of indie pop band, Foster The People, who – fresh from performing at Glastonbury – today release their debut album, Torches. More than just a front and lead vocalist, Foster also plays keyboards, piano, synths, guitar and percussion for the band, and is joined by drummer Mark Pontius and bassist Cubbie Fink. We Q+A Foster on the bands origins and summer plans.

Describe your music in five words?
Ironic, multi-layered, quirky, intelligent pop

What is the explanation behind the band name?
When we first formed we played a few charities and that really helped define our vision for the band. I think that opened our eyes to the possibility of helping people as a band and not making it a selfish endeavor.

How did you come together as a band?
I was friends with Cubbie Fink and Mark Pontius for a few years and would play together every so often. We were all busy working on other musical projects at the time but eventually we got more serious and made this our priority. Things started to move pretty quick after that.

There are two Mark’s in the band – does this ever cause confusion?
Yeah sometimes. We pretty much go by nicknames now. We call Mark Pontius “Ponsi” or just “Pontius”. People tend to call me Foster.

What are the inspirations behind your music?
I like to write in character a lot. It’s really interesting to see life through other people’s eyes. Parts of the record are autobiographical but most of it is lived out through someone else. I think the overall theme of Torches is “hope for the underdog”.

You’ve been compared to Peter, Bjorn and John, MGMT and The Feeling – but who are your musical influences?
The Beach Boys are the biggest influence on me musically but some other influences are Blur, Aphex Twin, New Order, Stanley Kubrick, Andy Warhol, C.S. Lewis.

You have a track called Houdini – have you ever had any lucky escapes?
Yeah I escaped out of the coffee shop I was working in. I was starting to doubt if it would ever happen.

You have a few summer festival gigs lined up – which are you most looking forward to?
We’ve heard a lot of really amazing things about Sasquatch. We’re looking forward to seeing the Gorge. Also at the top of our list is probably, Splendour in the Grass in Australia, and then a festival in Madrid.

What has been your worst live performance experience to date?
Coachella has probably been the best. That was the first time we played in front of 10,000+ people. The adrenaline when you’re in front of a crowd like that is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. In terms of the worst, we played a gig in Arizona where we had to cram all our gear on a tiny little stage. Things were getting stepped on and unplugged and during parts of our show when band members would have to cross the stage to play on a different synthesizer or whatever, they’d have to walk out into the crowd and go around because there was just no way to get through. On top of it all, a fight broke out during ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ and bouncers broke through the crowd and tossed the guys out.

What else do you have planned for the summer?
We’re basically going to be on the road touring this record until the end of the year. But my main goal right now is to start writing the second record.

[Originally published on wonderlandmagazine.com/blog]