Sara: For the record state your name and what you do in Brazil
Jonathon: My name is Jonathon and I am the singer from Brazil

Sara: What would you change about the current music scene?
Jonathon: I’d probably change so many knock off bands. There’s too many bands that hang on the coattails and ride on other bands jocks that are doing well and I think more bands should probably figure out what they do well and concentrate on that.

Sara: It’s been about two years since your last release
Jonathon: Yeah two years too long
Sara: Did you feel like you have an obligation to your fans to do something great?
Jonathon: Well, yeah we don’t want to let anybody down. We respect everybody that bought [A Hostage and the Meaning of Life] and like it, but at the same time when we recorded [A Philosophy of Velocity] we still kinda did it for ourselves. There are a lot of big changes on the record like stylistically and lyrically that we weren’t really sure that everybody who like Hostage would like the new stuff but it was like we said you know “screw those guys” because we really appreciate there support but we kinda- we always want to push ourselves to grow and to kinda experiment and change as artists and people so I think that is the biggest thing that we did, you know we aren’t going to give them the same record twice.

Sara: How do you keep those fans interested for 2 years so they don’t leave because they are like “oh you guys aren’t doing anything I don’t care”
Jonathon: Well that was hard because it almost seemed like we lost everything that we worked for for the past two years. Those two years is sorta like your convalescence period, we sorta like retreated back to this little thing and we were dormant for a long time. When we came out kinda like the fact that we were recording and putting out another record a lot of the people kinda came back so it’s not anything we consciously did, people were pretty loyal.

Sara: How do you think it’s different, the Philophy- Philosophy of Velocity.
Jonathon: [chuckles] The Philopho of the Velolapho!
Sara: [chuckles] Yeah!
Jonathon: Well for one thing it’s a lot nosier there is a lot more big guitar sounds and stuff a lot, the keyboard and the stuff like that are really keyboards they aren’t like fake electronic keyboards it’s the real deal. So we wanted to have that level of honesty with it- that’s the main thing. Also apparently the big difference is lyrically on Hostage it’s really serious and abstract- almost overly arty but on this one we sorta wanted to have fun with it.

Sara: How have your fans reacted to it?
Jonathon: So far it’s been pretty positive I think. We’ve had a few people say ‘it’s not my favorite record but…’ for the most part I think people dig it.

Sara: At the end of May you signed to Immortal Records you
Jonathon: Yeah
Sara: You were on Fearless [Records] earlier so I don’t know the whole situation with that but what made you want to signed to [Immortal Records]
Jonathon: The big thing was we were all ready to go into the studio like last January and we were like one step away from having the studio time booked and everything and we were getting ready to literally get into our van and go there when we go this phone call saying ‘Oh yeah, by the way you don’t have any funding for your next record.’ So we had to cancel all that. Then basically our record company made us call of our record, so we were pretty anxious, so we decided to look for another way to try and put it out. And Immortal Records was there and they wanted to get us in the studio pretty fast they wanted to put it out fast. So it was kinda like yeah we were sick of being at home, we were sick of not having new music out, so that is kinda how it happened. They were there are the right time, we were there at the right time.
Sara: So kinda like the right place right time type of thing?
Jonathon: Yeah, they wanted to get a record out fast and so did we.

Sara: So what are your plans after this tour, I know you have some more touring.
Jonathon: Yeah we have like another full US tour with a couple bands. That’ll be over in the middle of December then we are going to go home for the holidays and then just start working on figuring out what we wanna do. The main thing is we want to try and release more music, like the next CD or just stuff on Myspace that people can download for free. We literally just want to make sure we are always putting out stuff for people to listen to.

Sara: What do you think is the best thing a band can offer people besides good music?
Jonathon: I think like a challenge. Challenge their thinking, challenge what their idea of what a band should be. If a band can’t offer they can offer sorta like an for dicusssion or of ideas, their musical ideas, I think is probably the best thing a band or- an artist in general can offer.

Sara: What was the reason you decided to play music for the rest of your life?
Jonathon: Well I’m not sure if I want to play it for the rest of my life. My parents were all in musical groups. My earliest memories were going to their shows when I was real young, so it’s kinda like in my blood you know but in some capacity I’ll be playing for the rest of my life but touring in a band, I don’t want to be like a grandpa and do that.

Sara: What’s some advice that you were given that you want to give other people?
Jonathon: I would say like stick to your guns and do what it is that you want to do and do the best job that you can at that. That way if what you are doing takes off and clicks with people then you know that what you have done is honest. What is clicking with other people is part of you and you haven’t done something fake, haven’t done something just to be popular and to win people over. You’ve done something that is for you.

Sara: What do you hope to accomplish with Brazil
Jonathon: I would like to make a million dollars, I’d like to have about fourteen girlfriends…
Sara: All at one time?
Jonathon: Well, yeah they probably wouldn’t know about each other [pause] some of them might! Anyways, I’d just like to be able to do this and have it support itself for a while and maybe one day we’ll save up enough money and I’ll buy a storage facility and that’s how I’ll make my living by selling people storage space. They can put there boxes in their storage space.
Sara: That’d be a pretty amazing accomplishment.
Jonathon: Yeah!

Sara: Define your band in 3 words.
Jonathon: Really fucking good.
Sara: That works!

Sara: If you were walking down the street one day and you meet a magic genie and you were granted three wishes what would you wish for and why?
Jonathon: I’m assuming one of these wishes can’t be five more wishes.
Sara: Yeah
Jonathon: You want these to be interesting because you want people to read the interview huh?
Sara: I don’t care they are your wishes.
Jonathon: Number one I would wish that beer does not make me fat, not that I’m fat but eventually would make me fat. I have uncles who drink a lot of beer and there a little chubby. Another thing is I would wish that I could afford to have regular haircuts on a regular basis so I don’t get spilt ends all the time. And the third thing is I would wish that no matter how much or how little money we make we could always afford a tour bus, somehow making five bucks a night and somehow that would be able to afford a tour bus. Our van is a little small right now for eight guys and there is a little aroma in there that can make it difficult to travel…
Sara: A smelly one?
Jonathon: Heh, yeah

Sara: Do you have a really good joke you’d like to share with everyone?
Jonathon: Yeah I do actually, okay this, wait for me a second I got to say it just right. This clown goes up to this alien and says “Hey do you wanna hear something funny?” and the alien goes “funny haha or funny weird?” Do you get it?
Sara: Yeah I think so… the alien is..
Jonathon: The clown is haha funny and the alien is weird funny.
Sara: [laughs] Yeah.

Sara: Do you have any last words for the World Wide Web?
Jonathon: Yeah after you are done reading this interview, you need to shut off your computer and go outside and play wild cards or something or read a book or go drink a glass of ice cold water. You need to do something that doesn’t involve you checking your Myspace or your instant messages.