Maria’s Local Radar: An Interview with Those Mockingbirds

Friends, family, and readers, I hope you are all enjoying this crisp fall weather. I must say, it is nice to be able to go outside without sweating bullets (I may have a problem, but that’s a whole other article). However, there are still a lot of things that are keeping the heat turned up here on the local music scene, with one of those things being a household favorite, Those Mockingbirds. I recently had the chance to chat with frontman Adam Bird about what they have been up to these past few months, new music, upcoming shows, and so much more. It’s always good to catch up with these guys, because they are always on my radar. Check it out below!

Adam, it’s been way too long since we’ve spoke. What are you doing right at this moment?

Right at this very moment I am at the bar my friend Brian and I opened, it’s called Stosh’s, in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Spending all of my time either in the studio working on new Those Mockingbirds music, or here.

I have to bring this up; I heard “How To Rob A Bank” on 95.9 The Rat several times in several different day parts, and stopped my car to jam. That was awesome! How did it feel to be in regular rotation?

It was an honor to be honest. WRAT is such a cool part of music in NJ, and one of the last beacons of cool music in the Northeast, so to have them recognize us like they did was really a fantastic experience.

Those Mockingbirds; a band that is always on my brain. Rumor has it you are about to release a new single. Please tell us everything about it, go!

The new single is called “How The Story Goes.” John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Kurt Vile, Manchester Orchestra) produced it. The song is our first step into a more expanded sound that we’ve been working on this past spring/summer and we cannot wait to share it with the world. We recorded it at Lakehouse Studios in Asbury Park, which is probably the loveliest place ever. WRAT actually hooked us up with them, adding to the giant amount of love we have in our hearts for them.

That is great news! I am a huge supporter of Lakehouse Music. Where will fans be able to access the single?

It will certainly be available on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Bandcamp, all the places.

Also, I have to ask, will there be an amazing Mockingbirds-style video to follow?

We are planning on it! Attempting to top our previous videos is the goal, and I think we’ve got some good ideas!

Excellent! It’s also been a while since I’ve seen you live, please share some upcoming shows if you have any, or let us know when to be on the watch.

We will be playing Oct. 30 at Maxwell’s in Hoboken, NJ. It’s their Halloween show, and it will be our first time playing a lot of new music live. We’ve been locked in the studio since March, so we are very much looking forward to unleashing these experiments.

With 2015 gradually winding down, what would you say is your biggest accomplishment this year so far?

mtvU playing the “How To Rob A Bank” video in regular rotation is probably the craziest one. However, getting to work with John Agnello, who I grew up listening to, is up there as well. Also, WRAT putting us in regular rotation was tremendous as well. It’s been a great year for us, all in all.

For those Aquarian readers who may not be familiar with Those Mockingbirds yet, can you convince them as to why they need to hop on board?

We’re the first unsigned band that the Aquarian has ever put on its cover, without it being a local band-specific issue. If you’re reading this, you clearly trust the judgment of the fine folks here. Need I say more?
A big thanks to Adam Bird of Those Mockingbirds for taking the time to chat with us. Be sure to keep an eye out for their new single, “How The Story Goes,” along with lots of shows and more. You can learn more about them at ThoseMockingbirds.com.