Andy Frasco's World Saving Podcast - EP 111: Matt Quinn (Mt. Joy)

Episode Date: February 2, 2021

Oh, hello there. And welcome to the podcast about not being too hard on yourself; cuz whether it's covid or your favorite basketball team losing, we must remember: In time, this too shall pass. And on the Interview Hour we welcome Matt Quinn from Mt. Joy! Andy and Matt talk quantum mechanics, dark matter, and conformal cyclic cosmology... jk. They talk about music for like an hour. Dolav has a few words to share about his favorite sports team. And our boy, Nick from Big Something shares a song. This is EP 111. Follow us on Instagram @worldsavingpodcast For more information on Andy Frasco, the band and/or the blog, go to: AndyFrasco.com Check out Andy's new album, "Keep On Keepin' On" on iTunes Spotify  Don't forget to listen to good music! mtjoyband.com And sprinkle some Big Nick in your morning coffee: bigsomething.com Produced by Andy Frasco Joe Angelhow Chris Lorentz Audio mix by Chris Lorentz Featuring: Ahri Findling Dolav Cohen Nick MacDaniels Arno Bakker

Andy, it's your agent. Hey, I got some bad news for you. All those shows that we had planned for March and April, yeah, they're gone. I'm sorry. COVID has kind of fucked it all up. And one by one, they felt like dominoes. And you know that big money wedding?

Yeah, they broke up. So now the wedding's gone too. I don't know what to tell you. I'm kind of banging my head against the wall here. As a consolation, I know it's not much, but my mom is selling her house and is having an open house next Saturday, and she's looking to get people to come see the house.

It's kind of a piece of shit, to be honest with you. But she offered you $500 to come DJ the open house. It's in upstate New York. I'm hoping that you can do it. I won't commission it so you can make the whole 500, but you're going to have to fly yourself or, you know, drive from Denver. Yeah, sorry. Hope all is well.

Hi, Mr. Fresco. This is Marcus from E-Trade. I got your email this morning. We appreciate any time someone takes an interest in the stock market. I did want to tell you that the two companies you asked about are not available for purchase because they are

not public companies. YouPorn and Fleshlight are privately held companies. You're not able to invest in them. If YouPorn or Fleshlight do become public, that's called an IPO, we would be happy to work with you about getting on board and having some ownership in those companies. I do have some stocks that I

would recommend if you want to give me a call back that would be great but unfortunately right now YouPorn and Fleshlight are not them. So thank you so much. And give me a call back when you get this. Thank you. All right. And we're back. Andy Frasco's World Saving Podcast. I'm Andy Frasco.

How's our heads? How's our minds? Are we staying out of trouble? Are we staying out of bad thoughts about ourselves? Seriously. Like how much pressure are you putting on yourself today? Ask yourself that. And ask yourself, are you putting that much pressure on everyone else or are you just being harder on yourself because that's all you got. There's this one brain, this one body, this one head. So, you know, take a step back and realize we're all figuring it out. No one tells you how to grow old or how to eventually, you know,

pass to the next phase in our being. So be a little gentle on yourself. Be focused. If you're holding on to anything from your childhood, maybe. I do. I hold on to a lot of things like anxiety and not being able to express myself. And you got to realize you just got to let it go.

You got to understand that the past is the past and don't be a prisoner to it. Learn from it. Feel from it. Every day is a new day to be exactly who you want to be. Seriously. If we're not imprisoned by the past, then we can move forward in the future

without a second judging that we like something different than we used to like. It's okay to like different things. It's okay to have a different perspective. You know, I was thinking I'm in on this fucking health kick right now. I'm drinking fucking tea and shit. And I signed up to, um, like this, uh, vegan where they, where they, uh, what do they call it? Feed you or meal plan thing. Um, cause I'm a horrible cook and I get anxiety. Like there's some things they, this company called Yaya, they're pretty, they're pretty dope. I really enjoy them. If you're in the Denver area, go check that out. Um, but like I get anxiety when I'm like, I have to cook something in this and I'm not, you know, I like my meat. I like my Euro meat, dog. And I like my fucking El Pastor, but I've never cooked it. So I shout

out to the salads and stuff. But what I was getting at is like, I used to just like, ah, I'm just going to eat shitty food because that's what makes me happy. But now I'm trying something new and this makes me happy too. I feel good. My gut doesn't feel like shit. I'm not drinking as much. I did pound a whole tank of nitrous with my buddy a couple days ago for Scotty. DJ Sleepy, happy birthday, DJ Sleepy. We love you, buddy. Happy birthday.

But other than that little fuck up, I haven't been drinking that much and I kind of feel better too. I went to a show, I got kind of fucked up. I had a little bender, like two day bender. But overall, I used to have like 11 day benders and I think that's progress. So I'm gonna give myself a clap too.

Let's go Frasco. You know. But seriously though, the hardest thing to do is to be honest with yourself. We can be there for everyone else, but let's take a step back every now and then and try to be there for yourself as well. Because you're going to need it too. We're all going to need times where maybe your friends or that fucking bar or that tank of nitrous just won't do it for you. That's when you really need yourself.

So be confident that it's okay to change. Be confident that, you know, if you put less pressure on yourself, things are going to work out still. It will. It always does. You know, it's weird like that. Even the shittiest things we could learn from. That's why we have Matt Quinn from Mount Joy on the show. He's fucking awesome. Actually. He's a, he's a good guy. Um, I, I love his band.

I, I know my listeners might know who he is or might not. New band in the scene. Um, great songwriter. I thought he was all like a drug addict. And then I got a conversation with him. Like, no, this is, this is exactly how I am in a sense uh you know we grew up in very parallel universes you know just woke up sad and one day and just never got the bug away and but we didn't understand what sadness is but I'll let you hear that in the conversation but it's Mount Joy is a great band I got I got into them a couple years ago when this song Astro Van came out. And just sick.

So good. Such a good lyricist. And I was really excited to meet him and talk to him. So I think you're going to enjoy this interview. What else? Have you... I got a show. I'm doing the Relics Dance Party again.

This Saturday, February 6th. Come get dancey. If you don't like the Super Bowl, we're going to do something else. It's Saturday, the night before, so while you're sitting there, just fucking getting ready and getting ready to eat

all those fucking hot dogs and blankets and a pig or whatever and just fucking overeat for a day. While we're doing that, let's work out those calories the night before and have a dance party with us. DJ Sleepy's birthday party. It'll be fun. Twisted Tea, shout out to Twisted Tea and whatnot. So that's really the only thing I have this month. I'm, the shit show's going to start up pretty soon here. I can't really tell you when,

um, until the big announcement hits, but it's going to be great. We have a great season. Bootsy Collins, shout out to Bootsy for coming on the show. Episode one, everyone, um, until the big announcement hits, but it's going to be great. We have a great season. Bootsy Collins, shout out to Bootsy for coming on the show. Episode one, everyone, um, was really digging that. And,

um, thank you everyone for listening. The numbers are huge last week and, they keep getting bigger and bigger every day, which is fucking beautiful to see. And, uh, like I said,

you know, we're all trying to figure out life together. Um, and I'm glad, um, we could all come to this space to hear people out and hear what's going on in the world of musicians outside of music. I realize I never really talked to people about music, like fucking notes and fucking shredding or fucking whatever.

I'm not into that right now i'm more into um getting to know the mind of what it takes to be an artist or what what it's what insecurities we have to go through or feel or not insecurities maybe it's just ignorance whatever it is to make us um try to create the best art we can for the people who deserve it. And that's you guys. So with that being said, hope you have a great week. We're going to fuck shit up this week.

Do I have to play the music? I will. We're going to fuck shit up, people. We're going to get out there, out of our houses. Cities are opening up again. Los Angeles is not a fucking cesspool no more, baby. It's still going.

COVID still exists, y'all. Don't fucking go rampant around, you know, make sure if you're having sex and shit, just make sure they've had a COVID test or whatever. I don't know if you get COVID from getting in the cheeks and stuff, but just be safe out there.

You know, it still exists, you know, um, vaccines are slowly coming, music slowly coming back. Um, as you heard from my agent, not for a couple months, but, um, it's, we're going to get there. We're, if we all just do the right thing, just take a breath. I know it fucking sucks and it fucking is irritating. We're so close. And when we we're so close we start blacking out again that's what happens to me like when i'm like so close to like really like stopping an addiction i'll just fucking take it over again just to see if i didn't you know you're back to square one so calm down we're gonna make it through this don't be so hard on yourself fight the good

fight and if you're a pothead why don't you go grab some 14 or weed, um, Denver, Colorado area. Like I tell you, non-psychoactive. You want that? You want to get high as shit. They got the highest shit stuff too. But, um, the remains arrive. We promote them because they're fucking great guys. They love music. Um, every time I hang out with Evan, he's the owner. Um, that's all we talk about. We don't talk about weed. We talk about what lyrics mean to him and what lyrics mean to me. And for that, having a bonding experience and being in a business relationship with these guys, you know, it's, it's a full circle win-win, um, hand job to hand job or handjob to finger and whatever the relationship is

it's 50-50 that's what I'm trying to say so go grab some 14er weed if you're in the Denver Colorado area and tell them Frasco sent you, go grab the kosher kush, it's the fire it's fucking fire dude, alright, are you ready

to have another experience with a guy who, a great songwriter. It's going to be fun. Matt Quinn, Andy Frasco, uh, first interview together.

And I think we're going to be friends. I have a good, I have a good feeling about it. Um, he is a 76ers fan. Shout out to Philly for fucking being loyal. You guys beat our asses. Y'all beat our asses.

We were down by 15 and then we came back and I was ready to talk shit to Matt Because he's a huge 76er fan And then we fucking lost Oh Tobias Harris you motherfucker But we're coming for you Lakers are going Lakers are just going to keep rolling through Alright guys let's have a great one

Let's rock and roll Let's have a great week And like I said in the beginning Don't be so fucking hard on yourself Guys, let's have a great one. Let's rock and roll. Let's have a great week. And like I said in the beginning, don't be so fucking hard on yourself because this too shall pass. And enjoy life. Enjoy the process. Don't stress out about the process.

All right, catch you on the tail end. All right. Next up on the interview hour, we got Matt Quinn from Mount Joy. This guy's dope. Great songwriter from Philly. Lived in L.A. Crazy story.

He was playing music. Hey, Chris, play some Mount Joy. Play Astro Van. I fucking love that song. Angels smoking cigarettes on rooftops In fishnets in the morning With the moon still glowing He was in Philadelphia, and then he went, started doing the hustle in L.A.,

and, you know, wasn't working out the way he's supposed to, so he became a lawyer. And through being a lawyer, he's like, nah, this is done, this is bad, too. He went back to music and started writing beautiful songs. And his band's popping. They've got like 3 million views a month. And I can know why, because he's singing from the heart,

and he's talking about what he sees as a songwriter. So, ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy Matt Quinn from Not A Joy. Yes, he does I said And in my heart there's a Holy Ghost Striding on the floor from an overdose You know the best ones never come down So if I love at the tip of my toes Reaching out for the great unknown Every addict has illusions

That life ain't ever what it seems These dreams are more than paper things And it's alright mama you're afraid I'll be poor along the way But I don't want to see those tears again. You know Jesus drives an Astro van. Yes, he does. He says, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh.

Astro van. Strong Yeah When I see those angels on the roof I know I've made it When my doobie smoking Jesus Puts my name upon his guest list Said son you're famous in son, you're famous in heaven Maybe you're famous in heaven And maybe there is no heaven

And maybe we're all alone together now And I don't want to see those tears again You know Jesus drives an AstroVed. Matt motherfucking Quinn. What's up, dude? How's it going, man? Thank you for having me. Bro, big fan. Are you from Philly? Yeah, I grew up here. Spent a bunch of time out in LA over the last few years. Lived there for like five years. And then I feel like so many people have done what I did where it's like the pandemic hit.

I had a lease that ended in LA and I was like, I'm out of here, man. that ended in LA and I was like, I'm out of here, man. Um, not maybe forever even, but just like it was getting, you know, my family's here and just didn't know what was going on in the world and it made sense to, to get closer to home. Tell me about the LA hustle. What don't you like about the LA hustle? What don't I like about the LA hustle? Um, actually I, I'm one of the people that like, you know, people will say like, say like oh i hate la the traffic or like whatever people say i'm a i'm a staunch la defender i love la i i had such a good experience living there and um you know i really don't have many bad things to say about it's this beautiful oasis of you know beach and mountains and you know musician, I mean, I'm sure you can relate to this a little bit. It's like, I didn't really do the like nine to five, like sit in traffic. So

like I, it worked for me. I don't know. Yeah, no, totally. It makes sense. Um, you know, I grew up in LA. I grew up in the Valley, um, West Hills, Calabasas area. So it was, yeah, it's like the rat race of like going to industry meetings or anything was an hour fucking away. I'm like, fuck this. I'm going to Denver. I get that. I love Denver too.

Yeah, man. Yo, I want to talk about that. By the way, I'm a huge fan of your band. Ever since you came on the scene, I'm like, these motherfuckers are real. You're a real dude. And then I started diving into your story and stuff because it felt like a lot of your lyrics

are about addiction. Are they? Did you ever go through any substance abuse? You know, I think I was lucky. No, you know, it's the short answer. Like, I don't think I've ever been, had any trouble with addiction. But I think I was,. No, you know, it's the short answer. Like, I don't think I've ever been had any trouble with with addiction. But I think I was lucky is the wrong word. But I was exposed to just tragedy. You know, I was like, in early college, I lost a couple friends. And I think just had this real moment. I'm so fearful of that. just had this real moment. I'm so fearful of that. You know, I know how damaging and just painful that world is. And I really think that just some of the experiences in my life, like,

have led me to a path where I sort of look at it from the outside and it's something that I'm just terrified of. And I feel really passionate about in terms of just what I've seen, the carnage that it causes. So I think I'm more sort of a, just another terrified viewer from the outside and sort of whenever I feel myself, whether it's drinking too much or smoking too much or something,

I find myself really centered by kind of some of the outcomes that I feel like I've seen. Yeah. What about, are you an athlete? Were you an athlete growing up? Yeah. I mean, I, I mean, you know, I, I've certainly seen, you know, like I love to play sports and I love to watch sports and I think it's just kind of an escape more than anything, but, uh, I, I did grow up playing sports, but you know was never never destined for any greatness do you ever talk about your life at all in some of your songs you know I think it's a little bit of both I think I'm still trying

to find I feel like as we all songwriters are I'm still trying to find out like what's the best song for me to write I feel like you know I constantly thinking about that, maybe overthinking that, whether it's about me or about someone else. But I'm pretty, as a writer, I don't know about you, but I feel like I haven't written that much in terms of like, you know, some people have written thousands and thousands of songs. But I feel like for me, I'm still in this zone where I'm searching for it. But I do find that, you know, if it's something close to me where I can really like just stream of consciousness and be pretty connected and feel like I'm telling that story. Well, that's usually the best for me. So I don't think I'm as good at like, I marvel at like the John Prine stuff where he's just like, you know,

he's just writing about like he, you know, from this very third person perspective. And he's so, he was obviously so amazing at it. I don't think I quite have that skill. Why, why do you,

why do you feel that way? Because I think the way that I kind of song write is I try not to be too like, and then this happened, and then that happened. And I'm not very good at setting someone else's scene as much as I am really putting myself, I try to at least really put myself in whatever that situation is and just sort of describe like as many details as I can that makes sense in the sort of rhythm and flow of the chord structure or whatever it is.

And when I'm just sort of, you know, I feel like I'm too inside the box, I think when I'm trying to tell a story, I'm like, and then he turned left and he went right past a McDonald's. It's too much. It's not creative enough. So are you perfectionist?

Do you put yourself... Are you hard on yourself when you're writing? Are you hard yourself on life? Do you put yourself at such a high pedestal that it's hard for you to be satisfied with things? I think a little bit i think like you know especially as time's going on in the current you know mount joy project that i'm

working on writing for like you know there's definitely i tried to not allow myself to feel pressure but i think when i'm feeling pressure i do find myself being like don't be so precious with this like you know it's it is what it is but I do think I'm the kind of writer that like throws out you know I'm always so jealous of people and I don't know if you're a writer like this but where it's like you know they come into a record and they have like a hundred songs I'm like what the hell you know like i think in part because i just don't work that fast but also i i throw out you know in this sort of if i could call myself a perfectionist i definitely throw out a ton of ideas like i'm pretty good at knowing i think maybe one of my skills is like this isn't it you know like and then and so i would never come to a record with 100 ideas because

i'll throw out a thousand before i get like 10 you know yeah so you know you just know when to hand it off into taking a song into the next next level of the progression i hope so you know i feel like maybe that's part of it is is like i don't know that. And maybe I'd be better if I didn't throw so many ideas out. I don't, who knows. But I definitely feel like I have a better grasp as time's gone on of like, no, that's not that cool or something like that. So is it kind of like that philosophy? I mean, I heard you're going to be a lawyer, work in law? I mean, I heard you're going to be a lawyer, work in law? Yeah, man.

I've had a sort of circuitous route to doing this for a living. But I basically was writing songs. I went to school for music up in Boston and was writing songs. And I think as so many people who are listening to this who write songs like I just probably wrote and played every open mic that I could and like you know I did the thing where like I paid bought like $100 worth of tickets and tried to

sell them and lost money to like sing songs and you're up there like what am I doing I did too that's the LA hustle too yeah I feel like we've all made that mistake I've done all that stuff and you know it just didn't work right like it just I had to had to find another path and I was out in LA and I was working actually I followed um I had a girlfriend in college and she she moved out to LA and so I that's why I moved out to LA I didn't I

didn't like you, you know, sometimes the story just kind of gets written itself that I, like, went out there to chase music. But I really didn't. I went out there. I, like, scrapped for a job on Craigslist and I worked actually, funny enough, it's like I was doing, like,

it's called music reports. And it's basically data entry. Like, I would go in and, like, I would find, you know, whose song was, like, who the writers were on a song i would just i had just had i was just the back end for like streaming services and it was the worst job i mean i've worked restaurants i've done all these things it was

so bad like basically what they would do is like you had to do a certain number of like like they could see whether you were on your computer like they had like your boss like had you know you basically had to input a certain number of things per day so you you physically couldn't like do anything other than just like look up who wrote these random songs and what percentage what splits they had and just punching it into an excel spreadsheet then on to the next one on to the next one it was brutal and. And so I was like, all right, I got to stop doing this. And I got interested in like kind of music copyright law. And that's what I, you know, and I was fortunate to get into like law school night class. And so I was taking law school night classes and working like a nine to five type job in the beginning of Mount Joy. And then, you know, once it got rolling enough,

I just, I dropped out of law school and then went for it. So you were doing law that emphasized in music. You always still wanted to be part of the music industry? Yeah. I mean, you know, I was in law school, so I wasn't, I wasn't practicing any specific. That was my goal. Who knows if I would have achieved it. My previous goal led me to data reports. So I don't know if I would have actually landed that gig. But yeah, I think I was probably headed mostly nowhere. But the reality is, I just got fortunate and I found my way into the thing I really wanted to be doing all along. And I found my way kind of into the thing I really wanted to be doing all along. Is marketing important to you? Because it feels like you understand marketing pretty well with your whole imagery of how you're kind of branding the band.

Was that part of the plan when you were starting Mount Joy? I mean, a little bit. You know, I think really if we've had any success marketing, it's been, and I feel like people say this all the time, but it's been just our, my failure before, you know, like I never wanted to like take a picture of me holding a guitar and have it like be on the internet again as like supporting what I was doing. No offense to people that are doing that, but I just, I cringed at my own failure, you know, that, and early on we were like, you know, you know what no one wants to see is like a picture of me, like, you know that and early on we were like you know you know what no one wants to see is like a picture of me like you know period um um and i got really like into i mean and you know we have a great manager and like people who are like you know can we get a press photo and it's

like it's like pulling teeth for them because i'm like well does it have to be us in it they're like yeah it has to be you you know it's like uh but we in the beginning a lot of the imagery was because we thought you know sam who's in the band had um a guy he went to school with it's just a brilliant graphic artist his name's steve gerard and he handed us over this sketchbook of just like amazing sketches and just started i remember we were sitting at like a coffee shop and i was like you know what would be way cooler than a picture of us is like any of these sketches you know um and that's sort of been our driving force ever since and i think we've sort of learned some things along the way and and hopefully we're you know we can continue to learn yeah, I mean, a lot of it's just like, there's so many like hot dudes out there

holding guitars that are just, or, or, or women, you know, and it is what it is. And hopefully that works for them. But for us, we knew that like, there's just something that's got to be a little bit different about our image. So what about, okay, so I got now, okay, now I hear you. Were you insecure when you were a kid? Probably, like maybe not like in the way that like, I probably didn't realize it until you said that.

But probably, I mean, I think so. Probably we all are, right? What was your, do you remember your first thing you're insecure about when you were a kid? You know, I have a horrible memory, which probably means I was extremely anxious my whole life, I feel like, is why I have such a bad memory. But I think I probably was just insecure about the fact that, you know, I, I didn't really know like so many people growing up, like I didn't really know what I like contributed to the world, you know? And then, um, I was playing sports and then I started realizing that I really loved writing

songs and love playing music. And that wasn't as cool. Like I wasn't in like a you know there were people in my school that were in like cool bands in fact i remember trying out for one and they were like sing this stroke song and i was like okay and uh i sang the stroke song and i never heard back from them um that's heartbreaking so so like i don't know i don't know if that's like why i was super insecure but i think it was like this thing that i just didn't um quite fit in the like jock box and i didn't quite fit in the like you know paint on jeans and um sweat bands and whatever else box so same i feel like i was sort of caught in between

a little bit uh so with that did you were you a loner no like i had friends i mean now like all those people are like no you had no friends but um no i had friends and I was fortunate. But I definitely felt, I think I probably was more a self-imposed loner or something like that, if that makes sense. I think I just struggled to find my place kind of person. Do you blame that through anxiety? Yeah, I mean, I think anxiety has always been a struggle for me. I think that the more I, the more I've grown up, the more I've just accepted that that's super normal and that I, you know, it's, it's improved my anxiety, if anything. And I think taking this leap and doing in a weird roundabout way and playing these shows in front of lots of people and all

this stuff that like you know i can remember our first show um speaking of anxiety like we almost like literally shit our pants like the five of us you know we're like so scared we were playing because things happened relatively quickly for us um and we're playing at the mercury lounge and like i just remember we like kind of did this thing where and we still do it to this day where we were just like let's do something really weird to try to like shake this anxiety and you know and like we put our hands in and just started chanting like d-a-d and spelling dad and um we've done it every show since but like um it was just it was just kind of this point of showing how nervous we were but I think in this roundabout way facing all of those things and doing those and

finding comfort and doing some of those you know I think playing a show in front of a bunch of people is one of the weirdest silliest things that humans do it's like so bizarre explain this theory because I think sometimes i have this sort of out-of-body experience where i realized that like somebody drove here they parked their car like they came inside this building and i am just telling them about these weird stories that i have written some of which means so much to me some of which I don't even know what I'm talking about. And they're literally singing. Like, if in any other scenario, they were just like waiting at the subway or anything,

and they started like doing what they're doing now, they would be cool, but it'd be really weird. The whole thing is bizarre, you know, and they stand and they drink and they stare at you. Yeah. It's weird. It's beautiful, but it's weird. And I think that, um, I think that there's something about that that's just allowed me to see that like, everyone is so strange. Like, you know, all these people going through the world are just so strange. And we, we all have these weird idiosyncrasies and, you know, if there's, if there's enough people that love Mount Joy, the way I've seen've seen you know from playing these shows then there are a lot of weird people so i feel pretty comfortable being among them you know what it

is too it's like you're you play softer music so it's it must be weird because i'm in a dance rock fucking punk rock band and like you know it's like the weirdness would be when everyone's just staring at you kind of singing the lyrics that some of them are pretty fucking sad, dude. Oh, yeah, man. Like, what song was the hardest to write on this last record for you? You know, we kind of, there's like at the end of the record,

there's this little run where we were kind of doing our hand at like, not necessarily originally purposely, but a little bit of like an Abbey road where the songs sort of fall into each other. And the album is a, is a sort of break, is a breakup record. And I think some of those were difficult because I kept being like, wow, like these are, are really honest in a way, but like, who cares? You know, I kept having this

sort of who cares thing which is like my general um approach to a lot of things that gets me in trouble but also oftentimes i think it's like a protectionism thing a little bit um but those were difficult just in like trusting them because you almost feel weird even asking like your bandmates like but then they're like no these are like really good or you almost feel weird even asking like your bandmates, like, but then they're like, no, these are like really good. Or, or,

you know, like there's a song like witness and, um, it's kind of a slower tune. And, you know, but then I'm, I'm always just wondering like, are people going to,

you know, I think when you go with a really slow song to stop blabbering, when you go with a really slow song, I think you're taking a huge risk because if it doesn't connect, it's just like, are you okay, man? You know, it's like, yeah, I was just seeing if you like that. You know, you talk about protecting your soul and like, did this breakup really fuck you up? yeah i think so but i think it was more it was less the actual um breakup itself and more just it was a long relationship and um i i didn't know anything else and so i think it was more like the the whole lead up to it you know obviously there are like reasons

for why people separate and i think it was more just like, I was learning so much about myself so quickly. And also I was in this band that my life was changing so fast. And I think at the end of it, you sort of get dropped off and you're like, you know, you're, it's like getting off of the bus at this station and you realize like, this isn't where I parked my car, you know? What did, keep going dude sorry go for it sorry no it's like what it so what'd you like it's kind of like we're sleepwalking and all of a sudden we wake up and realize oh this

isn't for me or maybe you got comfortable in a situation Maybe you didn't want to be alone. And, you know, there's so many aspects into why people get into relationships and why people stay in relationships that aren't fucking healthy. Like, was the relationship unhealthy? You know, I think it became unhealthy because in large part because of music, but in large part because I just think that the two of us were found out after years of growth just regular growth as humans that we weren't really compatible but there was like a just that your lives get so tangled right like after five years it's like i think john mulaney has a joke. It's like something about like, you know, my biggest enemy is someone who's met my parents and seen my penis or something like that. I'm paraphrasing that, but it's like, you know, like your life gets like

pretty tangled up there. And, um, and then you realize like, Oh no, I got to untangle this. And like, um, there's really no way it's like that, you know, when you find like in the basement, like that bin of wires, that is just like, those are going to have to stay like that. And we're just going to have to light this on fire. Yeah, no, for real. It's like, why are we so scared to be vulnerable with the people that are so close to us? But we could be vulnerable with a bunch of fucking people listening to our music, listening to our lyrics,

you know, it's like. It's true. It's true. I, you know, I, I don't know, but I think it's because the, there's a, there's a, there's a, a lens between you and the music and the person listening to it. And the other stuff is, you know, so, so tangible and right there, it's more difficult to, I think just confronting people in general is it's like way more difficult than than people even realize so what happened did you guys break up or like of course you broke up but like how how'd you end up finally saying i need to take control of my life again well thankfully she did honestly oh you don't think you'd never done it what'd you say do you think you you'd never done it? What'd you say?

Do you think you would have never done it? That's a good question. I like to think I would have, but I think part of my mental illness is that I find excuses for, even in a situation like that, I found myself, I think, making excuses

for like how to fix a thing that was broken more than trying to walk away from the thing itself because it felt so much easier even though it was way more complex it's sort of this weird illness where you're like well actually if i just do this this and this and then i you know then you know bend this way then it actually will probably work and instead of just saying like or you could just not um and i think i was more in that mode because i didn't know anything else you know i i i was also there was so much uncertainty at that time i think about mount joy and i had you know i had all the chips as i still do. I feel like I still do like all in, you know, I'm all in here. And the one constant that I had is now like, you know, really coming unglued.

I think I was really scared to like, you know, against the backdrop of this thing where it's like, I hope this Mount Joy thing works or what, you know, uh, back to doing whatever the heck else I was doing. Um, So I think it was more that I was really trying to keep something that was like a constant and also felt like so many people, I don't know, maybe this is that insecurity thing, but so many people had seen me and seen this relationship and there was such a public, mostly with my friends is all I really care about. But that if it ended, they'd be like, man, you suck, you know, or something like, yeah. So I felt like I needed it for that reason.

You think, um, are you scared of failure? Oh, for sure. I think, I think that's probably one of my better qualities actually in a weird way. Tell me about it. I, uh, I am definitely afraid to fail. I still am afraid all the time that the Mount Joy thing is failing. Not so much that I wouldn't

be proud of it if it did fail at this moment like what we've achieved and stuff like that but more so just that it would be my fault and that I would have to take responsibility for that or something. Why do you put so much pressure on yourself? That's a good question. be my fault and that I would like, you know, have to take responsibility for that or something. Why do you put so much pressure on yourself?

That's a good question. I think it's because I know that, you know, after two decades or whatever it is of like writing songs and doing what I'm doing, like I know that there's something that I haven't reached yet. And maybe that's a total lie, but I've had this feeling that there's something, I can get better still, and that if I don't reach that, regardless of the success or whatever, number of people at the shows or whatever it is,

that's this bug in my brain that's like, I got to get to this place where I can look at look back at this and be like, I became like that thing that I wanted to become like, it's more this thing internally where I want to become this really great songwriter. And that's always been my dream. And kind of, if I don't get that, I think the disappointment, at least right now in my head, would be like hard to overcome. So why, with that philosophy, why did you try and, why didn't you, why'd you start doing law? Why'd you give up for that stint? I think I would tell you that like, I didn't really give up. Like, you know, I was still writing songs all the time. And I wrote these songs while I was doing that. In fact, I think kind of stepping back a little bit helped me a lot to be like, you know, as I was writing these songs, like, for example, Astrovan was really the first song that kind of came out of that. And it was like, I was meeting all these people in Los Angeles who weren't like, you know, they weren't really like the people that I

grew up with in the sense that they were actually doing the thing. You know, so many people make fun of people that go out to LA and like try to become an actor and they fail and they, you know, they, um, you know, or try to become a musician or whatever it is. But I think there's something really cool about what those people are doing. And in the sense that like, everyone tells you not to do that. And these are like these people who are like really doing it. And there's a cool energy to that. And I was able to like, sort of capture that. And I, I think when I was really in it, I felt this sense of... I wasn't thinking about how cool that was. I was just like, yeah, me too. I was too in it to really know what was so beautiful about what those people were doing. And I think stepping

back from it a little bit and doing some other stuff and then coming home and writing and stuff like that, it gave me a little more perspective of like, you know, I've seen all these people who are going to law school and who are doing all this other stuff and like, not that they're bad people, but they're just like they're not after the same sort of juice that I think some of these other people were. And I think

I found more respect for all of that by stepping away from it a little bit, actually. It's like the idea of like, you're moving to a city to do your dream instead of like staying in a town, which is comfortable and also doing the dream. You know, it's like, it takes a lot of people.

It takes the type of person to be like, yeah, I'm here because I have something to fucking do. You know? A hundred percent. And it's terrifying. And those people are really doing it. And they're like, you know? A hundred percent. And it's terrifying. And those people are really doing it and they're like, you know, they're risking. Yeah. I guess comfort, right. They're risking comfort. And, and I think that those people are, it was,

it was, they were, they were important for me to be around and, but also for me to have the perspective of who they were against the backdrop of like who my classmates were in law school. You know, it was a good contrast to be able to see like, those are my people. It is halftime at the Andy Fresco interview hour. Hello, everybody. Welcome to Sports with Dola. He's talking shit about the game.

He's got a weird fucking name. It's Sports a weird fucking name. It's sports with Don't Love. Woo-woo! This week we're going to be talking some NBA. That's right. NBA's back, baby. Everyone wants to talk about, oh, LeBron, KD, all the fucking stars. This ain't about the fucking Lakers.

Not today. Sandy sucked my fucking dick. You know what fucking the fucking Lakers. Not today, Sandy. Suck my fucking dick. You know what fucking time it is? Mountain time, bitch. This fucking halftime show is about the Utah Jazz. Utah! My boys are number one in the league. Number one in the fucking league.

11 wins in a row. We can't be stopped. We won't be stopped. No more fucking bullshit. It's our fucking time. It's our fucking year. We're fucking be stopped. No more fucking bullshit. It's our fucking time. It's our fucking year. We're fucking crushing every fucking team in historic fashion. Fuck you.

Fuck all you. Sandy sucks my fucking dick. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck you, Fresco. We fucking got this show. It's Sports with Dola. Mountain time, bitch. Wee-wee.

Mountain Time, bitch! Is it a superpower or is it a downfall to be never satisfied with anything we do? Remains to be seen for me, man. I don't know. You know, I don't know. Like, I don't get any sense that, you know, we've accomplished so much that we can never fall. So I feel like we're right in the position where, you know, who knows? What about you as a person, like emotionally? As a person, I think it's probably the ultimate double-edged sword, you know, of just like,

it probably is what motivates me to stay up till, you know, three, four, five in the morning working on songs. And sometimes really great things come out of that. But if you kind of probably looked at it statistically, I think it probably makes me more, makes my experience as a human, like less in terms of, you know, it makes you have bad sleep and, you know, it makes you have all these other things. It makes you have bad sleep and it makes you have all these other things. But I don't know. It gives me purpose. And I know that I've had times when I haven't felt like I had a purpose. And those are pretty rough times too. So it is this double-edged thing. I'm really driven to do what I feel like I've been trying to do for a long time. But at the same time, it's a... I don't know. This is going to make me sound do for a long time. And, but at the same time, it's a, you know, I don't know. I, I,

this is going to make me sound like such a downer. I really enjoy doing it too. Like, it's not like I'm just here, like sadly writing songs, you know, like I love doing it. I don't get caught up in, in the sort of negative of it really at all. But I do, I do recognize that like, you know, sometimes I think about i guess like i wonder if there are songwriters out there who are like just straight up having a blast and like making great songs and they're like this is so fun and they're like high-fiving like their dad

like i don't know is life fun to you yeah i think so i think like it's like right now i mean i think we live in this like really bizarre time, obviously. It's a difficult time to like say you're having fun, but I, I feel like relative to the field, you know, like I feel like I'm having a good time. I feel like I'm, I'm doing what I want to be doing. And I'm definitely humbled by like, you know, I'm doing what I want to be doing.

And I'm definitely humbled by like, you know, so many people that I know that like have busted their butts to try to do what I'm doing. And like, just for reasons that have nothing to do really with merit, like it just hasn't, hasn't worked out. And so I feel super lucky to be in that position, but yeah, I think I'm having fun. Yeah. That's good.

Talk to me about your childhood a little bit yeah i i had a i think a good childhood i i mean my i have grew up with three brothers um i don't think i was like pushed into stuff really i mean a little bit you know i think um i think but only in the sense that like, I probably was like, I think my general disposition since like birth is like, eh, you know, I'm just sort of like, eh, about most things. So I think like, um, I got pushed into some things, but it was probably for the better, you know, and then I really ended up enjoying them. And, but music, you know, I'm really the only person who in my family that like plays music my brother was

like playing bass and it was like definitely he's my older brother and that definitely was like important to me because i i wanted you know to like be like him and be able to play music and stuff like that he played guitar too and he was good he was just he was just like this you know he's like a super smart guy um he was like ripping the sax just like, you know, he was like a super smart guy. He was like ripping the saxophone, but then like also became what was like the middle linebacker or captain of the football team and then went to Johns Hopkins

and is a doctor now. Like, he was just sort of like shooting like three pointers from like, everything was just going in for him. You know, it was just like, it seemed effortless

and he was able to do all these things. So I think music felt like the one thing that I could do that was like oh i could probably do that and um were you jealous of him growing up probably not not really in this way that like i just knew that it was pretty like we were just different like it was so it was easy because it wasn't like it wasn't much of a competition, you know, it's like, you know, if like Usain Bolt just like jumps out of the blocks and you're racing him, you're just kind of laughing.

You're like, all right, well, this is going to work out. Yeah. This motherfucker is getting me. Yeah. This, this race isn't going to end well for me, but, um, yeah, so I was able to like, kind of do my own thing. And, but that, that was probably a big part of me playing music too. It's like, you know, I remember like we, music too. I remember he played bass, which was a cool instrument to have someone who was pretty

good at playing bass because you can jam. Bass players are, I think, the glue to any jam, right? So it was cool to be able to just start to play chords and he could kind of put down a bass line and that was important. Was being individual important to you growing up? Like being your own man or being your own identity? I think so. I mean, you know, I think I,

I think that sort of went along with like feeling like I didn't really fit neatly into any of the high school kind of boxes that everyone sort of sits at the tables for lunch or whatever lunch tables for. that everyone sort of sits at the tables for lunch or whatever lunch tables for yeah um and so i think that like knowing that i didn't necessarily easily fit into those boxes like helped me kind of carve out that i you know wanted to not just try to sound like the strokes as much as i like the strokes i'm like ripping the strokes in this interview but like i i didn't like the strokes i like these cool bands but i i i just didn't like this the inspiration and music that came out of me just never never matched that type

of vibe and that energy so in that way i think being kind of an individual probably was important it's so funny you say that because it's like kind of like falsifying your identity. And then you go into a relationship for six or seven years and not being yourself or not being this identity that you were striving for when you didn't want to be in the fucking Strokes band. I know, I blew it, man. I really blew it. I don't know.

I think like, and I don't know, people are like in their young 20s that are listening to it. But I think it's just this weird time in your life where you, at least for me, where you think like, I feel like I turned 18 and I thought I knew what I was and who I was and what I wanted to do and all that stuff and how I was going to do it maybe even a little bit. and how I was going to do it, maybe even a little bit. And then at some point in my early 20s, I realized I have no idea what I'm doing. And I think there's something exciting about that, but you're kind of like, man, I thought I was supposed to have this all figured out. And especially being a musician,

a lot of my friends were proposing to their longtime girlfriends, and I was like, you know, ban. Um, exactly. Uh, it's like, I didn't feel like I'm unsure. And I think that I feel like that's made all the difference for me ultimately is just kind of allowing, you know, more time to figure that out. Whereas I think some people kind of follow a pattern. Do you feel like you strived during that identity crisis? I think so. I mean, it was the turning point for me in terms of like, you know, like really going

for it. I feel like you always hear of stories of people who are like to quit their job to do their dream or something like that. And I was like super meta aware of that. Like I was like, I'm living some sort of narrative right now. But like, is this good for me? Or is this just like what I heard on a commercial somewhere, you know, or something like that.

But I think I was thriving. Like, I think I, in the sense that, you know, I don't know, I don't know how it is for you, but it's like, I really just go into these periods and and work really really hard you know being in a band is like hard work as you know like it's crazy hard work and you go into these periods where like you kind of don't pick your head up for like 18 months or something and then you're like what the hell was that you know like i played lollapalooza or something you know or whatever it is and you're like i don't even remember that you know or something it's just this crazy

whirlwind but and that way like i think i was thriving but like i it was more just because i was so in it you know i just was so in it and like sound like i'm like retired but like i feel like i'm still in it but with covid it has given you i think all of us all musicians just this this ability to like really step back i've been off the road which is something that i was on for like three years straight. And that is such a, as people I'm sure talk about on this podcast, right? Like it's just such a all consuming and it can be amazing. And I've had so much fun on the road, but it doesn't really allow you, I think if you're doing it right, it doesn't really allow you to like be

super meta aware of what's going on in your life. Like you're just very focused on this, like, you know, your, your head is like right in front of the tree, so to speak. So. Yeah. And it's like, uh, you know, it's also like that idea of like, you know, putting your, putting your head down and doing the work is, you know, you're also trying to cure your anxiety, know a hundred percent man i've thought about that like like what what's doing what like who's controlling what here is this me trying to like is this one giant therapy session or is this uh is this uh a dream that i'm chasing and i think it's probably a little bit of both. Have you ever taken therapy? You know, like I'm like such a proponent of people doing it.

It's this weird thing, though. I personally have done like what I think amounts to therapy and like in friendships and like trying to be open and talking to certain people that I trust. But I think a lot of it's because like in the beginning, I didn't really have the money to do it. I think a lot of it's because like in the beginning I didn't really have the money to do it like yeah and I felt like like even like I don't know like even like going to the dentist and stuff like it's not that I'm scared of the dentist I'm just like I'll just brush my teeth better like you know or something like that like I'll just save the hundred bucks because when you're getting paid like you know negative dollars to go on these tours you're kind of like sure I'll spend 180 dollars to like tell them about my past or something.

It just seems tough. And that's a really, I don't want to sound like I'm putting down therapy and there's affordable options and stuff like that. I could have done better and probably should have. But I think I'm just stubborn and probably more afraid to have those conversations than I even let on. Are you cheap? Yeah, probably. conversations than I even even let on but are you cheap yeah probably I think again I think it's this fear of like it comes all comes down to the same thing like I'm afraid that I'm gonna like spend my last dollar or something and be like what the frick yeah you know you know like I'm that's that failure thing I think a little bit where I'm like now I have I have to keep you know making

more money so that I don't have no money or something. I don't know. And honestly, therapy-wise, I think I went to therapy in high school and stuff. And very briefly, a couple of sessions kind of thing. And I think it's also this thing where I tell myself incorrectly, of course, but that like, oh, I get it. I get what therapy is. You know, it's like goes to one class on marine biology. I like that too, bro.

What do you think it is? Do you, is it like kind of like the anxiety that we don't want to get advice from other people? Yeah, or that it won't help. And then I'll feel like even more of a freak. Yeah. Then you've really, because you already feel crazy that you have to have someone tell you that you're

not crazy. Yeah. I think there's a, there's a lot to that where it's like, that is the like break the glass thing for me and like sound the fire alarm. And like, if I sound the fire alarm and they're like, there's no putting out this fire, then like, I'm just going to be dead. You know? Yeah. Then then then anxiety

just takes over yeah because yeah you know i want to go back to um you said like you grew up like uh like yeah like kind of this feeling and you know people are so quickly to um name that depression you know were you depressed though? Or that's just how you were? I think there were times where I was pretty depressed. I don't know why. And I think that's probably true. Hopefully like most people,

like I don't like have like a necessary, like a moment that I can point to or like why it was just, like, I, you know, I don't know why. Maybe that's why I should go to therapy or something but um but we don't know what depression is when we're kids we just feel like that's just how we feel and someone categorizes it was yeah that was it man it was just yeah it was just a general feeling that sucked um and i think but i do think some of it was just just my personality is like i'm a pretty cynical guy like i i still am like i tend to like be kind of like that i don't know what about so

what made you go like what experience made you go to therapy in high school not a lot of people go to therapy in high school unless it's yeah Yeah, I think I was really depressed and I was bumming a lot of people out. And I remember some of my friends, I think, just sort of tattled on me that I was getting pretty removed from... There was a period of time where I would go go to school and like i just like wouldn't say anything and i think i'm usually like pretty out not outgoing but if you know me i will you know i'll crack jokes and stuff like that and i pretty much like pulled into my shell and like wasn't speaking i'd go like days without saying anything to anyone kind of just like lock myself in my room i think i was just like very obviously very depressed and what triggered it you know i don't like know exactly i think it was probably like melodrama with like girls or you know maybe i worked up you know i got like i had like a

i don't know like a girlfriend and like or like probably my first girlfriend or something. The first person like I really cared about or something. And I think that like, yeah, but there's this weird thing about it where it's like, the reason I'm even being coy about it is like, I don't really think that was the problem. You know, it's like, I think that was like one of the things that I blamed this giant feeling of

like, you know, just complete worthlessness on. And it, you know, I don't want to like make that person think she ruined my life or something like that because it probably had very little to do with it. But, you know, I think there was probably like some surface level melodrama of like high school girlfriend not working out or something. And then the larger problem of brain chemistry being pretty fucked. Yeah. Did you have to take my antidepressants when you were a kid? Yeah. So I, that was it. So I went, I went to see a psychiatrist and got on, I think it was like Prozac or something like that, but, um, I didn't take it for very long and I was fortunate. Like, I think, I think what happened was because of, excuse me, because of,

um, like the sort of timeframe of it, like people didn't really report me and I didn't really report myself until it was like pretty bad. And it was pretty late in the game. And I guess this is sort of, um, a PSA for, you know, speaking out and being less insular, which I think is hard when you're in the moment like that. But, you know, pretty quickly just helped me that like people, you know, I was going to the psychiatrist and, you know, my mom was like, so amazing and like driving me to these things. And like, everyone cared so much. And I think that just like, just the fact that that stuff started happening, I started to turn it around. And plus, you know, I mean, I was like coming into the end of high school, I think. And just like, what a time in your life, you know, like it was cool.

I was having fun again, you know, or something like that. And all of that, all of that really helped. And I ended up like not taking the medication for very long. I also was like, I've always been afraid of that. I don't know how you feel about that, but just that like, I would just become this like robot. Did it make you robotic? When I was on the medication?

Yeah. No, I don't really remember. I'm like, maybe. I don't know. I know that I was just, you know, it could have been the total like placebo or whatever they say, but I know I was just fearful with that more than anything else. Like I was fearful that, yeah, like I'm this happy guy, but I'm like the weird, um, you know, it's, you know, I'm just like this weird medicated version of myself or something.

Yeah. It's crazy because like, uh, when everyone thinks you're an extrovert because that's just how you blabber, but really you're an introvert because you wouldn't be afraid to express the deeper things. You'd rather crack a joke or you rather fucking keep the fucking air light or like, you know, you felt like you had remorse that your mom was driving you to get you help. Like, you know, it's like, that's a lot of, it's a lot to suppress really. I mean, yeah, no question. You know, I think a lot of times the people that talk the most are, you know, throwing up a shield for sure. You know, like then you can't ask me the question you're about to ask me, you know, if I'm, if I'm speaking. Yeah. And like, you know, it's like, were you close with your mom? Could you get vulnerable with your mom like that? Or was

it hard for you to be vulnerable with your parents too? I think that's, that's a lot of it, you know, and that's not anything really they're doing. I don't think I just, I've never been able to be super vulnerable with people like in my immediate family i think in in part like out of this probably weird dumb fear of just like i know like how difficult it is i'm like for me and like i'm like well we all have the same dna so that means they must also be going insane like you know yeah bro oh my i'm gonna clap for that one. There we go. It's true though. Cause we, I mean like we're, we're grabbing on anything to make us feel normal because we're sad. Maybe. Yeah. Maybe I'm, I don't know.

This is just me talking about my childhood now. No, I mean, yeah, I agree. I think you just, you're trying to, especially if you feel like, and I don't know if it's the same for you and your family, but if I'm super bummed out or something like that, and my family's high-fiving watching The Sixers or something like that, then I'm not going to be like, hey, guys, I know this is going really well, but I haven't spoken in three days at school. Or whatever it is, you know, or whatever it is, like, it doesn't seem like the right time, you know, or whatever. Well, it's like, well, yeah. I mean, you kept those type of, um, routines throughout your whole life really. Cause like you did that with your girlfriend that you stayed in and maybe, I don't know if how your relationship is with your business partners or your bandmates, but you know, I'm the same way.. It's like you don't want to be the downer of the party just because you don't want to have that guilt or something, so you just hold it in.

Yeah, man, I don't want to be the guy. If this thing's going to explode, I want to be able to blame someone else. You're totally fucking right, bro. I'm the same way. It's good and bad because it's bad for us because we're not fucking being honest and we need to be honest because if we weren't honest we wouldn't be doing this fucking this rat race we called being a songwriter you know yeah and i think like there's this there's also this weird

pressure with that too where it's like once i realized you know that i'm a musician and that that's a thing that i people expect of me in a weird way where like they want to listen to more songs that i have i feel like I need to keep that. There's sometimes this weird pressure, which is very bizarre, but it's like, I feel like if I become like just this normal guy, who's like, you know, you know, whistling and waving to everyone on the street and like, you know, kissing babies and doing all that thing that, that the music that I'm making will just become uninteresting. And yeah,

you know, I won't be the same writer or something oh so you feel like you you can never be if you're a songwriter happiness is not part of the the for the formula yeah i mean yeah not not not so much like i can never be happy or something but that if i if i don't like like that part of what i'm doing is i'm trying to get better and that and i think in a somewhat healthy way part of like what mount joy i of what I'm doing is I'm trying to get better. And that, and I think in a somewhat healthy way, part of like what Mount Joy, I think the writing of it is, is like this person who's in whatever position they're in that feels like super relatable because I feel like we're all in this spot where we're trying to improve, right?

We're trying to like figure out a way to like make our life easier, you know, and, and, and internally and externally. Right. But therefore, if I were to just solve the answers to all of that, like overnight, maybe it would make for a really great record. But I think part of it is this, like just this quest. And it is an honest quest. Like I'm not trying to like make myself more sad so I can write a sadder song or something like that. But I guess more what I'm saying is that I'm afraid that if I just, you know, I don't know. I don't really know what

I'm trying to say, but I guess kind of what you're saying, which is just that I don't want to, I guess sometimes I feel like there's a part of me that doesn't necessarily want to like immediately find all those answers in part because I don't think that's possible, guess or and you know we're so young we're not going to know some of those answers until we're 70 and like we got to take pressure off ourselves that yeah we don't need to know the answers i think that's a great philosophy of of putting less pressure on your brain to figure every fucking thing out. How old are you, Matt? I'm 30 years old. I'm 32, so we're about the same age.

But also you look at discographies. You look at Prime. You look at all these guys. The quest is the legacy of any songwriter. Maybe? I don't know. I agree. is the legacy of any songwriter. Yeah, maybe, I don't know.

No, I, I agree. Like, that's what, you know, I think, you know, I,

I, I don't know. I think for me, it's like, I don't want to be, I never have wanted to be, although I guess I'll take it as sort of how I've always thought, but like,

I've never wanted to be like the, like puts out, um, a song and it just is the biggest song in the world. And like the horses are like singing it in a Budweiser commercial. And like, you know, like I've never really wanted to be that guy as much as I've wanted to be the person that just like hangs around, you know, and just like, can be like, you know, I think the reason I was such a big fan of John Prine is like, I mean,

you know, I think the reason I was such a big fan of John Prine is like, I mean, you know, I caught like sort of the later end of his career, but, you know, he was still doing it. Right. And I think for me, part of that fear of failure is like, I don't want to go do something else. Like, I just don't want to, I don't even want to have the thing where like, I look at it and I am a very analytical person. Like I think some part of my brain where I am super aware that like like you look at the longevity of even bands i consider are like super successful far more successful than mount joy has been and probably ever will be and you look at their like you know you put a bunch of those bands in a bucket and like i mean probably the average is like four or five albums six albums albums, you know, like some only last two, some last 10.

But, you know, it's like the average is probably like five or six if you're really successful. And like we're working on number three. So I'm like, I got to like learn how to paint or something. You know, it's like. No, it's true. But like, but you could say that about life and death, though, man. We don't live that long, you know? It's true.

It's true, but I also don't want to die. Yeah. Are you afraid to die? Yeah. I think in a really... Not in the way where I'm like... Yeah, I don't want to die. I guess I'm afraid.

I guess that means I'm afraid. But so with that being said do you not like taking risks like physical risks like you know i'll get a little like i'm a kind of afraid of heights kind of guy like definitely like i don't want to fall to my death but i also think that it's this weird thing i actually i i my girlfriend and i have like a joke about it because i had to explain it because i have these weird things where it's like it's not necessarily that i'm afraid to die there's like 10 or 15 ways that i've like been in enough vans talking about like the worst way to die like on a road trip or something

that i have like 10 ways that i just i just can't die from like i just can't get hit by a car i can't die in an airplane crash i can't you know I can't be eaten by any sort of an animal in a, in a struggle for my life. You know, I can't drown. I can't like, I just got a bunch of ways I can't go. And so I think I'm fearful. Like I'm, I'm, I can't fall to my death. So it's like, I I'm on a mountain and I'm like, Oh my God, I cannot fall to my death. Right. So it's like, I gotta really be careful here. This is one of the 10 ways I can't die yeah yeah it's so god i'm like that too where it's like well it's kind of controlling because you're now you're thinking like you're controlling the way you're gonna die this weird fucking yeah i in when in reality i think probably

it's probably not going to go that way. Are you a control freak? I think a little bit. Depends on the thing. Most of the time, I think I'm actually a pretty go-with-the-flow kind of person. Probably mostly because even if I were a control freak, I'm the least confrontational person. I think you have to be pretty

confrontational to control things. Or at least some things. But I think more and more, I find like freak control freak is probably like too strong, but I, I do actually try to be more, I'm trying to be more controlling of like things I feel passionate about musically, especially writing-wise and stuff like that. Early on, I think I had such little confidence that I would let...

Sometimes for better, but I would let people be like, no, dude, you should do this. It should be like this, not like that. And I'd be like, okay. But then in my head, I'd be like, ah, you know, or something. And I would just let it kind of happen because I thought that that person knew more than you. You know, I really respected that person's musical ability or I knew they were better than me at guitar or whatever it was, you know. And I think as time has gone on, I've gotten a little better at being a little more controlling over something where I'm like, I'm able to say like, wow, like I just totally disagree or something like that, you know, or something. Well, yeah, it's confidence.

Yeah. You're, you're fucking, you're becoming your own man. You know, it took, I'm going to clap to that too. You're becoming a man, bud. Let's fucking get it. And that's the thing. Like, what is a man owning up to who they are as a person? You know, maybe that was, I don't know.

What do you think? Yeah. I mean, I don't know what a man is i think that a lot of the like real pitfalls of our society are people telling us what men are supposed to do but like when i say man like an adult woman you know human species when you grow up and you get out of adolescence you become human or something or confident or I don't know, though, because I'm still a fucking child. No, no, I'm definitely a child. But that's why I struggle with this. But I think that, yeah, I think that's an interesting thought. I've never really thought of it that way.

like, yeah, part of maybe me growing up has been realizing that, like, you know, I think also a lot of it comes back to this idea of, like, if I'm gonna potentially not achieve all the things that I want to achieve, then it's not going to be because at this point, at least I've become adult enough or whatever it is, I, that I think I can sort of stand behind the things that got me there. And for our band, a lot of, if not most of, almost all of the ideas sort of start with me. And so I feel like more and more, I find myself wanting to make sure that I'm really... Because I think that my band members are in this really difficult spot. And I've come to really respect as I've done some like, you know, helping other people, right.

Or something like that. I've gotten this great perspective of like how hard that is. Like it's so difficult to like, you know, someone when it's your thing, you're so connected to it that actually you speaking up and controlling some of those situations can be super helpful for the other person because it's usually probably more that they just have no idea what the fuck you're talking about. And you are so attached to this song and you're so attached to the vibe and you're so attached to this orchestra that you hear in your head that they have none of. And it's sort of like a game arranging songs with a band, I think, for me at least, is a bit like playing charades, right? You're like, you can't always exactly describe

how the drums are supposed to be, but you know exactly how the drums are supposed to be. Yeah, exactly. And is that difficult on a personal level to keep your band in a healthy mind state? Because at the end of the day, it's your world, you know? Yeah, I think, I honestly think that i'm super lucky to have just a great group super talented group and we're friends you know and like we're goofy and we keep it pretty light so i i think you know like every band like we've had our

our moments where it's difficult because being in a band is hard like it's it's hard it's it's there's there's very few bands kind of out there left in the world i think it's kind of like we're like siberian tigers or something like that and i i think the reason is because we get hunted you know like we get hunted by the idea of people who are like why would i do a band when i can just be myself and make five times more money and and you know I'll just be on the cover of the magazine and you know no one it'll you know I'll sell my ego instead of a group's ego like you know I think I think that's way easier and now there's probably people who disagree with me and wish they had a band and I'm sure the grass is always greener

kind of thing but I just look at the the trend kind of musically um I feel like the band is sort of a dying uh a dying thing and I think I attribute that to a lot of things but I think a lot of the factors that we face and sort of the scarcity of resource being the main one you know doing something with five people um and trying to get all those ideas and everyone in the right you know right frame of mind i think is difficult and like i think we all sort of respect what we have and and that it is working and we're just so it's easy for that reason because i think everyone knows how special it is the thing that we're doing well i'm glad that that mind state is in in the in the brains of the band.

And I'm glad to have a conversation with you, man. I think you're a good guy, man. This is good. I mean, I relate so much to you. I have this, I just see myself when you start talking about all that stuff because I dealt with that stuff and I suppressed that stuff. And it took me until I was 28 to ask for help you know so i'm glad you uh you're working on it and working on yourself and i'm glad you uh got uh that toxic that toxic

chick out of your fucking life and uh you're on to a new endeavor with your move with your move and your your career and stuff and i got one last question for you. Um, but yeah, we should be buddies, dude. I've even, this is good. I had a great time,

man. Thank you for this. I appreciate it. Please. Uh, let's, uh, let's chat off podcast world.

Yeah. I'll, yeah, I'll get your number after this thing. Uh, one last question. When it's all said and done, what do you want Mount joy to be remembered as? Or what does Matt Quinn, what do you want Mount Joy to be remembered as?

Or what does Matt Quinn, what do you want to be remembered as, Matt Quinn? You know, I think I'll do Mount Joy. I think, like, I think for me, I just want to be remembered as a great songwriter that was, you know, kind to people. Like, I think I want, like, people to not just think of me as this songwriter or whatever.

But I think for Mount Joy, I just think we have an opportunity to be different than anything else out there. And I do think that we can continue to grow and hopefully be just remembered as a great live band that has great records, too. I mean, that pretty much covers it all, I guess. But I think that we can do both. And I think that it takes hard work, but I think we're on our way. Well, keep almost shitting yourself at shows. Keep, you know, keep on,

I think the anxiety helps, bro. I hope so, because I got some. Yeah, same. Well, that's why I say that. I give you that advice because I'm trying to say that to me as well. So thanks for being on the show mad um we'll see we'll see you in the we'll see you in the finals because you're gonna beat uh the nets and we're gonna i joel's this is his year if he doesn't

get hurt he's looking pretty good man uh you saying that makes me feel so confident that they'll flame out in the first round but i uh i so. I hope that we can go all the way, man. They don't got a big man. I mean, the Nets don't have something that could compete. You know, Ben can't shoot a jumper, but who cares? Go punch that shit into the fucking rim

and show these people that you don't need a super team. I'm ready to run through a wall. I'm ready. I think, I hope the Sixers get it done. I'm a very pessimistic Philly sports fan, but they've captured my imagination. I'll tell you that much. They've been great.

Like all fucking Philadelphia fans. They're all so pessimistic, but they fucking are diehards. So diehards. It's protectionism. We're afraid of failure. Full circle. Full circle conversation right here, buddy. Thanks for being on the show.

And yeah, let's stay in touch, will you? Thank you, man. Appreciate you, Andy. Cheers, bro. Nice to meet you. Later, bro. You too, man. Cheers. And there you have it.

Matt Quinn, good guy. Really loved his band when it first came out. And I'm a fan of him. And to see familiar traits of how he lived life as a kid and how I lived life as a kid and how I struggled with anxiety and how he coped with anxiety versus how I coped with anxiety. It was very nice. So yeah, thank you, Matt.

All right, here, I'll catch you after these words. And now a song from my buddy, Nick McDaniels from Big Something. Go get a big dog. Let the machines, oh let the machines Do it for you Do it all for you For you For you Oh pretty soul

Oh pretty soul They'll be coming to town near you They'll be taking your jobs Making the Monday more Monday Making the Monday more Monday Pretty soon I'll be taking your time Taking your mind

and sending it along. Yeah. What I've seen, what I've seen, the machine's moving. Moving Something that gives A taste from you From you From you Take this tool out my throat Get me back out on the road

Get me far away from here Leave it all in my Machines of humor My machines of humor My machines of humor Don't let the machines, don't let the machines do it for you. And there you have it. Fucking dope, right? For you it deeper and deeper because you don't you know in an hour and try to try to get to know someone in an hour and for him to open up like that is um was badass so shout out to you matt thanks for being there on the show um but that's it everyone i hope you have a great week like i said before um stay out of the dark crevices of your mind wear condoms you know um babies it's gonna be a baby boom like i got three of my fucking friends are you know, um, babies, it's going to be a baby boom. Like three of my fucking friends

are, you know, quarantine babies, bam, popped out, you know, kids like, you know, yeah. So if that's what you want, you want to produce the world and you know, just be a, go for it. But if you don't and you just want to bone because you're horny and thirsty and you've been in your fucking house and you porn doesn't work anymore. Just wear a condom, focus in on your breath. Don't come too quick. You know, it's your first time in a long time. You're going to have to get excited. You're going to get excited. I do it all the time. I, you know, I come hella quick, um, and whatnot. So just dial in, focus in, stay present. You got this. And have fun. Have fun out there. It's a weird time and it's stressful and we need to find little pockets of fun or this life is all going to be stressful. So wherever you can find a little pocket of fun, go fucking

have it. If you want to learn a new hobby, go fucking, uh, what, what do they call that? The Frisbee golf, go Frisbee golf, go fucking get one of those grateful dead Frisbee golfs and fucking listen to Jerry and just fucking jam out in the mountains, dude. Or you can get healthy or whatever, like I'm trying to do, trying to get a little healthy and, uh, just, you know, always think about yourself a little bit, you know, Don't think about everyone else too much. Think about people because that's good to do. But you got to start thinking about yourself too and think about how you are going to be comfortable

in the skin and the bones that your little neurotic brain lives in. So stay safe, stay powerful, stay inspired and stay fucking optimistic. We're going to make it through this people. I swear to God, I swear to God. So yeah, I'll catch you next week. We got Al from Mo coming on the show. I can't tell you too many more. I got it. Fucking Brian yelled at me. He's like, you can't tell what people are on the show. Because what if they don't do the interview? I'm like, chill out.

We're going to get the interview. We're going to be fine. But I appreciate the neuroticism because I don't want to get pissed off. I don't want to be pissed off. We did not agree to that. So shout out to Brian for being always thinking about me. Think about himself too. So he doesn't have to get that email

because I don't get that email. Brian gets that email. So I guess he's sparing that headache that is managing Andy Frasco. All right, guys, I'm out of here. Be safe. I love you. And Arno, I think he's going to give us a little monologue.

I hope so. I haven't talked to Arno in a little bit. So Arno, give the crowd that European optimism that we all love. All right, guys, have a great day. You tuned in to the Blissful Blah, Andy Fresco's world-saving podcast, produced by Andy Fresco, Joe Angel, and Chris Lawrence. Please subscribe, rate the show on iTunes

and Spotify so we can make this a worldwide phenomenon. For more info on the show, please head to Instagram at world-savingpodcast. For more info on blog or tour dates, head to andyfresco.com.

Check out the new album, Keep On Keepin' On, or let Andy entertain you at a Thursday night online shit show, or at this crazy Saturday night wanna-dance-with-somebody dance party. Oh, right. Summer season is here. Thursday night online shitshow or this crazy Saturday night wanna dance with somebody dance

parties. Oh right, summer season is here, no festivals, no music, so instead of trying to keep the lip going and hoping to find some shitty paid trombone at Juba gigs this summer, I decided to reroute. Build in closets and wardrobes, build a tiny summer house and do some painting. It will be October in no time. And yes, I sort of hate it compared to the wonderful life I live. But I'm also thankful that people trust my skills or my good looks or whatever. They have my back and I managed to make some money. The big danger in this line of work, actually, it pays a lot better than being a musician.

All right. How are you doing? Making ends meet? Worried? No work? Putting on a virtual dance party every week? Let's make sure to carry each other, get one another's backs,

keep each other safe, keep each other sane, keep each other healthy. Let's unite, for it will be a long road ahead. See you next week.