Cinema Cinema is a two-piece atmospheric punk band from Brooklyn made up of cousins Paul Claro on drums and Ev Gold on guitar and vocals. The band recently played three shows at the CMJ Music Marathon 2013 throughout New York City.
They have released two albums to date and will soon embark on their first European tour. The duo took the time to talk to MStars about their origins, the CMJ experience and their upcoming work:
How did you guys come together as a band? What's your origin story?
Ev Gold: Jan. 11, 2008 was the birth date of Cinema Cinema as we and the world at large know it. I guess the true origin of our story goes back way beyond that, tracing our heritage via our grandparents and even our ancestors before them, coming together and building a family of which both Paul and I are lucky to both be a part. We are cousins and that helps keep the focus and the care placed upon our little "family business."
Paul Claro: I guess it truly started for me when I first heard some of Ev's music. Ten years separate us age-wise, and I remember being a young drummer, 13 or so, trying to play along to some of Ev's songs I found online. I always looked up to him even though we weren't that close at the time and from then I knew my goal was to play in a band with him. Years later, in 2008, I got my chance and it's everything I could have hoped for.
Who are some of your major influences?
EG: Swans, Bad Brains, Rush, Neil Young and more or less the entire SST Records and Dischord Records catalogues!
PC: Lest we forget The Who, Afghan Wigs and Daniel Johnston!
What has the experience been like for you playing at CMJ?
EG: We're approaching the close of our sixth full year as a band together. Of those six years, we have done CMJ four times. Being a band here in New York, you kind of get "CMJ"-type weeks here often, meaning there are generally always an insane amount of shows going down regardless of putting a festival name on the front of the week. So the "value" of a CMJ show for a local band might not be the same value for a band who has never played New York before. Perhaps in the future the festival can look to mainly focus on international acts or something that can add a modicum of "special" back to the event, as it's getting kind of tired.
PC: Totally agree. The festival gets very diluted with the amount of artists and shows it presents. Three thousand-plus artists? Even half of that is still too much! I understand the festival wants to bring as many up-and-coming or unknown artists to the forefront, but it's self-defeating in the way that it's currently being booked.
What do you think sets you apart as a band? What's your most unique characteristic?
EG: Our absolute and total commitment to pour every last drop of life force and passion we have into EVERY live performance, recording and commitment that we make as a band. That might sound like a "stock" answer or something other bands have said. But to that I say come see us live and you'll get the picture.
PC: Not many bands provide an engrossing experience rather than a setlist. Our playing is full of emotion and we do about 40 percent of our set as improv jamming. So our playing is very influenced by where we are at emotionally on any given day. You could see us five nights in a row and it would be a wholly new and unique experience each time.
Any major upcoming events or new music in the works?
EG: Our first European Tour! We leave at the start of November for a run that will have us playing 12 shows across five countries over two-and-a-half weeks. Upon our return we head into the studio in Brooklyn (Martin Bisi, who has worked with Sonic Youth, Helmet, etc. is set to co-produce/engineer) to work on our third full length for a mid-2014 release.
