The Wake

After The Shut-Ins played at the Dinkytowner Café’s In the Garage, a very well attended, all-ages show on Sunday, October 10, 2004, I really wanted to find out more about them.
Martha Weir and Neil Weir met with me and the following transpired

Q. How long have you been playing together?
Martha: We started off about a year and a half ago, just sort of messing around and seeing what might come out of it. I was playing drums at that point and Neil guitar. After a couple of months, I got a bass and we started playing with the Rhythm Master and it just sort of stuck. At first we played with it out of necessity, then it just turned into part of our sound. I guess we probably started putting real songs together about a year ago.

Q. So you guys play with a drum machine?
Martha: Yeah, an old analog drum machine called a Rhythm Master. It has something like 8 choices, we tend to use Rock 2 a lot. But we have been practicing and recording a little with a live drummer. He is on tour with his other band until December though, so we are playing drum machine shows until he gets back. Plus, we don’t really want to get rid of the drum machine completely, so we are trying to figure out a way to incorporate both.

Q. Who writes?
Martha: Both of us. Usually we start by just playing together until something clicks. One of us might have a riff or something and we just play until it works itself out, then add vocals later. We are able to work really well together that way, the songs always come pretty easily. The hardest for me is when Neil has a song nearly completed and I am supposed to just add my bass part and background vocals. It sounds easy, but we’ve written a couple songs that way and I am never really satisfied with the end result.
Q. What are you listening to now? Well not right now but in general what are you listening to?
Neil: Right now I’m especially liking the Comsat Angels’ first two records. Really effective minimalism. I love it when bands aren’t afraid to stay on one chord for a long time. The Comsat Angels are a band that history seems to have not been kind to. Kind of like The Sound. They were both part of the initial post-punk thing but Echo and the Bunnymen were better looking I guess. Otherwise, I’ve been listening a lot of old favorites. The Velvet Underground, Wire, Dylan, Brian Eno, The Buzzcocks, The Fall, The Wedding Present, My Bloody Valentine…

Martha: I’ve also been pulling out a lot of old favorites, Wire, The Fall, Joy Division, Echo and the Bunnymen, T. Rex, Gang of Four, Television, Sonic Youth, Roxy Music, Brian Eno, The Smiths, Cocteau Twins, The Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine, on and on….

Q. So what is the deal with two Weirs in a band?
Neil and Martha: We are not together. We are not married. We are not a couple. We are siblings. Brother and sister. Please tell everyone you know this. It’s really starting to cramp my style.

Q. Any final words?
Neil: Never become emotionally involved with any man, woman, child, or beast.
Martha: Hmm. No point in trying to top that I guess.

Check out the band at www.theshut-ins.com