Q&A: The Hives Call Up Pharrell, Hit On Ole Miss Cheerleaders For New Album
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Which are you enjoying more - the solo club shows or opening for Maroon 5?In the beginning we loved playing our own shows. But then we thought about it and realized, “Jesus Christ!” this is starting to get really, really fun. 95% of the people every night have never heard of us or seen us or anything. When we’re done playing they are shocked. Nobody has an idea of what hits them. All they know is that they are standing up and they’re all sweating and their hands are already clapping. They’re loving it!
For The Black And White Album you guys flew around the world and worked with a lot of people. Why this approach?We recorded three records the exact same way - pretty much ourselves. We wanted to make something interesting for ourselves. We decided we were going to have someone produce it but we couldn’t decide on any one producer;…so therefore we have like 7. It was fun how we did it.
Why did it take three years? Your last album Tyrannosaurus Hives was released back in 2004.Right after Tyrannosaurus Hives we went on tour for two years, then we had three weeks off and started to rehearse 9 to 5 on this record. We tried to release the record before last Christmas, but we recorded pretty much all over the world with so many different people. And those people aren’t really sitting around and waiting for the Hives to stop by. They’re recording other tracks and we’re waiting for them.
We had to wait for [producer] Dennis Herring to record a song. We had to wait five months for him. He was already working on the Modest Mouse record. But, in the meantime we went to Miami and recorded with Pharrell. We recorded in London with Jacknife Lee. We recorded some stuff at home.
Did location influence the album?The Pharrell stuff - we didn’t have anything when we got into the studio. As far as location, not really, but on the other hand when you record in Miami its bound to sound like Pharrell Williams in Miami. The songs have that energy.
Who decided to do that?We decide everything. We met Pharrell in Japan in 2004. He came up to us and said that he loved us and he’d like to work with us one day. We just thought of that and decided to give him a call. It worked out great.
Why were you so adamant to work with Dennis Herring at his Oxford, Mississippi studio? He seems like a random choice.We are all big fans of Sweet Tea, this record he did with Buddy Guy. We love that and it has a really good sound on it.
Was there any southern influence? Use any washboards?No washboards, lots of other weird stuff. If we hadn’t gone there we wouldn’t have had five girls from the Ole Miss cheerleading team singing on the record. We met them, asked them to come back with us, and they did! They did a beautiful job.
Did you know they had good voices?No they were just, you know, cheerleaders. There’s a picture of them on our web site. They’re in their cheerleading costumes and everything. They sang on “Try It Again.”
What do think of what Radiohead did with In Rainbows?We heard that one guy paid $200 for the album. It’s a great thing to let people pay what they want for it.
Would you do that?Sure. Why not.
Do think that’s where the music industry is headed? Giving the album away?I hope not. I, for one, if I get a record I want the cover. I want to be able to touch it. And not only through a computer. I want the whole thing: To be able to pick it up, put the CD on and then just look through the cover of it while it’s playing. I don’t think that CDs are ever gonna go away completely.
Are you guys still “writing” with Randy Fitzsimmons?Oh yeah! He sends his regards. He is not on tour with us. He usually just has an idea for a song. It might me a chord or using these type of drums. You never know. We don’t need him touring around with us all the time though. We’re just getting so talented.
What are you listening to these days?All kinds of different stuff. The new Springsteen record, Magic. Devo. A lot of hip-hop.
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