... and then there's Metro Station, the heavy-metal-hair-band... a.k.a. Blake the Snake, Tracey Fox, The Mace & Antophile.
Forget swimming oceans for a girl, seventeen or dance-off's. The new Metro Station, is head-banging, guitar-shredding, with big, big hair. "Freedom, brah!" Dirty, dirty distortion... is the new, powerpop heartbeat.
For a band that wouldn't exist in a Hannah Montana free-world, 9:30AM is not a very rock-star time of day to be awake. Metro Station frontman Trace Cyrus and synthesizer-est Blake Healy, take to humouring strangers with great rapport. Cyrus, half-sibling to Disney-super-girl Miley Cyrus, states that Miley is "a blessing from Jesus"... and "it's so amazing" to be related to her, with only a trace of irony.
Breezing through the nation on the sold-out 'Veronicas Revenge Is Sweeter tour, Metro Station cannot recall any classic revenge anecdotes... but when further prompted, Cyrus considers last year's prank call war on a Seattle piercing shop. "That wasn't that good of a revenge. I've done many worse. I was just helping them get a little publicity. That was probably the most publicity they've ever got. I think I helped them out rather." Cyrus rounded up fans via Myspace bulletins, to storm the store's phoneline over a refund issue. Moral of the story? Don't cross Trace Cyrus.
Disclaimer: If you take anything from this interview to heart, then you need a serious dose of Blake's mix CD.
COUP DE MAIN: SEVENTEEN FOREVER / What are your best and worst memories of being seventeen?
METRO STATION - BLAKE HEALY: I hated high school.
METRO STATION - TRACE CYRUS: Seventeen, was the year we started Metro Station. For me, it was a huge year. The worst thing, was probably all the bad jobs I had to do before that, in that year. I worked at Journeys, a shoe store. Then I also worked at a couple restaurants, washing dishes. Definitely something I'm glad I'm not doing anymore.
CDM: CONTROL / Who, or what... do you wish you had more control over?
MS - BLAKE: Trace Cyrus! ... I wish I had more control over our success... Over the things that Mason says. He says, "dude let's go to the beach", a lot lately.
MS - TRACE: ... and brah.
MS - BLAKE: It's really freaking me out. He became like a surfer bro.
MS - TRACE: He's a surfer now, ever since Australia.
MS - BLAKE: It's been bothering me.
CDM: KELSEY / Who, is the real Kelsey?
MS - TRACE: Blake, explain...
MS - BLAKE: Some girl that Mason knows.
CDM: Is her real name Chelsea?
MS - BLAKE: Yes. *laughs* How did you look that up?
CDM: ...Youtube live video, of Mason accidentally singing Chelsea instead of Kelsey...
MS - BLAKE: That's right. He does that sometimes, when she's there.
CDM: Are they still together?
MS - BLAKE: Sometimes. *laughs*
MS - TRACE: When he feels like it.
CDM: SHAKE IT / Remember the Maccarena?... If you could invent your own dance routine, what moves would you show off?
MS - BLAKE: Since the 'Stanky Leg' has already been done... I would do some sort of pelvis thrust type-thing. Something based on that.
CDM: WISH WE WERE OLDER / What age would you want to fast-forward to?
MS - TRACE: I don't want to get any older.
MS - BLAKE: There's no reason to fast-forward to a different age.
MS - TRACE: I'd like to go back in time, if anything. Probably back to sixteen. It was a good year.
MS - BLAKE: Yeah, sixteen would be cool. I'd wanna do it over again. I don't want to have to re-live it. It had so much potential.
MS - TRACE: Could have been better.
CDM: NOW THAT WE'RE DONE / What's the worst lie you've ever told?
MS - TRACE: I never lie. The biggest liar in our band is Anthony Improgo.
MS - BLAKE: He lies all the time.
MS - TRACE: He lies everyday.
MS - BLAKE: I'm really bad at lying though. As soon as I lie, I feel really bad and it's really obvious.
MS - TRACE: I can't lie. It's wrong. I wouldn't do that.
MS - BLAKE: It's wrong.
CDM: NOW THAT WE'RE DONE / Worst apology you've ever given?
MS - BLAKE: That time that I lied to that girl... when I said I was sorry... but I wasn't. *laughs*
CDM: TRUE TO ME / How do you tell the difference between love and lust?
MS - TRACE: I, don't know. Blake? Blake's in love right now. I don't.
MS - BLAKE: You just know, when you're in love.
MS - TRACE: There's been times when I've thought I was in love and I don't think any of them have ever been real.
MS - BLAKE: Could be hard to tell I guess.
CDM: TELL ME WHAT TO DO / Your thoughts on substance abuse?
MS - BLAKE: I think it's bad.
MS - TRACE: I think everything in moderation, is great.
MS - BLAKE: Yeah, moderation is key. You have to be careful with that stuff.
MS - TRACE: Just do it in moderation and you'll be fine.
CDM: Define 'moderation'...
MS - TRACE: You know...
MS - BLAKE & TRACE [ in unison ]: Once a day!
CDM: Once a day, keeps the doctor away?
*giggles all round*
CDM: TELL ME WHAT TO DO / If you had to fake your own death, how would you do it?
MS - BLAKE: I would disappear. Stay disappeared long enough that people would think that I died.
MS - TRACE: That's what I would do.
CDM: CALIFORNIA / What's the best thing about California?
MS - BLAKE: The weather.
MS - TRACE: The weed.
CDM: CALIFORNIA / Essential items for road-trips, apart from weed?
MS - TRACE: What else is there?
MS - BLAKE: iPod. Computer.
CDM: DISCO / Ultimate disco story?
MS - BLAKE: We used to go to a club together near my house, when we were recording songs before we were signed or anything. That was always a cool experience.
CDM: Trace, what's happening with your clothing label 'From Backseats To Bedrooms'?
MS - TRACE: There's really not much to tell. I'm a slacker and it's gone nowhere. Blake tried to start a clothing company a little while ago too...
MS - BLAKE: ... it went nowhere.
CDM: Where did you get the inspiration for Roflsticks t-shirts?
MS - BLAKE: I always draw stick figures. I had a bunch of 'em and I thought I'd make t-shirts out of them. But I guess nobody else thought it was funny. *laughs* I'm the only one.
MS - TRACE: We're both so busy with music that, it's something that will come in the future when we have more time that's free.
CDM: Blake, tell me about Synthetic Joy.
MS - BLAKE: Well, I was in Synthetic Joy...
MS - TRACE: He sleeps with the band members.
MS - BLAKE: I was in Synthetic Joy before Metro Station... and then Metro Station stole me... and then Kristy who is the singer, and I, didn't talk for a little while cuz she was kinda mad at me.... and now we're engaged.
CDM: So she's forgiven you?
MS - BLAKE: She has. But it will always be a sore spot though... Not really, she understands.
CDM: Do you think that Mason & Trace have a similar dynamic, to that of Patrick Stump & Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy?
MS - BLAKE: I've thought about that before. Cuz Mason kinda has the voice and Trace is kinda the star.
MS - TRACE: In a way.
CDM: If you could have super-hero powers, what would they be and why?
MS - BLAKE: I would want to fly. Just because it would be so much fun.
MS - TRACE: I'd want to shoot bullets out of my finger.
MS - BLAKE: *laughs* Cuz he likes killing people.
CDM: If you were to make me a mix CD right now... what would be on it and why?
MS - BLAKE: I'd put a ten second clip of the chorus of 'Shake It', for fourty minutes.
CDM: Yay. Repeat.
MS - BLAKE: Just cuz, I think that you would like something like that. Most people would. Yeah, you would? That's what I'll do then. Just ten seconds of it though. The best part! Why do all that other junk? There's two whole verses and a bridge that... what's the point? The chorus is so catchy.
CDM: Time for a little game... Ask each other a question you haven't ever asked before...
MS - TRACE: What's your favourite colour?
MS - BLAKE: Red.... Let me think. How old were you when you had your first kiss?
MS - TRACE: I was twelve.
MS - BLAKE: How old were you, when you kissed your first boy?
MS - TRACE: *laughs* I'm still waiting for that special moment. But, we'll see.
MS - BLAKE: I snuck two questions in there!
CDM: Future plans for Metro Station?
MS - BLAKE: Freedom, brah!
MS - TRACE: Heavy metal album.
MS - BLAKE: We were talking about doing a metal album. We've always compared ourselves to hair metal bands cuz we're so cool.
MS - TRACE: We just want to do something completely different on the next album, kinda like what Panic did.
MS - BLAKE: Except, go metal. Not 'Beatles.
CDM: Would you have stage-hair-metal names?
MS - BLAKE: That's a good idea. I want to do something tough. Mine would be Blake the Snake.
MS - TRACE: Blake, I can't beat Blake the Snake. That's a good one.
MS - BLAKE: How about Tracey Fox?
MS - TRACE: Tracey Fox is good.
MS - BLAKE: Mason would just be, The Mace. Maybe. Anthony could be Antz Antophile.
MS - TRACE: Antophile. That's it.
METRO STATION's debut self-titled album featuring the singles 'Shake It', 'Kelsey', 'Seventeen Forever' & 'Control', is in-stores now.
METRO STATION with THE VERONICAS live at the Logan Campbell Centre, March 3: