The last time we talked with The Curls they were about to depart on a short tour, and they had just dropped the oddly-entertaining “Bad Boi” single. Their new record, Bounce House, is now ready for public consumption, and leader Mick Fansler was kind enough to give us some of his time to answer a few questions. It seems an era of The Curls is coming to a close, and a new lineup will emerge to produce some of the craziest art rock Chicago has to offer. Dig on in, and see how Bounce House came to fruition! You can catch The Curls for their Record Release Party on June 15th at The Observatory or July 1st at The Empty Bottle for a FREE Monday show!  

-KPL

MF: Mick Fansler
CCS: Kyle Land

It's been awhile since we last chatted with The Curls. You all have a new album coming out this week- your first since breakout record Super Unit- can you fill us in on the process and how Bounce House came to be?

MF: This one took awhile. By the time we finished it, we had a new rhythm section. We recorded six or seven songs early last year, figured it might be an EP. But we put it on hold to rehearse the 11-piece band for Pitchfork then went on tour for a few weeks. Our engineer/producer Michael Mac was ripping bass with us on that run, so there wasn't much time to work on the record. Once we brought in our current rhythm section at the end of last year, and the sound of the group started to change a bit, we decided to re-record a few tracks and try out a few new ones. It's now our longest record yet.

You've been slowly putting out tracks from Bounce House for almost a year now. What was the impetus to start putting out singles so far ahead of the album release?

MF: Well, the album took so long, and it seems like you have to stay relevant and on people's minds at all times. There are a million new bands and publicists fighting tooth and nail everyday to get somebody to add their track to the “chill af amazeballs drink 4 Loko summer vibes” Spotify playlist. (Which is a terrific playlist.)

Throughout the record, there are a few rather experimental instrumental tracks, which is something we haven't heard from you all. Where'd the idea originate to include something of this nature?  

MF: Maybe my favorite part of this record! Most of the credit goes to Jan (Marshall) on those. Those were all her ideas. Once we changed up the band a bit, we started to improvise a lot more when we'd get together. Matt, Rami, and Chorey are all great improvisers. So when we went in for the second recording session this year, we recorded a lot of improvised jams around these spooky ideas Jan had. Since the record is comprised of two recording sessions with almost two different groups, we thought it would be cool to pull some moments from those to use as interludes to connect different sections of the record; a very new and original idea that no one had thought of before us.

We've heard rumors of a lineup shakeup in The Curls. Can you fill us in on what's going on with our favorite Chicago art rockers?

MF: Well I've mentioned it a thousand times now, but we've been playing with a new rhythm section since the end of last year, a big change that we're just starting to really dig into when it comes to writing as a group. Anna (Holmquist) is playing their last show in the group at the album release June 15. We've had a couple great years working in the project together, but it seemed like it was time to go in different creative directions. They also have a cool project of their own called Ester.

I think after the past few years of playing with six, seven or 11-piece groups for live shows, it feels like it’s time to reel things in a little. You end up spending too much time rehearsing instead of writing and trying new things, and the scheduling aspect is a constant mess. I think we'll be getting more adventurous and focused with the music in a smaller core group while maintaining a more loose, revolving cast of collaborators when we go into the studio. I see our next record having loads of improvised features and multiple 30-minute long tracks.

You have roots in the DIY scene, and you are having your album release at The Observatory on June 15th. After playing most of the clubs in Chicago, what brings you back to DIY spaces- even after playing public venues for years?  

MF: We don’t play them so much anymore except on tours. We don’t get asked in Chicago anymore. (Lost a lot of street cred after playing pitchfork, everyone thinks were cops.) However, The Observatory is one of the greats and the smart people that run it still think we're cool. I actually think the last DIY show we did in Chicago was there last summer. Should be a fun time, some real heavy hitters on the lineup.

What's in The Curls’ playlist right now that you think no one digs but you all?

MF: I was just watching a Phish Halloween show on YouTube where they covered the entirety of Talking Heads Remain in Light. Pretty cool. My friend just recommended the new Cate le Bon to me. I wasn’t familiar before, but it’s great. I’m loving it. I've been on an R Stevie Moore journey, too, so many records to comb through. We’ve been listening to the new Woongi record a lot; they’re going to be famous someday. Of course these are things all hip people like. I've been grooving to Boz Scaggs on the reg, that's a better answer to the question.

Thanks for doing this Mick, never change your weird selves! See ya in the Bounce House!