I LOVE YOU BUT I’VE CHOSEN DARKNESS
INTERVIEW MARISA BRICKMAN
PHOTOGRAPHER SHANE SHERMAN
DATE APRIL 6 2004
I was intrigued when I saw I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness last year in Austin, TX during the SXSW Music Festval. They played a party at this crazy theater space called the Vortex out in the middle of nowhere. Although I was totally shit-faced by the time they went on, I remembered them afterwards – or maybe it was just because of their name.
From what I could remember about their sound, they were kind of arty, heavy on the instruments and pretty moody – but maybe it was just the fog machines and tree branches that decorated the stage? There were murmurs afterwards from some “industry types” and hipster kids following SXSW 2003, but I Love You… sort of fell off my radar for a while – until SXSW 2004. Over the past year, they released a self-titled EP on Emperor Norton and rose to the top of their hometown scene.
Roaming the streets of Austin this year were legions of people proudly sporting trendy homemade silk-screened I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness t-shirts and people bragging that they went to go see the band play.
My vague Vortex memories of what these guys sound like are somewhat correct, but after checking out the EP, I realized that this band is way more structured and pop than I thought – but that could just be because Britt Daniel of Spoon produced it.
I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness make moody danceable pop-rock that is sometimes dark and brooding and sometimes upbeat and chimy, all with an underlying nod to, um, Manchester. They are at their best when they’re placating my drunken memories by doing the arty instrumental thing with dueted hushed vocals and expansive soundscapes rather than when they get all peppy with the tambourines, hand-claps and dance beats.
A band since 2002, I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness is Christian Goyer (Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards), Edward Robert (Bass, Keyboards), Tim White (Drums), Daniel DelFavero (Guitar) and Ernest Salaz (Guitar, Keyboards, Backing Vocals). Past projects include Windsor for the Derby, Paul Newman, Glorium and Salute the Curse.
We finally caught up with each other after a few weeks of back and forth and I found out that these guys are indeed more than just a funny name.
I feel like everyone from Austin always talks about this band Paul Newman but I’ve never heard of them. What’s all the hype about?
Christian: Robes Pierre?
Edward: Paul Newman was a band I was in for a long time with some real nice guys. What is the hype all about?
Ernest: Ed is modest. They were great. You missed out. Craig McCaffrey and Paul Newman were both my roommates at one time, so I’m partial. “Enter the Empire of the Ants” remains one of my favorite songs.
Tim: The hype is all about Edward Robert.
Who is the hottest band in Austin right now?
Edward: Cavedweller. No, Blort.
Christian: The Flamin’ Hot Hot Fireballs.
Ernest: No, seriously. Pancakes with Cheese.
Tim: There are a lot of great bands in Austin – Spoon, Trail of Dead, Explosions in the Sky, American Analog Set. They are all well-established nationally, but there are a lot of newer bands too like Zykos and Sound Team that get a lot of deserved attention.
Edward: The Dung Beetles.
Christian: Us.
Ernest: Okay, for real. Jherri Siggnfeld’s At Ropheed Sack.
Del: Dixie Witch.
Austin claims to be the the “live music capitol of the states.” Or is it the world? What’s all that live music that’s being played? There are really only a handful of bands who claim being from Austin. Is most of it bad?
Edward: Austin doesn’t really have more live music than any other large-ish college town, the city just crows about it more. Most of it is middle-aged guys in Hawaiian shirts aping Stevie Ray Vaughn.
Christian: The “live music capitol” claim is complete bullshit created by the Austin Chamber of Commerce. It’s a bumper sticker thing. That and “Keep Austin Weird”. Most of the bands do suck here.
Ernest: Yeah, so much of it sucks. But I think that drives other bands to push harder and make something special. I like Sound Team a lot, and A Tiger Named Lovesick.
Tim: Well, you might be onto something. Sometimes all it takes to hold a title like “Live Music Capital of the World” is to simply stick some band in every bar and restaurant and on every corner and there you have it. Not to say that Austin doesn’t have a rich history of underground music.
Yeah, no shit – you can’t even order a cup of coffee in Austin without some dude in the corner playing an acoustic guitar. Kidding…but you know what I mean. I’ve only been down there for SXSW when every bar is a venue, but as a local, where is the best place to play?
Edward: Emo’s, The Parish, and La Zona Rosa are all good.
Christian: I like La Zona Rosa the best.
Ernest: Ditto. Le Privilege was cool too. And Club Deville.
Tim & Del: Yeah, Emo’s and The Parish.
Who has the best BBQ?
Edward: Iron Works.
Christian: The Salt Lick.
Ernest: Without a doubt, The Salt Lick.
Del: The Salt Lick is an amazing place out in the country, but there is a place called Ruby’s that is near our hearts.
Best Mexican?
Christian: Ernest Salaz
Edward: Ernest Salaz, definitely.
Ernest: Wow, thanks. You vatos are too kind, ese. For me I’d say El Azteca.
Tim & Del: Polvo’s.
What is the deal with that place the Vortex? What is it? That show last year was the first and only time I saw you guys play. I heard about the party from a local and my friends convinced The Rapture guys to drive us out there, but when we got to the party, there was literally five people there. We helped ourselves to the free beer and got trashed. Did you expect it to get so packed?
Christian: I didn’t expect it to get so busy. It’s a hippie theater where we put a show together for SXSW. I don’t anticipate ever playing there again, but who knows.
Edward: The Vortex is where Woodstock lives. Free beer after the bars close usually means it’ll get packed, but yeah we were pretty surprised at how crowded it got. Were you just trying to work The Rapture into the discussion, Marisa? You can tell me.
You got me! It was funny because at first everyone was like, “Way to go dude – great party.” And the next thing you know, it’s raging.
Ernest: We also heard the bass player from Tool bought a t-shirt. That was a crazy night. People were climbing the walls like cockroaches to get in. We had to pour hot molten steel on them to get ‘em off.
Austin: That night was crazy. I saw Frodo there. We knew that it would be packed, but that packed? Not quite.
I only saw the end half of your set, but it seemed like you guys had created a buzz after that event. When I got back to NYC a bunch of the cool kids were throwing around your name a lot. Did you realize any of that hype was happening? Did anything come as a result of your performance that year?
Ernest: Yeah word has gotten out about us, but nah, we really didn’t and still don’t realize what the perception is out there. I think peeps are still intrigued and confused.
Edward: Cool kids you say? I don’t know about any buzz, but lots more people ask us where we got our name now.
Christian: That’s great that cool kids were throwing our name around so carelessly. Reckless abandon is exciting.
Tim: I hope that the cool kids in New York didn’t hurt themselves. It is a long name.
I feel like a lot of people are drawn to you because of your name. That was obviously a calculated decision, so tell me about what went on when you were deciding what to call yourselves.
Edward: Was it obviously a calculated decision? We chose the name that made us smirk, and that was better than Electric Skull. We honestly didn’t realize that people would freak about the name the way they have, but it’s kind of amusing to us that they do. I personally like it most when people are disgusted by it or think that we’re emo kids.
Christian: It was that or Death Cab For Cutie and when I was told someone had that name already that’s when the bottom fell out for me. Personally speaking anyway.
Ernest: I just can’t tell you anything about that. We’re sworn to secrecy ’cause we hate talking about it.
Del: We used to party in cemeteries.
At this year’s SXSW, your t-shirts were EVERYwhere and a few people actually said they went to check out your band solely based on the name. Can you comment on that? Do you feel like that’s a novelty of sorts that will eventually wear off?
Edward: Yes, I think the novelty of asking about our band name will eventually wear off.
Christian: I think its great that people like the name and the shirts. I don’t think of us as a novelty band in any way though whether people like the name or not.
Tim: I think that Sleepytime Gorilla Museum is a much more fascinating name, don’t you?
Ernest: The name will live on forever and ever and ever.
What do you say when people compare you to And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead or attribute your name choice to ripping their long name idea off?
Christian: I’ve never been asked this before and was unaware that it was a perception. True they are both long names. I think that is the only thing they have in common. They also both contain the word you.
Edward: I say “Really? Hmmm.”
Ernest: It’s not that long, is it? Maybe we should be called The I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darknesses.
Tim & Del: We don’t say anything. Because that’s silly.
Your music is dark and brooding at points, but sometimes more upbeat and lively, a contradiction that mimics your band’s name. What else about you is a contradiction?
Ernest: Great question! No its not!
Edward: We are 1/2 Catholic, 1/2 Protestant.
Christian: I’m 5 feet tall and I wear a size 13 shoe.
Tim: We write music in a very organic way. We don’t sit around and plan out what we want every song to sound like. We can’t restrict ourselves like that. Everything is a contradiction in this life and that makes it worth it.
How does it make you feel that people have written that you guys are Interpol wannabes? I only read that on some lame blog, but another writer said that you are “the pink and grey to Interpol’s red and black.”
Christian: I can see some comparisons being a little true but I wouldn’t claim them as an influence. They’re not the only dudes who have heard Joy Division and The Smiths. I think they are a good band. Pink and Grey? What the fuck does that mean?
Yeah, no shit. So many people like to hate.
Edward: What are you gonna do, you know? Yeah I hear the similarities, but to be accused of ripping off someone kind of sucks. We’ve been at his for a long time. People are lazy.
Ernest: It’s such a superficial comparison. I love their music, but I’d never want to copy their style. I think our music exists from our own personalities. If you heard our old bands and put them together, we’d sound pretty much like that.
Tim: When people write about music they don’t like to write about the music per se, rather they choose to compare bands to other bands. I think that’s tired and boring. We want to be a band that writes good songs that are visceral and compelling. We have no desire to be part of a current fad created in the music industry magazines. Besides, we can’t afford to dress like that.
Who would you say are some of the band’s most important influences? Obviously some British stuff and early ’90s shoegazy stuff.
Christian: British stuff sure. Shoegazer, no. We all have alot of influences. It might be easier to tell you a band I’m not influenced by, ESG.
Ernest: Without a doubt, Siouxsie & The Banshees, U2, The Buzzcocks, early rap/hip-hop, The Clash, Os Mutantes, The Zombies, etc. Unlike Christian, I DO like ESG and Brian Eno too.
Edward: Again with that obviously, Marisa. Speaking personally, Rush, King Crimson, Steel Pole Bathtub, Duran Duran, Dead Kennedys, Guns ‘n’ Roses, etc. Brad Gillis-era Ozzy for sure. I think all of us likely come at it from slightly different angles. Shoegazy?
Tim: We each have our own individual influences. I am a fan of Jackson C. Frank and Fela Kuti and Os Mutantes. I grew up listening to everything from Black Flag to U2 to The Police.
What about your EP – why and how did you decide to work with Britt Daniel? And who chose the order of the songs on the disc and what was the rationale behind that? All my favorites are more towards the end.
Christian: Britt is a friend who is obviously very talented. He did a great job producing. I like the songs at the end better myself.
Edward: Yeah, he knows what a good song sounds like. He really did take the wheel and make the record happen. I was a dick about the song order and insisted the EP build up toward the end, so I lied to the other guys about the mastering date and made it so. They hate me for it.
Ernest: Not too many people know this, but Britt actually sings backup on “We’re Still The Weaker Sex”. Our friend Josh Case engineered it and did some backups too. Jason Reece from Trail of Dead did handclaps on “When You Go Out.”
Tim: Britt knows how to craft a song and we wanted to bring some of that pop mentality to our sound and he helped do that for sure.
Do you have plans to tour anytime soon?
Edward: Yes, West Coast this summer.
Tim: We will be on the West Coast later in the summer and then the East Coast and Canada soon after.
Who would be your ideal touring mates in the States and abroad?
Christian: Spoon or Trail of Dead would be good. They are close friends and great bands so I couldn’t want more than that.
Edward: Ideally, any friendly bands.
Del: We would love to tour with our friends.
Ernest: Is it too late to get on the Suicide Girls tour?
What is the best way to shorten your name? Chosen Darkness? I Love You But?
Ernest: Huh?
Edward: Be creative.
Christian: Don’t shorten. Elongate it. Be creative. If you don’t like us you can call us Chosen Dorkness. Thats Dan Matz’ funny little joke.

artist=I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness
interviewer=Marisa Brickman