Since 2001, Marianas Trench has been putting out pop-influenced bops, and their newest song, "I Knew You When," is no exception. Along with the original song, the pop group is looking to release a new album in the coming year.
Odyssey: Tell me a little bit about why you guys chose "Marianas Trench" as your group name.
Ian: There are many stories out there, and no stories. I think I've heard about ten different ones, but they're all fictional, but yeah, the name itself doesn't have any significance. We like to build on the stories we've heard, and let it be whatever the fans want it to be.
O: What can you tell me about "I Knew You When"? What's the story behind this song?
I: We like to leave the lyrics up to different interpretations, they mean different things to different people. It can say whatever they [the fans] want it to mean. That allows the song to take you to an escape room in your head. "I Knew You When" is about the start and end of a relationship, and when you break up and get back together; it's never really over, there's no escape.
O: How might you say you've changed or stayed the same since you started the band in 2001?
I: We've always been vocally heavy. We all grew up singing in choirs, so since the beginning, we've been focused on the vocals more than anything. Some of our influences for that have been Queen and Jellyfish. Josh, he loves creating, and he's very vocal oriented. He's brilliant when it comes to music. One of the things we don't want to do is do things over and over again. We never really have a theme, and we try to stay current while still keeping it personal.
O: Are there any artists you would love to collaborate with?
I: Alan Menken. He makes a lot of the Disney arrangements. I think it would be cool to work alongside a composer. For example, one of the things he did was "Ever After," and that has a lot of strings, and I think it would be great to work with a small orchestra and maybe have Josh conducting. We did work with one of the members of Jellyfish, and that was amazing since they've been one of our influences. I know that Josh wants to work with Jessie J. Also, we try to tour with acts that are great, and that makes us want to rise to the occasion. It brings out the best in you and the more variety of influences the better.
O: Since you guys are going on tour soon, what is your favorite part of touring?
I: We like touring a lot. There's always so much to learn in each city, and it's cool being able to go to new places and meet new people. For me, touring in Europe is always cool, that's where all the first world culture is. I mean, how many other opportunities would you have to be able to scoot around Europe for a month or so? The only thing is, we don't end up having a lot of free time, so we can't do a bunch of sightseeing. One of the things I've noticed is that our fans are pretty much the same wherever we go, with is fun. All in all, playing shows is fantastic and so is being able to meet new people all the time.
O: Finally, can we expect new music from you guys in the coming months? Or just in 2019? If so, what can you tell me about that?
I: There's a new album coming out called Phantoms. We're almost finished with it, and it's going to be introducing a new theme. I mean, it's going to be similar, we're not going zig-zagging or anything crazy, but we have worked hard on this production. One of the things that we found was that each song could stand out on its own. When we write, we have all these ideas and then put them away into this bank of ideas, and then come up with a good bridge or chorus to go along with it. Sometimes move from being considered a verse into a chorus or vice versa. We're excited about this project, so if there's one take away from this interview it's just that; we're ready for our fans to hear this album.
"I Knew You When," along with all of Marianas Trench's other music, is available on all your favorite listening platforms. Watch the "I Knew You When" video here.
