After a long summer break, I’m so excited to brush the dust off my Sights & Sounds column and welcome it back to Design*Sponge. As passionate as I am about design, I am equally passionate (and obsessive) about music. Before I discovered my first Metropolis Magazine in high school, I was decoupaging band photos onto my notebooks and teaching myself to play Nirvana songs on my electric guitar. Music has always been my first love and remains such a huge and integral part of my life. The same way that the smell of certain foods takes people back to a moment so clearly, songs bring me back to moments in my life almost instantaneously. And if there’s one band whose music does that the most, it’s The Dismemberment Plan.
Growing up in Virginia, any band from Washington, D.C. seemed like the coolest. It was the closest big city we had near us and it seemed full of energy and anger and political musicians who weren’t afraid to speak their mind. I instantly befriended anyone who wore a Fugazi shirt in middle school because I felt it was a sign that we understood each other and shared the same pent-up anger. As I got older, I was constantly on the hunt for other great bands from D.C. and that’s how I discovered The Dismemberment Plan. I will never forget the first time I hear lead singer Travis Morrison‘s voice. It was like someone shocked me with a live wire. It was wild, unhinged, almost jangly and anxious with its energy and I would soon discover it was accompanied by one of the most exciting live performances I’d ever (to this day) seen.
After 12 years, The Dismembement Plan has reunited to put out a new studio album, Uncanney Valley, and will be touring to support the new music. If you’ve never seen a Plan show, please treat yourself to a truly one-of-a-kind show. You will not be disappointed. Thank you so much to Travis for speaking with me today about the new album, their music and the way art and aesthetics have informed the band over the years. xo, grace
This post is brought to you by Sennheiser – dedicated to the pursuit of perfect sound. See its new, finely-craafted MOMENTUM On-Ear headphone here.
