Robinson: I can't sing, but I'll do it.
Einziger: Actually, I don't think you would be fat or ugly enough. You might have to work on that a bit.
Robinson: Brandon, does it annoy you when people try to take the focus off of the band and put it on you?
Boyd: Yeah. I find it quite annoying. But I don't really pay it that much mind because I know how fickle it is. I know that it's a door that swings both ways. If the focal point is on me at the moment, I will also be the one who's going to be sh-- upon by everyone when the time comes. I stress the word "when."
Robinson: Why did you move into a house and live there while writing the album?
Lance: We invented the idea of recording in a house! [Laughs] I think that we tried to do that for at least the writing portion of Make Yourself, but we didn't have enough clout at the time. When we were getting ready to write this one, we knew that we needed to get into a more creative place. The idea was to not feel as if you were driving [somewhere] to work on a record. You could just get up and it was a natural extension of your day.
Boyd: We also needed quick access to the beach because we're kinda spoiled brats sometimes. We need that outlet. At least I do. It's nice to write music all day and be like, "I'm going to take a break, see you guys in two hours."
Robinson: With the last record being as successful as it was, were you guys freaked out?
Einziger: Nobody [from the record label] said a word to us. [Nobody said], "Make sure to have some hit songs so you get it played on the radio, because all these people are gonna be expecting it." We've always just kind of done things whatever way we've wanted to. I think that's [one reason] we've done well. It would've been really easy for us to try to replicate certain songs that did well on our last record, which we didn't do. We didn't do anything even remotely close to that. We put pressure on ourselves to make a good record because if none of us were happy with it, we'll all be miserable for the next two years while we're on tour.
Boyd: At no point during the recording and writing did we go, "Maybe we should drive this one up a little more, boys?" It was much more of a flow of energy and music.
Robinson: When you were coming up with the lyrics and title for "Wish You Were Here," did you ever go, "This was a classic Pink Floyd song. Maybe it's not such a good idea."
Boyd: I asked the guys in the control room, "Do you think we should call it something else?" All of them looked at me and were like, "No." It doesn't matter that it was a Pink Floyd song, because it's not like the Pink Floyd song. We're a very different band.
Lance: Most of our fans aren't old enough to know who Pink Floyd is.
Einziger: We've also stolen song titles from R.E.M. and Björk, and they didn't come try to beat us up, so ...
Lance: ... we could take Pink Floyd.
Boyd: Our next single is actually called "Bye Bye Bye," but it's "BUY BUY BUY!"
Robinson: The lyrics to "Wish You Were Here" seem rather personal. Were they about anyone in particular?
Boyd: The song wasn't specifically about a person. It was about me acknowledging a very brief moment in my life and in my experience with all of these guys in making this record. In that moment, I wish that I had somebody to go, "I love you, man." I was wishing that there was someone there to share that moment with. [RealVideo]
