Dodos Face Their 'Time to Die'

Posted on Oct 12th 2009 3:00PM by Justin Jacobs
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His band may be called the Dodos, but singer/guitarist Meric Long is no dummy. With their third album 'Time to Die' just released only a year and half after the band's breakthrough 'Visiter,' a lot has changed for Long and bandmate Logan Kroeber. But more than many a suddenly-famous indie act, Long is surprisingly relaxed in talking about the fan reaction, record label pressure and musical challenges that all played into 'Time to Die.' Really, he's still getting used to being a full-time Dodo.

"The transition away from day jobs took some time to get used to," Long tells Spinner. "The biggest change is accepting this as my job and being able to roll with it, being stoked that I don't have a day job, but also rising to the challenge of being a hardworking musician in a band."

That challenge in itself -- simply to work hard -- is one that comes easy to Long, as the Dodos have been touring nearly nonstop for years. The band had already played the site of its recent sold-out Atlanta show, the Earl, twice before in the past two years, both times prior to "only about 10 people."

But the challenge to create a follow-up to 'Visiter' while not deflecting but incorporating outside pressures that loomed most on the Dodos. After all, the cryptically-titled 'Time to Die' was a big stylistic step forward from 'Visiter.' With new multi-instrumentalist Keaton Snyder, the Dodos created a more straightforward rock sound than the band's previously swirling, stripped-down folk. "Adding another person opened us up so much. Logan and I were performing like octopi, trying to maximize what each of us could do," Long says. "With 'Time to Die,' we could take a step back and focus more on our strengths."

The addition of Snyder adds an obvious new aural element to 'Time to Die,' but the record is also far tenser than its predecessor with much less of an acoustic hippie vibe. Long admitted that outside pressure from fans, labels and critics, weighed heavily on him in making 'Time to Die.' But those pressures, he says, are all part of the creative process. "You have to take in what's happening around you. I could say 'F--- it,' but I just don't know if that's possible," Long says. "I'm not this closed little entity who creates regardless of what's going on in the outside world."

If anything, Long says the pressure pushes him to be better, allowing the band tangible feedback from those consuming the music he creates. "Instead of wondering what people think of our band, we know now. We can Google it. And we can play with that and be inspired by that," he said.

The only pressure surrounding 'Time to Die' that Long didn't fully embrace was it's due date. While hype and expectations pushed him towards his best work, knowing the record needed to be done on time was an unnecessary stress. In a way, he says, it was like knowing his time to die before he actually passed away, "which is why, on the next record, I'm not even going to set a release date."

Watch the Dodos on the Interface