Pearl Harbor Interview: SXSW 2010

Put the top down, strap your Ray-Bans on, slather up with SPF 30 and prepare for a taste of SoCal in Austin when Pearl Harbor takes the SXSW stage. Led by sisters Piper (vocals) and Skylar (guitar) Kaplan, the band is known for its hook-drenched lo-fi indie pop that the Irish Times calls, "Music for beach parties and sunrises, the sound of an endless summer with nothing to do and all day to do it." Piper Kaplan shared this preview of the band and its music with Spinner prior to Pearl Harbor's SXSW showcase on Friday, March 19.

Describe your sound in your own words.

Lucid dreaming in a poor man's paradise, wastin' away in Margaritaville at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, a mellow breeze in the eye of a s---storm?

Where's your hometown and how's the local support for your band?

We're from L.A. The local support is great. I like those guys. They find us on the Internet, and they show up at our shows. Then they show up at our schools. Then they show up at our house and I catch them digging through our trash. The other day I came home and there was a notebook on my porch filled with drawings of me. Funnily enough, I'm doing what I'm doing right now in them. Sitting and typing. Super rad.

How did you begin your music career?

Before we started the band, I was slanging pizzas at a roach trap in Downtown L.A., and I just knew there had to be something better out there. After nearly a decade of toeing the line, I rang up my sister and told her the time had come. We picked up our respective instruments, and here we are: The American Dream Family Band.

What are your current inspirations?

Love, cute animals, joblessness, neurosis, megalomania -- are the Olympics still on?

What's the story behind the band's name?

I voted for Pearl Harbarians, but my sister said no. We went through a lot of options before arriving at this conclusion. Green-Screen Grandmas, the Lunch Tickets, Lords of Purgatory...

What's your biggest vice?

Lowbrow comedy and thrills.

What's in your SXSW survival kit?

Let's see ... wheatgrass, a satchel full of sand, my trusty umbrella, a pager and sterling.

Who was your first celeb crush?

Robocop.

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

We are the band that hath no guilt. Lots of pride in just like, everything

Beatles or Stones? Why?

Shturcite. They are the Beatles of Bulgaria. So I guess the answer is the Beatles, because they were so great that they inspired a band like Shturcite to form. The Stones are pretty cool too, though. Hot Rockz 4ever!

What's the craziest thing you've seen or experienced while on tour?

We haven't toured before. I don't even think we've played anywhere but L.A. and San Diego before. What is life like beyond the Golden Curtain? Should we hire a guide?

What are your hopes and dreams for your 2010 SXSW appearance this year?

I hope I find $100 on the ground somewhere. I also hope that no one tries to kidnap my little sister while I'm trying to finagle a way to hang with Dwight Twilley and Big Star. Other than that, let's party like it's 2012.

Why should SXSW attendees come to your showcase?

Because we're doing a "Rest in Peace, Corey Haim" set. Every line in every Pearl Harbor song will be changed to a Corey Haim quote from one of his movies. Like, here's a good one from Lost Boys: "Don't kill me, Mike; I'm basically a good kid," as an alternate response to this question.

What are you doing when you're not making music?

"Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It's fun to be a vampire" --'The Lost Boys.'

Mike Barzacchini is a contributor from Seed.com. Learn how you can contribute here.