The Maldives Interview: SXSW 2010

Beginning almost a decade ago, Jason Dodson performed under The Maldives moniker as a solo act, before recruiting additional musicians from the Seattle area. The band's alt-country-meets-rock 'n' roll style has continued to evolve with its fluid lineup, and The Maldives consistently pack venues in Seattle. Spinner chatted with Dodson about the band's evolution and debut appearance at SXSW.

Describe your sound in your own words.

Oh, boy. Most people say country rock. I would say that it definitely has country and rock elements, but it is American music. We pull our resources from a lot of different genres and try to make it sound good. Everything from honky-tonk to rock and roll, just everything. We are pretty much a hodge-podge of all that, but we make American music.

What are some of your musical influences?

Bob Dylan, specifically the mid-1970s up until his newer stuff. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, The Band, Joe Van Zandt, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Johnnie Welch, Neil Young and Crazy Horse -- that isn't all, but those are some of the big ones.
How did the band form?

It basically just started with me. I started it on accident. My guitar player now, Jesse Bonn, came up to me and asked if I played guitar. I said yes, and we just started playing together. I started playing solo for awhile under the name "Maldives." I don't consider myself too great a musician. I can hold my own writing songs, but I started seeing other bands and kinda started stealing other players. We went through a lot of different lineups, but the one we have now has some of the best folks I can work with.

How did you choose your band name?

The name was, I guess, another accident. My buddy David, he scores music for the filmmaker David Gordon Green, and we were going through some Trivial Pursuit cards, trying to find the name of the band. That was an answer on the back of one of the cards, and it stuck.

What is your biggest vice?

Unfortunately, as boring as it sounds, we are all pretty heavy drinkers. But you know, one man's vice is another man's pleasure, and it hasn't hurt us so far. Also, organizing my iTunes.

What is in your festival survival kit?

It helps to have press credentials, so you can actually get into the events. It helps to have toilet paper, also. Probably a healthy supply of bourbon. Bourbon or tequila. It is good to have those things in your life and especially at festivals. You also want to have a clear head about what your purpose is -- we are there to play music, not party, although partying is a good side effect.

What is your musical guilty pleasure?

Alicia Keys, probably. I like that song "Superwoman," it is very sweet. I also like The Cardigans.

Beatles or Rolling Stones?

Stones because of 'Exile on Main Street.' It is probably the best record ever made. The Beatles are awesome, but I will still say the Stones.

What is the craziest thing you have ever seen or experienced on tour?

Yikes, I don't even know. One time, and this is a classic road story, but we saw a burning car on the side of the road after we had been gridlocked for two hours. We had no idea what was keeping cars from moving, but seeing that was crazy. You see some pretty weird shit on the road.

What are you expecting the SXSW experience to be like?

This is the first time that, I believe, any of us have been to Austin. We are looking forward to it, but the fewer expectations the better. We just want to play music and have a good time and hopefully people show up. It has a lot more to do with the audience's expectations. As long as they are there to listen to good music and have a good time, we are game.



J. Marshall Pearson is a contributor from Seed.com. Learn how you can contribute here.