I got a chance to sit down with a good friend, who I don’t get to see enough. Chris Moore is one of the nicest guys and plays in some awesome bands. We sat down to talk about Magrudergrind and generally just catch up. This interview was done around last September (2011), but between tours, Fest 10, getting married, running a record label, moving into a new house and playing in two bands, here it is at the end of February. I hope you enjoy…
Josh: Sitting here with Chris Moore, I’m going to start with the basics, who is Magrudergrind?Chris: Like, who is in Magrudergrind? Who is the entity known as Magrudergrind? Um, Me, Chris, I play drums. Avi, he sings, and RJ, he plays guitar.
Josh: What is the story behind the name?Chris: It’s really stupid. When we were 16, we practiced in a neighborhood called Magruder Discovery and yeah. It’s one of those thing where you make up a band name when you are 16 and you think it is cool then and regret it a few years later but its too late, so that’s the deal with that.
Josh: I was in a band called Momma’s Fault, so I know how that goes.Chris: Ha, that’s a good one.
Josh: You all are coming up on 10 years. What are your thoughts on that?Chris: It’s crazy; we never thought the band would last more than a few months. It started off with us just fucking around and the fact that we have been at it as long as we have is surprising us too but we are stoked, ya know.
Josh: Any plans for a new album since the last full length came out in 2009?Chris: Since then we have put out an EP called Crusher and we are writing a new full length, and hopefully we will get it recorded some time this winter.
Josh: Of this year? (Interview was done in 2011)Chris: Yeah, hopefully.
Josh: What other bands are you all currently in?Chris: I’m the only one, at the moment, that is in other bands. I play in Coke Bust, Disciples of Christ, and Sick Fix. RJ and I sometimes play in a pentagram cover band call Pentagon but we haven’t done that in a while (laughter). We dress up we have some cool wigs. I take that back. I have a cool wig; RJ has some anime looking wig (laughter).
Josh: How active are the other bands?Chris: Relatively active. Coke Bust and Sick Fix are doing a European tour next summer. Coke Bust just put out a 7” on Grave Mistake [Records]. We are also doing a West Coast tour in October (2011). Sick Fix is relatively less active, we are hopefully recording a full length at the end of the year, but we literally haven’t put out a record since 2005 or 2006, or something like that. DOC just recorded a split with Triac and we will be doing a West Coast tour with Shitstorm in the wintertime also.
Josh: What are everyone’s activities outside of the band?Chris: I work in pet care; take care of dogs, cats, or fish. I house sit. RJ works at a bar. Avi works at a social media advertising company.
Josh: You all played with Venom recently. How did that come about? Chris: We got asked to play two festivals that were right around the same time. One was in Holland and was called, Neurotic Death Fest, and the other was in Portugal with Venom. They were on the same weekend. Between the two festivals they offered to pay for our plane tickets to go to both festivals. It was ridiculous. We left on Thursday night, played Friday in Holland, flew to Portugal, took like 10 taxis, and a long ass bus ride into the city where the fest was. Got there right before Necros Cristos played, watched them, and then Venom played on the big stage, and we played on the small stage, after Venom. We were like, “how the fuck are we going to play after Venom.” Fucking Venom. It ended up being one of the most fun shows we have ever played. Venom was also surprisingly good.
Josh: Yeah, I feel like they would be hit or miss, ya would never know. Chris: Yeah.
Josh: Was Cronos in the band?Chris: Yeah, I think he is the only original guy. He looked pretty badass. He had one of those low cut metal tank tops, where you could basically see his nipples (laughter). His Microphone stand was above his head. I guess he is doing the same thing, I have an old video that has old Slayer and them and the video is exactly like what you describe.
Josh: Outside of when you get plane tickets paid for, what is your reception like usually when you tour?Chris: Its hit or miss, sometimes when we play people just stand there. They are like, “this band blows.” Sometimes it is crazy, ya know? We just played Extreme Obscene Fest in the Czech Republic, and it was another weird situation, we played after Entombed on the same stage. I felt like I was going to puke. Regardless of what you think about Entombed in 2011, to play after them is really intimidating, especially in front of 3 or 4000 people.
Josh: I bet they played the hits, Wolverine Blues stuff. Chris: Yeah, more from Left Hand Path. We played and there were like 3000 people going insane. It all depends. I mean tonight, we never played in Charlotte before and people went crazy. We thought no one was going to show up; it was a last minute show.
Josh: I think what helped tonight was being to get strong local support. I think a lot of people would have still come but I know it helped, being this last minute. Chris: All the locals were awesome. The dudes in Torch Runner and Young and in the Way were both real sweet dudes.
Josh: Do you feel like fast punk, or whatever, has had its day?Chris: I don’t know, truthfully I don’t care about that. I like playing the music I play. When we started there were no bands that sounded like what we play, not in DC. The town doesn’t have a scene for grindcore, doesn’t have a scene for metal. It doesn’t have a good fast punk scene either. When we started playing screamo was big. It was huge, Pg. 99 would play a show and no less than 200 people would show up. In interest of the style of music that we have been playing has never been really popular. There are a lot more bands, now and not because of us, that are playing faster stuff and people are more receptive.
Josh: Maybe I should approach it differently, like you said, that you don’t really care. I know what I like and I don’t really care either if other people are super into it. Just do it because. Josh: So you are on tour with Despise You?Chris: Yesterday was out last show with them. We played a total of 9 shows with them and all the shows were incredible. I have been corresponding with their singer for a long time and nerding out over their stuff for a while.
Josh: I feel like I’m out of the loop but don’t they have members of a lot of prominent powerviolence bands? Like Spazz?Chris: Yeah, Chris Dodge is playing bass for them. Also, some of the members were in Sixteen and Gasp. They have all been in a million bands. It was their first East Coast and it took a while but I finally convinced them to come over. It was a great tour.
Josh: I guess the next question is about the Crusher EP. Do you feel there was some sort of backlash with it coming out on Scion A/V? Chris: Yeah, I’m sure there are tons of people that feel like we are huge sellouts now.
Josh: That you all have Scions now? Chris: Yeah, we all have Scions, and we are loaded now (laughter). I would be lying to say it didn’t bother me at first. Some of my good friends were like, “fuck you guys.” Whatever, ya know. We are still doing the same shit, we are still doing the same music, and we are still having fun. That is what the band is about. If people want to write us off because of that then, that’s their shit.
Josh: I feel like I heard a lot about it, and then now no one seems to care. Its kind of funny that people just forgot about it after making such a stink. Its funny that people cry sellout and don’t factor in how long you all have been around and how hard you have worked. Also, for just the simple fact that you all are doing the same thing, so it’s really silly.Chris: The tour we just did, I booked all myself. All the promoters of the shows were my friends. I didn’t send any emails, I just made phone calls. No weird middleman, no one booked the tour for us. If that isn’t DIY, then I don’t know what is.
Josh: What made you all decide to be the type of band that you are? Chris: I don’t know, it wasn’t a decision to be a certain band; it was just an evolution of stuff that we had been playing before that. We had all been in hardcore punk bands and we just wanted to play faster. We started listening to different music and it turned into what it turned into. There are/were no grind/metal bands that influenced us directly in DC.
Josh: Really if you just play hardcore punk as fast as you all do by default it is grindcore or powerviolence. Chris: Yeah, it is what it is.
Josh: Let’s play faster than the fast bands. Chris: Our first tour was booked from a zine, Book Your Own Fucking Life. I don’t know if you remember it.
Josh: No. Chris: It was just a zine that had a lot of contacts for people around the country. Most of the shows sucked, but I am still friends with a lot of the people that we booked those shows through. It’s kind of crazy to think about.
Josh: I wish something like that still existed. I guess people don’t feel like it needs to. It just gets tough to wade through shitty contacts to find those good lasting ones. Chris: Yeah.
Josh: What are some of your favorite bands outside of punk?Chris: I have been listening to a lot of Zola Jesus. She is this weird synth/goth, kind of like electronic music. I think she is from Wisconsin but I believe she moved to LA, possibly. It’s pretty good. I’ve been playing the new Big Eyes LP lately.
Josh: It’s good. Chris: Magnetic Fields, Fleetwood Mac, a lot of hip-hop.
Josh: Rumors from Fleetwood Mac? Chris: Rumors and Tusk.
Josh: Yeah, good stuff. Chris: Those are such good records; even Tango In the Night has some good stuff on it.
Josh: I think if you have to tell someone one Fleetwood Mac album then Rumors, it is unfuckwithable. Chris: Can we pound to that? What else? Superchunk, they are a North Carolina band.
Josh: Yeah, I listen to them all the time, great band. Josh: Any last words, anything you want to mention?Chris: Umm
Josh: Before I kill you (laughter). Chris: Thanks for doing the interview, it was cool. Hope we can come back to North Carolina soon. Raleigh is always awesome but Charlotte has been especially good, hope we can come back here.
Josh: Yeah that would be awesome, thanks so much. 
