Mario (The Attention): "I love the music what I do but I don't understand the record business"

Mario David

Mario David is the lead singer and principal songwriter of The Attention. After the memorable concert given in the Sixties Festival Weekend 2011 in Castellon, we talked with him about the mod scene, the differences between Austria and Spain, the records made by the group's money, the importance of clothing and how much he likes their sixties roots music but he can't understand why it so difficult to find someone to edit and distribute their records. Mario is a great frontman on stage with an enormous vitality which came to the point of breaking the seam of the trousers of his impeccable suit made ​​in the same Austrian tailor who is frequented by the mods his country. His ability to inflame the public is memorable and is part of a well thought out show with an amazing soundtrack. Really, it's hard to believe that this is a group that pays their recordings with the money earned at their concerts.

Magic Pop: What did you think about the spanish audience tonight?

Mario: I think that is a perfect audience. Well, I have enjoyed with them a lot, actually to be honest, there is a lot of people listening to our music, not  only in Spain, but also in Germany, and of course, Austria, but  I’m not kidding you, the most concerts  and festivals that we have performed were in Spain because the 60’s scene here is  very important, people is very “freaky” here (he laughs), they’re really very outgoing,  there is something that I really appreciate here in Spain  because in other countries  you don’t get so much back, but in Spain it really fuckin’ rocks.

I think that we are the most appreciated mod band here in Spain (he laughs).

Magic Pop: When a concert is followed by an allnighter it seems that the public gives preference to the party, what do you feel about this and what happens in your country?

Mario: We actually have in Austria a very small 60s scene, not like in Spain, if we’re playing in Austria there’re are about one hundred, one hundred and fifty people coming,  but we have really great mod bands like The Jaybirds, The Staggers, who perform in Austria in Festivals in front of thousands of people , they are really big in Austria but  somehow we did manage to do that, I don’t know why, (laughs).

We have one great thing in Austria, we’ve a great Dj  with an important record  sort with thousands of singles,  so we have a small scene but with a lot of quality, not only the bands but also the DJs who give their best but it’s not like in Spain, there the scene is very, very small.

Magic Pop: As a musician, do you feel that the public gives value to your work? That they value the atmosphere that you create in your performances?

Mario: In Austria? To be honest with you, no… I don’t know (laughs), to be honest, there is a reason why we love playing in Spain because people freak out and yes, it’s difficult in Austria to do this kind of music because, even with the Staggers or Jaybirds,  all of them have their own jobs, is very difficult to create a mod scene there. The last time we were here in Spain we were in a tour, in ten concerts and we’ve been out of vacation, everybody of us has his own work apart from the music, all of us have our families and lives too.

Magic Pop: Your record has been very succesful here in spain, are you preparing a new record with the label screaming apple again?

Mario: Yes, we are already working on it and we have  seven or eight songs, we’re working to do more,  and we’re entering to the Studio at the end of the year.  We’ll do a new record but actually we don’t have a record label, maybe will be Screaming Apple again but I don’t know.

We even don’t have a record label which wants to put out our cd but we have a 7’’ single (Ace Face) and a Lp, (The Attention!)  but even in the single we had to put all our money to release it so, we have to do some concerts more and then we haven’t enough money and we can’t  put out our next record.

Magic Pop: About your versions, which is the version you’ re more identified with?

Mario: We’ll, of course we always enjoy playing the new songs which we’re doing for the first time, but actually I don’t have a favourite, I just love them all and there are so many great bands from the 50’s and 60’s that we enjoy performing like Ray Charles, there are so many great musicians that I can’t really pick one.

Magic Pop: We know that Hilton Valentine, the guitar of The Animals, have talked very well about the attention, have you any relation with him?

Mario: No, actually it was very funny because in Myspace he just came into us, but he wrote over Myspace that he loved our songs, that he thought that we are cool and that he loved what we’re doing but we don’t have any relation with him although is enough help that he writes things like that in our Myspace, because his words are a great kind of promotion, he’s the guy from The Animals and it was totally unexpected for us.

Magic Pop: Your appeareance is very well-groomed,  where do you get your smart suits?

Mario: When I was young I was a teddy boy and I’ve always thought that you must care what you do, if you play in a band it has to look like something, of course the band is the music but also there must be an image and the artwork, everything is important  so it has to be somehow together, the mod scene is music, is what you wear… our suits are made by an austrian old taylor and even The Staggers and other mods get their suits from this taylor.

For us both things are important, it’s like a package, actually I don’t like bands that sound good but look terrible, I just need the whole thing and I like the bands that  “get to the point”, you see them and you listen to them and you know that these guys are doing this or that, you know that those guys are in the scene, we’ve always aimed to have a band and to be in that point.

Magic Pop: About the guitars that you play, you play vintage guitars, even you hold them high like the old bands from the 60’s, have you studied that way of playing guitars, or it’s spontaneous,  details are so important for you…

Mario: Actually we just copy the old bands, we’re just doing what the other bands did, that’s what make us so special.

Magic Pop: How are you treated in austria for the mass media and the specialist press?.

Mario: A few weeks ago I was thinking about that, the thing is that I think, or at least I think I know, how to play 50s or 60s music and I know how our scene partners are thinking.  I know what the rocker or mod really thinks, but it’s just not only bla bla, but it is just I like this, I like that.  I understand the scene because I love it, I’ve always been introduced into the subcultures and I understand how  the festivals organizers are thinking but I don’t understand how pop music and pop managers are working and how are they thinking, and I’m not going to try to understand them, if they like us or if they think we’re trendy or something like that, I will be pleased to play for millions of people and I’ll love to do it everyday, but we have in Austria a TV program, like a casting show, and I’m always watching it  and I never understand why are left three people and the Austrian audience choose as winner who I think is the worst, who is not Art, Music, or even is not a nice person, but this is my point of view.

I don’t know how people are thinking, the other two persons left in the show are in third place and they are really nice persons so I don’t have a clue what pop managers or people or even great record labels are thinking,  or how are they thinking and working, I don’t understand it …

But of course I mind a little bit because we’d like to do only MUSIC, that’s really our aim, and why not? I’d like to make millions of dollars, having a big house, being famous and and sell millions of records, why not? (laughs) because I’m just in it, but  I’m very happy with the life that I have and I’m happy with my day job and with the music we’re doing and we’re very proud of the people who follow us, who come to the concerts, and enjoy with us, I don’t mind if they’re mods, or poppies and if they don’t do that, I don’t know why (laughs)…

Patricia Sarrais & Alex Magic Pop

Interview in Spanish here