The Seizure's nocturnal Transmission

Personnel: Nick Roumeliotis, drums. Melvin Butel, bass and some vocals. Frank Wilshure, guitar and lead vocals.

Why “Sunset Transmission”?
“Sunset Transmission is the name of the auto repair shop just up the street from Pehrspace. It’s the most noticeable sign when we turn right off of Temple to Glendale on our way to a Monday night show. It made us think of those moments between the end and the beginning…”

CD release party: Tonight, 9:30pm, with Miss Josie Bunnie, Wet Mango, Happy New Year, & Literature.

The Seizure at play (L-R: Nick Roumeliotis, Franke Wilshire, Melvin Butel). Photo: Cardoza.

What are The Seizure‘s main inspirations?
Even though we like the same kind of music, I think our creative inspirations come from the conflicts in our tastes. There’s always this push and pull that happens between us when we get into that creative mode.

How did you guys meet?
We met five years ago via the Craigslist. But more importantly, we really came together in Tijuana.

Uhh that sounds fun. Is there a story behind Sunset Transmission?
Sunset Transmission is the name of the auto repair shop just up the street from Pehrspace. It’s the most noticeable sign when we turn right off of Temple to Glendale on our way to a Monday night show. But it always stood out since it made us think of those moments between the end and the beginning—that moment between work and motivating to get up and go out on the town. Like nowadays it seems like we’re in between poverty and that state of being well off.

Is this a concept album?
We had a concept in mind when we wrote the songs, but this did not turn out to be a concept album. We did add on a B-sides EP. that we gave the pet name of Sunset Emission. So in a way there was lets say a packaging concept but no ideological concept. Kind of like how Halloween Swim Team did their last album in three releases.

How would you describe the music?
Energetic and romantico.

Many of the songs seem to be written to another person. Is this record targeted toward a specific individual?
Many of the songs are written toward specific people and some towards a nonexistant person that is the sum total of the different friends and lovers in our lifes.

Perhaps you could tell us a story about: “213,” “Useful Idiots,” and “Night Eating.”
“213” – We wrote it after noticing the patterns of our night life and those of our friends. You know, go to a show, go to the liquor store, get a taco, go to another show, got to someones house, sleep with someone you didn’t expect to.

“Useful Idiots” – Observations made while traversing Los Angeles in our daily lives, specifically the growing sadness and difficulties brought about by the grinding and slow decline we are only beginning to really notice.

“Night Eating” – I had a girlfriend who would take Ambien to sleep. But I’d wake up in bed alone and would find her on the couch asleep hugging a plastic bowl of mac and cheese .. snoring. She had a tendency to be pretty mean to me.

How was recording? And working with Tookie…and a choir?
We first started the recording process with the whole click track thing but then felt very constrained by it so with our last hour we just recorded our entire set live. The live recording had a sound, feel and emotion that felt much better. We ended up scrapping the track building sessions and rescheduled a new live recording a few months out which turned it into a year-long process.

We had some gang vocals that we were going to do ourselves but we sounded like a bunch of oafs. So while Tookie, Deseret, and Gabby were partying with friends at Echo Park I picked them up and took them to the studio. They were feeling pretty tipsy, so we called them the Kessler Community Choir—after the cheap whiskey.

Where can people get your CD?
Come to our shows! And also at Digstation.com and soon it’ll be on iTunes and CD Baby.

Do you have anything special planned for your release party?
Yes, we are planning to sell our CD for $5 which will include a T-Shirt, the B-sides EP, and five raffle tickets for a Vapir NO2 Vaporizer for all your healthy cannabis consumption needs. Everyone who goes to our release show February 28 at Pehrspace will get one raffle ticket.

What’s next for you guys?
I’m going to get into my RV and drive up and down California visiting college station DJ friends and hooking up shows for a summer tour. I’m going for a more personal promotional kind of angle—a kind of smarmy Hollywood style.

What gets you most excited when you are playing music live?!
When we all come together all over the stage. Look up on Youtube.com—Arnold Coming—click the first result shown and you’ll get the idea.

Don’t miss the show