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Waiting, Hopeing... Succeeding?
From www.jerseybeat.com
By Jim Testa

I first met Neil Sabatino more than 10 years ago when he was in a band called Little Green Men; we became friends in the late Nineties when he was playing with the very popular Stick Figure Suicide and booking his own shows at a club called The Palace in Bound Brook (where I was a judge for several Battle of the Bands that he promoted.) So Jersey Beat was right there in 2000 when Neil started the band Fairmont, at first as a solo-acoustic project that gave him the opportunity to sing lead and perform all of his own material for the first time, and then later through several different incarnations and band lineups. I've always been a fan of Neil's songwriting and his work ethic so I was happy to do another interview, as Fairmont launches for a summer of touring and releases a new full-length CD, Wait And Hope.
Q: The early response to Wait & Hope has been very enthusiastic.
The reviews I've seen so far have been great. This is your third full-length?
Neil: Actually this will be our 4th full length following 2001's Pretending Greatness is Awaiting, 2003's Anomie and 2005's Hell is Other People. And yes it seems that the response to this record has been the best so far out of everything we have ever done. This has carried over into the live show as well and we notice a much better crowd response to our newer material.
Q: What can fans expect to hear on this CD that they haven't heard before? And for new listeners, what about this CD sets it apart from the other thousand bands releasing CDs this month?
Neil: On this CD for the first time we picked a producer that we felt would give this project the proper attention and that is what we found with Dean Baltulonis of The Atomic Recording Company, he's produced bands like The Hold Steady, The Explosion and Bouncing Souls and we felt he would give the record the raw intensity with an indie rock pop edge that we were looking for. I think with this record there is a diverse selection of songs and things like grand piano, acoustic guitar and harmonica sprinkled in all the right places to make this an interesting release while keeping it's less is more approach to songwriting.
As well the band had co-producer George Collazo who did pre-production with the band throughout a tour in August 2006 and into the fall. The band tightened up drums by having Andy play to a click live and we started incorporating samples into our music, Hambone was forced to re-imagine the bass for most of our songs to work better with the drums and compliment the overall 3 piece sound and as for myself I finally broke down and took intense vocal lessons for a period of three months before we recorded and as well re-examined a lot of the songs on the record and pretty much trimmed all the fat.
As for what sets this release apart from everything else coming out this summer is mainly no cheap gimmicks. We don't claim anything but great songwriting with heartfelt genuine blue collar lyrics. Kind of like the punk version of Jersey greats like Springsteen and Dramarama but mixed with a delicate balance of everything that was happening in 60's garage rock, 70's Classic Rock, 80's Indie and 90's alternative. A great deal of Minneapolis influence from bands like The Replacements and Husker Du is present. I think all of these things just aren't typical or commercially successful these days but for the record geek who actually listens to everything from The Kinks to Husker Du to Pavement they will truly appreciate the wide spread musical influence we manage to cram into this record without sounding derivative or rehashed. I think it is rare that you find a band where each member has developed their own style of playing to create something very original.
Q: You've joked publicly about how your music is pop for the very bitter, but some of the lyrics on this new album seem even more cynical and darker than ever. Is that a reflection of where you were personally when you wrote the material, or is that just the way your muse inspired you this time around?
Neil: I will say in the two years while we were writing this record we had everything go wrong for us that could go wrong from member Kevin Metz quitting to terrible tour dates to both of the Indie labels we were affiliated with going under. This all came out in some of the earlier songs written for the record like "Happiness is A Million Miles Away" and "Lack of Luster." I pretty much called this record my album of pop revenge anthems. Something funny happened a few months back though after we finished, a friend of mine Teeter Sperber who sings on three songs on the record with me told me I should be more positive. Now people have told me this before but I guess I just never listened. It was while I was on the west coast playing some solo dates in Seattle and Portland that it was like the whole universe just aligned and all at once everything that was going wrong for Fairmont just started to go right because I stopped being negative and tried to just look at the bright side. Ever since tours have been better, our live show has been better, our writing and in general we have noticed a lot more people taking notice of us. So the whole bitter thing was a muse for a very long time and I used it as a crutch, I thought that if I was happy I wouldn't be able to write good music and I was 100% wrong. We already have started on a follow up to Wait and Hope and feel like it's going to be mind blowing. When I listen back to Wait and Hope I can't believe that I ever let myself get into such a depressed state but I have always felt some of the greatest art does come from pain, however if I tried to live my entire life in pain to create great art I think I might burn out rather quickly.
Q: You've been involved in indie rock for over a decade. Back in the late Nineties, one of your bands, Stick Figure Suicide, was selling out headlining shows, won a Battle of the Bands to play an early Warped Tour, and seemed on the road to a major label deal, but it never worked out. Ten years later, how have your goals changed? And how have changes in the music industry affected the way you approach Fairmont? With what's happening in the music business, a major label deal certainly isn't what it was 10 years ago (and it was no guarantee of success even then); do you find that current times make being a self-sufficient indie band a more viable proposition than it was when you started out?
Neil: It certainly has been a long time in the music scene for me. Stick Figure Suicide probably could have been offered a major label deal while I was in the band and I still would have left because it wasn't the kind of music I was happy making. I was only one fifth the creative influence in that band and I just needed more then that. With the follow up band that I was in, Pencey Prep, I feel one of my major goals as a musician was achieved. Pencey Prep put out one record, "Heartbreak in Stereo," then we broke up and Hambone and I are now in Fairmont and Frank Iero went on to join My Chemical Romance. So because of his fame a lot of attention has been paid to Pencey Prep and our record. Legions of teen fans are finding out about Pencey Prep every day and buying Tshirts and records at an astounding rate. I can't even tell you how many kids tell us every day how Pencey Prep inspired kids to start a band or play an instrument. This is all I have ever wanted to be was inspiration, kind of like how The Pixies inspired a band like Nirvana, I always wanted to be The Pixies and not Nirvana. Eventually the kids who find Pencey Prep make their way to finding Fairmont and they sometimes actually love it way more then Pencey Prep and that's a great thing. Major label success has never been a goal for us, although it would be nice. With how the music market is these days we have seen friends succeed and fail on big labels. It'd be nice to make a living doing just music and if that happens I'll be happy but if it doesn't it won't effect my long term goal of making record after record and touring constantly. Right now we have a distro deal through Redeye and IODA and Iactually feel very comfortable handling all of the bands business because I know things will get done up to the high standards I hold for Fairmont. It's also one of the reason's we continue to book our own tours, we have been burned too many times asking some start up company or independent booking agent to help us get tour dates. When I book our tours we know exactly what we're in for instead of getting surprises the day of the show.
Q: Fairmont has been through a seemingly endless array of lineup changes, disappointments, and setbacks. And with all you've been through and all you have accomplished, the band still isn't at the point where you can sell out, say, a Saturday night at Maxwells like some local bands. What keeps you going?
Neil: Ah, I think you're speaking of the old Fairmont from 2003; this is almost 4 years later. We have had the same lineup for a long time now and this new line up has two records under it's belt, almost three if you count Anomie because Hamobone joined shortly after it was done. There have been very few setbacks or disappointments lately on Fairmont's horizon. We haven't been able to play Maxwells for the last few years and for a long time we stayed out of New Jersey and concentrated on areas like New England, Chicago, Minneapolis where we were playing sold out shows. Then a great thing happened, a new venue called the Clash Bar opened in Clifton , NJ and they were willing to be our new home and let us set up shows anytime we'd like. So far every one of them have been pretty packed and we have been invited back whenever we'd like to play. I would have to say we're pretty happy that not only can we draw in New Jersey but as well can bring people out in a bunch of great cities around the United States. There is no disappointment among Fairmont and our accomplishments and we feel the best is yet to come.
Q: You're about to leave on a fairly long cross-country tour. With several albums out and previous tours behind you, do you have a reasonable expectation of finding fans in most of the cities you'll visit, or is it still a matter of proving yourself every night? What are you looking forward to most on this tour?
Neil: Currently we're out on tour as we speak and I have to say so far this has been the best experience of our careers. We have played to warm receptions everywhere. People do kind of have their doubts as you announce you are a band from New Jersey, I think maybe they're thinking we're going to be screaming or overly emo. So far we have done nothing but impress audience after audience and we have been invited to return to every venue we have played. Originally our record was supposed to be out in June but has been pushed back to July so it's a little disappointing; people can't get the new record yet but we are looking forward to dates all summer across the US after the record comes out. So far once again Minneapolis and Chicago again have been highlights, treating us like rock stars.
Q: The current lineup has been one of the most stable you've had in Fairmont. Tell me about the other two guys and what you value most about them, as both bandmates and people.
Neil: Hambone and Andy are the two greatest musicians I have have ever had the pleasure of playing with. Hambone has monster bass riffs and the ability to drink non stop and play every show like it's his last. Hambone as taught me so much about music over the last few years and as well was a huge inspiration to the way I write lyrics because of our days writing together in Pencey Prep. Andy Applegate is amazing in every way, he never over plays and never tries to add anything into a song that doesn't need to be there. Andy has always been the perfect compliment to Fairmont's music and he makes the writing process easy and enjoyable for all of us. As well we just never argue and have fun 100% of the time.
Q: I see on your itinerary that you're playing someplace called the Saddle Creek Bar in Omaha, which I assume is affiliated with Saddle Creek Records. You probably can't find a better example of a successful indie label in the new millennium. Are there any lessons from Saddle Creek's experience that you've been able to apply to Fairmont? And while we're on the subject, what do you think of Bright Eyes?
Neil: Yes we are doing an extensive Midwest run in August and look forward to playing Omaha especially because an online zine out there called Independent Clauses has been a continual supporter of Fairmont over the last 5 years. As for the indie label ethic of Saddle Creek, that is the kind of thing we can only hope for in whatever label we end up on next. We are one of those bands that need personal attention from the people we work with and want to know everyone involved with our business, so a label like Saddle Creek or any label with less then a dozen employees is going to be where a band like us would like to be. I am such a huge Bob Dylan fan, seen him twice in the last few years and listen to Desire, Highway 61 Revisited and Freewheelin' on a weekly basis so at first I was skeptical of the "new Bob Dylan" aka Bright Eyes. From what I have heard and seen, I really enjoy Bright Eyes and Conor Oberst's songwriting approach. I love the intimate performances I have seen as well, it's not too many people that pull off the solo acoustic thing with the intensity that he has. As well his Daniel Johnston cover of "Devil Town" is quite amazing.
Q: It's a bit ironic that the most successful and commercial bands to emerge from New Jersey in recent years have been very theatrical, and the whole emo movement has almost paralleled the boyband phenomenon of the Nineties in the way that the bands appeal to young girls. And yet I think it's safe to say that Fairmont is a band that's always cared a lot more about how it sounds than how it looks. Do you ever feel like you're butting your head against the wall? Is there still a market for a band that can move listeners with its music, not its eyeshadow or the way the lead singer fits into a pair of girls jeans?

Neil: First let me say Hambone looks awful in girl jeans. We aren't a bunch of kids anymore, we needed to grow up and follow in the foot steps of guys like Ted Leo. Just no gimmicks and good songwriting. It used to be like headbutting a wall but I think good music is just good music and people will notice us sooner or later and not worry that we show up to shows in jeans and a t-shirt. I think we kind of play to a different crowd then the what is big in New Jersey right now. Where as the eyeliner girl jeans bands play to 15 to 22 year olds I think we are enjoyed by the 23 to 35 crowd.
Q: How has Fairmont survived in New Jersey when so much of the "scene" is in the hands of promoters who control the best venues and often exploit young bands by making them sell tickets to play shows? You used to promote your own shows back in the days of the Palace in Bound Brook; is there any room left in NJ for independent bands who don't want to kowtow to promoters?
Neil: Sadly there is not a whole lot of room in New Jersey for a band like us. We refuse to sell tickets to play on a show so that right there puts us out of luck with a lot of promoters. We have come to terms with this and gotten the hell out of state where venues just want great bands on the bill and the promoters get people out to the show based on putting on quality shows. Recently we have been asked to play on with bigger acts like The Atari's and Dramarama both without having to sell tickets and if those opportunities are far and few between then so be it. We are quite happy playing at places like Clash Bar and Knitting Factory in NYC. It may take time to build a following that way but if we had to pay to play on every local show we play we'd be broke in no time. The sooner bands refuse pay to play venues the sooner promoters will have to actually start to do their job and promote shows based on the quality of the bands and not based on their wallets.
Q: Tell people how to find you on the web, how to order your new record, and how to contact you. And add anything I didn't ask that you wanted to say.
Neil: We're on the web as always at www.fairmontmusic.com and on myspace at www.myspace.com/fairmont . If you'd like to hear some older music you can hear stuff on www.purevolume.com/fairmont. We as well recently made our entire catalog available on Itunes. Wait and Hope is in stores on July 10. Also Teeter Sperber who did guest vocals on the Fairmont record is putting out a record with her band Ladybirds on Creep Records and Neil Sabatino (me) does guest vocals on the track "Lady of Travel and Leisure. " Also appearing on that record is Matt Pryor of The Get Up Kids and Max Beemis of Say Anything. Ladybirds is a collaborative project between Teeter Sperber and Tyler Pursel of Gym Class Heroes.

Feature Article
Fairmont: Okay with Not Making It
Taken From www.independentclauses.com
By CJ Macklin April 2007

Neil Sabatino has been there and back again. He's shared the stage with punk rock legends, pop-punk icons and emo heartthrobs. He's played Warped Tour back when not too many people could say they have, and he's even been in a band with My Chemical Romance's guitarist Frank Iero.
Sabatino's also seen the dark side of the industry. He's fought with record labels and band mates alike. But all this is just fuel for the creative blast furnace Sabatino uses to write his music in the band Fairmont.
Unlike other bands Sabatino sees burning themselves out by making getting signed to a major indie label their only goal, he and his band mates are in it all for the long haul.
This long haul first began for Sabatino when he joined his first band in 1993.
"I did the typical first band that goes nowhere," he said. Called Little Green Men, it was Sabatino's first chance at writing songs. The band experimented with all kinds of music from a Radiohead sound to ska punk, but a lack of dedication from the singer caused Sabatino and the band's drummer to move on to Stick Figure Suicide.
Having joined the band in 1997, things began to move for Sabatino. In 1999, Stick Figure Suicide won a battle of the bands contest that allowed them to play the local stage of Warped Tour. This was in Warped Tour's early years when there were fewer stages and few bands got the chance to play. To play the New Jersey local stage meant a band was going places. Yet he wasn't ever happy playing punk music, so he eventually left Stick Figure Suicide for the band Pencey Prep. It was in Pencey Prep that Sabatino played with Frank Iero and future Fairmont bassist John McGuire.
"That was my first experience being on a more indie record label," he said about the band's record label, Eyeball Records.
Despite the great success the band had, internal disputes climaxed on a three-week tour and meant the end of Sabatino's stint with Pencey Prep.
Although they played a sold-out show with Thursday the first night, an unreliable van began the tour on the wrong foot.
"It broke down before we even left on tour," he said. The van had a leak in the gas tank and could only be filled up three-quarters of the way.
As the band reached Minnesota, long drives added more tension. There, the van completely died and it cost $660 to get it out of the shop. Taking refuge with Sabatino's in-laws in the town of Fairmont, the band booked a last minute gig.
"It [was] a shitty Monday night bar show," Sabatino said. Upset about having to play to only a few people, some members of the band refused to play. The whole episode left a bitter taste in Sabatino's mouth and caused fighting once the band got back to New Jersey. Sabatino finally quit.
Angered by his former band mates and other disagreements with Eyeball Records, Sabatino began writing songs about what he was going through.
"That was the fire I needed," he said.
One week after being kicked out of Pencey Prep, he had written eight songs for a demo."I called my friend with a studio and said I needed to record this by the end of the week," he said.
Thus, Fairmont was created.
"We went through a whole bunch of lineups in the beginning," he said.
Sometimes, friends would play in the band, but they couldn't do it full time. Other guys would fill in from The Multi-Purpose Solution and American Degenerate. If Fairmont was going on the road, the first person to try out for a spot would end up in the band. Every couple of months, Fairmont had a new lineup.
The Fairmont of today is one of maturity and a steadier lineup.
"We all love just playing music," Sabatino said. "There's no drama in the band."
They have now had the same drummer, Andy Applegate, for the past three years. According to Sabatino, Applegate really rose to the occasion of Fairmont's diverse sound.
"I'm lucky I found him," Sabatino said. "We can pretty much knock out a brand new song in like an hour."
As a whole, the band has been working on improving their sound. On top of Applegate tightening up his drumming and McGuire taking bass lessons from a friend, Sabatino has been taking vocal lessons. He hopes people will notice the band is paying greater attention to the details.
"This is how I always pictured the band would sound," he said.
The best way to describe Fairmont's sound is diverse. From acoustic to electric, Sabatino attributes the band's diverse sound to the wide variety of music he listens to, which ranges from Bob Dylan to jazz to Aqueduct.
"I think I've always been just a gigantic fan of all different kinds of music," Sabitno said.
Because the band's sound doesn't match what he calls "an already saturated music scene" in the New York/New Jersey area, Fairmont doesn't get a lot of attention there.
"Any time you do anything original, you're going to suffer for it," he said, but he thinks the pain and anxiety of being overlooked by major record labels helps him write better songs.
After the band's first record came out, Sabatino sent copies to everybody he could think of. Everybody who got a copy really liked it, especially if they knew about the Pencey Prep situation.
"I was pretty proud of it," he said. "Especially to know that you did it all yourself."
He still looks back and thinks those were good songs.
Today, Sabatino teaches technology and helps with special education children. The job has so many sick days and school holidays that it works perfect along side the band. The money he earns allows Fairmont to put out the records they want.
"When you go with a small label, they only have so much money," he said.
Fairmont's latest album, Wait and Hope will be released along side a tour in August. Sabatino said this album would be more upbeat than previous ones because he was listening to classic punk when he was writing it. He nicknamed it a record of pop revenge anthems.
"We're already not banking on this release making us," Sabatino said, and added that he thinks it will take more records and more tours before that will happen.
In the mean time, Fairmont is planning to branch out to other parts of the country. They hope to play shows in Portland and Seattle, as well as Philadelphia.
"We've done pretty good in Chicago and Minneapolis," he said.
Despite having over a decade of experience under his belt and an industry resume that could put most people to shame, Sabatino and his band mates are happy where they are.
"I've accepted the fact that I might go my entire career without getting the respect I feel I deserve," he said, and added that when all is said and done, he just hopes Fairmont was important somewhere in the history of music.

Musicians taking “Fairmont” on Midwest Tour.
By Dave Smith (Sentinel Staff Writer)
Fairmont, Minnesota

It may not be logical or possible to bring the nation
to Fairmont, but what about taking Fairmont to the
nation?
Fairmont the band that is.
“Fairmont” was started, not surprisingly, right here
by Neil Sabatino of Clifton, NJ. Sabatino and members
of his former band, “Pencey Prep”, were touring the
Midwest and using his girlfriend-now-wife Jamie
Schaefer’s parent’s home as a base. The band had a
falling out and for all practical purposes, broke up.
Following the return to New Jersey, Sabatino began his
own band and selected the name of his girlfriend’s hometown
as its moniker.
“At the time, Fairmont made sense,” Sabatino
elaborated. “I wrote a lot of love songs about my wife
and my other band, Pencey Prep (essentially) broke up
there.”
With Jamie playing a key role in “Fairmont” taking to
the road, the story of how she and Sabatino met bears
telling.
As he tells it, the two met through a friend who had
a radio show in Pennsylvania. The friend had met two
girls from Minnesota who put together a (maga) “zine”
after he contacted them about using some of their
content on his show.
One of the girls, Jamie, stayed in touch with
Sabatino’s friend, who thought since she was artistic
that she should meet Sabatino who was in art school in
New York.
Sabatino and Jamie became pen pals.
“There was no internet then, so it was all letter,”
he added.
He said they tried the “long-distance romance thing”
but it did not work, so they went their separate ways.
About five years later, the friend in Pennsylvania was
getting married and sent an e-mail wedding invitation
to Sabatino, who noticed Jamie’s email address was
included on it as well.
“I thought, ‘I wonder how she is doing,’” Sabatino
said. After contacting her, the rest is history.
Sabatino and “Fairmont” will be back in the area
performing in the Twin Cities and Siox Falls as part
of their 2006 Midwest tour. The tour goes through
Milwaukee and Chicago as well as area performances at
Station 4 in St. Paul on Aug. 1; Fine Line Music Café
in Minneapolis on Aug 12; and Cool Beans in Sioux
Falls on Aug. 14.
Sabatino handles guitar and vocals for the group,
while John “Hambone” McGuire plays bass and Andy
Applegate play drums. The band has three EP’s and
three albums with another on the way.
Their style is influenced by a wide variety of groups
and musicians, from The Replacements to Pavement to
The Smiths and The Cure.
“I guess you’d say we are indie/alternative rock,”
Sabatino summed up.
He handles the bulk of the songwriting and says a lot
of the group’s music is autobiographical. Because he
sings most songs and writes most of the music,
Sabatino has decided to keep the “Fairmont” name even
as the lineup has changed a few times since its
inception.
During the early years of Fairmont, Sabatino said the
focus was on playing shows on bills with bigger bands.
Now they are focused on building their own fan base.
The band is happier playing before 250 people who came
to see them as opposed to 4,000 who came to see some
other group.
Sabatino, McGuire, and Applegate all have regular
jobs, so putting together a long tour can be
difficult. For Sabatino, a teacher, summer works best.
“We are playing as many shows as we can,” he said, “
We try and play 100 shows a year and get to
Minneapolis and Chicago a couple times each year. For
this tour we are playing in major cities in the
Midwest and Northeast and we have about 15 dates.”
“Fairmont” is a popular name for a band, according to
Sabatino. He said the one regret he has about choosing
it is that it is so common. In fact, he said the band
has had to resort to threat of legal action in some
cases to get other groups to stop using the name.
To see Fairmont’s touring calendar, go to
www.fairmontmusic.com. To hear samples of their music
look for them on MySpace.com.

Fairmont carefully walks the indie-pop line into West Haven
By Patrick Ferrucci
Register Entertainment Editor
7/8/05

Sadness, loneliness and anger become overtly palpable
emotions during New Jersey band Fairmont’s new
release, “Hell is for Other People.” Yet,
singer/guitarist/songwriter Neil Sabatino sounds
exuberant when discussing the dark yet poppy work.
“This was the first time I really had a full-time
band,” explains Sabatino, who came up with the moniker
Fairmont as a vehicle for his own songwriting after
his previous band, Pencey Prep, dissolved. “We have a
coherency for the first time, a concentrated effort to
make things flow better. It’s a little shorter, but a
tighter overall album.”
For the last four years, Sabatino took whatever lineup
he could find and toured the U.S., opening for such
like-minded artists as Nada Surf and Ted Leo. The
songwriter’s knack for biting, cunning and seriously
bitter lyrics (“I hope you have no regrets/ Do you
still smoke cigarettes?/ I hope the cancer is eating
you alive/ I’ve had enough of you” — from “The Monster
You’ve Become”) regularly earns Pixies, Cure and
Smiths comparisons, but, he says, his music has a
unique quality.
“We’re really opposite of the new mainstream, but also
of what’s going on underground,” he says. “We’re very
hard to categorize because we have a sound that still
would have been different, but more popular in the mid
’90s.”
Listeners of the just-released disc may find
themselves labeling the 12-song CD as a concept
record, with two tunes fouling up the cohesiveness.
That’s because Fairmont recorded “Hell” as a foursome,
with Sabatino, guitarist/singer/songwriter Kevin Metz,
drummer Andy Applegate and bassist John McGuire. At
the time of the recording, Sabatino says, Metz yearned
to contribute more, so the band acquiesced and let two
of his punchy, pop-rock songs onto the disc.
“They kind of break up the flow,” Sabatino says. “And
since the record came out, he left the band, so on the
album’s next pressing we’ll probably take those songs
off.” He says the tunes aren’t bad or anything, but
just break up what he wanted as a completely
unilateral statement.
“We’re a lot more excited about things now that he’s
gone his own way. We’re practicing more and the change
from a foursome to trio really hasn’t changed anything
live. It actually helps because when I (stop playing)
now, you can feel more of the bass and drums, and it
also allows me to experiment with pedals more. At
shows, we’ve got nothing but compliments.”
Patrick Ferrucci can be reached at
pferrucci@nhregister.com, (203) 789-5678.

Fairmont: A Love/Hate Story, 12/16/04 by Alana
Taken From: http://pressedmusic.livejournal.com/

Neil Sabatino is a really nice guy. You can just tell
sometimes, you know? Right off the bat. He’s the hero
of a movie that's yet to be made, that probably
should've been made around the same time as Singles or
Reality Bites. It's the story of a guy who loved
music, who was in a rock band, who met a girl who
lived far away and the distance broke them up.
Unfortunately, the band didn't go so well either. But
in the end, he gets the girl back and has a brand-new
band..well, sort of brand new.
Admittedly, the stage of Maxwell's in Hoboken, New
Jersey is no place for a movie's climax. And they're
not headlining or anything. But Fairmont, despite some
crappy technical difficulties, helps to rock the
house. They're the kind of band you find on a
compilation or soundtrack (which is probably why I'm
thinking of movies), and end up liking just as much as
the bands that made you want to buy the CD in the
first place. Their 90s alternarock-influenced single
"The Monster You’ve Become" has somehow ended up not
only being played an awful lot off of my computer, but
also managed to worm its way onto my "2004 in Review"
CD when Ani DiFranco got cut. Ani! But I have to
admit--It's catchy, it's rocking, what else could you
want?
So Neil and I spent some talking in that tiny little
room under Maxwell's that I love so dearly (because
it's boiling hot in the middle of the winter). Let me
tell you about how nice a guy he really is: when he's
not rockin' with Fairmont, he's teaching computers and
technology to "criminals, emotionally disturbed kids,
and autistic kids." Despite this challenging position,
he's still keeping a balance with the music in his
life: "We’ll take off a Friday here and there to go
play two shows in...wherever, like New Hampshire. Any
of the stuff here, I can get off early to make shows
in Pennsylvania, New York City, New York State, New
Jersey. It's not a problem. But we're trying to do
that as much as possible." Fortunately, he has a
little friend called The Internet to help him out.
"For a band like us, because of the internet, now
we're able to get away with touring less than we
would've had to five years ago because kids are
hearing us from all over the country. We know they are
because they're emailing us and telling us they're
buying our records and that kind of stuff. And that's
a lot easier than us trying to cover the whole
country, especially while we're working full-time."
Hell Is Other People will be the third record for
Fairmont, a band that very, very, VERY slowly rose
from the ashes of Sabatino's previous band. "I was
originally in a band called Pency Prep on Eyeball
Records a couple years ago and John [McGuire,
Fairmont's bassist] was in Pencey Prep with me and
when that band kind of fell apart, that's when
Fairmont started." John "Hambone" McGuire was actually
the last to join Fairmont, after the band's second
album, Anomie, and contributes songs as well as
playing bass. He's Neil's antithesis, the kind of guy
you would only reluctantly take home to your mother.
He hands out fading flowers from a subway station to
the various girls at Maxwell's, yellow roses to match
the embroidery on his shirt. He asks me if my editor
is hot. Oh, yes, this is a bad boy. It's easy to see
how he and Neil, two such different people, might have
butted heads in the past, but they have a rhythm to
their banter that you only hear from long-time
friends.
But don't think I've forgotten the love aspect of
this non-existant movie. Who's the girl you mentioned
before? you may be wondering. Well, that's Neil's
fiancee Jamie. They have a romance that Neil compares
to Sleepless In Seattle. "She used to write a zine,
and one of my friends had a radio show. My friend got
in touch with her because he wanted to read one of her
stories from the zine on his radio show. And somehow
they got to talking and became pen pals. And then,
when they became pen pals, he always kept talking
about his friend—-which was me—-who went to art school
and how we would be perfect for each other, we should
talk sometime. And we became pen pals—-this was in
1996. So we started talking, we really hit it off, we
talked for like a year, then she came out to Jersey."
Unfortunately, the story doesn't have its happy ending
there. The long-distance aspect of the relationship
broke them up, but once again Neil's friend here is
the Internet. When their common friend sent out a mass
email about a milestone in his life, Neil got Jamie's
email address and got back in touch with her. "My
friends flew her out here as a surprise for me," he
tells me with a big smile on his face. Jamie then
relocated to Jersey, "and a couple years later, we got
engaged." The band is named for Jamie’s hometown,
which is also where Neil realized that Pencey Prep was
really over. When asked if he ever wondered if
breaking up with Jamie would have affected the name of
the band, Neil says he's never really thought about
it, but quickly adds, "I have so many songs about her,
that if we broke up, I'd have to change the name of
the band." He calls himself "a hopeless romantic" and
adds, "Pretty much every song is split between the
people I hate the most, and songs about her, and
missing her when she’s away at work at stuff like
that."
"I don’t think it’s ever going to end," Neil says
about Jamie, but he could just as well be speaking of
Fairmont.
"I’m not doing this to become famous or get rich or
whatever," he says about the band. "I feel this need
to make records. If people find it, that's great, but
I wouldn't hold my breath, either...I don't think
we're terribly great, I just think we enjoy what we do
and we have fun, and that's more of what it's about
for us."

BLISS ZINE AIM Interview

killerXeyes31: 1] whats the background on Fairmont?
ih8ulots: all of it?
killerXeyes31: [to let the readers know and stuff]
killerXeyes31: the basic/important stuff
ih8ulots: I started Fairmont right after I had been kicked out of Pencey Prep, we had been fighting alot on our summer tour and the second I was kicked out I started to work on my first record as a solo artist. Fairmont is the city in Minnesota where my wife is from and also it was the site of the very last good Pencey Prep show. From the beginning I was signed to a small record label from NJ called Reinforcement Records, they loved everything about my music and offered to release it all... My first record was a bitter record all about the break up of the now legendary Pencey Prep. Years went by and I went through a billion line up changes and eventually became friends with Pencey Prep again and thats when the current bass player of Fairmont, John McGuire (former Pencey Prep bass player) joined Fairmont. Fairmont has a long history that can be found online and in other interviews I've done, its sort of like Spinal Tap but more painful.
killerXeyes31: 2] okay this is for the memories issue of Bliss. What would you say is your best and worst memory?
ih8ulots: Best Memory was probably one of our more recent shows at The Loop Lounge in New Jersey, there was just something great about the vibe of the show and for the first time in a long time I just felt like the band Fairmont was becoming the band I always wanted it to be. The worst times have always been those times when members would quit, one time I had 3 out five members quit the night before we were supposed to go into the studio to record an album, that was a pretty shitty night, long and lonely as well. It always sucks when a member quits because usually it means the end of a friendship as well, not always but usually.
killerXeyes31: ouch
killerXeyes31: hopefully everything worked out okay, seeing as how you guys are doing pretty good now?
ih8ulots: Yes finally we have been a solid band for more then 2 years now,,,
killerXeyes31: man, thats great
killerXeyes31: 3] you probably just answered this, but where would you say is the best place Fairmont has played so far?
ih8ulots: Well we do love our hometown bar The Loop Lounge, We also have enjoyed NYC venues like CBGB's and Sin-e, but as well the New England area has treated us well and they have some great clubs. Also two clubs in particular were on the road and we got treated like rock stars at Woody's Tavern in Louisville, Kentucky and at Otto's in DeKalb, Illinois... and in the early days Fairmont played alot at places in Minnesota like The Java Joint in St. Cloud, MN and that was always fun.
killerXeyes31: sounds pretty rad
killerXeyes31: 4] wheres your favorite place you've been to state/citywise outside touring with Fairmont?
ih8ulots: I don't know really. I love The Northeast, like New Hampshire cause we have lots of friends there. Chicago and Minneapolis are great too. I love the big cities.
killerXeyes31: Chicago's great
killerXeyes31: 5] who would you want to go on tour with in the Future?
ih8ulots: I guess just bigger bands that are genuine, nice people. We have loved playing with Ted Leo, Nada Surf, John Vanderslice, My Chemical Romance and a bunch of others throughout our career. Any of those bands would incredible to tour with. However if your talking dream tour I probably would have to say Portishead, Radiohead, The Pixies, The Cure, Julianna Hatfield, or Morrissey.
killerXeyes31: you definetely just named 5 of my favorite bands
killerXeyes31: 6]so your cd "Hell is Other People" is out right now. Whats it about?
ih8ulots: Hell is other People is a full length that was written pretty quickly and was definitely during a transitional period in the band. We were a four piece and the guy who ended up leaving made the writing process difficult. His two songs that are on the record that he Co-Wrote really break up the flow of the album and kind of ruin it for me. However the rest of the album is pretty much about hopelessness, which is why the title is taken from the play No Exit, a play about people stuck in hell. The album also was produced in only 2 days of recording and 2 days of mixing because our budget was small and I felt this was a big reason I wasn't that happy with this record. We started work shortly after Hell Is Other People was released on a follow up record called "Wait and Hope" and we are a thousand times happier just with the rough demos. We are currently seeking a label that can give us the budget we need to record it the right way. This new album as well deals with Hopelessness as a central theme in the lyrics which I feel speaks directly to my peers about growing up in a world after 9/11 and watching an idiot like George W Bush get re-elected. My lyrics reflect the bleak future that we are all facing.
killerXeyes31: "growing up in a world after 9/11 and watching an idiot like George W Bush get re-elected"
I agree with you completely on that
killerXeyes31: 7] what would you say is your favorite song off the album?
ih8ulots: My favorite song on Hell is Other People is probably the song 4th of July which is about the fighting that was going on between me and the band member that eventually left. It has an amazing violin track on it played by a friend of Johns. I really view the work as an album and I really like looking back on it and I think in general there is maybe only a song or two that I'm not fond of anymore. Your Fan From Far Away is also a favorite of mine because it was written as a favor to a fan who wanted me to write a song for him that would help him win back his girlfriend who recently had dumped him..
killerXeyes31: Based on what you just said and people I have talked to, you have some pretty dedicated fans. Thats always a really good thing to think on.
killerXeyes31: 8] Have you written any songs yet for a follow up to "Hell Is other People" possibly?
ih8ulots: As I explained up above a few questions ago, we wrote the follow up completely already, the whole thing is done , its called Wait and Hope and its about 12 songs and we have demo version of the whole album and will hopefully find a label soon that will pay for us to go record it for real..We're not worried, there already has been alot of interest.
killerXeyes31: thats really good, I like the Title
ih8ulots: its actually a quote from The Counte of Monte Cristo, my favorite story about revenge.
killerXeyes31: you pretty much just convinced me to go check that out lol
killerXeyes31: sounds really cool
killerXeyes31: 9] do you ever miss the Pencey days?
ih8ulots: yeah , I miss it alot sometimes but it was a band that wasn't built to last. It was five creative people all in a band together because we all had our hearts broken. We all were such a mess when we formed that band. I think the fact that Pencey isn't around anymore is actually OK because finally I think all of us are ok in our personal lives.. Its hard to explain. Who knows maybe someday you'll see a brief reunion but as for now we're all pretty busy ...
killerXeyes31: i think a reunion would make a lot of people smile :] like I just did lol
ih8ulots: We just never really discussed it and I don't if everyone really even would want to play together again. 2 of the guys really don't do band stuff anymore at all..
killerXeyes31: ah yeah thats understandable
killerXeyes31: 10] My Chem just put out ACTION FIGURES. How does it feel to know that a former bandmate of yours got so far to actually have an action figure of himself out for the world?.
ih8ulots: I am really proud of Frank and everything he has done, I've known him since he was 17 and I think he got everything he deserved. Him and the rest of MCR deserve it more then anyone I know especially with all the hardwork and touring they have done. I'm really proud of them, I think they are genuine and deserve everything they get.
killerXeyes31: you just said everything i feel about MCR's success, minus the whole "knowing Frank" part
killerXeyes31: 11] would you ever buy one of the action figures?
ih8ulots: probably not, it'd be too weird... but if they want to give me one, i'd be cool with that ...
killerXeyes31: hahaha exactly what i thought you might say
killerXeyes31: 12] What do you think about kids changing theirselves to fit into certain "styles"?
ih8ulots: I've never been into style trends or any of that stuff,, I wouldn't do it but I also wouldn't tell other people what they should do...
killerXeyes31: good answer :]
killerXeyes31: 13] who has been a strong influence in your life?
killerXeyes31: [theres one serious question left and then 6 random questions]
ih8ulots: I don't know. I think all different people, from like Ghandi to John Lennon.. thats a tough one..
killerXeyes31: yeah i def. wouldnt be able to pick one
killerXeyes31: 14] your a teacher at a school for emotionally troubled kids, whats that like?
ih8ulots: Its hard sometimes. Sometimes I just want to be in a band full time and other times I'm glad I'm not away from home. The kids are all great, I get along with most of them, I think its because i'm 16 at heart and I can totally relate to most of them. Alot of times we listen to similar music and play the same video games. I also work with Down Syndrome students and Autistic and that can sometimes be hard but I enjoy it.
killerXeyes31: thats really, really good
killerXeyes31: now for a few random questions.
killerXeyes31: 15] what do you think of Green Day?
ih8ulots: they are ok, I liked their last album No Warning alot better then anything they have ever done. I like the new record somewhat but it seems to be alot of rehashed older Green Day which was probably a move on their part to capitalize on the youth market. Personally I dug their other stuff a little more but they are a great band, just seems like they are trying a little too hard lately with their MCR-ish goth look.
killerXeyes31: thats what I think about the "trying too hard..." comment, but i have to say I probably like the Shenanigans album the best, if not Nimrod
ih8ulots: Well Shenaniigans is all B Sides and I had all those songs long before the record came out..
killerXeyes31: pretty rad
killerXeyes31: 16] would you ever stick your tongue into an electrical socket? maybe, possibly?
ih8ulots: Probably not, I won't even touch my tongue to a battery... I think pain is best if avoided unless your the one inflicting
killerXeyes31: haha very real answer
killerXeyes31: 17] theres an album out called "Goblin Cock." What do you think about that??
ih8ulots: if they aren't a joke band then they probably are a metal band and in either case probably aren't going to be able to build a career off their music.
killerXeyes31: I honestly dont think their gonna get anywhere...
killerXeyes31: 18] what do you think about the color of a giraffe's tongue?
ih8ulots: I suppose it is what it is for a reason.
killerXeyes31: hm yeah, your probably right
killerXeyes31: 19] this ones from Dayna, the head editor for Bliss: "Rebuilding Home 2005" is probably my favorite Fairmont song, due to the fact that I can relate to the lyrics in my own way, [and its just a pretty damn amazing song.] What was it written about?
ih8ulots: My wife had to move to New Jersey from Minnesota and she really missed home and that song was written from her point of view. I wrote it for her so she would know that I knew how she was feeling. It was actually the first real song I ever wrote and recorded besides the Pencey Prep song Fat and Alone...
killerXeyes31: i know if someone did that for me, i would cry, and i dont usuallu cry in front of people...and i used to sing Fat and Alone every freaking day. that song was my absolute favorite.

Fairmont's rock takes an existentialist tone/March 4, 2005
By Robert Hicks, Special to the Daily Record

With stints in New Jersey punk bands Stick Figure Suicide and Pencey Prep behind him, Neil Sabatino has turned to writing dark, melodic pop in his band Fairmont.
As the indie rock quartet's frontman and songwriter, Sabatino is trying to find a middle ground between mellow, adult contemporary music and screaming, angst-ridden pop, so prevalent in today's youth culture.
"I'm somewhere in the middle and sometimes I just feel like a lost soul," he said. "I'm trying to get my message out there. But it just doesn't seem like there is a bright light at the end of the tunnel."
A sense of hopelessness fuels Sabatino's songs on Fairmont's third full-length CD, "Hell Is Other People," which is very loosely based on Jean-Paul Sartre's existentialist play "No Exit."
Fairmont will perform at its CD release party at the Loop Lounge in Passaic Park tonight. Also on the bill are up-and-coming New Jersey bands Ape Fight and The Finals. The headliner is Spiraling.
Fairmont features lead vocalist and guitarist Sabatino of Clifton, second guitarist Kevin Metz of Dumont, bassist John "Hambone" McGuire of Clifton and drummer Andy Applegate of Manasquan.
"It's the first time I've written with an album in mind from beginning to end," Sabatino said of the new CD.
"In the past, I would just write individual songs. Usually I'd write 20 songs and we'd narrow that down to 13 or 14 songs for an album. This time I specifically wanted to correlate my autobiography with the story in the play 'No Exit,'" he said.
Drawing parallels between his own life and that of the main character, Garcin, in "No Exit," he created a narrator who lives in a world populated by people who make his life miserable.
Sabatino first read "No Exit" in high school in Wayne. He revisited it while studying animation at the School of Visual Arts in New York. At the time, the play made no real connection with him.
As a teenager, he listened to 1930s jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt and to 1960s artists such as Bob Dylan and the Kinks. During his college days, he gravitated to the Cure and the Smiths. In his mid to late 20s, he turned to 1990s indie rock bands such as Pavement and the Shins. After switching from bass to guitar, he began to write songs.
"The first thing for me is melody. I'm not into droney music. I like good lyrics, too. I'm attracted to singers who express pain in their music," he said. "I don't really listen to a lot of happy music."
A few years ago, he began to write a new batch of songs, but many of them didn't fit into his goals as a songwriter. He scrapped some of those songs. In search of a theme to tie together the remaining songs, he came across the quote "Hell is other people," from Sartre's "No Exit."
He re-examined the play and saw parallels between himself and Garcin that helped him complete the songwriting.
For the most part, the songs deal with troubled romantic relationships in a semi-autobiographical vein.
"I hope there is a lot of sincerity, sarcasm and wit in my songs," he said.
In real life, Sabatino, 28, has put his youthful relationship problems behind him. He is engaged to Jamie Schafer, who hails from Fairmont, Minn. He freelances as an illustrator for New Jersey bands and holds down a day job teaching autistic children in Bergen County. He continues to write new songs for a fourth Fairmont CD, to be recorded in November.

Band: Fairmont
Interviewer: Julie Johnson
Date: 12/12/04

GC: What is the name of your band and who are the current members?
FAIRMONT , Neil(vocals and guitar) Kevin(guitar) John(bass) Andy(drums)
GC: How did you become connected to make music?
We had all met by playing shows together in previous bands.
GC: What are your musical influences?
The Pixies, The Cure, The Smiths, Radiohead, Pavement, Alterna Indie Pop of the early 90's - Mathew Sweet, Juliana Hatfield, Liz Phair, D Generation and more as well as classics like The Beatles, The Who and the rolling stones.
GC: What is your live show like?
Intimate, energetic and sincere.
GC: Tell us about your own unique style of music?
Our music is autoboigraphical Dark Indie Pop, its unique musically and lyrically. Musically i have tryed to incorporate elements of jazz, rock , classic rock, goth , indie, alternative, pop, blues, etc. all into our sound. Lyrically i'm trying to tell my story, the story of who i am.
GC: What serparates your band from all the other bands out there?
Sincerity, no gimmicks, a love for making music and not caring what MTV or Major Labels think.
GC: How do you go about writing songs?
I write constantly because life is happening constatly and new and bigger things piss me off every day. I sit down at my guitar and it just all pours out then i bring it to the band and we re arrange and polish ...
GC: Pick one of your latest song and talk about everything from writing it, meanings, the challenges of recording it?
The Monster You've Become our new single was written in the vein of bands like Radiohead and The Smiths, dark like a Radiohead song with guitar hooks and what not and sly sarcastic lyrics like you'd find in a Smiths song but less jokey and more from the heart. It was written about someone I don't like very much and the words just poured out and the song was written in probably a 20 minute time period. When the band got ahold of it and we made it more electric we did a little rewriting and took on a whole new sound, very different from a Radiohead or Smiths song, I also had in mind songs i had written for a previous band and i wanted to immitate some of the hooks i had liked in an earlier song i had written. Originally we pictured it as a dark heavy rock song however in the recording process it lost some of its heavier edge and tool on a whole new life becoming more of mellower Dark Indie song and with the guitar leads at the end of the song and piano added the song was elevated to much more then the original peice i wrote alone on an acoustic guitar...
GC: What is your latest news with the band?
Just signed with Renfield Records (www.renfieldrecords.com) and our new album Hell is Other People will be in stores this February.
GC: Where do you hope to be in 5 years with your band?
In five years i hope to have recorded a Platinum record. It may not happen but why dream of being good when you can dream of being great.
GC: How are people currently reacting to your music?
As far as I can tell the longer we are together the more people like us , can't ask for more then that ...
GC: What would be the top 3 reasons for listening to your music?
Its catchy, its sincere, its a voice like you've never heard.
GC: What is your best experience as a band?
Probably touring the midwest this year , we got a very positive response all over,, that or one specific show at a venue in NJ called Maxwells where for an hour the crowd made us feel like rockstars.
GC: What is your worst experience as a band?
The Barking Spider Tavern in Cleveland Ohio. We drove all night to play a show in front of no one and to boot the guy told us we were too loud when our amps were on 1 then he shut the lights off in the venue when our friends took the stage and he told them they had no talent and to leave... that really sucked...
GC: What is most important to you in your band?
Writing good songs that someone besides myself can relate too.
GC: Do you have a personal favorite song, could be your own or other, and why?
I think the very first real song i wrote and sang is my favorite, possibly my best as well , its called Rebuilding Home and i wrote it for my girlfriend because she had to move away from her home to be with me in NJ. I think it moved a lot of people, i still get more compliments on that song then any other i haave ever written,,,
GC: What was the hardest song to write and why?
I don't know that any song was hard to write , maybe just that first initial song,,, Certain songs just never come together and we usually end up not playing them but i wouldn't say any were hard or not hard to write.
GC: What do you think of the current gothic/ EBM/ Industrial/ noise/ synthpop etc scence today? <
I like Bauhaus, Joy Division and the Cure and maybe the Pink Dots but beyond that I don't knwo much about that scene,, unless you count NIN or Ministry then i'd say i'm a fan ...
GC: What music do you currently listen to, and why?
I listen to lots of different stuff , right now in my car are CD's by Elliot Smith , Bruce Springstein, Nirvana, The Shins, and Green Day ,,, Oh and i can't forget the Peanuts Xmas Album i listen to that alot - Vince Guraldi is a genius.. Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited gets me through the da, possibly my favorite all time album. Also Pixies Bossanova and Jawbreaker Dear you are two albums i listen too alot..
GC: How do you keep changing your music from album to album or plan to change it?
I think our music is becoming more and more polished , i don't know if it ever changes stylistically but hopefully as we grow as songwriters our music is becoming more bearable for the listener.
GC: What kind of recording environment do you have?
We recorded our last album with a real producer for the first time and I think I hated it ,, I like having a little more control over things , so i would say in a very uncomfortable environment.
GC:How long did you spend on your latest effort?
It took about 10 months to write and 4 days to record and mix. Its our 3rd full length record in 3 years.
GC: What is the hardest thing about being in a band for this genre?
the fact that we don't fit into a genre is more the problem

If At First You Don't Succeed... Interview August 03
By Jim Testa

There is perseverance, there is tenacity— and then there is a flat-out nearly-psychotic refusal to accept defeat and keep moving forward, no matter what the setbacks, frustrations, or disappointments. Which brings us to the New Jersey based trio known as Fairmont.
Fairmont is the brainchild of Neil Sabatino, a steady presence on the NJ indie-rock scene since his teens, playing in barely-remembered indie rock combos like Little Green Men (the same band, albeit a different lineup, that introduced Carla Parisi of the Swimmies,) and the almost-made-it hardcore band Stick Figure Suicide. When it comes to the local club scene, Neil has been there and done that « from having to sell tickets to play all-ages shows, hoping for a chance to open for a national band in front of hundreds of kids, to dues-paying mid-week club gigs, playing to a handful of diehard friends and fans in the wee hours at some dingy bar. Stick Figure Suicide came that close to the kind of label deal that would have guaranteed several years of lucrative touring and no day jobs before the group imploded, taking Neil and half the original lineup with it. Fairmont is probably a long way from that kind of success, and the fact that itÃs taken several years and innumerable lineup changes to get even a foothold in the local scene speaks to SabatinoÃs commitment to this project. Now, finally, with fresh new faces Kevin Metz on acoustic guitar and Andy Applegate on drums, Fairmont has found the stability that promises them a chance. We caught up with the band at a Thursday night show at CBGB to talk about the music, the band, and the future.
Q: Lets start with the origins of Fairmont. The concept for doing this band started after Stick Figure Suicide fell apart, I assume?
Neil: After Stick Figure Suicide broke up « well, after I left with half the band « I was trying to get an original band going, but I didnt want to sing. I was going to just write the music. Then I joined Pency Prep, and we were on Eyeball Records for a while. One tour broke us up. We did three weeks in the midwest and we ended up breaking up in Fairmont, Minnesota. ThatÃs where my girlfriendÃs from. So I wound up naming this band after where Pency Prep ended, where this band started, and also because itÃs where I go a lot to get away from Jersey and write songs and stuff. ItÃs just a plain town in the middle of America. The plan for Fairmont was— I started playing these songs solo acoustic, and my plan was to slowly build a band around me, and get it to a 5-piece. I tried that and I just canÃt work with that many people in a band. Fairmont was a 5-piece for a while but some members wanted to be more hardcore and other members wanted to be way more mellow, and so I ended getting rid of everybody and reforming with these two guys who are with me now. And this is kind of what I think it should be.
Q: You had to start over again so many times with this band, a sane person might have just said |enoughs enough2 and moved on to a whole new idea. What was it about this concept that made you keep going back and trying to make Fairmont work?
Neil: We still do a lot of songs that I wrote acoustically. When Pencey Prep broke up, I just sat in my room for weeks and just wrote and wrote and wrote. And we still do a lot of the songs I wrote during that period. I just feel theyÃre really strong that deserve to be out there, and no matter what lineup weÃve had, weÃve played that same group of songs. And I think itÃs been interesting with all those different lineups but I think this is the strongest and weÃve found what weÃre best at. YouÃre right, though, any sane person would have given up at this point. But I also think— being in an indie band, it was hard finding dedicated people. We donÃt have a big record label behind us and thereÃs no money coming in— youÃre in it for the love of music, and itÃs hard to find people who will stay in a band just for the love of music. Now finally I have two guys who are great musicians with me, Andy and Kevin, people who are in it because they love music. The downfall of Fairmont was that I took whoever was around at the time and just threw them into whatever position was needed « excluding Scott (Kivowitz,) who was a really great part of the band for a long time. But he also didnÃt want to put in the time it takes to build a band like this from the ground up. I think itÃs going to take a good couple of years of solid work to make it happen.
Q: So how did you find these two guys?
Neil: Kevin IÃve known since he was 14. He was distroÃing the Stick Figure Suicide Record.
Kevin: Yeah, I used to do Punk Bear Records, and I used to sell CDs for local bands. And Stick Figure Suicide was a big seller, so I used to bother Neil all the time to buy CDÃs wholesale and sell them.
Neil: So I ran into Kevin not too long ago, at the Jersey Jams benefit that you set up actually. At the time, we were having problems with Scott, who was thinking of leaving. He had wanted to be on a major label from the beginning, and I had to explain to him that thatÃs not where this was going, that we were an indie band and weÃd be that way for a long time, maybe forever. So Kevin was just there at the right time. And it was my girlfriend who said, |that kid Kevin was really nice, why donÃt you give him a call?2
Kevin: So he gave me a call, I called him back and we talked it over. Then I waited two days because I wasnÃt sure, but finally I called him back and told him I wanted to join the band. And he was telling me, |I didnÃt think youÃd want to do it, I was really nervous, I was sure youÃd say no—2
Neil: But he was really into it. He had to take a six-hour train ride one day just to rehearse with us—
Kevin: Yeah, I had to take a bus to Camden, and then a train to Trenton, then a train to Newark, then I had to wait about an hour for Neil to pick me up.
Neil: But itÃs actually worked out well. We kind of have our schedules set now and itÃs been a lot easier. And then as far as Andy— We had this other drummer who just wasnÃt working out. I donÃt want to tell stories but—
Q: He wasnÃt working out.
Neil: Yeah, he had a lot of issues that he was dealing with. And then he stopped showing up for rehearsals. So one day Kevin and I were just totally fed up with it and we drove around to every Guitar Center and music store in New Jersey and just talked to everybody we could find and asked about drummers. A week later we were supposed to record an album, so we were thinking that weÃd hire a studio musician to do the album and then look for a permanent drummer after that.
Kevin: And we found them both.
Neil: Yeah, he just happened that right then, Andy posted on a message board that he was looking for a band, and all of his influences were identical to ours. It couldnÃt have been a better ad for a drummer. And he worked out right away. We only auditioned two people. The other guy was okay but Andy came in and played all the sounds perfect.
Kevin: It was amazing, at the audition he played ever song perfect. I was very comfortable.
Neil: So he learned an entire albumÃs worth of material in four days and stepped in and recorded the album, then stuck around and did the tour with us, and just became our drummer.
Q: (to Andy) So whatÃs on your resume? Have you been in any other bands we might have heard of?
Andy: No bands youÃve ever heard of. I was in this cover band last summer but that was it. But IÃve been playing drums for 10 years.
Neil: HeÃs really a very accomplished drummer. Over the years, weÃve had some very raw drummers who, with practice, became
good enough that we could pull off shows. But AndyÃs the first one that stepped in and elevated us above where we were.
Kevin: HeÃs really brought us up a level. Playing with Andy is just very comfortable. We never have to worry about what heÃs doing, heÃs always there and adding something to the songs. And he has the coolest beard. I keep telling him that IÃm going to light it on fire one of these days. (laughs)
Q: (to Andy and Kevin) So did you guys have any trepidation about joining a band that had been through so many members? I mean, itÃs almost like auditioning to be the new drummer in Spinal Tap.
Kevin: Right, thereÃs definitely a Spinal Tap thing, especially with Andy. But yeah, it was weird knowing that Neil had gone through so many members. It was definitely in the back of my mind.
Q: It was definitely on your mind but you decided to go for it anyway?
Kevin: Exactly. There was something worthwhile here that I thought it was worth the risk.
Neil: The thing is, a lot of people who were in the band before were people that I knew wouldnÃt be in the band for more than a couple of months. And there were a couple of fill-ins too, where it was clear that friends from other bands would just fill in on bass or drums or whatever until we found someone else. And there were some permanent members who stayed for over a year or more until they decided that they wanted to do something else. Like Scott wanted to front his own band, and a couple of guys I brought into the band for a while left to start a hardcore band. And then there were some people that I knew right away wouldnÃt last very long, they were missing practices by the second or third practice and you could tell they just werenÃt there for the long haul. And then I told you about our ghetto drummer, right? To find him, weÃd have to drive down to Passaic and ask people on street corners if theyÃd seen Corn « his name was Corn, short for Cornelius « and weÃd have to send someone to run through backyards and find him and heÃd come out to the street and meet us.
Q: Kevin, Chris Carrabba has brought the acoustic guitar back into vogue in punk and now there seem to be a lot of emo bands using acoustics, so how do you play acoustic guitar in a band like this and keep people from just rolling their eyes and saying |Dashboard Confessional ripoff!2
Kevin: I think we have a lot of power behind us. I know that Chris plays with a full band sometimes but itÃs definitely different with us. ItÃs more driven and we EQ the guitar to be very bassy, so it fills it in well.
Neil: With the acoustic guitar, we have the luxury of having Kevin play real bassy and almost play a bassline sometimes, and other times where he needs to play an intricate lead, he can jump off and do that. We actually tried a bass with this band and it made the acoustic guitar sound like crap. It just made it sound real clicky and scratchy so we decided to do without it.
Q: YouÃve said several times that you consider this an indie band, so— in 25 words or less, why is Fairmont not |emo2?
Neil: (slightly non-plussed) Not emo? Well, thereÃs such a wide spectrum thatÃs included in that now.
Kevin: Everything is being called emo these days so itÃs hard to exactly say.
Neil: I would say this: All my influences have always been indie rock « Pavement, the Smiths, the Cure, the Pixies, all bands like that. So what IÃm doing is trying to follow in their footsteps. So I would just consider us indie rock on that basis. If someone wants to call us emo, they can call us whatever they want. WeÃre definitely different from what else is out there. And people have compared my voice to everyone you could imagine. People are going to label you what they want, thereÃs really nothing you can do about that.
Q: Speaking of your voice, there is a quality to your singing « itÃs not in every song, but itÃs there sometimes « where you sound really young. I mean, like a pre-teenager young. This sort of high, keening, very innocent sound that conjures up images of childhood. Is that something you consciously tap into, or it something thatÃs just there?
Neil: I think itÃs just that I was never a singer before. I only learned how to sing in the last couple of years. I think when I first started singing, I totally ripped off the guy from the Weakerthans. It was kind of my impression of how he would sing a song. I think in the last two years of singing, IÃve gotten past that, but every once in a while, for certain parts, IÃll hear his voice. And also, for a big guy, I really do have a high girly voice.
Kevin: People mistake it for girlÃs voice all the time. (laughs)
Neil: IÃve heard that I sound like everything from the guy in the Weakerthans to Built To Spill— one guy said that I sound like two cats fucking in an alley—
Kevin: I think it was THREE cats fucking—
Neil: It definitely is a weird voice, itÃs not your average punk rock voice. And thatÃs what a lot of people like about the band, and that's what a lot of people hate about the band. But you canÃt please everyone.
Q: I understand youÃve been getting a very enthusiastic response doing all-ages shows—
Neil: Definitely.
Q: There are a couple of interesting issues there. First thereÃs the way that the all-ages scene and the over-21 club scene in New Jersey are so totally segregated. If a band plays one circuit, usually they donÃt play the other. You are one of the few bands that have your foot in both scenes. So IÃd like to talk a little about how you navigate that. And the second thing is how bands in the two different scenes are treated. Bands who play clubs donÃt always get paid, but at least theyÃre not exploited by promoters and forced to go out and sell tickets, which is what happens at the all-ages shows put on by the big promoters in the state—
Kevin: I think the underage bands are the ones who are pretty much ruling the scene right now. They have the bigger following than anybody. And in a lot of cases, theyÃre the ones running the shows. They rent out the halls and put on their own shows.
Q: I think there was a lot more of that a few years ago, when there were still a lot of halls in NJ and bands could do DIY shows. What I see now are the big promoters like Concerts East and ExcessDB and people like that putting together shows at big venues and getting all these young bands to go out and sell tickets to be on the bill.
Neil: Yeah, but the thing is, the big promoters like ExcessDB do give the younger bands a good shot at playing with nationals. So does Hamilton Street and the Bloomfield Ave Cafª. Even Concerts East finally learned that they have to book these young bands. The young bands are dictating who comes to these shows. I remember ExcessDB did a show with Nada Surf, back before he was really putting younger bands on the bills, and nobody was there. And then we did an all-ages Nada Surf show at Hamilton Street with Atom & His Package and some young bands on the bill and it sold out, there were like three or four hundred kids there. Just recently I think the promoters are starting to realize that not only are the young bands in this area really talented, but theyÃre the ones who are calling the shots. And if you donÃt listen to them, they and their fans arenÃt going to support the shows.
Kevin: Keith at ExcessDB really does a good job at that. He has so many big touring bands but he also throws local bands on the bill too.
Q: So you think the benefit of getting to open for a national band and playing to a lot of people justifies whatever element of exploitation there is in the whole thing? Because if youÃre getting all the opening bands to buy a certain number of tickets and sell them to their friends, then you as the promoter arenÃt taking an risk.
Neil: IÃm still like a 15 year old kid with this whole thing. Because even if I have to sell tickets, I donÃt care. I just love playing shows.
Q: Yes, but you shouldnÃt have to sell tickets to play. You donÃt have to sell tickets if youÃre playing Maxwells or the Court Tavern.
Neil: You shouldnÃt. And it sucks. But we got to play with Elliott and One True Thing in front of a couple of hundred people, and we were so happy, we didnÃt care. ItÃs just so great to play on a big show like that and know that itÃs guaranteed there are going to be a couple of hundred people there that we didnÃt care about selling tickets. It does suck to sell tickets and we try not to do it, but if weÃre forced to do it, then weÃre forced to. But the bottom line is just playing shows and getting the music out there. I think thatÃs all itÃs about for me.
Kevin: When we came back from tour, we had only been on tour for a couple of days, but as soon as we got back, every day I was thinking,2Oh man, I wish we were playing someplace tonight.2
Andy: I gained like 20 pounds since we got back from tour. (laughs)
Q: YouÃre also playing club shows and youÃve been sharing bills with people like Val Emmich and SSRI. And I know youÃve been going to shows for a long time, so let me ask you what you think of the current state of the indie scene right now. For me, I think weÃre in a retrenching period right now. I donÃt see a lot of the bands who are headlining local clubs doing anything thatÃs really pushing the envelope or trying to be original. They just seem like they want to be popular, without putting any creativity into it. And I donÃt see much energy or enthusiasm in the audiences either. TheyÃll come to see one band and then leave, thereÃs so sense of community or actually supporting the music, itÃs all personalities.
Neil: Definitely. I think part of the problem is that in Jersey or NYC, you can see a major label band every night of the week. ItÃs really hard to get your name out there if youÃre just an indie band trying to get noticed, especially if you are trying to do something original. I know a band that you donÃt like very much, the Multi-Purpose Solution. They are doing something SO original, and they are having such a hard time with the Jersey scene. And yet in Pennsylvania, they have a huge following. And I think itÃs because in Jersey, kids are spoiled. They see too many gigantic bands every day of the week and it doesnÃt give them a chance to focus on the locals. They come purposefully late to the concerts to miss the local bands because theyÃre so overloaded.
Q: The other interesting thing too is that all of the bands who have broken out of New Jersey in the last few years have come out of the all-ages scene « Thursday, Saves The Day, Bouncing Souls, Midtown— Those bands are doing great but the bands who have gotten signed to majors out of the indie club scene have all failed.
Neil: Well, I canÃt vouch for any of them. I think weÃre doing something more original than a lot of band that are out there. And weÃre always challenging ourselves to write different music. We never use the same formula twice when we write songs. Even though a lot of our stuff is similar, if you listen to the first things we recorded and compare it to what weÃre doing now, itÃs totally different.
Q: So now that you have people who arenÃt going to disappear in the band with you, has Fairmont become more of an ensemble, or are you still doing all the songwriting?
Neil: Actually, Kevin has been writing songs.
Kevin: I wrote one song, |Knock Me Out,2 that will be on our album, and I sing another song in our set right now. ItÃs good right now. When I first joined the band, one of the things I wanted to do was to start writing a little more. So itÃs good. Even the songs that Neil writes, I write my own guitar parts and some backup vocals. So it has become more of a songwriting team.
Neil: IÃve always wanted it to be more of a band situation, not Neil Sabatino backed by a band. So I take into account everything that these guys have to say about a song. ItÃs definitely a democracy, itÃs not a dictatorship. In the past maybe it was more that way, when there were a lot more members in the band. I sort of had to be in charge when I was trying to work with five or six people. But with this small of a group, itÃs so easy. Since thereÃs only two of us writing, Kevin might bring a song to practice and right away we start working on it. And AndyÃs great, he learns everything right on the spot.
Kevin: We all put it together and either it works or it doesnÃt work and we drop it and move on. But most of the time it works.
Neil: And Andy isnÃt there with a guitar wanting to write songs. He just does his drum thing and itÃs awesome. So itÃs just me and Kevin, and anything that either one of us writes gets a shot.
Q: Andy, let me ask you something. Do you think playing without a bass in the band gives you more freedom as a drummer, or does it make it harder for you to lock into a groove on a song?
Andy: I really donÃt find it a problem at all.
Q: Do you play off the rhythm guitar then?
Andy: I really play more off the vocals and the lead guitar than I do off the rhythm. Sorry, Kevin. But I just find that easier to follow. ItÃs more distinctive. And I have a pretty good sense of timing to figure out the songs and know them pretty well.
Neil: I think Andy could pretty much play the songs without us there if he had to. So itÃs not a matter of him following anything. He just sets the time and heÃs always there. And because thereÃs no bass, a lot of times Kevin and I are both playing rhythm, and try to lock the guitars together as much as possible. So thereÃs a clearcut rhythm that both guitars are playing thatÃs easy for him to lock into. Also without the bass, I think itÃs easier for Andy to deviate and do some really cool funky stuff.
Q: What impresses me most with the songs IÃve heard from your forthcoming album is that the arrangements are really fleshed out. Everything sounds really full, youÃd never know it was a trio.
Kevin: I try to do as much backup vocals as I can, and try to fill in as much as I can. So IÃm filling in on vocals and IÃm filling in with the guitar. We do sound pretty full, which is what weÃre going for.
Neil: WeÃve been really careful with the way weÃve been writing, especially recently. Kevin really has the hardest job, because he has to decide whether heÃs playing a rhythm track, a lead track, or some combination. He has to play to what fits the song and makes it sound full. And live, we really do sound full. I think we really sound full for a three piece because we spent a couple of months specifically writing KevinÃs parts to fit the music.
Q: What are you most excited about people hearing on this new record?
Kevin: IÃm excited that people are finally going to hear this new Fairmont sound. IÃve been hearing people say, |oh wow, this is great, but really havenÃt heard anything else like it.2 I think itÃs cool how thereÃs not a lot to compare us to.
Neil: IÃm just excited that itÃs finally a real band. We do so many EPÃs with all these floating members and fill-ins and everything, and this is the first CD weÃve done where I feel it really is a band.
Q: IÃve thrown out more Fairmont EPÃs and demos in the last few months than IÃve gotten from some bands in an entire career! At your insistence, by the way.
Neil: (laughs) ItÃs kind of like trial by fire. WeÃre creating as much as we can and whatever works, works. And weÃre trying to move along that path. And what hasnÃt worked, weÃve thrown away and gotten off that path. And with this new record, I think as a whole that itÃs just a great sounding record, with a lot of interesting music. I think my vocals have improved a ton since the first record. And I think people will respond to the originality of it. WeÃre taking a lot of risks on this record that most bands arenÃt taking right now. WeÃre trying to do different sounding music. And hopefully people will hear it that way.