Chromeo Stopping Through Boston on Business Casual Tour

Canadian-born, electro-funk duo Chromeo will be coming to Boston July 30 to promote the release of their third studio album, “Business Casual.” The pop duo are known for their groovy dance moves and the tasteful way they weave humor into their music. Dance bands Neon Indian and Telephoned are opening for the Boston show.

I was able to chat with P-Thugg while the guys were touring through Serbia. We talked about music, dancing, and “being cool.”

Q: So you guys are always dancing in your music videos and performances. Where did you guys learn to dance? What’s your favorite dance move?

C: Well in the “Night by Night” video, we had a double…we’re not professional dancers, but we like to dance on stage. My favorite dance move would be the electric slide, or the funky chicken, or the running man (check out Will Smith doing his own version here). There are a lot of good moves.

Q: Duos in the public eye often fulfill certain roles and personalities. Other than what’s obvious and what the fans might see, how do you guys complement each other?

C: We complement each other personally as far as our character goes and the way we are and also the way we do things. Dave’s very neurotic and stressed out. I’m really laid back  and relaxed. It’s that way whether it’s about music or girls…but professionally we complement each other too. Musically, I think we have different capabilities that work together. Dave plays guitar and sings. I’m a horrible singer, but I can spot harmonies and play the talk box.

Q: Who would you guys be if you were a different duo in the movies or on TV?

C: The Blues Brothers…the tall guy and the short guy. Or Bill and Ted.

Q: Was there ever a thought of adding more guys to the band? Is it harder or easier to have two people?

C: Well production-wise, it’s easier. Usually, even if it’s a bigger band, it’s always one or two guys who do most of the work. The rest of the guys are just in the band. Songwriting-wise, it’s harder to have more people involved. Specially with touring, it’s way easier with two people–we can have really distinct objectives. And then on the stage, it’s more powerful having two people trying to take over the crowd of 500 to 20,000 people at festivals.

We also tried hiring musicians. Like four of five years ago, we had a full band, but it wasn’t really working…it was weird. After that we had a drummer, and that was still kind of weird because everyone was asking, “Who’s the third guy? Is he in Chromeo, is he not?” And so we started to play shows, just the two of us, and it worked really well. At the end of the day, people wanna see me and Dave…they don’t wanna see us chatting with a drummer.

Q: So you guys grew up together and have known each other for a long time–are there more people on the Chromeo team you have known for awhile?

C: Well, it’s two of us doing the songs and Dave’s brother helps us sometimes with some stuff. We’ve known Tiga for a long time. He was the one who signed us. He’s part of the family.

Q: So your website says you’ve never been afraid of “looking uncool.” Can you describe what you mean by that?

C: Well, you know, you’re never uncool with the way you look. It’s about your attitude. You can wear anything. You can be tall and nerdy with glasses, or you can be short…you know, whatever you look like, you can always be cool–that’s basically it. It’s all about how you present yourself. You know, when someone enters a room, you can feel what the person’s about right away–you can feel it. If a person likes who he is, that’s what’s cool.

Q: You have pretty unique and crazy music videos. Which video do you get the most feedback on?

C: Probably “Bonafied Lovin.” A lot of people like “Momma’s Boy,” too.

Q: How do you choose how to pursue the visions for your videos? Is it the same process for every video?

C: It’s different. We work with different directors–we try to change things up. Usually the producer will have an idea and we’ll work with it. There’s some stuff that we never want to lose control of. It’s always a discussion between the producer and us. If there’s a shot we don’t like, we tell them to take it out.

We just finished shooting a new video [with Keith Schofield] for the single, “Don’t Turn the Lights On.” We shot it in Los Angeles and are in the editing and approval stage now…like, “I don’t like my face in this shot!”

Q: Haha, you guys have quite a bit of sarcasm/humor in your music…what role do you think humor plays in music in general, or in entertainment–an example being the “Momma’s Boy” track.

C: Well you know, we try to keep a balance between humor and not becoming a joke band. We try to keep a certain level of humor in our music.

Q: Yeah, I can imagine it’s a pretty hard thing to do…

C: It is, and we really have to push ourselves musically and prove to people we are able to play good music at the same time…you know, cause then you can allow yourself to be funny. But it’s a fine line between being funny and being too funny, and we’re trying to walk on the line the best we can. We don’t want to be too serious, but we don’t want to be too jokey–just enough to make you smile and maybe make you laugh.

Q: Yeah, that’s exactly how it is. I’ve never seen or talked to any musician who has had that same ability that way.

C: Yeah, we try to make sure we don’t become ‘haha’ funny.

Q: Right. Okay, last question–favorite Jackson album?

C: Favorite Jackson album? “Bad.”


Chromeo will be playing at the House of Blues on July 30. To get tickets, click here.

About Jennifer Brown

Jennifer Brown (COM '10) is a music writer for the Quad. She started working with national indie music acts and booking shows/interviews during her sophomore year of high school at Penn State's WKPS. She then traveled to Germany and explored the techno/HAUS scene and her love for all-things German. After that she worked at WKPS some more before finding her "home" at Boston University where she was a music director at WTBU. She has since added to her resume Pirate Promotion and Management, On A Friday, and the Cambridge Chronicle. Jen is now in Germany, taking some classes and booking shows.

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