Powerman 5000 are back with a brand new album full of electronic debauchery and sci fi funk. Returning to a sound that has since been dimmed, the PM5k boys have unapologetically reignited the electro metal flame and once again find their all too recognizable songs on the radio sandwiched between cookie cutter one hit wonders. Builders of the Future dropped May 27th and has seen radio success with their single “How to Be Human”. Although the faces in the band have changed, the sonic power and uniqueness that Spider One is known for is evident and in-your-face on this record. Builders of the Future is a nice shift in metal that cleanses your pallet after the sometimes dry and predictive climate of music.
In an interview that would serve well in bright colors and comic book strips, Spider One answered some questions for RockRevolt Magazine about the individualized sound of Powerman 5000 and the visual representation that their music represents. PM5k brings out the inner space nerd and sci fi comic-con rockstar that is sometimes buried too deep inside us all. Step inside, bucket up, and ride this crazy spaceship through a world that is perhaps light years ahead of modernity. Walk away from your fear of being different and embrace your inner Powerman.
Powerman 5000 is a band that found a solid fan base in its music and presence on the scene. Although you were never really gone, it’s nice to have you back! Builders of the Future dropped May 27th on T-Boy Records. What’s been the response to the a-little-more-visual return?
I feel like every time we release a new album it is essentially like starting over. This time is no different. You go out into the world with your songs with no expectations. That said, the response has been great. The new material has been greeted with an enthusiasm level that I haven’t seen in a long time. I feel like we made an album that needs no explaining or justifying to the fans. They hear it and they like it.
The sound you’ve created radiates an almost tangible experience in each of its eclectic and sonically filled songs, diverging our attention and pace from the sometimes cookie cutter sound taking over the radio. How important to you is it to not simply fall in line and rather challenge the current climate of normal? Do you take pride is the fact that a Powerman 5000 song is easily recognizable?
The whole point is to be authentic and follow your own vision. To me that is at the heart of all great music. Rock or otherwise. I don’t see that concept with the majority of rock music on the radio. There is definitely a formula that is being used and chased these days. If in some way Powerman breaks that formula, then I feel like I’m doing my job. Being influenced by others is a natural part of creating. Imitating someone else for success is depressing.
You’ve been quoted as saying your music ‘makes sense to someone somewhere.’ It seems like the record labels are constantly trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. If you had to identity a genre for your music, as unique to PM5k, what would it be?
I’m not sure what our genre is. We always seem to have one foot in and one foot out of any situation we are in. We have shared the stage with an endless list of bands but we don’t cleanly fit into any one scene. If someone asks what kind of music we play I usually say “electro metal”. Then they usually looked confused.
The evolution of the sound of a band is sometimes very noticeable and sometimes very cyclical. It seems that Powerman 5000 is a band comfortable enough to change their sound but mature enough to return to what it is they do best. Finding your best sound on an album almost 15 years ago with Tonight the Stars Revolt! and realizing what a great feel and vibe that had and returning to it after experimenting with different signatures and styles on your latest release Builders of the Future has to be an homage to the maturity and security, the stability, the band now embraces. Do you think that Builders of the Future is the epitome of what PM5k does best and was it a conscious effort to sort of get regrounded and return back to center?
It was a conscious effort to reclaim what we do best. It really started with the album before this one, but yes, sometimes you have destroy something to realize it is worth rebuilding. Builders of the Future in my opinion is our best and best represents the sound. We have certainly experimented over the years and still do, but I think I am finally 100% comfortable with the heart of the band.
If the song “I Want to Kill You” off Builders of the Future’ inspired a comic book, what would the opening scene look like?
A heart breaking discovery.
The song “How to be Human” off Builders of the Future must have had a few lyrics scrapped to the floor. It reads like a manual on the human race. Besides humans liking to drink, smoke, eat, fight, and cheat, what else do they like to do? What’s one lyric you’d like to add?
Well, there are a lot of options that could have been added into the mix. “Fuck” was the main one that I decided to leave out because it seemed a bit obvious.
What’s the summer look like for Powerman 5000?
Touring of course. It is the life blood of any real band.
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions for Rock Revolt Magazine! We dig you guys and Builders of the Future!
