Beat-driven electronic whiz Mux Mool (aka Brian Lindgren) just released the vinyl edition of his Planet High School album, and as the Minnesota-born musician explained to Exclaim!, that title is based on his observation that most of us are living in a state of extended adolescence.
"I thought that it was something specific to Minnesota, but as I go around the country, I realize that in a lot of how people interact and pursue their social lives, people don't develop much past high school," Lindgren says.
Mux Mool's musical style belies its creator's obsession with computer game soundtracks, John Carpenter movies and other low-brow references. Recent promotional photos of Lindgren show him proudly wearing an Iron Maiden T-shirt (see above). He insists that although he likes metal it's more of a good luck charm than a demonstration of fan-ship of the classic NWOBHM band.
"I'm not a huge Iron Maiden fan. I like the shirt a lot, first of all," says Lindgren. "It became my lucky airplane T-shirt because it has Eddie ripping a huge hole in an airplane. It gives me a little giggle, just thinking of anyone seeing this plane crashing as I'm getting onto a plane."
One of the songs on Planet High School, "The Butterfly Technique," uses a jazzy drum sample from a CD that came with an old copy of PC World Magazine, begging the question, why not sample drummer, friend and Ghostly International labelmate, Shigeto (aka Zach Saginaw)?
"Actually, I do have some live drum samples from Shigeto, and I have been working on some stuff with him. It's sounding pretty funky. We have no idea yet [when it will come out]."
Mux Mool is currently touring the U.S., including a forthcoming SXSW performance as part of a Ghostly showcase with Shigeto and Tycho, among others. After that he will be embarking on a world tour that will take Lindgren overseas as an artist for the first time, starting in Europe sometime in May with dates in Russia followed by Australia and New Zealand.
"I'm very excited for New Zealand. There's so much great music coming out of the region. I've heard a lot of really great stuff coming from there. Mostly SoundCloud links that people are sending me. I've seen plenty of America. I wanna see the Lord of the Rings mountains!"
Planet High School is out now on Ghostly International and you can see Mux Mool's tour dates, including those SXSW stops, here.
"I thought that it was something specific to Minnesota, but as I go around the country, I realize that in a lot of how people interact and pursue their social lives, people don't develop much past high school," Lindgren says.
Mux Mool's musical style belies its creator's obsession with computer game soundtracks, John Carpenter movies and other low-brow references. Recent promotional photos of Lindgren show him proudly wearing an Iron Maiden T-shirt (see above). He insists that although he likes metal it's more of a good luck charm than a demonstration of fan-ship of the classic NWOBHM band.
"I'm not a huge Iron Maiden fan. I like the shirt a lot, first of all," says Lindgren. "It became my lucky airplane T-shirt because it has Eddie ripping a huge hole in an airplane. It gives me a little giggle, just thinking of anyone seeing this plane crashing as I'm getting onto a plane."
One of the songs on Planet High School, "The Butterfly Technique," uses a jazzy drum sample from a CD that came with an old copy of PC World Magazine, begging the question, why not sample drummer, friend and Ghostly International labelmate, Shigeto (aka Zach Saginaw)?
"Actually, I do have some live drum samples from Shigeto, and I have been working on some stuff with him. It's sounding pretty funky. We have no idea yet [when it will come out]."
Mux Mool is currently touring the U.S., including a forthcoming SXSW performance as part of a Ghostly showcase with Shigeto and Tycho, among others. After that he will be embarking on a world tour that will take Lindgren overseas as an artist for the first time, starting in Europe sometime in May with dates in Russia followed by Australia and New Zealand.
"I'm very excited for New Zealand. There's so much great music coming out of the region. I've heard a lot of really great stuff coming from there. Mostly SoundCloud links that people are sending me. I've seen plenty of America. I wanna see the Lord of the Rings mountains!"
Planet High School is out now on Ghostly International and you can see Mux Mool's tour dates, including those SXSW stops, here.
