The exploding hearts.

THE EXPLODING HEARTS WERE A BAND ON THE RISE--in March they released their debut album, Guitar Romantic to acclaim from critics and fans alike. At just under 29 minutes, Guitar Romantic incorporates the styles of The Clash, Nick Lowe, and the pop sensibility of a group like The Ramones. Short, sweet, and with hooks throughout, it's a promising debut. Maximum Rock and Roll hailed the album as the best of the past tire years. The band's increase in popularity took off after the release of Guitar Romantic. File-sharing services helped the album spread all across the country, with some of their more prestigious fans being the writers at the Harvard Lampoon. The magazine flew the Hearts out to Boston to play their first East Coast shows. Based on the response to the album and the rock press starting to take notice of the band, a major tour was slated to begin in September. This interview was to be the start of something more; yet another interview in the mountain of press that the bond would have surely gone on to do. Tragically, it ended up being their last. Bassist Matt Fitzgerald, 21, guitarist/singer Adam Cox, 22, and drummer Jeremy Gage, 20, died three days after the following interview was conducted. After playing two shows in San Francisco, the band was headed home to Portland, OR when their van flipped over twice, killing Cox and Gage at the scene. Fitzgerald later died at the hospital. Their lead guitarist, Terry Six, and manager Rachelle Ramos both survived. Rather than write anymore background on the bond, I feel it's best to let their words give you an idea of what they were like, Here are some excerpts from the interview.

What's the history of the Exploding Hearts?

Adam: We've all been in different bands with each other, kind of just met in high school. Me and Kid Killer (Gage) met at first, he was 15 and I was like 30. Then we just started playing in shitty bands.

Terry: I joined those shitty bands too along the way.

How did the Harvard Lampoon show come up?

Terry: They joked about having us over, and then actually called.

Adam: They had money and flew us out there for two shows and then cancelled the two show--then had us play these weird secret basement shows. It was pretty fun; we got to kick it in their fuckin' secret castle with all these crazy rooms with weird crack pipes built into the walls and shit.

Matt: The way it worked out was that their little Harvard club had an endowment that they could use, probably given to them by their parents or the school, and they used it to fly us out there, feed us, and rent equipment.

Were you surprised to get a call from them?

Adam: Yeah, like, "What the fuck? What are you guys thinking?" We thought it was a joke. We thought they were going to kill us or something. But when we got there they had this sign that said, "Greatest Rock and Roll Band."

Matt: We were thinking, "These people are out of their minds."

Adam: They couldn't put "Exploding" on the sign. Actually, Harvard wouldn't let us play because our name was the Exploding Hearts. They thought it was going to cause a riot or some shit.

Matt: They thought 'cause of the Great White shit we were going to have pyrotechnics in our show, and were paranoid about clubs being burned down.

Adam: So they wouldn't let us play, but we played a secret show anyway.

Did you stay in the Harvard castle?

Terry: Kid Killer passed out on the couch that John Updike lost his virginity on.

Kid Killer: I got locked in the secret room. They have one of those book shelves that if you lift a book you can go into a secret room. Those guys went out to dinner and I was thinking. "I need to make sure I don't get locked in this room." So I fell asleep on this couch and next thing I know I wake up and I have to pee real bad, and it's completely pitch black in this room. I'm trying to feel my way around to find out where I'm at, and I'm thinking, "Fuck, dude, I'm going to have to pee all over this room" So I finally around the bookshelf and I started pushing books out from the other side, trying to feel my way around, and someone says, "Hey, it's the drummer from the Exploding Hearts. He's trapped inside!"

It seems a lot of people are going to try to lump you in with the rock revival going on, like with The Strokes, etc.

Adam: Well, everybody says that shit. It's just like all the stupid fucking indie rock places all say, "These are like The Strokes or Apples in Stereo," shit that none of us have ever owned in our record collection, or even really know anything about.

Matt: There's not a lot of records that have come out in the last year that are current or modern that any of us really listen to ...

Adam: Or that are any good.

Terry: Except if they're our friends' bands.

Adam: Like The Spits, The Triggers, and The Riffs are much brilliant. Besides that, it's just fucking hype that sucks. You rend the reviews of it and you're like, "Oh awesome, they just listed off all my favorite bands," and then you hear it and think, "What the fuck is this?"

Matt: The state of music now is pretty sorry.

Terry: Yeah, it's that whole new garage crap. It fucking sucks. I hate that shit.

Adam: At the same time I'm not into it, it's cool because maybe four or five years ago no one would have given a fuck about us. It raises awareness to music that isn't just, "Boom-boom, chuh, rollin'."

Since it's for Thrasher ... anyone skate?

Matt: Anytime I have the time. Oregon has tons of great parks that I go to as often as possible.

Adam: I used to work at Tum Yeto, screen-printing skateboards in Son Diego. I skate all the time.

Kid Killer: Thrasher's choice for Skate of the Year was a good one too. Tony Trujillo. Fuckin' skating on NBC with a GG Allin shirt on, All these people are skating to hip-hop or whatever and then all of a sudden there's Tony Trujillo, super long hair and bloody nose, GG Allin t-shirt, wearing huge hi-tops.

Adam: It's good they picked someone punk. Like Duane Peters. Fucking slamming tall boys of Budweiser, skating pools--it's good that people have balls again.