Back in January Travis turned me on to The One AM Radio, which caused me to seek out and come to adore This Too Will Pass. We liked the album so much that we teamed up with Cafe Montmartre to bring them to Madison at the end of March.

Well, we didn’t want to stop there and because of that we saw only fitting to have Travis touch base with Hrishikesh for another 5 Questions with Muzzle of Bees feature. This one is extra special because one lucky commenter will receive a signed tour poster, a Dangerbird hoodie and This Too Will Pass on vinyl! Check out the 5 questions below and leave a comment letting us know your favorite album of the moment.

The internet has dramatically altered the way bands can reach an audience. With things like blogs/myspace/etc, what are your thoughts on the power of the internet in terms of helping (or hurting) your music?

The power lies in making music a low-commitment activity, and I have mixed feelings about that. Some things ought to require a degree of commitment, but that automatically reduces an audience. The internet has given everyone Cliff’s Notes to everything, so it’s easy to reduce a band to an mp3 or a biography to a Wikipedia entry. You can take in much more in terms of overall volume, but I still think there’s a lot of value in depth. I recognize and appreciate the fact that people can learn about what I do in a way that is so simple and casual, but I don’t think it’s ideal.

You studied film in college. How do the visual arts, and film in particular, affect your music? How do you see the relationship between music and the visual arts?

There has always been a mix-up for me between all of my senses, in terms of how I take in music and visual art, and especially music and art that I really love. At its best, one medium can evoke an entire world and suggests all its synesthetic details. Movies that are visually intricate, where every tiny aspect colors or deepens or reinforces the story being told, are really inspiring. The photography and design that I do, the stuff that comes most naturally to me anyway, I think it’s very related to The One AM Radio. Maybe the worst part of taking in music through the computer is that you miss all the fun of the packaging, which is still an important part of an album-listening experience for me.

You recently moved to LA, but your songs have talked about the west coast for years. Did the move change your music? How does geography affect your writing?

I first moved to Los Angeles in 2002, but in 2004, I started this long period of transience, so this most recent move was actually getting back to LA. I’d been in San Francisco, Connecticut, India, and Massachusetts in the intervening years. I’d say geography affects me very much; it’s related to the question above. I end up translating the world I’m in, although not really consciously. I finished the last album here in LA, but only when it was complete did I realize how much the winter in Massachusetts, where a lot of the work was done, had seeped into both the writing and the production. Also, the similarities of all the different cities I was in — the anonymity of their shared qualities — was something that had a big impact on me.

What was the last show you went to see, as a fan?

Last night I went up to Cal Arts to see Miranda July and Phil Elverum perform and give a little talk.

You just wrapped up a tour, and released an album. What’s next?

I am searching for my wife.

Myspace: The One AM Rado
MP3: Lest I Forget
MP3: In the Time We’ve Got
Related: Pitchfork Review – 7.7
Related: MoB Review – The One AM Radio @ Cafe Montmartre
Related: MoB Review – The One AM Radio – This Too Will Pass