Diandra Interviews Motel Radio: Learning From Songwriting

Playing at Gramercy Theatre on July 24, Motel Radio are quickly rising in attention. Their ability to make depth seem readily accessible makes listeners feel like life’s greatest philosophies are born from sofa conversations and the laughs you share with friends on secret, cigarette breaks. Yet, this is true; you can’t dream of the meaning of life or envision how it gets better without living it. In our interview, Motel Radio’s Winston Triolo and Ian Wellman discuss nostalgia, ego, and the artistic/ personal balance you find in observing them. 

Diandra: As your debut record, what do you hope Siesta del Sol says about you as a band in style, personality, and your overarching message about life?

Ian: I think if you listen to it you’ll be able to make your own judgement about that. We’re not necessarily trying to have a certain style or personality, I think that’s why our songs can be so different from each other. It’s a very natural and almost subconscious process to write music, most of the time, so I hope that when someone puts it on they feel that sense of cosmic connection that we felt together writing, recording, and now playing it. As for an overarching message about life, we’re looking for it too. But I’ve found that balance, inclusion, honesty and acceptance are all good things to practice. Any time you can ignite love where it didn’t exist before, that’s a good thing. And being mindful of how we treat each other and our planet, thinking outwardly and with empathy, that’s where I think real inner peace comes from. 

Me: YAAAAASSSSS!!!! 

Diandra: How have your travels molded your sound and influenced how you see the universal
power of music?

Ian: The universal power of music is the wildest thing. It still boggles my mind to see people sing our songs with us and relate to them in a similar or even more powerful way than even we can. We’ve been lucky to tour alongside so many badass bands that end up inspiring us in one way or another. We always learn something from them on a personal or musical level: often both. The places we visit bleed their way into our songs, sometimes, but I think the road, in general, is the easiest place to write about because it’s where we spend most of our time. We’ve got a little baby guitar in the van that Winston and I have written many songs on while on the road!

Diandra: What about the open road has, ultimately, made you grow up as people and as a brotherhood?

Ian: Picture yourself inside a hollow 6’ by 20’ box of aluminum with the same 3 people for an average of 6-8 hours a day, sometimes with AC, sometimes not. Then picture yourself playing on stage with those people every night, and sharing a small motel room with them when the day comes to a close. Then you wake up and do it again. You have to learn to bend, to be malleable, and to make sacrifices for each other. It’s all a give and take. That’s actually how our writing process tends to be, too. Luckily we’ve been doing it awhile now and have learned to work within each other’s boundaries. Tour is mostly just really fun now, but, of course, we’ll have a tiff here and there. We mostly just walk it off and sleep on it. 

Diandra: You wrote “Ego Death” as an act of balance. How do you define an “ego” versus a “balanced soul?”

Ian: The interesting thing about this song is that Winston had written the chorus for it and I had written the verses totally separately. We decided to sew them together and luckily it made a nice seam. The term “Ego Death” is something I used to explain a feeling I’ve had during psychedelic experiences and that I’m trying to work toward in daily life. It’s a feeling of clarity and cosmic belonging that you feel when you let go of the barriers your have built for yourself and just open up. Easier said than done. Since I wrote the song, I’ve learned about other forms of “Ego Death”, but that’s what I had in mind when I wrote it. I think when you are able to find that place of openness, the path toward balance becomes a lot clearer. 

Diandra: Your new music focuses on catharsis. What is one emotion or situation you felt you released through the album?

Ian: Obviously, the longing we experience on the road became a big theme for this record. And the funny thing is, it’s not like we purposefully set out to write songs about that. We didn’t sit down and say “hey, so I think this record should be about missing home. Ok cool let’s write it.” It was just a very relevant feeling in our collective subconscious while writing these songs, many of which were written on the road. I think a lot of times, the theme of a body of your own work only makes itself known to you after you release it. It’s really cool to see other people pen their own meanings to the record. It makes it bigger than ourselves and, sometimes, it teaches us about our own music. 

Diandra: ”Midnight” is about the intensity of falling in love. How would you describe the first time you fell in love, and what did it teach you about yourself?

Ian: I just remember wanting to be around their glow. Like even if I wasn’t able to interact with them, I just wanted to watch them shine through life. I think it’s the first time I really placed more importance on someone else than I did on myself. Real love brings out those deep seeded traits in people like, selflessness and empathy, but those come with their shadows of jealousy and envy. It’s a challenging thing, but you already know that.

Diandra: Nostalgia and relationships are recurring themes in your songs. What about love do you feel makes people look back?

Winston: Love causes us to be nostalgic, especially when we’re away from the ones we love. On the road, it’s hard to leave behind our loved ones to chase this crazy dream. I don’t know how they put up with our absence, but I’m glad they do. At home, I think love causes us to look back at fond memories. If you share a life with someone for multiple years, you grow with each other. I sometimes find myself looking back at sweet notes or messages. I think about how I felt in those moments, and how I would not trade those memories for anything. 

Diandra: Your lyrics seem to focus on how your heart and your mind clash when it comes to love and life. How has music helped you unite the two and make them clearer to each other?

Winston: Writing songs, as said earlier, is a very subconscious thing for both of us. At least at first. The words reveal some inner feelings, and help to define some inner struggles. Thus, making it easier so see a possible solution or compromise to that struggle. Other times it’s not so personal, just a train of thought that got started by one or two lyrics.

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