There’s an elephant in the room. That elephant is the absurdly catchy 2014 gold-certified single, My Type. You know it – trust me you do. The song has been featured in numerous films, Volkswagen, Uber and Now TV commercials, and appeared on the FIFA 15 and Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 soundtracks. In 2019, Saint Motel launched their most ambitious undertaking yet, unveiling Part 1 of a three-album concept. Lead vocalist A/J Jackson explains why the band want to be known for more than ‘that song from that advert’, and why The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Part 2 sees them inching ever closer to their very own Hollywood ending.
“It’s funny because we love touring in the UK, and we have somewhat of a fan base there that are awesome and passionate. I think a lot of it is actually due to FIFA...we get a lot of soccer fans actually,” realises A/J, lead vocalist in Saint Motel. (I can only imagine the pints sent flying when My Type’s ‘DA DA DA DA DA DA DA DAAA horn part kicks in).
The quartet – comprising A/J, Aaron Sharp (guitar), Dak Lerdamornpong (bass), and Greg Erwin (drums) – had been on the L.A circuit for a while prior to their big break, and had experienced some pretty rough experiences within the music industry along the way, but were steadily building up an underground fan base by doing “crazy concerts at every dodgy bar we could”.
A little bit of airplay followed, but not much, and the labels wouldn’t turn their heads. They were getting more love overseas. The band decided to play some shows across the pond, and My Type got picked up for a prominent whiskey campaign.
“At that point, we were definitely living true to the struggling musician lifestyle,” A/J recalls. “While we were there, we played as many shows as we could, and eventually Parlophone took a chance on that song.”
Sharp has a knack for predicting a hit, and said he would eat his hat if My Type didn’t blow up.
“He is a good gauge for me,” A/J smiles. “He's said that a few times, so he’s a good barometer. The song started getting played on Radio 6 in the UK and some BBC director tweeted something really kind about the song.
"We have a weird relationship with the UK because we were there for a long time, and everything moved so fast for us there that I feel that people know the song, but they don't know the band. That makes me kind of sad, because people know it through adverts – definitely no complaints as far as that has allowed us to be a band and people know it in some way! – but they don't know it in the same way that people do in the US, Mexico, and some places in Europe.
“People in the UK know it mostly through adverts, which is kind of a shame to me because people don't get to know more about the band and that we had 10 years of music coming out and are still doing stuff.”