Das wahrhaft Schöne an einer gestandenen Truppe wie Set Your Goals ist dieser Tage noch immer die Tatsache, dass man auch in Zeiten wie diesen noch überzeugenden Pop-Punk machen kann, ohne dabei sämtlich Genre-Klischees erfüllen zu müssen. Der Erfolg der Bay Area-Pop-Punker unterstreicht einmal mehr diese Tatsache. Und auch mit seinem neuen Werk "This Will Be The Death Of Us" überzeugt das mit zwei Frontern bestückte Sextett auf ganzer Linie, auch wenn hier nichts geboten würde, was man als neuartig würde bezeichnen können. Es ist vielmehr die Frische, durch die Set Your Goals bestechen. Da fühlt man sich doch glatt an die Label-Kameraden von New Found Glory oder aber an sehr frühe Saves The Day erinnert, die zu ihren besten Zeiten ähnlich begnadete Alben veröffentlichten. Warum dies im Fall von Set Your Goals auch noch im fortgeschrittenen Alter möglich ist, wird wohl auf ewig das Geheimnis der Band bleiben. Wir sprachen mit Set Your Goals-Sänger Matt Wislon über die Entstehung von "This Will Be The Death Of Us" und die Pläne, die man mit der Band verfolgt:


SJM: First of all: Who am I talking to? How are you and what are you doing in days like these, when the recordings of "This Will Be The Death Of Us" are finally done and you've finally released your second album worldwide?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: This is Matt Wilson, i sing. Things are going pretty well! We're on tour in the states in support of the record right now and we're now experiencing the satisfaction of having people sing the words back to us when we play them each night, which is a new feeling for this record, but a great one.

SJM: I suppose a good place to start is with the new record. The release date in Germany has been July 24th and is entitled "This Will Be The Death Of Us". Now I'm pretty interested in this sort of stuff, so I was hoping you could shortly elaborate on where the title came from, and how you think it relates to the rest of the record.

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: The past 3 years of this band's existence have been some of the hardest times in to live through in all of our personal lives. Doing this band full-time takes its toll on our sanity, our bank accounts, our time on this earth, and potentially the future of our careers and/or financial stability every single day that we are doing it, yet it's all we want to do and the only thing that makes us happy, so we keep living it, regardless of the consequence. This band and this record could be the death of us for all we know, but that's something we've come to grips with and we march forward tirelessly; unsure of the future but completely prepared for anything.

SJM: What, in your opinion, after playing the songs of "This Will Be The Death Of Us" over and over again, is one of the most exciting aspects about "This Will Be The Death Of Us"?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: The songs are all very different in sound and style so each one is a different feel and level of intensity. This translates to our live set as well.

SJM: This may seem like a strange question, but are the members of Set Your Goals into reading philosophy? A lot of your work seems to combine conscious thoughts and different aspects of life, so I thought perhaps you were into studying these topics.

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: Definitely. I find it hard not to delve into philosophical literary references or points of view i've attained through studying it when writing lyrics. I find philosophy to be relevant to everyone which makes the words relatable. I place a lot of emphasis on my own philosophical views because I spend a good amount of time pondering life and questioning what is truly important.

SJM: The lyrics of "This Will Be The Death Of Us" have – as far as I could understand them - a quite melancholic, but also optimistic viewpoint on life. Am I partially right with it? We have all faced tragedy in our lives at one time or the other; be it the loss of a girlfriend or the death of someone close to you. What's the biggest tragedy you suffered and how did you overcome it?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: I've had friends and family members die but that's not what this song is about. to read what the song is about see my answer to the second question or read the explanation in the liner notes to the record. I feel the biggest tragedy of my life will always be the death of my youth and coping with the fact that it's gone forever knowing that there's nothing I can do to make things the same again.

SJM: A lot of bands change their sound over time, but much to your credit the band has kept the successful sound your fans have grown to love. Concerning "This Will Be The Death Of Us" - is it hard to stay true to that sound or do you guys just play what feels right?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: To be honest, some kids are going to say you've changed no matter what, even if you haven't. I think some evolution in sound is natural for any band. In my opinion, as long as you're writing the music that feels right for you then you're not selling out your music, your listeners, or yourselves. It's not hard to do, it's the only way we know how to do it.

SJM: When I pull out my "This Will Be The Death Of Us" in ten years to force my kids to listen to it - how do you want to be remembered?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: As a band that truly stood by what they said and in doing so, stood out among the rest.

SJM: What is the main difference between the messages portrayed in the lyrics of "Mutiny!" and "This Will Be The Death Of Us"? What different thoughts are being brought out through your music? Have you mostly stuck to the same topics, or have you progressed to another subject matter?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: Well it's been 3 years since mutiny's release and we've all gotten older. I'd say the issues we deal with in "This Will Be The Death Of Us" are a little more "grown up" but Jordan and I still write about whatever we feel is most relevant to us. The lyrics on the new record are probably a bit more serious as a whole but that's not to say we've stopped writing about fun stuff too.

SJM: Hardcore and punkrock have always been emotional genres, but there has been a surge if more emotional hardcore bands such as Thursday, Bane, and Rise Against. How would you classify the state of hardcore right now compared to it's early days? Where do you think it's going?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: I think there are a great number of incredible bands out there today, and a number of older bands from that era who still continue to tour and write records. The only difference is that you just have to weed through a lot more watered down imitators to find the good stuff nowadays I feel.

SJM: From being out on the road, what is one of the things you've come to realize? I'm sure driving to and from a venue almost every night leaves you ample time to sit and think about things. Unless, of course, you're too tired to do so. Do you think it's made you a stronger person at all? It's difficult to maintain friendships with people back home, I'm sure.

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: Living the way of the touring musician full-time is not what most people think it is. It's not glamorous and 9 times out of 10, it doesn't pay the bills. This can be taxing on your personal commitments at home. When i'm home it's basically just like being in any other city for an extended period of time. All my friends and family members have either moved away or are busy with their own lives in school or working jobs. Luckily no one in this band has to worry about children at home but some of us have serious relationships and junior is even getting married later this year. Being on the road sort of forces you to put your life into perspective and evaluate your priorities day in and day out. We all continue to do it because the things that we sacrifice are worth the experience and the memories we acquire while we're out traveling the world. That's not to say we'll be doing it forever obviously, but for now this works for all of us with where we're at in our lives.

SJM: What do you hope to uncover in the future of Set Your Goals? There must be more the band has in store to unleash to the public, it’s only a matter of time until it’s all said and done. What else would you like to try and stress to your listeners through your work?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: We hope to travel the world: south america, africa, russia, hawaii, southeast asia... There are so many places we haven't played yet that we plan on touring. We hope to continue building momentum and spreading our music across the globe and we plan to keep at it and get the most out of this until it loses momentum.

SJM: Growing up, was there anyone that you would look up to and say “Oh I wish I could be like so and so…I wish I was as cool as him?” If not on a famous level, do you remember seeing any local bands when you were younger that you looked up to?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: I definitely idolized michael jackson as a young child and I know that if it weren't for him I wouldn't be singing in a band today. There was a band called link 80 from the SF bay area who I really liked who were a little older than me and my friends and we thought they were doing something different and interesting. I'd say I took influence from that but around the time I got into punk and especially hardcore I sort of stopped putting people on pedestals because the ethics behind that scene preached equality among the crowd and band, which was what initially attracted me to it and drew me in.

SJM: Lastly, what is your most proudest moment being in Set Your Goals?

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: There have been so many. Making our first t-shirts. Holding our pressed CD's for the first time when mutiny came out. Playing a string of shows with my favorite hardcore band, gorilla biscuits, was another. Touring overseas for the first time was incredible. Hearing our song on the local radio station for the first time while I was home this summer was the most recent I can think of.

SJM: I always leave the last statement to the band. Is there anything you´d like to mention that hasn´t been mentioned before? Anything you want to add or just say. If so – be my guest:

Matt Wilson / Set Your Goals: Follow us on twitter! Thanks for the interview!

(Dennis Grenzel)