The three members of The Burning Hotels (Chance Morgan, Matt Mooty, and Marley Whistler) blend together post-punk revival with some old 1980s romance to produce what they’ve termed “Sex Punk.” They’re straight out of Fort Worth and stopped in to tell us why they owe their namesake to an abandoned hotel, what makes touring worth it, and why shows are important even if there’s only one fan in the audience.
FrontRow: Where did the name come from?
Matt Mooty: When Chance and I were in our teens we would come to Dallas to see shows, go record shopping etc. and we were always fascinated by this condemned hotel called the Dallas Grand Hotel. I had a dream that the place was burning down and paper was in flames shooting out all of the windows. Plus we also thought it sounded cool.
FR: “60 Days of Burning Hotels,” is a great promotional idea. How do you divide your time and energy between developing new music and promoting what you’ve already made?
MM: Chance and I have very different schedules and it allows us to be able to tend to things as needed. Unless Chance has been promoting the old stuff I think we are specifically focused on releasing the new record at the end of August.
FR: Chance and Matt, you’ve known each other for so long I’m sure you can almost read each other’s minds. How do you work with the dynamic of bringing in a third person into such a tight bond?
MM: That all kind of depends on who the person is, Marley our bass player has an incredible knack of taking something that we have written and making it his own — no ego. So the dynamic is great as far as people know their roll.
FR: Aside from having your fan base near by what’s the biggest difference between doing a show in a Texas venue vs. the northeast?
MM: Familiar faces. Touring the northeast is a blast but we don’t make it back enough to establish a relationship with people in those cities.
FR: How does your motivation change when you’re writing and recording vs. touring?
MM: When writing a record it’s all business, constantly trying to push the envelope. Touring for us consists mostly of pushing the envelope with Jack Daniels and Jim Beam while Marley tells us to grow up. Those days are gone though.
And now, to switch things up, the same five questions for Chance Morgan.
FrontRow:Where did the name come from?
Chance Morgan: Burning Hotels is a mix of two things. The Dallas Grand Hotel and Ambulance LTD. Matt and I use to travel from Fort Worth to Dallas to see shows in high school and we would take Downtown Dallas appose to the highway. On your way into Deep Ellum, there is an art deco hotel that has been vacant for a very long time and the lights were always on. One day, the lights were off and that night he dreamed that it burned down. At the same time we were listening to Ambulance LTD’s “Stay Where You Are” and the lyrics say, “they’re burning hotels down”. Subconsciously, I think it was the reason for the dream and in result, Burning Hotels.
FR: “60 Days of Burning Hotels,” is a great promotional idea. How do you divide your time and energy between developing new music and promoting what you’ve already made?
CM: We just finished making Burning Hotels, which comes out on Aug 30th, so we are in work mode oppose to creative mode. Ideas for songs can come at any point in time, whether we are in work mode or writing mode. I feel like we are putting more of our efforts in the way of getting this record out and getting music that is unheard to most, in the people’s hands. This record is a departure of what we are previously known for, so we are also using it as an opportunity to expand from what we have already made.
FR:You’ve known each other for so long I’m sure you can almost read each other’s minds. How do you work with the dynamic of bringing in a third person into such a tight bond?
CM: We have written in various ways over the years, but on this upcoming record we finally found our niche. Matt and I spent three months in my spare bedroom writing and recording all the parts for Burning Hotels. We programmed the drums, played every instrument and then went into Spaceway Productions with Will Hunt and Chad Copelin and re-recorded the record with quality gear. Marley Whistler, our bassist was present for the Spaceway portion of recording and played bass as well. He is an amazing musician and what really makes us into a band, we couldn’t play without him.
FR: Aside from having your fan base near by what’s the biggest difference between doing a show in a Texas venue vs. the north east?
CM: Distance. We have played in Fargo, North Dakota to four people and played at Piano’s in New York for two hundred. There are always people around wanting to hear new music and we are there to play it for them. We have been told we put on a pretty entertaining show, so we try to keep that in mind. Even if it’s for only one person, that person came to see us and we want them to have a good time and tell their friends.
FR: How does your motivation change when you’re writing and recording vs. touring?
CM: I think we are equally motivated in each, but longing for the other one. When we are recording, we miss playing shows/being on the road. When we are on the road, we miss being in a room filled with musical equipment and time. The recording process is great because it’s like a week and a half of hanging with your smartest, most talented friends making music and then going out at night together, waking up early, and doing it again the next day. Touring is a little more grueling…cramped van, long drives, playing every night, but again you are with your best friends and you wake up early and do it again the next day. I can’t complain, because it’s what we love to do.
Courtesy photo
FrontRow: Where did the name come from?
Matt Mooty: When Chance and I were in our teens we would come to Dallas to see shows, go record shopping etc. and we were always fascinated by this condemned hotel called the Dallas Grand Hotel. I had a dream that the place was burning down and paper was in flames shooting out all of the windows. Plus we also thought it sounded cool.
FR: “60 Days of Burning Hotels,” is a great promotional idea. How do you divide your time and energy between developing new music and promoting what you’ve already made?
MM: Chance and I have very different schedules and it allows us to be able to tend to things as needed. Unless Chance has been promoting the old stuff I think we are specifically focused on releasing the new record at the end of August.
FR: Chance and Matt, you’ve known each other for so long I’m sure you can almost read each other’s minds. How do you work with the dynamic of bringing in a third person into such a tight bond?
MM: That all kind of depends on who the person is, Marley our bass player has an incredible knack of taking something that we have written and making it his own — no ego. So the dynamic is great as far as people know their roll.
FR: Aside from having your fan base near by what’s the biggest difference between doing a show in a Texas venue vs. the northeast?
MM: Familiar faces. Touring the northeast is a blast but we don’t make it back enough to establish a relationship with people in those cities.
FR: How does your motivation change when you’re writing and recording vs. touring?
MM: When writing a record it’s all business, constantly trying to push the envelope. Touring for us consists mostly of pushing the envelope with Jack Daniels and Jim Beam while Marley tells us to grow up. Those days are gone though.
And now, to switch things up, the same five questions for Chance Morgan.
FrontRow:Where did the name come from?
Chance Morgan: Burning Hotels is a mix of two things. The Dallas Grand Hotel and Ambulance LTD. Matt and I use to travel from Fort Worth to Dallas to see shows in high school and we would take Downtown Dallas appose to the highway. On your way into Deep Ellum, there is an art deco hotel that has been vacant for a very long time and the lights were always on. One day, the lights were off and that night he dreamed that it burned down. At the same time we were listening to Ambulance LTD’s “Stay Where You Are” and the lyrics say, “they’re burning hotels down”. Subconsciously, I think it was the reason for the dream and in result, Burning Hotels.
FR: “60 Days of Burning Hotels,” is a great promotional idea. How do you divide your time and energy between developing new music and promoting what you’ve already made?
CM: We just finished making Burning Hotels, which comes out on Aug 30th, so we are in work mode oppose to creative mode. Ideas for songs can come at any point in time, whether we are in work mode or writing mode. I feel like we are putting more of our efforts in the way of getting this record out and getting music that is unheard to most, in the people’s hands. This record is a departure of what we are previously known for, so we are also using it as an opportunity to expand from what we have already made.
FR:You’ve known each other for so long I’m sure you can almost read each other’s minds. How do you work with the dynamic of bringing in a third person into such a tight bond?
CM: We have written in various ways over the years, but on this upcoming record we finally found our niche. Matt and I spent three months in my spare bedroom writing and recording all the parts for Burning Hotels. We programmed the drums, played every instrument and then went into Spaceway Productions with Will Hunt and Chad Copelin and re-recorded the record with quality gear. Marley Whistler, our bassist was present for the Spaceway portion of recording and played bass as well. He is an amazing musician and what really makes us into a band, we couldn’t play without him.
FR: Aside from having your fan base near by what’s the biggest difference between doing a show in a Texas venue vs. the north east?
CM: Distance. We have played in Fargo, North Dakota to four people and played at Piano’s in New York for two hundred. There are always people around wanting to hear new music and we are there to play it for them. We have been told we put on a pretty entertaining show, so we try to keep that in mind. Even if it’s for only one person, that person came to see us and we want them to have a good time and tell their friends.
FR: How does your motivation change when you’re writing and recording vs. touring?
CM: I think we are equally motivated in each, but longing for the other one. When we are recording, we miss playing shows/being on the road. When we are on the road, we miss being in a room filled with musical equipment and time. The recording process is great because it’s like a week and a half of hanging with your smartest, most talented friends making music and then going out at night together, waking up early, and doing it again the next day. Touring is a little more grueling…cramped van, long drives, playing every night, but again you are with your best friends and you wake up early and do it again the next day. I can’t complain, because it’s what we love to do.
Courtesy photo
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