When trip-hop Odd Future Wolf Gang off-shoots The Internet have some time to kill, they like to spend it hanging out in the back of a cosy Mercedes van, talking to annoying and nervous music journalists about anything and everything that comes to mind. At least, that’s the first impression that forming members Syd tha Kyd and Matt Martians give off, reclining in the cushy chairs of the van parked behind the very big, very blue Goldenvoice Arena – there’s wrappers and bottles strewn everywhere, and precisely zero quantities of a damn given.
Embarking on their first ever tour, the California duo and their touring band are, by and large, in the game to have a good time – not least with their meme-inspired name.
“We came up with it as a joke,” says Syd. “It was Left Brain [of Odd Future] who came up with it during an interview or something. He just said that someone asked him where he was from and he said “I’m from the internet, you don’t need to know where I’m from, I’m from the internet” and we laughed for so long and it just stuck.”
“I’ll be honest,” continues Matt, “it’s cool when people come up to us in the street like ‘Hold on…are you from the Internet?’ and it’s like…’You’re from the internet too! You got Twitter, y’know…?'”!
With influences across the spectrum and a sound that varies from hip hop through to psychedelic rock and acid jazz, the dynamic duo are open to interpretation – but, more importantly, open to generating a huge fan base. Attracting an audience is something that The Internet has had very little trouble with on the eastern side of the Atlantic, something they put down to a European obsession with all things American, and vice-versa. They’re huge believers in their sound and their act, and have the proof to back it up.
“A lot of [our shows] will start off where there’s not that many people in the venue, [then] you start playing, the sound gets out and people just start coming and coming and it starts to fill in,” says Matt. “And it’s cool because that’s what we want! People come to us after the show like, ‘I never heard you guys before but you’re my favourite!’. That’s why our live shows are important.”
Despite the laid-back attitude and fits of giggles, there’s an air of professionalism and maturity to Matt and Syd, especially when it comes to promoting, performing and bringing about awareness. “Yeah, you can put out music,” continues Matt, “but if you go out there and perform it and people have never heard of you, that’s where you get the solid fan base that will come to your shows. I think it’s cool to have that kind of impact on new listeners – and that’s how I got into a lot of bands that I listen to now. I saw them live and I didn’t know who they were and I was like, ‘Oooh, they jammin’, like wooooh! I gotta find out who that is!’.”
A show in Manchester, as part of their current tour, stood out as the proof of their methodology; the previous act had cleared out the room, for reasons left undisclosed. But Matt feels that the band’s self-confidence was enough to pack the room to the brim by the end of their set: “That was the best shit to me because, like, a lot of people get in those situations. Just play your ass off. People will come if you play your ass off, and even if people don’t come, people are gonna see that they missed it and be like, “Damn…”. And you want to feel, yourself, that you jammed out so if you jam out to yourself everybody else will fill it [in]. That was the best show to me because everybody came [back] in after they thought it was over and they just counted it out.”
The Internet’s debut album Purple Naked Ladies is available now.
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