Mason and Megan Wendell make up the most-of-the-time electronic/indie duo The Method and Result. For the past two years, the pair have been touring the country, spreading their unique brand of music, and now with a critically acclaimed EP, they are poised ready to hit the mainstream. JT interviews Mason about the band's history, future, and the role of electronic sound in indie rock.

Jaded Times: Ok, let's start with the boring standard questions: Why "The Method and Result"?

Mason Wendell: I meet so many bands that are either sick of the name they chose or are sick of the process of choosing a name. It's hard to pick a band name that fits the music and doesn't make you sick after two months. I still like our name, and I think it's because it came by accident. We didn't sit around brainstorming for hours looking for something too funny or clever. I was describing the band to a friend and said that it was an electronic method and an indie rock result. The phrase just kind of sat with me and became the name of the group.

JT: How did the project get formed?

MW: Megan and I have played together since college, and we used to be 2/3s of the band Blinder. That was a semi-aggressive math rock band with me on electric bass and Megan on guitar and vocals. We lost our drummer right after we released a cd and booked a 30 date tour. We hired a back-up drummer for the tour, but he wasn't really cutting it in rehearsals so we decided to do the tour as a duo and play to drum tracks on a laptop. It was so fun to tour and do shows like that we ended up doing two tours that way.

When it came time to write new material we realized we had kind of been changed by that experience. We write differently when it's just the two of us, and we really wanted to open up our sound to any new possibility that came to us. It's really fun and exciting to be able to make or sample all kinds of sounds, and then work them into a song in a musical way. So we decided to start fresh with a new band rather than feel tied to the old material.

JT: How would you describe your music?

MW: Electronic indie-pop is the short answer.

JT: Who are your biggest influences?

MW: Songwriting-wise I have to start with Joni Mitchell. She's always so smart, lyrical, and adventurous. Especially her jazz rock records from the 70's. We also love Rufus Wainwright, the Dismemberment Plan, Bill Frisell (jazz guitarist/composer), Bjork, and Steve Coleman (jazz sax/composer). There are plenty more, but that's probably enough for now.

JT: What kind of gear do you use?

MW: It changes all the time, but it's not all that important to me. It's a totally fair question, but it always reminds me of when I go to the guitar store for strings or something, and the sales dude gets all puffed up and starts going on and on about gear without ever talking about music. I'm much more interested in music. It's more fun for me to talk about good bands or songs, or new ideas about writing. It's nice to have good gear because the music can sound better or be easier to play, but it's really just like a set of tools.

So here's a list of some of our tools: Megan's main guitar is a Rickenbacker, and it's the nicest tool we've got. I play upright bass a lot. I don't know who made it, but I think it was made in the 80's in New Jersey. I think that's where Stradivarius was born. I have a 6 string fretless bass that I'm trying to use more. Live we have a Korg synth and an EMU sampler that we control with a cheap controller that likes to cause trouble on the gig. We've got a Rhodes piano for recording, but that never leaves the studio. We don't have many more actual instruments, just a lot of noisemakers.

JT: Ok, those out of the way: I hate to throw you into the "married couple" grouping with bands like Viva Voce and Mates of State, but it does say on your press sheet that you two are married. How is working with your spouse different than other bands or projects you've been involved in?

MW: Neither of us really feels as comfortable in bands when the other isn't there. We just click really well together. We could probably never add more permanent members to the band. We've got such a short-hand when we work that I just don't know if we could let anyone else in. When we work with people besides each other we feel like we have to be less blunt or honest than when we work together. Since we know each other so well we know when and how to push each other to write a better melody or drum loop. We know each other's boundaries. We're not sick of each other yet, and that's especially good when we're on tour.

We do BTW, bring in other players from time to time. Especially for local Philly shows. We bring in friends to sing or play violin or guitar with us. At some point we want to do something without the electronics, and do our songs with a large ensemble of our friends.

JT: Do you ever work out disputes or argument with each other in songs?

MW: Not really in the lyrics, but certainly while we're working together. Maybe we should try that. It could be our first duet!

JT: In all the bands I've ever been in, we had steadfast rules against boyfriends and girlfriends coming along on tour. Has it been difficult touring as a married couple?

MW: No, it's actually pretty easy. Most of the time when we're on tour we're being a band, and it's not like either of us is "along for the ride." And since we're a duo there isn't a third wheel band member that would feel left out. Sleeping in cramped quarters like single-bed motel rooms and the van are obviously much easier this way, too. The only thing I really miss about larger bands is that we have to carry a lot of gear, and it would be nice to have a few more hands to help out.

JT: What is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you on tour?

MW: We saw a UFO in Arizona. It was late at night in a dry electrical storm, and this craft was flying parallel to the highway on the right, 15-20 feet above the ground, and just a little faster than the traffic. Then it flew over head and flew the same way on the left. After a few minutes of that it started going really fast and went out ahead of us. We watched it in front of us for a little while, and then it shot up into the sky. We still have no idea what it was.

JT: Do you think that, with the recent popularity of The Postal Service, DJ Shadow, Fatboy Slim, even electro-synth heavy bands like the Faint, there is a re-emergence of electronic music occurring in the industry? And if so, how long before it splinters into extremist factions, like punk did in the early 90s (unless you think this is happening already)?

MW: Yes and no. Certainly within the "indie" scene anyway. As emo has finally gone mainstream (6 years too late) I think artists and fans have opened up to all kinds of other possibilities. On the other hand, aside from maybe Fatboy Slim I doubt most people who aren't seeking this kind thing out would know any of the artists you mention. I think people are reacting to the lyrics or melody way before they start giving a damn about the production.

I wouldn't worry about extremist factions just yet, tho. Aside from hip-hop, loud guitars still rule the mainstream airwaves.

JT: Do you think it is more or less difficult to be a female fronted project in the mostly male dominated electronic music scene?

MW: The entire music scene is more male than female, not just the electronic scene. For the most part people react well when you do something they like regardless of whether a guy or a girl is making it. The main hurdle we get sometimes is that people think Megan is just the singer, and I'm the dude doing all the real work. She does all the singing, but we split the playing and writing pretty much down the middle.

JT: What are your most and least favorite moments of the last five years?

MW: Best: realizing that we really could be a band as a duo, and not have to rely on anyone else who wasn't 100% committed.

Worst: This might sound cliché, but 9-11. Megan was in Manhattan while I was watching from a rooftop in Jersey City. We couldn't get in touch with each other and had no idea what would happen next.

JT: What are your plans for the future?

MW: Right now we're touring in support of The Things You Miss. When we get back we're getting back to work on recording our next release, which will be a full-length cd. We're about half-finished and it's turning out really well. Somewhere in there we're trying to work out a European tour and a video.

To enter to win a copy of the new Method and Result EP, click here.

Todd Berry owns us.