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Interview: Ben Jorgensen of Armor for Sleep

New Jersey's Armor for Sleep don't mince words on their Warner Bros. debut Smile for Them. The band has something to say about everything from reality TV to false OC residents. Their message comes via fast, catchy riffs and deep, melodic textures. Vocalist Ben Jorgensen took some time to talk to ARTISTdirect about his band's creative process, and how we're all just still stuck in a big high school cafeteria.

Are there certain cohesive themes at the heart of Smile for Them?

Yes, and no. I guess my attitude toward this kind of stuff is that I try to put themes on it, and at the same time, I try not to. So what comes out, is sort of a mixture of both. There are definitely some themes that I intended to put on this record and wanted to address, but at the same time, I sort of just let everything breathe on its own. Yes and no, is the appropriate answer.

At the same time, I think that they're abstract enough that people can pull their own meaning for each song too.

Yeah, I tried to achieve that.

It's a very visual record. One of the things that really struck me was the cover art. How did that concept come about?

It came from the idea about having this little boy stuck in a reality TV show. It's a play on what's going on with reality TV, today. On the cover, it's like some ten-year-old kid who signed up for a show, because his parents told him too. He's trapped in this world, where he's not even really doing anything that interesting. I guess it's somewhat sentimental with that artwork. The cover art goes hand-in-hand with the first song with the record. I think that's one of the umbrella themes that I explored in making this record.

The ravages of reality TV's exploitation are all over the media, especially with Britney Spears. Our culture is so fascinated with this, but I think we destroy people in the same way.

Yes, totally. I think there's a lot of stuff going on like that. I was at Thanksgiving, and my aunt knew every single thing about every single famous person, just because of all of the gossip magazines. It's almost like celebrities these days are religious figures. Religious icons were important hundreds of years ago. People would meet in the desert, and they would all know about the same religious figures, and that's what they would have in common. That's what it's like now. It's a like a cultural high school cafeteria, where our entire country is in on it. It's kind of surreal. These people have an entire nation and even an entire world, who know the ins and outs of someone's actions.

It's interesting, because it's like a different kind of zeitgeist. You go from those religious icons to those people on the covers of magazines and on TV. And in terms of a cultural evolution, it's really interesting.

Yeah, I mean, I really do feel like people act the same as they did when they were kids. Everyone tries to say that you grow up at a certain point, and you mature. Your actions as children are because you're young. But, I still think people are the same. It's that high school cafeteria-mentality that people still have as adults. It's weird, because we're very social creatures, and we love to gossip.

A lot of people do experience a mundane day-in and day-out existence. They need something semi-crazy to discuss. Especially, if it's about a topic that everybody knows about.

Right. Exactly. I'm not totally disgusted by it. I'm not even saying that. I even partake in it. To me, it's just interesting.

One of the other things that struck me on the album is that you have a great sense of humor. Certain lines are really funny. I think that humor is really integral to your sound at this point. Would you say that?

Yeah, I mean I feel like we weren't like that up until we wrote "Williamsburg." I don't have a problem with being funny. I think that song is supposed to be funny and lighthearted. We just have fun with it.

What's it been like moving to a major label? How have things changed for you?

It's honestly not that different from anything that we've experienced in the past. We've always been fairly self-sufficient. We've grown our own fan base and done things from the beginning on our own. We just have to play for new fans. The label supports us, and that's very important. We don't define our band by having people give us money for our record, though.

From the last record to this record, you guys have definitely evolved. How would you sort of assess the band's evolution?

We've been writing songs together for four years now. We have a mission to try and have fun and get better. I hope things are getting better.

The videos and everything that has been surrounding the album have been really cool too. Did you have a whole sort of vision beforehand about what kind of vibe you wanted for this record?

Yes and no. I think that I've had ideas about music videos for every on the album song since we wrote them. That's just how I think, you know? When the label comes to me, and says, "We're trying to figure out an idea for this." I say, "Awesome!" Then I launch into a 20-minute idea about what is running through my head. For everything, there are plenty of ideas, and when someone wants me to spit some out, I will go into detail about them.

I know you're playing guitar and singing, how does the writing process work for you? Do you come in with a riff or with lyrical ideas?

It's different. Usually I'll write ideas lyrically—separate from musically. And then I'll usually come up with a riff and a melody, and then I'll look at the things that I've written down and see what goes with that melody. Sometimes it turns out good, and I'll just have a melody on the guitar, but no lyrics to go with it, and then I'll just leave it for a few months, until I get some lyrics that will go with them and make a good combination.

It seems like everything comes through pretty organically. What's touring been like lately?

It's been fun. Right now, we're out with Saosin. We did a three-month tour with The Academy Is, and that was awesome. We're having a great time, and kids are getting more and more into the album and more know the songs. It's a good feeling.

—Rick Florino
02.21.08