"A Better Dystopia" sounds like Monster Magnet through and through - and yet it wasn't written by them. Instead, bandleader Dave Wyndorf curated gems from the psych-rock underground - a declaration of love to the music of his childhood.
eclipsed: The title "A Better Dystopia" sounds like a direct reaction to the current world situation.
Dave Wyndorf: That's right. The news at the moment reminds me of my childhood. Back then, too, terms like "catastrophe" and "worldwide disaster" were circulating. The fact that everyone really talks like that doesn't happen often. In the late 60s/early 70s we had Vietnam, drug abuse, riots everywhere. There was a Cold War going on, nuclear strikes looming. The press had a similar reaction. For the second time now, I'm experiencing a time when everything seems to suck. So I thought, which one has the better soundtrack? The old one, of course! Fancy music, blacklight posters ... much cooler dystopia!
eclipsed: It's interesting that you say that. Recently Dave Grohl drew similar parallels between today and his childhood with Foo Fighters' "Waiting On A War". Do you see any differences in how people dealt with the situation then compared to now?
Wyndorf: Absolutely. Of course the comparison is a bit lame, because we live in a different world today. But I have the feeling that nowadays everyone deals with it individually and then shares it on the Internet. In the past, people treated such things as a group, accepted it and went on with their lives. Now billions of people can tell everyone else exactly how they feel. It's a bit annoying. (laughs)
eclipsed: Do you think a music album can help get back to collective interaction?
Wyndorf: If that were the case, I probably would have made a different album. No, I don't think music has that power anymore. Only when the listener decides to give it that power does it work. The media landscape has changed a lot. In the 60s, 70s, albums could actually make pop cultural statements. Today, I don't think that's possible. Everything is moving too fast. The statements today are more likely to be made on YouTube and not with music, but events.
