Questionable Corner: Oxford Collapse

In the years that I have been doing Pop Tarts Suck Toasted we have had no shortage of bands that have upped and called it quits. Some of those bands we never got the chance to hear, some soundtracked some part of out lives, but few had an impact on us as Oxford Collapse have. Just last year the band headlined my CMJ Day Party at Cake Shop, helping me out just as much as they were promoting their own new record at the time. They've played stages as big as McCarren Park Pool and as small as some of their fan's basement and I'm sure they played each and every one of those shows with the same passion that made them one of my favorites. They were a DIY band, they were a Sub Pop band, and they were a damn good band! Beyond that they were a fun bunch of guys to hang around, to watch play, to chat with after a show, or to a share a beer with, and while they'll still probably be all of those things after July 18th they won't be Oxford Collapse anymore. So it was with a heavy heart that chatted with Mike Pace via e-mail about all Oxford Collapse have accomplished in their 8-year long existence. And for those of you in the New York area for their final show on July 18th the venue has moved details on all that after the interview. Thanks a lot Oxford Collapse for all the great music and memories you've left us with!

PTST: I guess the obvious first question is what made you guys choose to call it quits? Was this something you saw coming or did it just all of a sudden seem like the right way to go?
Mike: The decision to end came about fairly naturally. We’ve been together for eight years, touring consistently for the past five. At a certain point we sensed that this band had run its course; we felt had taken it as far as we could. The idea of bowing out gracefully with some sort of closure appealed to us more than going on “infinite hiatus” and just fading away.

PTST: Looking back on what you've accomplished as a band are you satisfied with how you're going out? Did you accomplish all you set out to accomplish?
Mike: It’s hard to be truly satisfied with anything you do, because there’s always more that could have been done. I am very proud of what we did accomplish; putting out our own records, touring all over the US and Europe multiple times, meeting awesome people and playing with great bands, but I think I’m most proud of the fact that we were able to do everything on our own terms.

PTST: Do you guys see yourselves continuing in the music world, either solo or with another group of people sometime down the line?
Mike: I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we’ll all be involved in different musical projects in the future in some capacity. Once you start writing and playing songs – and you find out that you really like it – it’s hard to stop.

PTST: You chose to do your last two shows in the New York area, was there ever any thought to doing a full goodbye tour? Are you looking forward to these last two shows?
Mike: To answer the first part of your question, not really. We’re not presumptuous enough to think that there’s too much demand for an Oxford Collapse Farewell Tour. Since we were based out of New York for so long, it only made sense to do the last shows there. I think they will be a really fun, hopefully raucous time. It’s also definitely bittersweet because of the finality, but we realize that this is the “right” way to go out.

PTST: Who was the best band you ever opened for? What about best band who ever opened for you?
Mike: I don’t know if I can give you a definitive answer. When you tour with other bands, you (hopefully) become buds and really look forward to seeing them every night, either before or after you. We’ve been fortunate enough to get along with all the bands we’ve spent serious time on the road with, so there was always something to get psyched about.

PTST: When you guys started out as a band did you ever picture winding up as a Sub Pop recording artist? What's the coolest thing about having been on the label?
Mike: Never. It was hard enough to picture getting out of the practice space. Sub Pop has been good to us over the years. We were the first band from New York on the label, which is pretty cool. I’ll always remember being flown out to Seattle for our initial meeting with the label and meeting Kurdt Kobain, who told us that we sucked.

PTST: What was your overall favorite show?
Mike: Having played close to 450, that’s a tough one. There were many that were memorable for different reasons. I think of the Remember the Night Parties release show at Glasslands, McCarren Pool with a expanded band of 8, playing a garage in Santa Barbara to 40 kids who went nuts the second we started, playing in the UK to 2900 people, playing to 6 people in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and jamming on our cover of “Proud Mary” for 17 minutes, playing at a strip club at some kid’s bachelor party who had no idea who we were – there were lots of classics.

PTST: Best venue you ever played?
Mike: Again, lots of ‘em. Some of the best shows, like the aforementioned one in Santa Barbara, were literally plug-in-and-play deals in weird spaces – no sound system, no stage, nothing. Conversely, I remember the first “big” show we played – opening for Franz Ferdinand at the Showbox in Seattle (well before we were on Sub Pop) – and how nice and attentive the venue personnel were.

PTST: Favorite album you guys put out?
Mike: There’s something to be gleamed for all of them, but I think everything really came together musically when we made BITS. It’s the album we had been hearing in our heads for a long time

PTST: Are there any regrets? Anything you guys wish you had done as a band but never got the chance to do? Any festival you wish you had played? Anything like that?
Mike: Like my Grandfather said after I accidentally burned up his 1987 Mercury Sable on a road trip to Lake George, “you don’t look back.”

PTST: What will you remember most fondly about having been a member of Oxford Collapse?
Mike: As I said earlier, the fact that we never compromised anything we were doing, and still were able to make records, tour, meet awesome people and bands, get involved with a number of great labels, and experience amazing regional cuisine. I also look forward to becoming “that guy from Oxford Collapse” to the six people who might actually recognize me.

PTST: What are the chances that Oxford Collapse go and pull Michael Jordan/Brett Favre?
Mike: Will we start playing minor league baseball in 1995? Highly unlikely.

PTST: Got any final words?
Mike: To quote the late, great GG Allin, “life sucks, scum fuck.” I’ll counter-balance that tasteful quote with another, literally tasteful quote from the late, great Warren Zevon, “enjoy every sandwich.”

Listen: Oxford Collapse - "Please Visit Your National Parks"
Oxford Collapse - "Young Love Delivers"

Upcoming Shows:
July 17th @ Maxwell's Hoboken, NJ (SOLD OUT)
July 18th @ Collective Hardware 169 Bowery 9pm $10 (FINAL SHOW/NEW VENUE!)