Q&A: Motel 7 Gives Us Some Summer Energy With "Things I Hate"
WITH SUMMER SLOUCHING TO AN END - Motel 7 provides us with an escape from the drawl. The LA duo consisting of Anton Khabbaz and Dylan Jagger Lee have recently released their newest single “Things I Hate”, following their other dreamy tracks “Are We There Yet” and “Messing with Fire.” Speaking on the universal folly of going out and then immediately regretting it, this single is a testament to youthful anxieties.
This relatability and smooth sound are what can be expected from their upcoming EP, still currently in the works and slated for release this fall. Having met in music school, Khabbaz and Lee scratch the itch for soft, spacey bedroom songs that can be blasted out of a car stereo in the same measure.
Read below to hear from the boys themselves on their new song “Things I Hate”, translating their work across multiple mediums, and quintessential places to hit up along PCH.
LUNA: What’s up Motel 7! It’s cool catching up with you guys, your latest releases have been bangers across the board. What would you say we can look forward to most with your upcoming EP, along with your new single ‘Things I Hate’?
MOTEL 7: Glad to be chatting with you guys. We definitely dove into a wide array of genres for this project. Every song has its own space, and differs from the rest - in a good way. I feel like we’d never want to write the same song or project twice anyway. We are always getting inspired by new music and new ideas - it allows us to think out of the box and try something new for every song.
LUNA: These are follow-ups to your releases ‘Are We There Yet’ and ‘Messing with Fire’, both accompanied by killer music videos. What do you guys like most about translating your songs into visual aesthetics?
MOTEL 7: It’s definitely the most fun part. Making the music is one thing, but we feel like the visuals and overall creative direction for every song truly brings it to life. It’s sometimes a challenge to translate a song to a solid visual idea, but that challenge motivates us to step out of our comfort zone and really spend the time to come up with a solidified concept.
LUNA: ‘Are We There Yet’ has particularly positive vibes, it immediately puts your audience into a sunny summer mindset. What were you hoping to evoke most in your listeners when working on this song?
MOTEL 7: We wrote that song in the thick of the winter. It was funny because at the time, we were stuck in lockdown. We couldn’t really get out of the house and go down for a drive on the PCH with our friends. So that song was more or so an escape for us. During the time we wrote that song, we could only really leave it up to our imagination to envision what it would be like to actually experience that. Once we were finally able to live in that moment, and film that music video, we were truly living our best life. It was such a fun experience to bring that song to life.
LUNA: In the music video for ‘Are We There Yet’, you guys can be seen cruising down the iconic PCH in a beautiful Mustang. Any particular spots along there you’d want to recommend? Listening to your song along the way, of course.
MOTEL 7: Oh man.. We’d got to say Lily’s. It is probably the best burrito spot in California. So so good. Other than that, Little Dume is a good spot to hang out. You can’t really go wrong going anywhere in Malibu.
LUNA: Breaking it all down to its core, what would you boys say drives you most in your creative endeavors? Or in other words perhaps, what brought you guys to forming Motel 7?
MOTEL 7: We are never satisfied. We always want to grow and get better at what we do. I don’t think we have ever made a song and been like, “wow this is the greatest song we have ever made”, mostly because we know we are always going to write more and a song being “the best song” is truly subjective to one's taste. We are just having fun man. We love this shit. It was never really about chasing some big music career for us. We started writing these songs in the bedroom for fun, and putting out on Soundcloud to like 3 people hoping at least 1 would listen. We try to never forget our roots.
LUNA: Any suggestions for other young artists wanting to brave the endeavor that is putting your creative work, and thus your heart and soul, out in the world?
MOTEL 7: Don’t think too much. Just trust your instinct and never look back. Life is too short.
LUNA: On a less heavy note, if you each could only listen to one album for an entire year, what would you pick and why?
MOTEL 7: The Justified album by the one and only Justin Timberlake. Those are some of the most timeless songs to ever exist. The production is so genuine. You literally feel the energy in the studio when that song was made through each and every song on that record. The simplicity of the production to the boundaryless lyrics really bring it home.
LUNA: Your work has been said to invoke feelings of nostalgia and road trips, blasting your favorite music with the sun setting, windows down, and wind flowing. What works of art make you guys feel this way?
MOTEL 7: Bands like Oasis and Coldplay. They are some of the best to do it. Before we even made music, we’d play those songs in the car as kids. Like literally all the songs we were raised on as a child continue to inspire our music today in some way.
LUNA: Lastly, what can you guys tell us about your upcoming EP, following the single ‘Things I Hate’?
MOTEL 7: Definitely expect a wide variety of style and genre. We really didn’t want to consolidate this EP to a certain theme or sound. It was more or so a creative outlet for us. We just wanted to write and produce anything and everything. We’re just having fun.
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