In March 2005 I had the chance to interview Paul Finch of the American newcomer Pom Pom Diary.
Here are the questions:

Where do the members of "Pom Pom Diary" come from and where did you meet?
Finch:
I hail from Houston, TX and Fontana's from D.C. I guess we both moved to L.A. about six years ago.
Fontana:
I met Finch shortly after in a faux cowboy bar on Sunset Blvd.
Finch:
We were with a bunch of mutual friends and we were bored listening to country music. I think we were looking for something a little edgier. I liked Fontana right off the bat and asked him to hit up some Goth clubs with me that I wanted to spin at.
Fontana:
It wasn't until I left my old band and Finch wanted to move on from being a DJ that we started making music.

Why have you named your band "Pom Pom Diary"?
Fontana:
There are several reasons for this. The pom pom is of course a type of artillery gun used in World War I by the Germans. Here in America however, pom poms are what cheerleaders use to excite the fans, specifically at the secondary school level.
A diary is something very personal. Finch and I wanted to make music that was explosive, fun and at the same time, self conscious and almost private. Pom Pom Diary made sense.

Who is the singer, who does the arrangements, song-writing and what kind of equipment do you use?
Finch:
Well, Paul Fontana provides guitars and vocals and I provide keyboards, sequencing, and engineering. Fontana usually writes his own vocals (lyrics & melody) and I usually do my own synth parts. As far as composition, chord structure and arrangement, we both contribute equally on that.
All of the equipment we work on is at my own studio in my apartment, which consists of a Windows XP computer running Pro Tools LE with a Digi 002 rack, Reason and Ableton Live. I also own an old Yamaha PSR-70 keyboard from the mid-80s and a new Clavia Nord Lead 3. Fontana brings his electric guitar over for the recording sessions.

How is the status of making music in your lives?
Is it a full-time job? What 'real' jobs do you have?
Fontana:
The status? Good. It's a full time job for me. I have only made money from doing creative things. I am completely unemployable so yeah it's a fulltime job for me. Finch is a shade more responsible than I am.
Finch:
And a thin shade at that. I work full time in film and TV audio post production. The great thing is that it's a job that compliments my audio engineering with Pom Pom Diary.

I have listened to some of your MP3s which you are offering for download. Your music includes 70s and 80s styled elements.
Who inspires your music?
Fontana:
Finch you answer this, but we're lucky enough to make the music we want to hear.
Finch:
A lot of my Inspiration comes from Joy Division, Iggy Pop when he collaborated with David Bowie, P.I.L., and Xymox. Sometimes I'll feel inspired to go further back to a more Pink Floyd approach, or even Brian Wilson or the Beatles.

How do you produce your music? I mean, do you prepare a concept, followed by the production of the instrumental background and adding the lyrics at end?
Fontana:
It depends, sometimes the music is more lyrical than the words I come up with and sometimes it's the opposite.
Finch:
One of us usually comes up with a hook and we build around that. There are also Instances where one of us will come up with only a chord progression. It's always different.

You combine a well dose of acoustic instruments (guitars, drums) with synthesizers and keyboards.
How important is it for you producing non 100 percent electronic music?
Fontana:
It's important that the song is well represented by the instruments, not the other way around. Finch and I are real careful not to say this song needs to be electronic or this song needs to be more acoustic.
We go by feeling and feeling alone.
Finch:
Exactly. Wherever the music takes us.

Do you think your music correspond to SynthPoP? How do you describe your music?
Fontana:
Yes, it's synth pop.it is pop music. And the synthesizers we use are very bright.so yeah, SynthPoP.
Finch:
Though we are being played on an Indie music station here in L.A., we've been associated additionally with New Wave, Electronica, and SynthPoP.

Your music always creates a melancholy mood? What kind of audience do you want to reach?
Finch:
I personally would like to reach that audience that is fed up with the Hip Hop culture permeating our nation.
Fontana:
We want an audience that's moved by our music, I suppose that's all any band can ask for.

How is the response of the community to your music?
Fontana:
We get regular radio play here in LA and have begun to get a following. The response on some level has been overwhelming considering the short time we've been together.

What are the sources for your lyrics - own experiences, disaffection with existing situations or are they pure fiction?
Fontana:
This is a tough subject, but sometimes the lyrics are stream of consciousness. I write down words that mean something or things that pop into my head at random moments. I also write from experience, all musicians do. Recently with a song like "DRAG BOY", I wrote about a friend of mine from high school and a situation he was in when he was sixteen years old. The chorus Finch wrote made me think about Peter for some reason and the lyrics were written. Mostly however, my lyrics are a thoughtful response to what has gotten to me the most.

Are you in studios only or do you also play live? If 'Yes', how relevant are live gigs for the band?
Fontana:
Not live yet.soon though.
Finch:
The studio has been good to us so far; so that as it is, all of our success so far may be attributed to our music alone.

You are only offering four tracks for download on your band-site.
Tell me something about your ideas concerning further tracks?
Fontana:
Those four tracks and six others will be on the forthcoming album, probably coming out early this summer. It will be a good mix of good music.

You still have not released any album. When will you release your debut album and how difficult is it to find a label which supports your music?
Fontana:
The release date is still up in the air, again probably in the summer. Some label interest so far and we're also looking in Europe to keep our options open.

Paul Finch and Paul Fontana, many thanks for the substantial responses and the information you gave about your band.

Now enjoy some clips of this great newcomer, including the brand new song "Backslide"!

• Drag Boy
• The London Song
• Thursday
• Backslide

The copyright in these sound-files is owned by Pom Pom Diary (LA, U.S.A). For all files I got the exclusive authorization of Paul Finch. All sound-files are only for private use. Any commercial distribution and copy is prohibited.

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