Mindless Self Indulgence releasing Kickstarter-funded album

“We do what we want and we always have,” says Mindless Self Indulgence’s Jimmy Urine confidently… and for good reason. Frontman to one of the most inflammatory and genre-busting bands of the last two decades, Urine and his bandmates have not only created their own niche in the music world, they’re the only ones who inhabit it. With their new album How I Learned To Stop Giving A Sh*t And Love Mindless Self Indulgence (UCR/Metropolis Records; release date: May 14, 2013), MSI is bringing its unrestrained mixture of punk, hip hop and driving electronic music together up a whole new level.

Fan-funded through Kickstarter, How I Learned… was created completely DIY with the intent of not having any influences (monetary or otherwise) from any outside sources. “We have always been unorthodox in our business ventures and we have been wanting to cut out the middleman for some time now,” Urine explains. “Kickstarter gave us that venue and the means in which to do it. We literally held the record hostage and became the second highest music Kickstarter, so we are happy.” Raising over $225,000, the campaign surpassed its original target by nearly 150%.

From the opening rallying cry “son of a bitch” of the first track “Witness”, How I Learned… kicks off with the trademark bang. “I planned that from the start,” he says. “Usually, I don’t plan that far ahead but ‘Witness’ was the first song I wrote for this record and it set the tone for the whole project. It was the first written, the first mixed, the first we learned to play live… it set the direction for everything.” From the jittery machine gun attack of “It Gets Worse” (which Urine considers the “the best song I have written… It came out so damn good and it has a lot of weight to it”) to the epic soar of “Hey Tomorrow F*ck You and Your Friend Yesterday” to the industrial hiphop of “Stalkers (slit my wrists)”, How I Learned… is a relentless aural assault that is their calling card. True to their “We don’t give a sh*t” modus operandi, the closing track is a faithful cover of the Supertramp classic “The Logical Song”, performed without tongue-in-cheek. “I honestly love that song,” Urine confides. “It’s a dark f*cking song for a 70s prog rock group. I didn’t really f*ck f*ck f*ck it up like I usually do because it’s kind of a weird song to begin with.”

Fiercely independently minded and never one to buck trends, Mindless Self Indulgence refuse to play the music industry game, which is why their rabid fans have a cult-like adoration for the band and why they’ve managed to survive in an industry known for eating its own. “We do what we want and we always have,” Urine concludes. Forming in New York City in 1997, MSI quickly made their mark with an indefinable hybrid sound that portended a lot of rock music to come. With four studio albums to date, MSI cracked the Top 5 on Billboard’s Dance chart seven times (with four #1’s) performed with the likes of Rammstein, The Dresden Dolls and System of a Down, and maintains a devout global fan base through constant international touring and energetic live performances. Following the success of 2008’s If which hit #27 on the Billboard Top 200, MSI decided to seize control of their future and go indie.

“We invented our own sound 15 years ago and stuck with it and persevered like The Cramps or The Ramones. When you want MSI, you come to MSI and we give you MSI. We don’t give a sh*t what you think and we love our job… and THAT is why the album is titled How I Learned Not To Give a Sh*t And Love Mindless Self Indulgence… It’s very self-referential.”

Mindless Self Indulgence is Jimmy Urine (vox, programming), Steve, Righ? (guitars), Kitty (drums) and Lyn Z (bass). How I Learned Not To Give a Sh*t And Love Mindless Self Indulgence will be released on May 14, 2013 via UCR/Metropolis Records.

Tour dates:
April 23, 2013 Bogart’s Cincinnati, OH
April 24, 2013 House of Blues Chicago, IL
April 25, 2013 Mill City Nights Minneapolis, MN
April 26, 2013 Granada Theatre Lawrence, KS
April 27, 2013 Ogden Theatre Denver, CO
April 28, 2013 In the Venue Salt Lake City, UT
April 30, 2013 The Showbox Seattle, WA
May 1, 2013 Roseland Theater Portland, OR
May 3, 2013 Regency Ballroom (w/Chantal Claret) San Francisco, CA
May 4, 2013 Club Nokia Live (w/Chantal Claret) Los Angeles, CA
May 5, 2013 House of Blues (w/Chantal Claret) San Diego, CA