INTERVIEW: MISSIO Talks Loner Tour, New Music & Writing

Long, pristine white tunics worn by musicians are tainted with strobing neon lights and the entire foundation of the wooden stage trembles beneath bass drums and pianos that ache from the amount of pressure slammed onto ivory keys. The alternative-punk duo, MISSIO, accompanied by percussionist Jaydon Bean, took on The Bottom Lounge in Chicago, which was their fourth stop during their Loner tour. The venue was sold out, with 700 fans pressed side-to-side into the concert hall.

After the release of the Loner EP, instrumentalist David Butler and vocalist Matthew Brue had followed up their debut with Skeletons and Skeletons Pt. II. It was said that the duo had “literally” started [writing] songs from scratch, and some of them were solely piano and vocals. The process for creating the “Skeletons” had differed, as Loner was built part-by-part.

“It was really cool to see songs and lyrics take shape in a different form,” vocalist Matthew Brue said, “[When you’re writing new music,] it makes you think on a different side of your brain.” The overall goal while creating new music was to “remake what was already there” for them. “Writing new music is the best and that’s what we love to do, period,”  Butler added.

Once the tour comes to an end, Brue and Butler plan to return to the recording studio and say that they already have dates booked. There is a possibility of this leading into a new album, but at the moment, the band is in the writing phase.

When it comes to inspiration, Brue says that it’s mostly boredom that serves as an influence and encourages him to write. “In this society, we never get to a place of boredom because of social media,” he said, while referring back to an article he had read on the topic. For Butler, when it comes to creativity, it helps him to take a couple of days to just do “nothing” and allow himself to fall into a specific state of mind. He claims that he cannot multitask well and needs to focus, leading the duo to sit down and write together.

MISSIO’s writing process doesn’t happen on the road and calls for scheduling multiple days to get together, set aside their phones, and write. “Writing is a lyrical [way] to get problems into existence,” Brue said. “One of the most important things for healing is to speak those things out.” Lyrics are often elicited from the band’s struggles, which are illustrated in their music.

Headlining a tour of their own was a risk they were willing to take. Even though they had toured before, they had played as a warm-up band for another artist’s show. Around a year ago, there was no management involved, and Loner was on its own. Now, the band has a handle on how the music industry seems to work at the moment.

“The most special aspect [about performing] is [the sight of] seeing the crowds react,” Brue said. Often, fans of the band find refuge in the music and use MISSIO as a coping mechanism to deal with problems in their own lives. “[We] can only do so much with what we say,” Brue said, though he claims that the relief that the music brings to others is the largest reward for what he does.

“These songs existed and we believed in them with our whole heart. When we get those songs out there and people hear them, they are so much bigger than what they were when we first wrote them. That’s what’s special,” Butler said.

Performing is what they classify as an “extroverted” concept and required both to fall back into the habit of communication. It also calls for a period of adjustment, and for the band to adapt to playing nightly for a set period of time.

“Okay, everything is working, everything is great, now we can just have fun,” Brue had said to Butler on the third night of their tour when they both realized that any doubts they had could be alleviated. According to Brue, having people sing back their lyrics after being a band for a year is “like a high” and “incredible.”

Even though they’ve tasted success in a year’s time, the pair refuses to conform to what’s expected of them. “Make what you love,” Butler advised, “Don’t chase a sound, don’t be someone that you’re not, do what you like and find what your thing is.”

Butler also warned against becoming “jaded” and insisted that aspiring artists should know who they are and stick to their vision. He said to keep both emotions and your heart guarded and to do something that you believe in.

The name of the band, MISSIO, is taken from the Latin origin of “mission.” Brue and Butler agreed that their mission is an ever-changing thing, and the core of it is to save people: “Part of the goal is the journey, and for us, that’s winning.”