Art Brut's Eddie Argos Shares the Secrets Behind His Painted Postcards -- NXNE

Art Brut's 'Brilliant! Tragic!' was released last month just in time to enjoy it before the Rapture (although we all know what happened there -- nothing), but that's not all the UK band offers up for entertainment. Frontman Eddie Argos shares his secrets about painting postcards for fans and playing the Hoover (but not the dustpan and brush).

Tell me about the postcards you make for each show you play.

I was just thinking that nobody uses postcards anymore because you can just take a picture with your camera phone. Postcards, nowadays, are really used as souvenirs. Like, I would only buy a postcard from a museum or an art gallery. So I was thinking I'd like to make a series of postcards. But you can't really make a box of postcards [to sell at] one show, it would be expensive. So every show I play -- I've been at it for about a year now -- I make a postcard out of canvas and acrylic paint. One canvas is the front of the postcard and one canvas is the back, and then I attach a stamp I've made to it and I address it to [the person who buys it]. People seem to like them. I've done loads of postcards. It must be hundreds by now, since it's been over a year. There must be at least 100 of them hanging up in people's houses -- nice little souvenirs from our show.

How do you choose what you paint for each show?

I paint it the day before normally, or sometimes I paint it in the soundcheck so I don't really pay attention to it -- the band soundchecks a bit more than me, it just keeps you busy, really. So I look around the venue or, if I've been there before, I use the logo. It's all different, really. Every postcard is different.

Do you write about the show when you write the message on the postcard?

So last night it was Jamie [who bought the postcard]. So I wrote, "Dear Jamie, I know you've been to more than one show, so you've been to too many Art Brut shows this week." And then I write about the day and "glad you came," and then I write his address in the address part of the postcard.

Watch Art Brut's Video for 'Lost Weekend'
You wrote on the blog part of your site that you used to play the Hoover.

Yeah, I had a band called the Art Goblins when I was growing up, and I've never really been very good at singing, so I used to do things to attract attention. I'd been reading about how the Velvet Underground used to play different things full of water to make unusual sounds, so I thought it would be pretty cool to play the Hoover. So we had a song called 'Are You Afraid of the Art?' and I used to play the Hoover on that. And then when we started playing acoustic shows, I used to play the dustpan and brush -- well, I didn't actually do that, that was a joke. But it was fun. I always liked those kinds of things in bands. I don't think I'll play the Hoover in Art Brut, though. It would take a particularly long time to soundcheck.

Art Brut play the Mod Club Theatre on Friday, June 17 @ 9PM Follow @Spinner on Twitter | Like Spinner on Facebook