Apes on Tape: I read your name was a bit of a joke and you’ve just been having fun with it. But do you guys follow NASCAR at all or have reverence for Dale? And has that changed any since you originally picked it?

Joshua of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.: Since choosing the name we have realized how fitting it is for us.  We really don’t want there to be limits on how creative we think about anything related to the group, and we feel a certain sense of freedom
in setting such a precedent.

AOT: How awesome is it to wear a full NASCAR jumpsuit?

Joshua: I’d imagine it’s second only to wearing an actual space suit.

AOT: How did this project relate to the Silent Years (Joshua’s earlier band)? Was it a break from that? A chance to do something different?

Joshua: I have always written a lot of material, but had never really wanted to make a solo record.  This is a chance for me to write and record with another producer who is fully capable of writing, recording and singing his own material too.  That excites me in a way no solo record ever could.

AOT: Your tunes center around a lot of awesome harmonies. And with the “God Only Knows” cover, is Brian Wilson your guys’ Dale Earnhardt Jr. of music? A pretty big influence?

Joshua: We listen to a ton of different types of things, but the common interests that we have seem to all involve melody and harmonies.  It just seems natural to sing with each other since we’re both singers. We both admire hip hop too and the amazing sense of community and collaboration that exists therein.

AOT: Any other notable influential artists for you? Any particular track/album our readers should check out right this second?

Joshua: Too many to name, but a few would be Leonard Cohen and The Beatles. Some more recent artists we love are St Vincent and Black Milk.

AOT: For the Horse Power EP, you guys took basement route and used only one mic right? Do you mind elaborating on which mic that was and a bit about the recording setup for our aspiring musician readers?

Joshua: We used an M-Audio mic, and then on one song a Wunder CM7 Fet.  A few good pre amps and a ton of instruments were always around too.

AOT: Would you like to keep recording in that fashion down the road? At least for some tracks?

Joshua: We will always record on our own to a great extent, I would imagine because there is no fear of failure or sense that you wasted money that way.

AOT: Is the title of the new LP still It’s a Corporate World? And is that still mostly based on tracks you recorded during the same session as the EP?Or have you recorded new material to go along with the earlier stuff?

Joshua: What we recorded, although some of it was released as an EP, was a singular record.  We finished the record in December and it’s still called It’s a Corporate World. We’re always writing new stuff and will be starting a follow up soon, but it was really a cohesive record to us and we didn’t feel that adding anything newer would make much sense.

AOT: What’s been your best experience on tour thus far?

Joshua: Every experience is a delicate little snowflake, which we treasure and
cherish forever.