Manchester Orchestra’s Andy Hull On The New “The Million Masks Of God” Album, Creativity & More
As produced by Manchester Orchestra’s lead songwriting duo of Andy Hull and Robert McDowell, Catherine Marks (PJ Harvey, The Killers) and Ethan Gruska (Phoebe Bridgers), The Million Masks Of God is the latest full-length album from the Atlanta, Georgia-based Manchester Orchestra. The group’s sixth album finds Hull, McDowell, drummer Tim Very and bassist Andy Prince relentlessly-pushing themselves to create a work that breaks beyond the scope and limits of every previous Manchester Orchestra release in an effort to create their most towering achievement to date.
To some critics, The Million Masks Of God can be seen as the band’s sophomore album, following a rebirth that came with Black Mile; Black Mile featured “The Gold,” Manchester Orchestra’s first #1 AAA and Top 15 Alternative radio hit. Manchester Orchestra approached Masks with the intention of creating a series of tightly-woven “movie albums,” as designed to be listened to in sequence and in a single sitting, with the songs working together to tell a bold, long-form narrative. In turn, the album explores the loose story of a man’s encounter with the angel of death as he is shown various scenes from his life in a snapshot-style assemblage. Memorable choruses aside, it is altogether a compelling, heady and profound look at the impact a person’s life can have on that of others.
On April 26, 2021, I had the pleasure of speaking with Andy Hull via Zoom, as embedded below. Beyond The Million Masks Of God, we discussed life during COVID-19, his creative process, musical influences, life away from music, and future plans for Manchester Orchestra. More on Hull, Manchester Orchestra and The Million Masks Of God can be found here, here, here and here.
