The end: Alaina Moore of tennis
The yes-men from heaven
February 21, 2020
To round out the week, we ask Alaina Moore of Denver indie pop duo Tennis some questions about endings and death.
Moore formed Tennis in 2010 with her husband Patrick Riley, releasing their debut album, Cape Doryin 2011. The group has just released its fifth album, Swimmer, via their own label Mutually Detrimental. The album was made after a difficult period for Moore and Riley. Moore passed out and had a seizure in a grocery store while on tour. During the same tour, Patrick’s father died from cancer and his mother was later admitted to hospital on the verge of a stroke. This all happened in the space of about two weeks. Swimmer was then primarily written during a well-deserved four-month sailing excursion in the Sea of Cortés, Mexico, and just before that trip, Patrick and his mother scattered his father’s ashes in the Pacific, just off the coast of San Diego. Ironically, despite their ocean adventures and the album’s title, Moore admits that she “didn’t know how to swim until last year.” She adds: “I’m still learning. »
Read on as Moore explains how and when she would like to die, what song she would like to play on her deathbed, her conceptions of heaven and hell, and her ideal final words.
How would you like to die and how old would you like to be?
I would prefer not to die at all, although I strongly suspect that I will die of a prolonged illness. I certainly hope to live a long life ravaged by time.
What song would you like to play on your deathbed?
“All I Wanna Do” by the Beach Boys, but only if Patrick is with me. More than anything, I want Patrick to be with me when I die. It’s selfish, I know. Only one of us can comfort the other at the time of death. I want to be the one who is comforted.
What song would you like to be performed at your funeral and who would you like to sing it?
I would never want a live show at my funeral. I would never put Patrick through the hell of renting a PA and hiring someone to play while he mourns my death.
What is your favorite latest episode of a TV series?
I loved the way Acclamation finished – with Navarro College winning at Daytona. It was a perfect human drama, and the ending that everyone always wants in life but rarely gets.
Which death affected you the most?
Patrick’s father died while we were on tour supporting Yours on condition two years ago. It was a totally crazy and overwhelming experience. The whole family was destroyed for a while. The song “Swimmer” from our new album is about scattering your father’s ashes at sea.
If you were on death row, what would your last meal be?
I already thought about it. I just couldn’t eat a bite if I knew I was about to die. Not a bite. Everything would be like dust in my mouth.
What is your concept of the afterlife?
I don’t have one, but Patrick is optimistic and thinks we’re all brains in a vat.
What would your personal version of heaven be if it existed?
I can’t imagine a paradise, but reincarnation attracts me. I like the idea of trying life again in another body.
What would be the worst punishment the devil could invent for you in hell, if he exists?
I think heaven seems worse than hell. The sky is full of yes-men. Satan spoke above all of freedom through knowledge. I guess hell is full of intellectuals and free thinkers. I would like to start a book club with them.
If reincarnation exists, who or what would you like to be reincarnated as?
I’d like to be a man next time, just to see what it’s all about. I want the complete experience.
What role or achievement would you most like to be remembered for?
For being fearless. I live with a lot of fear and anxiety. It took me years to accept this, but I worked hard to make fear my compass. The thing I’m afraid to do is usually the thing most worth doing. If I continue to do this throughout my life, I will have lived well.
What would be your last words?
I hope my last words are addressed to Patrick, even if they would be far too personal to write here. In the song “Echoes” from our new album, I write about a time on tour where I passed out from the flu and had a seizure. For a brief moment, Patrick and I thought I was dead. When I regained consciousness, I was in a dissociative state, disconnected from my body, my vision a tunnel of light. I thought I was dead and started screaming uncontrollably. The sound of my own screams was the only thing that made me realize I was alive. I’m not happy with how I reacted to the possibility of my death, but based on this experience alone, it’s very likely that my last words will just be involuntary screams.
