No doubt, in terms of quantity, their success thus far has been modest, but consider that the Secret Machines' debut landed on quite a few critics' year-end top 10 lists and that their fans include legends such as David Bowie, U2, and the Band's Garth Hudson. "It's nice to be recognized," Curtis, 33, admits during a break in filming a video. "But we've never internalized it beyond the notion of it's nice to be noticed."

Forgive this trio if they haven't taken much time to indulge in praise. They've been too busy writing new songs, touring (two years and counting), toiling in the studio, and, most recently, filming an experimental, musically based art film in a small Texas arts community. The Secret Machines are assiduously focused on figuring out how to evolve musically - their main goal is to satisfy their own expectations. Their first album, Curtis explains, "was more of an introduction, a statement to our audience about who we are and what we're about. Once you've attracted everyone's attention, then what do you do? Our intention is to expand the conversation with this record."

Early buzz has been positive, but the group is already adept at shrugging off hype like so much background noise. Curtis sees an upside to such decidedly non-rock-and-roll pragmatism. "One good thing is that we're never going to have to do the artsy record to prove we're musicians, and we're never going to have to worry that we're just pinups. We're making music because we care about it."
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