Into It. Over It.
Sept-Nov 2011 Tour with Frank Turner and Andrew Jackson Jihad
Photo: Leslie Hampton
Are touring on a bus with the other bands?
Yeah, it’s the entire tour, so right now it’s me, the two dudes from Andrew Jackson Jihad, and then Frank Turner, his band and his crew. So it’s like one giant family affair on a big ol’ bus.
That’s gotta be a little bit better than driving a car by yourself?
Well for me, it’s actually more cost effective to do it this way than it would be to be driving alone. I know if I took my own car, I’d be spending more on gas and tolls and maintenance and things like that. So for me it’s like the perfect set up. At least like financially and carbon foot-printy.
How have the shows gone so far?
They’ve been pretty awesome. Everything’s been really great. Everyone’s getting along super well. The crowds have all been really cool. Musically I fall somewhere in between Frank and Andrew Jackson Jihad, and it’s been a challenge proving myself to a new audience that has no idea who I am. So it’s actually kept me on my toes as far as being a musician and being a performer goes. I think it’s helped me become better at communicating with the crowd and keeping people engaged. I’m one of three. I’m a small fish in a big pond. I have to earn my keep, you know what I mean?
Does most of your set consist of stuff off of Proper or are you mixing it up with some of your older material?
I’ve been mixing it up with the past ones. Like Proper just came out and I discovered that most of the crowd at these shows aren’t really familiar with me at all, so if they were going to be familiar with me whatsoever it would be the older stuff. Like I’ve actually had a lot of people come up and ask if I had 52 Weeks on the merch table, which I don’t. I’d like to play some of the new songs but it’s not my tour, so I feel like playing just a good mix of everything and show people that when they come back to the table, they can be like “What did you play tonight?” and I can say I played a little of all of them. And they will be like “Ok, then I will take all of them.”
Hang on I’m walking by this generator. I don’t know if you can hear it. I’m just hanging out, chilling on the street. I’m on a mission right now in Austin, Texas to find a bathroom.
Oh yeah?
Yeah, that and a cup of coffee. I just rolled out of bed. I’m like still wiping the dirt out of my face, you know like the eye crusties, like I’m getting that out of there.
How do you think the crowd has been reacting to your music?
I think overall it’s been really good. There generally is always a crowd right in front, that is really attentive and really gives a shit. And then I think there are people at the bar that are just at the show to say they went. They’re older and don’t give a shit about the show or give a shit about Frank and don’t give a shit about me and Andrew Jackson Jihad. That’s to be expected at any larger show. Touring with someone in Frank’s position, where he’s been busting his ass for years, he’s going to draw a big crowd. We were talking about it and he’s been touring hard for five years and I’ve been touring hard for a year and a half. So, I’ve got some catching up to do. I didn’t expect it any other way. So far this tour has been great. They’ve treated me really well.
It’s just you playing solo on stage by yourself?
We’ve been talking about doing a band, and we’re in the process of putting it together. But there won’t be a band probably until March or April-ish. It’s a ways away. Everyone’s been coming to me and asking “You’re a full band on this tour right?” And I’m like “Ahhhhh I don’t know where you heard that, Sorry.” I have a few tours lined up for the next few months and they all get to keep me playing solo and having it make sense. We just announced today that I’m going to the UK and Europe with The Swellers and Broadway Calls.
You were just overseas a couple weeks ago before this tour weren’t you?
Yeah, Koji and I went in the middle of August and we were over there for literally two weeks straight. Then landed back on September 9th and this tour started September 20th. The day after Thanksgiving I fly back to the UK.
I bet you’re getting a lot of frequent flyer miles out of it though?
You’d think that. I gotta set myself up for that stuff, I could really use it.
What has been the highlight of this tour so far?
Florida was the highlight, Despite it being unbelievably sweltering hot, the shows were all amazing. Every single one of them was fucking awesome and all the crowds were really cool. It’s definitely a scene were I do a little better. In Orlando, it was my birthday, so I had a really awesome birthday this year. I would say that was the highlight, that little string of shows. We had 5 shows in Florida and that string was probably the best part, at least up to this point. I’m really looking forward to Seattle. I’ve never been to Seattle before and we’re going to a bunch of places in western Canada, which I’ve never been to, going to Saskatchewan, Calgary, and fucking Vancouver. Places I thought I’d never get to see, so I’m really excited about going to those parts of the world.
When you see your tour schedule before the tour, do you make plans for those cities or try to find stuff to do in those cities?
Yeah, absolutely for places I haven’t been before. Usually if I’ve been to a city before and I think I find things that I really like about it, I always try to do things that I like. But for places like that, I’m hoping I can just call up a friend and be like “Hey come show me some cool shit. Take me where the awesome stuff is, I wanna see it”. Hopefully we get to spend some quality time in Seattle, I’ve always wanted to do that.
Yeah that’s a pretty good music town.
Yeah Right. I wanna spend all my money at all the record stores.
What do you do to past time between shows?
Walk around. The load ins have been pretty early and then the we sound check and get our act together. Shows are always starting around 7, so we’ll wake up around 1 or Noon and float around for a couple hours and then come back and start doing the show thing. Our show tonight is at Emo’s in Austin. It’s like right in the middle of downtown Austin, so we’re kind of walking around checking stuff out.
I suppose it’s quite different there when it’s SXSW and when it isn’t?
Oh yeah, there is like 3 billion less people here now then there was when I was here in March. It’s definitely less stressful for me. I was fucking buggin’ out. SXSW is almost like a nightmare for me because there were so many people, I couldn’t deal. It was so hot just walking around. I’m an old man, I need my space. I just want to take a nap. (Laughs)
