You initially
released “Ohio Grass” as an ep for Record Store Day this year – what went into
the decision to re-release it with additional tracks through traditional
distribution channels?
It did well and we wanted to share it so when we decided to
repress the vinyl, we through some songs from Record Store Day that we did live
from a record store called Omega in Dayton, OH and then we had a brand new
track.
You’re from the
Cincinnati area, did living in Ohio influence your writing?
Well, we always work hard at what we do, and I live out in
the sticks so I’m not really caught up in anything _ I don’t really have any
day-to-day head-trip bullshit anymore.
So, we just write songs and I have two kids and I think where I am from
keeps me going. It’s cheap to live here,
and we can maintain life and go on the road.
It helps us to keep records coming.
Ohio seems to be a
place for that. I know that you worked
with John Curley from the Afghan Whigs and Bob Pollard’s out of Dayton, and the
standard of living there allows him to keep putting stuff out at the frequency
that he does.
Man, Guided By Voices…I bought “Bee Thousand” on my 18th
birthday and it was the first weekend I had gone out on the road with the band
I was in at the time. I had no idea they
were from Dayton, I had just heard it at a bar while we were out. And seeing the Afghan Whigs on MTV as a kid? I just thought that shit was for fucking rock
stars from Hollywood or something (laughs) – that was super inspirational. Guided By Voices and bands like that, they
were doing this in their BASEMENT!
I know…being in your
late-30s and a school teacher? That was
kind of the prototypical rock dream come true!
Yeah, man. They just
kept doing it and they didn’t fucking care about anything. They lived in
Dayton, they got drunk, and they made records.
You know? (laughs) They were
fucking awesome! You’d go to Dayton and
go out to the bars and see Bob there, and it was like fucking Paul McCartney
walking around.
The cheap and easy
reference point for your music would be the Black Crowes, and you definitely
share some of the same aesthetic, but I hear some heavier psych elements in
your music that seem to point to acts like Blue Cheer and Vanilla Fudge and
even more contemporary acts like the Heartless Bastards and Sheepdogs. Who do you consider some of the artists that
inspire you?
Me and Andy have been playing music forever with Joey, and
the music that we write is just the result of everything that has been put into
us over the years. We grew up listening
to Neil Young and the Grateful Dead and country music and bluegrass. I like to think that we are just an honest
band, you know? We are what we are. You can’t cover it up. I just love playing music with my brother and
Joey. We have another guy in the band
now too – we’ve been a four-piece since March. And we all really connect well –
it took a special person to join us since we’ve been a three-piece for so
long. Byt to share those moments on
stage with the people that you love and to travel everywhere, I could never
imagine that we’d be doing this…it’s awesome.
It tickles me to death.
What’s your
songwriting process like? Does it start
with a riff or a lyric? Do you bring
something in and then the whole band fleshes it out?
It actually comes really easy. Me and Andy write songs apart and then bring
them together. The majority of what we
show each other that first time, that’s what it is. With some minor changes…it is a completely
open atmosphere where the other guys can feel free to add stuff. The way I usually
write songs is in my head – I take that little piece, the starting, and then
flesh it out when I get a guitar in my hands. The majority of the time I just
start with something that sticks in my head.
I have a great songwriting partner in my brother. He brings songs in and they are just
beautiful. We work well together…it’s easy.
It’s not labored over at all. It’s
harder just getting everyone in the same room [laughs]. Everybody’s connected, everybody wants to be there
and we’re all in the same headspace.
Are there challenges
to being in a band with your brother? Does
it get like the Davies brothers (of the Kinks) or Gallagher brothers (of
Oasis), or do you guys find a way to make it work?
It’s great for me! We
both want to be there. It’s easy and we
do care about each other. And we LIKE
each other [laughs]
That makes a world of
difference, I’m sure [laughs]
Totally [laughs]. I
mean, shit man, I’m lucky I get to travel with my brother. Some people don’t spend any time with their
family. We don’t have any real
problems. I’ve got the ultimate
bandmates. The not getting along in a
band, that definitely shows in your output and I think you can tell from our
music that we like each other. We’re not
Davies [laughs].
Do you feel like your
writing has matured or that you have grown as a songwriter since having a
family?
Having a family just made me grow as a person, and as a
songwriter, that all plays into it. The
more I write, the more secure I am in my writing and it’s just a matter of
letting it come out. As far as being a
parent, that shapes everything about you.
It brought a lot out of me, material-wise. I have two kids, and we live out in the
country, there are chickens in the yard, I have a wife and she cares about the
band…I’m where I want to be!
That’s awesome,
man. So what’s on tap next for you guys?
We just started a new album and we signed with Sun Pedal
Recordings, which is a part of the Warner Music Group. We did that awhile back and we just worked on
the record this past week. It’s being
produced by Jim Wirt (renowned Cleveland engineer and producer). It’s in the
can…being mixed right now. It’ll be out
in the beginning of 2014.
There’s a plan to
tour the record obviously?
Oh yeah. When it
comes out, we will definitely do a US tour. Can’t wait to get back on the road!
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