We’re headed back to the vaults for an interview with Matthew O’Brian, the former lead vocals and guitars for the roots reggae and dub outfit called Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. Although Matthew and the band have parted ways, this interview gives a great insight into the mind of one who has created a thriving and perpetually touring band

A big welcome to all you rastas and reggae heads.  We’re headed back to the vaults for an interview with Matthew O’Brian, the former lead vocals and guitars for the roots reggae and dub outfit called Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad.

Although Matthew and the band have parted ways, this interview gives a great insight into the mind of one who has created a thriving and perpetually touring band.  Have a listen as we discuss the vibe of their band, brushes with the great Toots of Toots and the Maytals, and their green stance.  We wish both Matthew and Giant Panda the best in the future, so be sure to check them both out when they hit your area!  So from the vaults, the Tracks bring to you… Matthew O’Brian, former vocals and guitars for Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad (giantpandadub.com).

Interview with Matthew O’Brian (Formerly of Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad)

Brian Kracyla and Monty Wiradilaga (Moe Train’s Tracks)

Moe (MTT):  We’re sitting back here with Matt from Giant Panda.  What’s going on, man?!  How are ya?

Matt:  Very well.  Nice to see ya, Monty!

MTT:  Awesome, great set today.

M:  Thanks.

MTT:  How is the Rothbury experience compared to your other festival experiences?

M:  We’ve gotten to experience it since Thursday night, we had a whole day and a half of anticipation for our own set.  Everything has been super-exceptional, super-clean, and the vibe is real strong.  The experience with the set was great.  We played first so we got an excellent soundcheck full.  We were ready to go, all dialed in before we hit the stage.  That’s better than most festivals where you’re rushed to get on.

MTT:  Your music draws from the roots, dub, but you guys also mix in improvisation.  How important is it for the band to take the listeners on a musical journey?

M:  It fulfills our own musical desires and our own creative desires to be able to take those risks in the live setting and really feel like we are pushing our selves and challenging ourselves.  For very many people, it’s apparently one of their favorite things they get to experience at the Giant Panda shows as well, the improvisation.  It’s been openly confirmed recently that we really want to bring that to every show.  We really want to have that experience of not knowing what’s going to happen next, no plan.

MTT:  So, you feel that your live show is really the bread and butter of your music?  Or do you feel it’s your recordings?

M:  We tour and do 180 shows a year.  Our live shows are our bread and butter.  The history of reggae is a studio history.  A lot of the sweet reggae we have heard over the years is all produced in the studio and rarer live.  We’ve sought to bring true roots-sound and that real vibration to the live scene as much as we can, that’s our contribution.

MTT:  Speaking of which, you’ve shared the stage with some legends.  How have they really influenced your sound?  Do you have any stories with the classics?

M:  Their sound influenced us for our whole upbringing.  Lee Scratch Perry was influencing our sound before we knew what recordings he had influenced so much.  You listen to the old Bob Marley and that was all black art, that was the finest Lee Perry productions.  Toots sets a wonderful example because Toots’ music is some of the most uplifting and positive of that roots era.  His voice is so rich, but he also is so positive and so giving of his own energy to his audiences.  He’s very, very musically disciplined and his band is one of the sharpest.  He really lives up to his reputation.

MTT:  Do you have any stories with him?

M:  We lived down on State Street in Rochester, NY and he was staying at the Crowne Plaza, directly across the street from our apartment.  We played with Toots at one of the biggest shows we’d ever done at the time, in Rochester, at a big outdoors jazz-fest thing.  Toots headlined and at the end of the festival blew it out in the street, and we got to open for him and then we were heading to Bonnaroo that night, the minute we were done with the set.  We were running late, running around, and we found ourselves back at our house getting our last things together as Toots was pulling into his hotel.  Dylan, our guitar player who’s met Toots before, ran over and said “Hey man, nice to play with you.  It was a great honor.”  And he turned to us with both of his hands in the air and just like (pumping both hand in the air), all the way as we were driving away he was pounding two hands in the air!  He gave us the best energy we could get to hit the road with.  We were just proud to be there with him, let alone the fact that he acknowledged us like that.

MTT:  Speaking about legends, we’re doing a show on Michael Jackson.  How has Michael Jackson influenced you personally or musically?

M:  Michael, to me, means quality, top quality from the time the public was aware of him.  He was five years old and making untouchable high quality music and it never wasn’t untouchable, high quality.  I have nothing but the utmost respect for Michael’s music.  I think that with somebody like Michael Jackson, the influence is so thick, so ingrained in everything, it gets taken for granted as a part of reality.  It’s a culture of his own.

MTT:  It was definitely a shock.  It felt like a part of our childhood was taken away, well not just childhood but our whole life.

M:  It is, its part of everybody.  He’d been there 45 years of his 50 years!

MTT:  The band (GPGDS) takes a very green stance.  Are you guys are participating in the (Rothbury) think-tank?

M:  We are participating in the think-tank.  They asked us to do that, I guess they picked up on the green stance.  We’re not too preachy about it or anything but we, in our own lives and travels, have made choices and changes.  The Sprinter runs on diesel and we’ve converted it to run on waste veggie oil.  It’s been a process getting to know the whole scene but we put a lot of thought and a lot of money into getting it real right.  This is the first summer, so we’re just getting it under way.

B:  How do you get the oil for it?  Do you go to restaurants and try to get what they let go of?

M:  More and more you can buy filtered waste veggie oil.  You can get waste veggie oil from places that preferably don’t use any fat.  Some places just fry tortilla chips or just fry potato chips.  You want as much of the clean stuff as you can get in the first place because then you have to filter it, let it settle out through all these filters, and then you put it in your van.  It goes through a little bit of a filter putting it in, but you put it in and then you burn it like diesel fuel.

MTT:  HOW MANY MILES TO THE GALLON DO YOU GET?

M:  I can’t say a specific number but to give you an example, Rochester, NY to Burlington, VT, one forty gallon tank of waste veggie oil.  That’s like a 8 hour drive sometimes.

MTT:  Where do you see the evolution of your band, where do you see your future?

M:  We see ourselves asserting our right to, you say we take a “green stance”, we take an “everything stance”.  We feel a responsibility to bring the highest that we can bring.  We feel the responsibility to give the audience, and give people that take the time to enjoy and experience music, the best of what we can give them.  We treat our lives that way and we try to keep ourselves in good shape, we make good choices with our bodies and with our lives, in our actions and with the way that we speak to people.  I hope that our band can keep reflecting that and keep getting more gigs like at Rothbury to reflect that and stay true to our roots.  We always want to be able to be who we are and maintain creative integrity and to talk to more people like you.

MTT:  Thanks very much for being with us.  We appreciate it.

M:  Yeah, thanks Monty!

———————

Matthew and Rachel (also a former member of Giant Panda) have started a new band called Thunder Body.  Check them out on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/THUNDER-BODY/111078485595149?ref=ts

GUITAR GODDESS & DOWNTOWN NYC IMPRESSARIA VIVA DECONCINI TRANSFORMS “ANGER INTO BEAUTY” ON FIERCE, JOYFUL NEW ALBUM ‘ROCK & ROLL LOVER’ OUT 7/13

New Yorkers: Catch Viva at The Slipper Room and The Jazz Gallery in May

New York-based frontwoman Viva DeConcini, who’s been playing guitar since she was in first grade, has performed everywhere from Bonnaroo to The Kennedy Center, to virtually every sweaty, cramped venue on the Lower East Side. On July 13, Viva will release her second album ‘Rock & Roll Lover,’ featuring a 7-piece-band and a full horn section written and arranged by Peter Apfelbaum of the NY Hieroglyphics.

The disc’s nine tracks, in Viva’s words, celebrate rock & roll’s power to transform “anger into beauty” -making life’s trials and tribulations worthwhile- with joyful exuberance. The album also features a wild, spacey cover of David Bowie‘s “Moonage Daydream” and a wailing instrumental rendition of the Carole King classic “Natural Woman.”

Stream new Viva DeConcini songs on MySpace here: http://www.myspace.com/vivadeconcini

Viva is one of the few women to ever be featured in a 3-page spread in Guitar Player Magazine. She honed her chops during a six-year stint playing guitar and percussion in Brazilian Cyro Baptista’s critically acclaimed band Beat The Donkey. She has also jammed with luminaries like Medeski, Martin and Wood and Trey Anastasio. Viva is also a producer of New York City‘s ‘Rock & Roll Burlesque’ at The Slipper Room, the multi-performer Dolly Parton tribute “Dolly Would” at Joe’s Pub, and regularly conducts a 20-unit drum corps in NYC’s Halloween, Pride, and Mermaid Parades.

Catch Viva at the ‘Rock & Roll Burlesque’ at The Slipper Room on May 27, and stay tuned for details about her NYC album release party in June.

UPCOMING DATES:
May 27 – New York, NY @ The Slipper Room ‘Rock & Roll Burlesque’
May 28 – New York, NY @ The Jazz Gallery
May 29 – New York, NY @ The Jazz Gallery w/ Peter Apfelbaum and The NY Hieroglyphics

‘Rock & Roll Lover’
U.S. Street Date: July 13

1. Rock & Roll Lover
2. Universal Radio
3. What’s Your Sign Baby
4. Moonage Daydream
5. $15 Buzz
6. Go-Go Boots
7. Somebody Else
8. Natural Woman
9. Emily

Rogue Wave – Permalight (6 out of 10)

Apparently this album is a refreshing change of pace for the usually melancholy Oakland-based band, but I wouldn’t know because I’ve never listened to them before.  So here’s my first impression: it sounds like music ripped straight off of the O.C. or One Tree Hill soundtracks.  And while they border on electro-pop goodness, they never fully commit.  The thing is, Permalight isn’t terrible; in fact, there’s potential, yet, ultimately, it’s still completely forgettable.

- B

Related articles:

• Interviews at Stubb’s: Rogue Wave (spin.com)

Anyway, Lil’ Wayne’s energy and great contributions to the hip-hop scene will definitely be missed.  However, Weezy’s keeping in contact with all of his fans through weezythanxyou.com.  Personally, I think it’s a great gesture from a guy who’s been very open about everything in his career.

Go check it out, and send the guy some love!  I know I’m very curious to hear what his prison experience will add to his amazing repertoire of musical talent.

Write To Lil Wayne

Eric M. Taylor Center (EMTC)
Dwayne Carter NYSID# 02616544L
10-10 Hazen Street
East Elmhurst, NY 11370

Moe:  We sitting back stage her with Jeremy Stein, promoter and creator of Rothbury Festival.  Thanks for being with us.

Jeremy:  Fantastic being here guys, thanks.

M:  How did you go about putting together your vision of the Rothbury Festival?

J:  That’s good question.  I think it came together really over a course of years.  It’s funny, I was reading Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell and there’s a big thing in there about taking 10,000 hours of work to really get a vision for something and think that’s what happened over the course of a decade.  We were putting on a lot of different events; 5,000 people, 15,000, 20,000, all over the world and also had a lot of different artists under our management firm who were traveling the world at festivals.

So I had this kind of rare experience to be able to go to festivals across Europe/Australia/Japan, and really make notes on all of them, and see what was working, and combining that with a general attempt to have a cultural event at Rothbury, and an art event.

Obviously music is a magnet, no question, but it’s so much more than that for everyone.  Some people even have trouble putting their finger on what that more is, but it’s so much more.  You combine all those factors and it almost surfaced organically.

M:  Last year, we called Rothbury ‘Festival of the Year’; for the lineup, for the atmosphere, for the people, the total experience.  How important was it for you to create an all-encompassing experience for your guests?

J:  The general idea is that it’s an immersive environment that people come to live at.  A lot of festivals, not for good or for bad but just the way they are, are generally daytime into the evening events and they shut down, and they’re not camping festivals so everyone goes home at night and they might come back the next day.  This kind of event is different.  Not only is it a big holiday weekend (4^th of July), and people are really looking forward to getting off work and they’re out of school and all those types of things, but they are living here for four days.  And when you’re living somewhere for four days, you get to know the people next to you, and you make some new friends out there.

Not only are you obviously here for the big shows and the big dance events and all that kind of stuff, but most of the time you’re not at a big show, you’re relaxing.  You can’t just be on level 11 for 24 hours a day. (Moe giggles)  So, that’s a big part of what the forest turned into, it’s a daytime lounge.  And when people can get that downtime in a shaded, cool environment with their friends, they have way more energy for the rest of the day and they’re not just totally burnt out at the end of the show.  That’s a pretty exciting scene.

M:  Did you take the forest idea from Fuji Rock?

J:  I’ve been to Fuji Rock a lot and there’s no question that we are kindred spirits.  Especially on their recycling.  They were doing that recycling before just about anyone else that I’ve seen out there.  They weren’t doing composting but the teams that we working at the cans and everything and having a strong green scene.  That was just more a part of the culture there than anything else but they were a little ahead of the curve.  I’m friends with those guys and it’s probably the closest relationship of a forested environment for a festival that I know of.

M:  In the future, what do you see for Rothbury and what is your perfect headlining act?

J:  Wow, that’s a tough question.  I think year to year, there’s no question that the headlining acts give a little bit of their own identity to what that year of the festival is, and some of them are available some years and just not another.  There’s no question either that there’s a top 25 names out there and we all know who they are, there’s no big secrets.  So, one year it’ll work for Rothbury and one year it won’t.  We just gotta go where the wind takes us.  I care just as much about the music, I’m not afraid about the music though, we’ll get the right music every year.

I think that now we’ve hit a critical mass where the industry knows what it is.  It’s just as exciting to the artist as it is to everyone else and they want to be here.  So, we’re gonna get there on the musical side.  I care as much about the community building, the interactive environment, and getting more people involved in the show.  The more everyone’s involved in the show, the more the entire grounds become the stage.  It’s not just you come to watch something, you come to be a part of something.  That’s what I’m after.

M:  Thank you very much for being with us.  We appreciate it.  The festival’s been killer.

J:  Great guys, good luck.  Have fun out there.

Related articles:

• Rothbury 2010 Canceled; Midwest May Gain Bamboozle Fest (rollingstone.com)

An ex-punk rocker turned rapper turns out a top-five rap album of 2009.  What’s up with all that good hip-hop coming out of Miota?!?

POS – Never Better (9/10)

An ex-punk rocker turned rapper turns out a top-five rap album of 2009.  What’s up with all that good hip-hop coming out of Minnesota?!?

- B

Related articles:

• No More Hip-Hop For Fiddy (perezhilton.com)
• What Makes A Piece of Music Hip Hop? Vol. 2 (current.com)
• Jack White hails ‘incredible’ Jay-Z (news.bbc.co.uk)

Hot Chip – One Life Stand (3.5 out of 6)

Personally, the appeal of Hot Chip has always been their seamless ability to follow catchy and insistent electro-pop dance tracks with equally enjoyable, atmospheric slow-jams.  Unfortunately, the London five-some has forgone the former for almost exclusively the latter.  As a result, One Life Stand turns out to be, for lack of a better word, boring.

A disappointment for me, sorry guys, but you need that contrast.

- B

Related articles:

• New Hot Chip Video: Crazy Sexy Creepy (trueslant.com)
• Hot Chip – “I Feel Better” Video (stereogum.com)

Twittelator – [8.7/10]

For those who feel that being connected to the world at all times (or most of the time) is a must, Twittelator is a very functional Twitter client that will fulfill your needs.  If you think that a function is necessary, then Twittelator probably has it covered.  Lists, video/photo posting, geotagging, and my most useful function (due to the fact that we run a music show/website), song tagging.  The main gripe that I have with this app is the tweets don’t always “refresh” when they should.  Besides that, Twittelator is a pretty seamless application.

One could purchase quite a few separate apps for many of the options packed into the Twittelator package, so if you need an all-encompassing Twitter app… Twittelator will be a very competent choice.

Every year about this time, I get “Festival Fever.”  You know the feeling…  The weather’s shitty, you’ve been cooped up indoors for way too long, and all of the festival lineups are coming out.  You long for fun in the sun, and the amazing music which becomes the soundtrack of your life.

Well, that time is here, and The Train’s got the fever!  (No, it’s not a Swine Flu symptom.  I’ve gotten the shot, thank you.)  We’ve got about four months until The Tracks kicks it into super media mode, and does some more amazing interviews! (Check out the new interviews posted on the site)  King B and I love being out in the crowd and also back behind the scenes so we can bring you as many great and uncensored musician interviews as possible!

What do you do when you get the fever?  Do you start researching all of the bands that you’re going to see?  Listen to new music?  Check your tent to see if it still works?  Hit the gym, so you can physically make it through the grueling festival weekends?

Well, no matter what you do… You’d better get ready, because there’s not much time before FESTIVAL TIME!

- Moe

Related articles:

• Dan Deacon feeling better, played Purchase (pics), playing MtyMx & Bonnaroo, shares a name with a Philly cop (brooklynvegan.com)
• The Flu And Getting Lucky (plastic.com)

What’s up everyone?  I’ve got summer festivals on my mind (and why shouldn’t I?  All the lineups are coming out!)  Anyway, I was on Twitter (@MoeTrainsTracks), discussing what people would think if festivals like Bonnaroo would do a booking that was totally out of character for the festival.  For example, I was watching the Olympics tonight and heard Andrea Bocelli‘s music used for ice dancing.  I thought, Andrea Bocelli would be an off the wall, yet amazing addition to Bonnaroo’s lineup this year.

Metallica seemed to be one of the biggest stretches for the perennial hippie/jamband and indie friendly festival, and their booking was met with very mixed reviews.  Personally, I was pumped to have Metallica on the farm, as I’m a big fan of their music.  Yeah, I definitely think that Lars was an absolute prick for what he did to Napster, but Metallica’s live performances are top notch.  Many of the Bonnaroo purists were upset that the balance of their universe would be thrown off it’s axis by such a notable metal act.  On the other hand, their presence brought a different “type” of festival goer which wouldn’t usually have made the trek to Manchester, TN.  When all was said and done, Metallica had blown the roof off of the farm, and made fans out of non-believers.

The same booking mentality would certainly apply to a talent like Andrea Bocelli.  Imagine Sunday night, when everyone is exhausted from four straight days of music and mania, and enter Andrea Bocelli on the main stage.  Surround him a laser show of Tool proportions, and give him the best backing band that Bonnaroo artists have to offer.  The result would be one of the biggest sensory overloads that the festival world has seen.

Everyone’s always wondering who the Superjam lineup will consist of, and it’s usually a nicely diversified group of musicians, but sometimes, the best things come from the most motley of crews (or Crue).  In the overloaded market of festivals (RIP Rothbury…for now), promoters need to continue pushing the envelope so they can continue to attract huge audiences.

What do you guys think?  Are music festivals doing enough to keep you coming back year after year?  What would be the most off the wall booking that you’d like to see at the festivals in the coming years?

- Moe

Related articles:

• Bonnaroo 2010 Lineup (stereogum.com)
• Jay-Z To Headline Bonnaroo (current.com)
• Metal at Non-metal Festivals (metalsucks.net)

Chris from OAR talks to MTT about staying “independent” on a big label, Madison Square Garden and more at Bonnaroo.

Chris Culos (O.A.R.) Interview on Moe Train’s Tracks

Chris Culos, Monty Wiradilaga and Brian Kracyla

Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival

Manchester, TN

June 15, 2008

Moe: We’re back stage here with Chris of O.A.R. How’s it going man?

Chris: It’s going good man. We just got here, I’m really excited. We’ve got some gorgeous weather out here.

Moe: Oh, it’s beautiful out.

Chris: Yeah.

Moe: It’s the first day of your new tour, is today the first day?

Chris: We just started our new tour today. So excited about it… A big summer.

M: Supporting the new album that comes out next month.

C: It comes out July 15^th, yes, and actually our single is called Shattered. And we’re actually getting some radio play already, which is exciting. It officially goes to radio tomorrow and fans can get it online. They can get it starting June 16^th on iTunes and stuff like that, exciting.

M: How’s this album compare to your others?

C: It’s a little bit of everything. I think by calling it all-sides, it really is capturing the all encompassing thing of O.A.R. It’s got the rock, the lighter stuff, it’s got the reggae, it’s got a little bit of everything. I think the song writing is really strong. I’m really proud of all the guys in the band, our song writers… You can really see their growth. But also the musicianship side of stuff, we feel really comfortable in the studio. That was always the thing. I think our audience really gravitated to our live stuff, and they liked the studio stuff, but they didn’t think it compared to that energy. It’s was only natural. We’ve played a couple of hundred shows a year but only made a handful of CDs. It’s still a lot of time in the studio, but for us we’re still learning.

M: Is that why you guys have encouraged the taping of your live shows?

C: Absolutely. But not just that reason alone. We’re proud all our stuff that we do in studio but as far as our live shows, that’s our bread and butter. That really is what we do best, and where we feel the most comfortable. I think by encouraging taping of the shows it creates more of a community interaction, you know for people who wanna come out and see us multiple times. It keeps us on our toes to create new set lists, and change the arrangements, and jam-out, and have fun. It’s also fun for the audience because it gives them something to talk about. It’s not the same show every night, not the same version of the same song every night. It’s a lot of great things.

M: Talking about live shows, how’d it feel standing on the stage at Madison Square Garden, at a sold-out arena, at one of the most important influential venues in the whole world?

C: Yeah, it was pretty much the highlight of our career. I can’t lie. It’s just weird because when we started this band, god, we started it 12 years ago in my basement, you could never imagine, you could never think of playing Madison Square Garden. I mean, all the things you could dream about, that’s just ridiculous to think that. So, to be standing on stage, it was so surreal. To be honest, it’s the only time I’ve ever been nervous playing.

M: Really?

C: Yeah, we’re really comfortable with what we do. Every night we go on stage, we get really excited about before we go on, and walk on, and that’s just what we do best, we’re comfortable. Going on in Madison Square Garden man, it was a whole other thing. It was a whole other ballgame man, I can’t lie.

M: I saw that. You could see the vibe in the place, it was just awesome.

C: Yeah. But, as soon as we started, yeah, we felt comfortable again. But it was the only time I’ve been nervous.

M: So what was the most memorable part of that performance? Anything stand out in your mind?

C: You know… It flew by. Most of the shows, some nights take a little longer than others, but that night flew by. I remember it being a little more lit up inside, just because we were filming it for DVD. You could see people. We can always usually see the front row, a couple rows back, but now look at and actually get a gauge of just how many people were there, and it was freaky. No, it was cool, ‘cause you could look out, we had a lot of our family there. I could look out and see my parents, my grandparents, and aunts and uncles, and cousins, and friends, and all these people who traveled from all over the country to watch us in New York. That was the coolest part.

M: Yeah, it had to be amazing for sure. So, with the new album, I know that you’re with a major label now; you were with an independent label before. Are we go to be seeing the independent O.A.R.? Or are we going to see a new incarnation?

C: We’re always independent O.A.R., man! No, see, here’s our deal. We started as a basement band, you know, when we were in high school. We went to college to really try to make it. We went to the biggest school in the country at the time, Ohio State University, and we went for four years. Not everybody graduated, but a couple of us did.

M: You did right?

C: Yeah, I did. Woo-hoo!

M: Ha, there ya go.

C: Then we started the band and we’ve been touring full time for eight years. So we’ve been a band for 12 years and everything been a real slow growth, but it’s been growing upwards steadily since the beginning. It’s given us time to learn and make the best decisions and really pay attention to what’s going on around us. And I think we really us that to our advantage, because if something happened over night, I don’t know if we’d know exactly how to deal with it correctly, and not to say that most people don’t, but who knows. For us, we’re really happy that we got to surround ourselves with great people. Our manager Dave Roberge, our singer Mark’s older brother, he started an indy label for us when we were in college. It was really just something on paper so that we could get a distribution deal, so we could get our CDs in stores like Best Buy and stuff. It wasn’t even a real label. But he grew it into an actual full functioning label with a full staff, moved to New York City, opened up office space, pretty amazing. And from what this label, Everfine Records, was able to do, it raised us up enough profile to actually get major label attention. And we had sold enough CDs on our own that when we went in to talk to a major label; we did have a little bit of leverage. Not to say that it was all in our favor, but to be honest it was a business decision to go with a major label. We just wanted to get our music out to more people. And so when we signed with, it was Lava Records, which was under Atlantic Records, which has since folded, now we’re moved over to Atlantic Records, but it’s all the same thing. We did sort of a joint-deal Everfine Records and Atlantic, so that Everfine would always be a part of us. It’s synonymous with us, it was created by our manager for us, by us. Everything about it, the mentality, will stay there. And they’ll continue to oversee most of our live releases while the major label will put out our studio releases. Sorry for the long answer.

M: No, it’s cool. Because I know that the fans are always concerned when a band makes that leap. They’re not sure if they’re getting the same band that they grew up and loved, or something that’s manufactured.

C: Of course. I mean, we’ve seen it with our favorite bands too. If anything, it’s a stepping stone for us to be able to continue what we always done in the past. If we have to put out something that’s more geared towards pop-radio, somewhere where you see us on film or television soundtracks or stuff, it’s not to say we’re playing the game and selling out, it’s to say that we wanna do that stuff to be able to continue to do the rest of the O.A.R. stuff that we love.

M: Do you consider yourself frat-rock?

C: You know, the term kinda bothers me. I don’t exactly what it is. It gives you, it’s not that it bothers me…

M: Is frat-rock a stigma?

C: It’s just used in a negative connotation. It’s not like anyone says, ‘God, these are my favorite frat-rockers!’

M: (Laughs)

C: It’s always somebody writing an article about us who pawn it off as frat-rock, as if that’s a bad thing. I’m really proud of the fact that we are able to attract fans from diverse things, whether it’s a frat, whether it’s a sorority, whether it’s just regular college kids, whether it’s high school kids, you know, older adult, any walk of life I think it sort of reaches out. I guess it is a bit of a stigma. I don’t know, I mean at first it was jam-band, and that’s really cool because some of our favorite bands are jam-bands, but we don’t consider ourselves a jam-band at all. We just don’t do that. So, to get labeled a jam-band is just I think a little misleading. So, the frat-rock thing, I don’t know, it’s just used in a negative connotation. I don’t have a problem with it if someone was using it in a praising way. Whatever.

M: Does it bother you that your band’s music makes the beds rock in collegiate America all across the US?

C: Hell no, dude, that’s the point, c’mon.

M: We’ve got a lot of comments about that, ‘Dude, you’re interviewing those guys! We’ve had sex to that music all the time!’

C: Sweet!

M: Oh, congrats on being one of the top 100 most influential indie bands.

C: Oh, thanks, performing/song writer, what an honor, we are really excited.

M: There are a lot of big names on that list.

C: Honestly, I can’t put it into words, I was a little bit speechless. We’ve never really won any honors; we’ve never really won any awards. I think, in the past, people who know about O.A.R. know about O.A.R., and everyone else outside this world has sort of ignored us. It’s given us, I don’t want to say a chip on the shoulder, but it’s made us feel like we’re a little bit of the underdog, wanting to always prove ourselves. It doesn’t bother us but it makes us want to work that much harder. So to get some recognition like this, it’s really satisfying.

M: Another congratulations in order, you just got married.

C: Thank you, I’m actually about to get married.

M: Oh, I’m sorry, you’re about to get married.

C: In three weeks, it’s the countdown.

M: So what’s your thoughts?

C: Man, I’m really excited. I’m most excited to be sitting on the beach on the honeymoon.

M: Where ya going?

C: We’re going to Hawaii. And neither of us have ever been. Have you been?

M: Not yet, but this year. I think we’re going to a wedding. Apparently it’s supposed to be amazing.

C: Yeah, I can’t wait.

M: You still gonna be the same guy or what?

C: I’m gonna be the same guy, yeah.

M: What’s your most revolutionary moment of O.A.R.?

C: You know, again, I would have to say Madison Square Garden. It was pretty amazing. When we were in college, we played at a place called the Newport Music Hall. It was when we got to college and we said, ‘God, one day we’re really gonna tour, we’re really gonna do this for a career.’ And the biggest venue on campus was called the Newport Music Hall and we said, ‘One day we’re gonna play there.’ And we ended up playing there many times throughout college, and we sold it out almost every time. It was really satisfying the first time we saw our name on the marquee.

M: You guys always seem to show up with Dave Matthews. And I guess your ending the tour with them…

C: They’ve treated us well throughout the years. Honestly, we haven’t had a chance to work with that many large bands. We feel like we’ve always sort of gone out and toured on our own. They’ve been good to us, a lot of opportunities.

M: Pick up any pointers from Dave?

C: Yeah. That’s the best part of it. When I was a kid, they were probably my favorite band. I would watch them in concert all the time. So to be able to be backstage and watch a show is amazing, but really the coolest thing is to be able to be backstage and watch how they operate as a business. Most people don’t think of those things, but to see how they operate with the personnel that they hire, their road crew, the way that they handle the trucking and setting up of the equipment, and what kind of gear they use, and all that stuff. For us, that’s really the best part, I mean, we can sit there and learn from the best, you know. That’s the business model we would strive to be, if there was one.

M: Absolutely.

C: It’s an empire they’ve created.

M: Yeah, absolutely. So tomorrow, I guess you guys have your first live interactive on-line show, or concert, what’s going on with that?

C: Yeah, so it’s called Deep Rock Drive and we’re actually filming it at a studio in Vegas. There actually will be somewhat of a studio audience in there. It’s a really cool thing that we have never done before where we post a bunch of songs and people can vote on what songs, and the set list and what order they want it to be in, and people can type real-time questions into us. It’s a completely interactive show. Totally new, I’m really excited. I know they’ve done a couple shows but other artists, but it totally new for us and it’s relatively new technology that they can do all this stuff. I’m just really looking forward to it.

M: Cool. So at the end of your career, what do you hope to have accomplished?

C: Oh man, I don’t think that way. That’s a good question. Honestly, we feel like we’re just starting. If that’s another answer, I don’t even know. We just wanna be the biggest band we can be.

M: So what’s that mean?

C: I wouldn’t say awards or anything like that. I think that when I was a kid I would have loved to be on Saturday Night Live. I would love to be nominated for a Grammy, I don’t wanna win a Grammy, just maybe just one time be nominated for a Grammy. What about cover of Rolling Stone, that’s a classic you gotta go with as a band.

M: So you have your checklist.

C: Checklist, yeah. You know, seeing that platinum record up on the wall, which we feel very fortunate that we’ve gotten a couple of gold records. If you’re asking, I guess that kinda stuff, but I don’t really know. We just want to fucking play.

M: I got it, man. Thanks a lot for being with us, we appreciate it.

C: No problem, man.