This Friday

We haven’t played a show in a very long time. Please come hang with us this weekend. Yes.

RSVP here and please invite a friend or two.

I’m Back Baby

It has been a long summer, but we are finally back together. I went on an awesome tour with wave band Make Do And Mend for a month after our Europe tour and just got back to Michigan this past week.

It feels good to be back, we’re writing stuff as a whole band and its going pretty smoothly. Can’t wait to show you what we’ve done.

I’ve also been pretty busy with my own things. If you never have before, check out my website adamxvass.com. You can see previews of our merch for the Envy tour that we are doing starting in october. I’m also releasing a comic book with the help of No Sleep Records that shows some of our exploits during the MDAM tour. I’ll post more about that when its available for pre-order.

I don’t usually like to use the band website for personal stuff (thats why I have my own website), but I know more people will see it here. Since we have over a month off of shows, I’m looking for new clients interested in paintings or design work to help fill my time. Its the closest thing I have to a job and I can only ride my bike and play assassin’s creed for so long. To contact me for work, email adamxvass@gmail.com.

In closing, here is an exclusive unedited page from my comic book and a hoodie we will have on tour. For more, visit adamxvass.com.

drippingacidairwaves interview

per usual, the original text can be found here.

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Thanks for agreeing to do the interview, we’re stoked to be able to feature the band on the site!
No, no, no. Thank you for asking us. We’re very flattered to be a part of what you do.

We saw you about a year ago in a warehouse in Marrickville, Sydney and you blew us away. How did you feel about the tour in Australia and how did it come about?
First off, it’s fantastic that you guys were there. We had a blast that night. All things considered, our entire trip to your fine country/continent was a blast. The people, the shows, the bands, the hospitality throughout–everything was fantastic. We really hadn’t the first idea about what to expect coming over, and we were baffled and humbled by the amount of people that came out to see us and sang along. It was honestly pretty mind-blowing. Everyone was so unbelievably welcoming, so unceasingly accommodating, and so enjoyable to be around, it was an incredibly encouraging experience for us. Second, and most importantly, the tour came about because a really great band from Brisbane called To The North asked us to come over, and because their drummer Simon put an immeasurable amount of time and effort and heart into making it a reality. He booked the shows, took care of transportation, sent records around, promoted–the whole nine yards. Without Simon, and without every amazing and loving member of that band, it never would’ve been the success it was. In point of fact, it never would’ve happened without them.www.myspace.com/tothenorth. Do it.

Your full length record, Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair, seems to have got the band a whole heap of well deserved recognition, it seems like you guys have been pretty busy for the past 18 months… how are you finding everything?
Everything is pretty fantastic with us right now. We’re taking some time off to rest up and write some songs before we head out again (the past 18 months were, in fact, quite busy) and we’re enjoying it. We have amazing friends. I’m not certain we’ve garnered a “heap of recognition” but people are very good to us and we’re infinitely thankful. So, yeah, all in all, we’re finding things to be exciting and encouraging.

What have been some highlights of your recent success?
All the friends we’ve made and continue to make each day. This band has been and always will be about making friends and establishing relationships. The more trips we can take and the more shows we can play, the more people we’re able to meet, and, accordingly, the more friends we make. In bands, at record labels and such, and anyone else putting the emphasis on the community music and art creates. We get to witness the work of some of the most passionate and caring and dedicated people around. It’s awe-inspiring and we’re so thankful to be a part of it.

You are known for your intimate and passionate live shows, how have these transpired recently?
The same way they always have, albeit sometimes in unfamiliar buildings and environments. I don’t think the nature of the experience, that is, the relationship between us and the people in attendance, has altered in the least bit. It’s just the scenery is more diverse. If that makes sense.

How did you guys score the gig touring with Alexisonfire?
We’ve recently started working with a booking agency out of the Boston area called The Kenmore Agency, and our dear friend Matt, who runs the place and helps us out with tours, made it happen. Just one of the aforementioned new and fantastic friends we’ve made recently.

We imagine the tour was the biggest you guys have played, how did you feel performing in front of what we assume would be such a sizeable audience? Was there a different vibe to your usual shows?
It takes maybe a show or two to adjust to the change in venue and environment, but after the initial breaking in period you realize that, because the stages change, because the manner in which a show transpires changes, etc. etc. the spirit that really propels the act itself stays consistent. No matter where you play (be it a house, VFW hall, cafe, or 500 cap venue) there are people who aren’t interested in what you’re doing, or just aren’t interested in the whole thing for the right reason, but it’s easy most times to divert your attention away from them and focus on the people that care. And I don’t mean care about us necessarily, I mean people who care about the community.

You’ve got two split 7″coming out, how did they come about?
Conversations between friends, really. The friends with whom we’re releasing the two splits, I mean. Both artists are very close to us, as people and as musicians, so it made sense to share space on a record. We talked about it with them, formulated plans, talked to Chris from No Sleep, and here we are now–with new jams. It’s a pretty simple process that requires a lot of in between work.

The track ‘How I Feel’ on your Myspace has a notably faster and punk-ier vibe to it, what inspired it?
Partly, I think, just the mood at the time of writing, but we did make a conscious effort to focus on the similarities we have with the band on the opposite side of that split, Touche Amore, so a lot of it can be attributed to that.

Was the DIY scene from which you have emerged something that you always aspired to be a part of, and how do you see your relationship with that scene developing as your success continues?
The DIY scene, or rather, the ethics of it, is still very much a part of what we do and how we function, though I’m not certain that was ever the goal going into it. We were really young when we started, both literally and artistically, and we really hadn’t the faintest idea of what the end goal was–we just liked playing music–and for the most part, that’s still true. We’re not aspiring to be a part of any scene or genre or sect or whatever it is people ally themselves with, we’re just trying to play music because we love to play music. And we love to play music on our terms. Having said that, excluding yourself from powerful and positive relationships with other like-minded and compassionate people because it’s not punk or whatever seems wasteful. I think, in many ways, the landscape has changed, and people need to adapt, but maintain a level of cautious discernment. I don’t know. It’s a blurry, blurry line, and I’m no authority. Really, I’m rambling, and I haven’t really touched on your question.

What I mean is, it’s a really complicated issue, and one that brings up a pretty heated argument within the whole culture. But I don’t think our relationship with that community, a community that has been so incredible to us, will change or shift unless we change or shift the idealogies and beliefs that compel us to make music in the manner that we do. And that day won’t ever come. The minute we lose sight of the reason we’ve committed ourselves to this lifestyle is the day we call it quits. But it’s so, so much more complicated than people make it out to be.

Do you have any artists/people that are constant sources of inspiration?
Too many to list. Our families, of course, and our friends. Most of us would probably say each other too, I think. And that’s not even getting into all the other artists we love.

What is next for La Dispute?
Split with Koji in November, touring most of the fall and likely winter, writing and writing and writing for a new record which is presently only a few of the smaller bones that make up a skeleton, and trying to make as many friends as possible.

We are eager to hear more from La Dispute, can we expect a full length album in the near future?
See the above question. First half of next year? It’s all very preliminary. We’ll let you know.

You seemed to get a pretty good reaction last time you were in this part of the world, how long will we have to wait for another taste?
Not long, my friends.

Is there anything else you want to shout out to us over here, or anything else you want to mention in general that is inspiring you at the moment?
Joanna Newsom, my little brother, Charles Mingus, Neil Gaiman, Karyna McGlynn’s I Have to Go Back to 1994 and Kill a Girl, and sister’s little daughter Maddox. All pretty inspiring. Also, we miss everyone in Australia too much to describe and can’t wait to see you all again. Listen to To The North, Marathon, Quiet Steps, Bare Arms, Surprise Wasp, etc. etc.

Also, Stu Harvey always tells us he’s going to say hi when he comes to our shows and never does. What’s with that, Stu? If you see him, tell him I said that. That guy rules.

Thanks for taking the time to do this, most of all, good luck with everything – hopefully we will see you over here in the not too distant future!
Thank you, thank you, thank you.

“Somewhere…” 2XLP Repress

Second pressing now available for pre-order! Comes in two color-combinations: Light Green/White Marble / Black and Light Yellow/White Marble / Black! Each version is limited to only 1,000 copies! For those wondering, the C side sound issues were fixed for this pressing, and the D side features a etching designed by bassist Adam Vass. Ship date is TBA. All pre-orders and purchases come with an Instant Download of the album which is available in your account after your order is complete.

Pre-order here.

Two Things:

First, we’re playing a cool MI show coming up. How cool, you ask? Try Will Smith smoking a cigar in the desert after out-air-dueling that alien invader in the single greatest documentary of all-time Independence Day cool, that’s how cool. Big ups to one of the coolest dudes in the Great Lakes State John Hein and all the rad Metal Frat dudes/Dire Wolf guys for letting us be a part of another great time at what has in some ways been our home away from home for the last 5 years. Go Blue. Dave Kloc forever. Flyer’d:

One of the cooler flyers our name has ever been on.

There are a few other cool Third Coast shows coming up in October. One in Kalamazoo, one in Traverse City, and one in the Furniture City (I’m just full of MI nicknames right now), come out and say hello. We’d love it. Flyers and final details to come.

In the meantime, one of our best friends wrote us up in a UK magazine called NME and they even put a picture by it. Cool to get press so far away, but even cooler to get it from a friend. We love you, Lee. Now, listen to the new Trash Talk LP “Eyes & Nines,” it’s unreal. Thanks to Ivano for sending us the picture, and Lee, of course, for the write-up. Here goes:

We look angry but we're really just uncomfortable.

Well, that’s about it. Tigers took 2 out of 3 from the White Sox in Chicago, that’s encouraging. Still, a long shot to think they’ll climb out of the hole they’ve dug. Mike Modano is a Red Wing. I’m into that. Hell, even the Lions looked decent in their first preseason game (granted, they went 4-0 prior to going 0-16 two years ago).  Listening to Titus Andronicus and then Ted Leo and then probably more Ted Leo, can’t complain about that.  

Oh, and Shark Week ruled.

yrs, Jordan

That cool.