Photo credit: Jamie Harmon
Tell us about your travel vehicle. Any notable breakdown stories?
This can be a boring answer. We wish we could say, “A flying car!” Aside from many planes, the last tour vehicles we had before the pandemic were rented vans for our 2019 Australia tour. The only major breakdowns or repairs that needed to be done , some relationships were after the tour.
How do you eat cheaply and / or healthy on tour?
You plan ahead, but it can be tricky. Google will help you find Vietnamese and Thai restaurants where you can find fresh vegetarian options and get the best bang for your buck. Otherwise, we keep a sufficient supply of apples, nuts and water ready for on the go, because on tour you can get caught between the trip, setup / sound check and performance and realize that you haven't had time to eat (or sleep all day) ). Otherwise, you will get stuck with cheap, unhealthy fast food or a more expensive version of a salad that is usually eaten in the vehicle.
How many strings do you break in a typical year? How much does it cost to replace it?
None. If they are moved, a set costs around $ 15.
Where do you rehearse?
From sampling in 10 x 20 corrugated iron stores, we have really moved up in the world. Nowadays, our rehearsal room is usually a rented studio space, in which we spread out and feel comfortable and can actually hear each other and have a toilet on site. Besides that, maybe two or three of us meet in one of our houses in the woodshed before rehearsing with the whole band.
What was the title and sample text from the first song you wrote?
The first song we wrote together was called “Birthmarks” and is on our first album: “You give me birthmarks in the shape of stones and hearts. Birthmarks … but it's worth looking at the scars to enjoy the burning sparks. "
Describe your first appearance.
The first gig, like most musicians, was in a bar … um … we don't remember the rest.
What was your last job? What was your favorite job that day?
Vicki: Run a local recording studio
Van: Record distribution warehouse
How has your music-related income changed in the past 5-10 years? What do you think it will be like in 5-10 years?
It was always a festival or a famine, and if life has taught us anything, it is that the future cannot be predicted. As we say in our song “Where Are We Going” (from our new LP on October 1st, 2021): “Be careful what you want. You may not know the cost. You can plan your destination and still get lost. ”But as far as the future is concerned … two more words: Flying Cars!
What do you know now, what you would have wished you had known when you started your music career?
Bruno Mars actually comes from the earth.
As a singer, songwriter, producer and performer, Vicki Loveland's life has always been about music. Her mother was a big band singer who toured in the 1940s and 50s; her father was a radio DJ in Jacksonville, Florida. When Vicki was four years old, she recorded country, blues, and gospel music on her grandfather's radio and soaked in four-part harmonies with her mother and older siblings on the family porch in Memphis. Vicki's professional singing career began at the age of 14: "I graduated from high school early and went straight to the streets," she says. “I never really wanted to do anything but music.” Her live performance and studio work as a singer and percussionist included shows and sessions with legendary blues artists such as Albert Collins, Isaac Hayes, Albert King and Rufus Thomas, as well as Philadelphia's low cut Connie, Alex Chilton, Tav Falco, The Box Tops, The Funk Brothers, The Hi Rhythm Section, Keith Sykes and many more. Vicki also found the time to graduate magna cum laude in music and recording engineering from the University of Memphis (she worked as a recording engineer and producer at several Memphis studios).
Singer / bassist / guitarist / pianist Van Duren has written and recorded more than a dozen albums in his long career, including 4 solo albums and collaborations with Jody Stephens, Chris Bell, Tommy Hoehn and Tim Horrigan. Born in Memphis to working class parents who both sang around the house, Van felt the pull of music as a child when he saw The Beatles on Ed Sullivan's Show in 1964. Directed by Andrew Loog Oldham in the mid-1970s, Duren moved from Memphis to New York City and recorded his first album Are You Serious? 1977. The album was a surprise cult hit and was broadcast on more than 100 US FM radio stations on the radio. After a finished second album was put on hold by the record label, Van returned to Memphis and started over. In 1982 he founded the quartet Good Question, which became one of the best live and recording acts in the south for 17 years. On the way, Van sang and / or played on tracks with Ringo Starr, Billy Swan, The Scruffs and Rufus Thomas. The Australian early career documentary Waiting: The Van Duren Story (2019) produced a soundtrack album that was released by Omnivore Recordings. This led to the fact that Omnivore Are You Serious? and Duren's second album, Idiot Optimism, in 2020 to get rave reviews and some deals.
Any Such Thing, the duo's latest album, was released on October 1st. Connect with them online.
