Yeah‚ definitely. It's been a learning process because some of those progressions come from letting go as opposed to pushing harder.
That's the sense I got from the second show I saw. It was a sense of everybody being more willing to just follow their instincts in the spirit of the moment and play more. And it was really great to hear it.
Oh‚ cool. Thanks for saying that.
Sure. The two times I've seen you‚ I have to admit‚ I've gone back to when I first started listening to good hard rock music -- with Cream and the Allman Brothers -- and especially the second show that I saw I kept thinking‚ Boy‚ this is like Cream when they really let go and they were really in tune with each other. Do you make a conscious decision when you go out on the road to do things differently‚ or do you just let it flow when you get up onstage?
We used to try to rehearse it‚ probably four years ago we tried to rehearse little inter-loops and little things that would bridge the gap between the songs and stuff. But now it just comes naturally and it feels better to not think about it too much.
On the new album‚ in contrast to the first one‚ where you had some almost purely acoustic songs‚ you have some acoustic textures mixed in with a handful of tunes. And I thought that was a cool move because it made everything seem more of a whole. Did it just seem like what the song called for and you went with it?
It was definitely what the song called for. When we did the first album‚ the four acoustic songs were put together in the studio in like one day. It was a spur of the moment. We'd been playing the songs for so long‚ we were trying to spice it up. And‚ you know‚ that's just kind of how we operate.
I think it can be a really good thing for a group to go in and be like‚ all right here's our plan‚ and make it be consistent. But I think with the decision to put the acoustic sounds into the songs‚ with the decision on the previous record to do like four acoustic songs or whatever‚ it's just kind of the spur of the moment‚ crazy feeling that's like‚ all right‚ let's do this because it's exciting and it's fun and we're not really thinking of necessarily the end result. We're basically just blending creativity of the moment‚ like playing live.
I know this would throw audiences probably for a little bit of a loop‚ but do you guys ever think of doing a short acoustic set within your shows?
That's what we're planning on doing‚ actually.
Really? Oh‚ great.
Yeah‚ and not really making it too long‚ but just trying to see what feels comfortable.
Well‚ that's exactly what I was thinking about. Something akin to the three or four songs that are on the new album either in the middle of the set or as you begin a set‚ play two or three acoustic songs and just see what the reaction is of the audience. Because the contrast with your electric stuff would be remarkable‚ to say the least.
You know what? I'm really glad you say that because I've been feeling that beginning the acoustic set‚ or beginning a set with acoustic is obviously really cool. I've seen a bunch of my favorite groups do that. But also‚ I've noticed with our group that about 45 to 50 minutes in‚ like the sonic is so… definitely becomes a little overbearing.
Well‚ if you don't like loud music‚ it will definitely start to wear on you. I can see that. Although I have to tell you -- and I don't want to sound patronizing when I say it -- I remember the first time I saw you guys‚ about a half hour in‚ and then again toward the end of the set‚ I was saying to myself‚ now this is why I learned to love electric rock 'n' roll to begin with‚ because however loud it was -- and it was loud -- it didn't blare and it was always musical‚ which I thought was terrific.
Well‚ you know‚ I think that's cool. [laughs] We try to make it as musical as possible‚ but I love the idea of throwing in like one or two quiet tunes just to shake it up so that it kind gives a rest and then a different flavor‚ and then once it kicks back in‚ it's like beginning a whole other set.
Oh‚ it absolutely is. How are you going to pick what tunes to play live from the new album?
We tried adding our little brother‚ Ben‚ to come in and play songs with us to kinda add some of those extra guitar parts‚ and it didn't really work. It worked musically‚ but just as far as three brothers personality-wise‚ we couldn't really do it.