A former girlfriend played a big role in getting Ryan Winnen, Chase Lawrence, and Joe Memmel together in what is now COIN. The guys join Brad, Barry and Lord Taco on The What Podcast to discuss their Nashville origins, festivals, and their upcoming return to Bonnaroo this summer.
Barry, Brad, and Lord Taco also weigh in on last week's Jack Antonoff conversation and discuss the polarizing responses to Taylor Swift. Not only that, they discuss their upcoming ticket giveaway for Bonnaroo 2022.
Also check out Midist, who does our bumper music, and *repeat repeat, who does our theme song!
Guests: Ryan Winnen, Chase Lawrence, Joe Memmel
So did anything happen last week?
Brush off our conversation with Jack Antonoff.
We discussed the ramifications, the reaction and my chair.
Plus the restrictions have been announced for Coachella 2022.
And this week we're joined by Nashville's own coin joins us to talk all things Bonnaroo,
life during COVID and their plans for 2022.
Plus some news about Bonnaroo tickets all today on the What Podcast, which bands this
year that matter, Lord Taco, Barry Courter, Brad Steiner.
It starts right now.
Hi guys.
How's everyone doing today?
Hi guys.
Yeah, I'm good.
Are you?
I'm great.
Are you?
Yes.
Berry?
Dad?
I'm pretty good.
Pretty, pretty, feeling pretty good.
Pretty, pretty good.
By the way, just as an aside, my favorite moment of the Super Bowl was the Larry David
ad.
That was really, really good.
I don't know what kind of like Bitcoin that I just bought, but I really enjoyed it nonetheless.
It was good.
Larry David and said, yes.
I said, yes, whatever the product that I'm buying.
So where do you guys want to start?
I think we've got some things to talk about today.
You want to start with Super Bowl?
Are we going to talk about halftime?
We could talk about the halftime show.
Were you surprised that people didn't like it?
No.
I was.
I've been thinking about this for a couple of days.
It felt the further away from it, the more it feels like a pretty important moment to
me.
Am I surprised that people didn't like it?
No.
But I think the people who don't like it and post on social media that they didn't like
it, it says more about them than anything else.
So you're going to have to fill me in.
I cannot believe I'm heading to Barry Courter to get the social media reaction.
What am I missing?
What is the going complaint about the halftime show?
It was hip hop.
So?
So a lot of older people don't like it.
Well, a lot of younger people don't like the who.
Exactly.
Exactly.
I know.
I know.
But it was the first, not the first hip hop halftime show, but it was the first big, huge
production like that.
It was a pretty important moment.
It was a pretty intentional moment, I thought.
And I think it's being received that way by a lot of people who grew up with that music.
What do you mean big, huge production?
I don't really.
What do you mean big, huge production?
I mean, they've done that kind of large production stuff.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It was part to finish entirely dedicated to hip hop and in particular, those iconic characters
that were part Dre and Snoop and Eminem.
I mean, it was.
I mean, this is one of those things that I'll be honest with you.
If you didn't like it, I don't give a shit.
Exactly.
I got some news for you.
This might surprise you.
I didn't watch it.
I am stunned.
I cannot.
But why the way for anybody that doesn't watch the Super Bowl?
What were you doing?
This will surprise you even more.
I was watching golf.
The Phoenix Open.
Yes, the Waste Management Open.
Yeah.
People's Championship.
Yeah, they got those.
They got those trucks.
Yeah.
Those waste management trucks.
Yeah.
And that's actually what they tried to hit into.
That's actually it's a new course.
But that's not happening while the Super Bowl is happening.
Early on it was.
Yeah.
And then we just watched more golf after that.
Was there more golf to watch?
There's a golf channel.
Do you need a nap?
I mean, wait a second.
I love how Draco just comes out and says it's so like he's so surprised.
There's a golf channel.
There's a whole channel.
So let me get this straight, because I know who did this.
It was your dad, right?
It was you hanging out with your dad.
And so dad said, no, we're just going to keep it on golf the rest of the day.
Forget the Super Bowl.
That's what he said.
He went to the he was in the lounge at the at the Council Fire at the golf course.
And he'd been there since nine in the morning, just sitting there drinking beer and watching
golf.
It was too cold to play.
That's what he said.
And then like four, he calls me and he's like, hey, what are you doing?
I'm like nothing.
He's like, oh, you want to come over and have a beer?
Sure.
So he called reinforcements in because he'd been drinking there all day.
And so then we stayed until about seven or eight.
Yeah.
But at no point did anyone say, hey, guys, the Super Bowl is on.
We should at least turn it on.
A few people did, but nobody wanted to watch it.
I was stunned.
I don't know.
Yeah, I'm stunned.
It would have if you if you'd have said you watched the puppy bowl, I would be less stunned
than you spent.
I'm stunned that I that I watched that much golf.
Although, I mean, let's be honest, if there's anybody in my life that is good at this to
chew and just having something on and taco, just being OK with whatever it is.
That's true.
It really doesn't really matter.
He's you know, what do you say?
He's a flow.
He goes with the flow.
Yeah.
And of course, I'm drinking on the old man's tab.
So yeah, I'll have another right over here.
Thanks.
You could be watching, you know, Barry swim and naked and you'd be like, yeah, I'm OK
with this.
So long as if there's beer, if there's still beer.
Yeah, I'll watch it.
Yeah.
Bear me.
Yeah.
But it wasn't a PBR.
That's the problem.
No, they have ultra, though.
That's pretty good.
Is the GD a taste test challenge?
Do you think you could tell a difference in ultra and your favorite beer of all time,
which is the Miller High Life?
Well, yeah, at this point, I don't know.
My confidence is shook.
I did have another high life.
I had another high life the other day and it was pretty good.
So I'm still happy with my choice.
Pretty good.
Yeah, I'm very surprised.
Taco spent the evening watching golf and at the Super Bowl.
It's fascinating to me to be in a sports complex, which a golf course is essentially.
But you know, you get all that male energy and all the TVs and not one of them happens
to be on the biggest event of the entire year.
Oh, I agree.
I mean, there's like 40 TVs in there and they're huge.
It's like the whole wall is TVs.
Every single one of us on golf.
It was all on golf.
Yeah.
What a waste.
What a waste.
Wow.
Well, you were hanging out with your dad.
I'll give you that.
That's pretty good.
And he likes football, but he's more into college.
He doesn't really do professional, but it's the Super Bowl.
Yeah, exactly.
I don't know.
I was surprised, too.
I figured he would have at least wanted, you know, turn it on and see what's happening.
No, no care.
Well, I care.
Well, the halftime show was great.
I had no problem with it.
I thought it was a lot of fun.
I just think that it's just part of the nomenclature at this point that we all just hate everything.
Yeah.
You know, it just no matter what happens, we have to hate it.
I was listening to Sports Talk Radio, I guess, yesterday.
Actually, no, it's today.
And people were bitching and complaining that the game wasn't good enough.
Right.
I mean, this is how like the recency bias of our world.
They can't even like they need it to come to some like it needs to have a season ending
cliffhanger or it needs to have a season like a season ending big explosion like Ozark does.
Yeah.
If I'm going to like it.
But wow.
We didn't like the game.
People just want to hate stuff and they don't.
I don't really understand it.
And I'll be honest with you, Barry, I guess maybe it's because I'm older or I just have
stopped caring, but I don't even listen to it anymore.
I don't even it doesn't even.
Oh, I don't.
Come to my radar.
I come to my radio any time where that is just, you know, I love it.
I look, see the people complain and I'm like, OK, I couldn't see that coming, you know,
especially from you or whatever.
Hated it.
Worst one ever.
OK.
Is this mostly on Facebook, you think?
Because that's where you spend most of your time.
Yeah, that's my spend more time than they're there than the others.
Yeah, probably.
Yeah.
This is we got to get you off Facebook.
I guess.
OK.
Tell me which one.
That's where all the boomers are.
Get to Snapchat, we'll start sending some nudes, TACO.
Yeah, I'll need that.
I want to I want to get into the real quick.
The Jack Antonoff conversation that surprisingly blew up out of nowhere.
I didn't anticipate it getting as much traction as it did.
But if you didn't follow it, we had a conversation, Jack Antonoff from Bleacher's last week.
And afterwards, by the way, just as we don't talk about this enough, how well the consequence
of sound people do these write ups and they spend so much of their time and energy promoting
the podcast and they do such a great job with it.
So they did an incredible write up of the Jack Antonoff conversation.
And part of it, they highlighted a kind of, I guess, controversial moment where Jack Antonoff
sort of equated Damon Albarn and his description of Taylor Swift as a songwriter to be Trumpian.
And I think that got a lot of attention.
Consequence did a great job with it.
Then it went to Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and then all of a sudden M&M.
And every publication all of a sudden now has the what podcast talks to Jack Antonoff
and Jack Antonoff says blank, blank.
It was kind of interesting to watch.
But at the end of the day, I kept I kept like trying to replay it in my head.
And I must totally admit I didn't go back and listen to it.
I didn't ask him anything about Damon Albert and Taylor Swift.
Yeah.
Be one thing if you can claim.
Boy, I saw that coming.
I set him up for that one.
I put that ball on the tee.
Yeah, I'll get the sound bite.
I smell it.
I am so good at this.
Watch what happens.
I will.
I didn't even ask him about it.
I meant to bring up the whole point of me bringing that up was because I wanted to hear
how ridiculous some of his requests can be.
And I knew he'd have a good one.
And it was Barbara Streisand.
Right.
Well, that was the whole point.
And you know, just to get there, he mentioned being literal and I thought I'd throw in maybe
I did it subconsciously.
I don't even know.
But all I did was mention he talks about, you know, you either a songwriter or you're
not.
And then I said, well, I mean, if you're Damon Albert, you think it's a very literal thing.
Oh, well, there you go.
Yeah.
You did put it on a tee.
I didn't expect it to be that.
Well, I mean, I don't know.
How would you?
OK, but here's here's the part that I and I'm surprised you guys haven't busted my balls
about yet, because around here, it's been around the station, it's been a big laugh
riot on all Brad guys part.
So if you go back and watch the video right when he says the most quotable part of the
interview, right, the news part of the interview, he's doing his, you know, you also should
just shut the fuck up or whatever he says.
Right.
So if you're watching the video while he's saying the most newsworthy thing you see,
this happened.
This video finds its way to entertainment tonight or something.
You're going to see the city and radio station go.
Didn't watch the video.
I think I listened to it.
That's funny.
I'm now I'm going to go back and.
This is this is why you should subscribe to the YouTube channel.
You got to watch the video.
If you're not watching the video, what happened was, I guess I was I was going to go.
I was rearranging my chair and I hit the lever that sinks you down.
And all of a sudden he's just talking to an empty screen like I went down.
That's a clown car moment of my life.
And like in the middle, the other thing, too, and the only reason I think the guy that works
here noticed it is because during the interview you hear me go.
Because I'm falling out of my chair.
Absolutely so stupid.
There you go.
So instead of Brad's instead of Brad Stinks, it's Brad Sinks.
Brad Sinks.
Yeah, Brad Sinks.
Watch.
Watch this guy.
He's a great interviewer.
Watch him disappear.
Whoops.
He doesn't even need to be there.
He's good.
It's funny.
It was a good job, though.
It was good.
All the whole interview was good.
People should go back and listen to all of it.
It was a very highly downloaded episode, too.
Especially not just, you know, that part, but talking about Super Jam and how much he
loves Bonnaroo and all that.
I mean, he says everything we've been saying for five years.
Yeah, I hope we didn't spoil his return.
Something tells me that he's not going back to that.
Not come back.
That's 60 minutes.
That Brad guy can't even get a chair to work properly.
That guy pulls stuff out.
You didn't mean to say I don't trust that idiot.
Can't even operate a chair.
Yeah, I was told that he would do it again.
But now that I'm seeing the reaction, I don't know if he's coming back.
And I really wish that he would, because he was actually I had so much fun with the conversation.
And the other thing, too, that the other thing that I noticed was, man, it's just so polarizing
whenever you take take size or shit on Taylor Swift.
It's one way or the other.
Right.
It is the most it's like Kanye with her.
She is the most polarizing as polarizing of a person in the industry as you can find.
So believe me, I've heard some stories about her.
And what you don't want is to have her PR people come after you because she's got a
machine.
She has a machine and they are on it.
You know, I was going to ask about that.
I like her.
I don't know a whole lot about her.
What is the deal?
Is it just because she's so huge that she becomes such a target?
I mean, I don't what has she done that makes her such a target?
If I could be fair, because I don't want to just come out and bash on Taylor, because
I do think that there are some really good moments in her career and a lot of things
that she should be celebrated for.
I think that she's not been afraid of rocking the boat and then will act like the martyr
afterwards as if why is everyone attacking me as if she hasn't literally thrown.
She had some pretty strong opinions.
Yeah, I'll say I'll agree with that.
So, you know, with all that being said, I think there was a there's a part in the early
part of her life where she was sort of slut shaved.
And I bet that she doesn't really appreciate that.
So no, she doesn't really give a damn.
And if you are as successful as she is, why would you give a damn?
Now you get to roast anybody and everybody want.
I think it's the sort of martyrdom that she always seems to to lay on pretty thick.
With all that being said, it is a pretty stroke of genius to have your entire catalog sold
out from under you and then just redo it all.
Yeah.
I mean, like or not.
I mean, that's a pretty impressive.
A lot of people that I know and respect who I would not have thought were Taylor Swift
fans lover because they love her.
Her shows are great.
And then I have a friend who is a musician who defends her and says, you know, first
of all, people need to realize she pays the salary of a lot of people.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah.
And for no other reason than that, you know, leave her alone.
She's an industry under herself.
So another one that does that and not people don't even know it.
Dave Matthews is a giant in the industry.
Now, you may think it's just some 90s band who's going back on tour.
But if not for, you know, Dave Matthews, there's no ATO or red light.
There is no Bonnaroo.
You know, the the the umbrella that he has, it's it's unreal.
It's absolutely unreal.
And you know, she's really become sort of that.
You know, there's only a few people in this industry that that have that kind of, you
know, reach.
Ray to back to the Super Bowl, Draving, one of them.
Drey's got a incredible, you know, platform.
We're talking Jay-Z, you know, dozens and dozens, hundreds of people who are employed
because of these these guys.
So, yeah, I mean, it's not just a few.
So look, I mean, and you don't see you don't see Jay-Z or Dre or Dave Matthews taking as
many shots as Taylor does.
But with all that being said, you know, there is some insufferable moments that she has
been in and you could probably chalk that up to being a child and young and, you know,
who knows?
Yeah, you know, or just having that biggest spotlight put on you.
You know, we all can sit here and say what we think we would act like and how we would
act.
Being that ginormous.
Don't know, tell us you.
So yeah, I feel like there was something else about the Jack interview that I wanted to
bring up and I don't necessarily remember what it was.
And we did find out that it's 1984.
All songs from 1984.
I think we all could just assume that.
But hearing him say it was pretty cool.
Right.
How do we add some more time?
I probably would have jumped into more Bonnaroo talk, to be honest with you.
But we had such a limited amount of time.
And you know, I had to I had to set up the tea.
I had to, you know, set up the damn an album.
I would say somehow.
Yeah.
You got what you wanted and got out of there, man.
That's pro.
The big the big news that came down today.
Did you guys see what Coachella said?
No.
Oh, wow.
OK, this just came out earlier.
And if you're listening to this on a different day, you probably already know.
But the news came out that Coachella was going to drop all covid regulations and restrictions
from their festival in April.
But I don't know if I can see a calendar in the calendar.
You know, it looks like April is January, February, March, two months away.
And they are already dropping all restrictions.
So you don't need a negative test.
You don't need a proof of vaccine.
You don't need literally anything for one hundred and fifty thousand people.
Your thoughts, Barry, anything?
Not surprised.
It feels like with all the others, what Wal-Mart did the same.
It feels like we're heading that way.
And what I think will happen is we'll see that and then individuals will be making their
own decisions.
I mean, I had a couple of conversations just today about people, another musician who canceled
a local gig.
He just doesn't feel right.
And yet he was in a luncheon room with about 35 people, you know, no mass.
There's one mass.
So I'm not surprised.
Well, I think of it like so Mardi Gras happening right now.
And we've been going to parade after parade, ball after ball.
And there are moments where I feel a little, you know, a little close, a little tight.
So I'll put the mask on and I, you know, maybe it makes me feel better or something.
Right.
That's what I mean.
You know, but that is an open air, open to, you know, I haven't paid a ticket for it.
I can just walk in and go home, whatever I want to.
The only thing about a festival like this is that if you least have a covid test or
a, you know, proof of vaccine, at least there's some sort of layer of protection.
At least it feels like a layer of protection.
You don't feel weird about not having that.
Oh, I do.
That's what I'm saying.
But it's a it's an individual.
I think it will become an individual thing.
Like you just said, you feel weird about it.
So you either put a mask on or you back away or go home or whatever.
But I think the majority of people are just they're over it.
They're ready.
They're done.
I'm not saying it's right or wrong.
I'm just saying that's definitely the vibe I feel.
Well, that's that's the way that I feel.
You know, I did I did everything that I was supposed to do.
You know, I've done all my parts and at some point I've got to, you know, we got to get
out as my uncle would say, get out amongst them, go live, you know, but it does make
me feel better when I go into a restaurant and they're checking vaccine cards.
It does make me feel better.
You know, I think it would make me feel better if there was some sort of layer of of at least
perceived precaution.
But, you know, the reality is, that's probably all it is, is perceived.
Probably.
Yeah, it's I think it's mostly theater.
I mean, how many how many people did we hand our vaccination cards to at a restaurant in
New Orleans and they just like, OK, yeah, fine.
I could have handed them a, you know, an uno card or something.
Yeah, I don't really care.
They're just OK.
You know what?
You say that I did it.
I've had that card six, seven, eight months.
I think I've shown it one time and that well, you're in a different place, though.
I mean, but it's my place.
It's whatever.
I understand.
But I don't know anybody that that city has not acted as if covid was happening since
covid began.
They know they've never pretended like this thing was a thing here.
The Russ has seen it here.
You have to show it to get anywhere.
Now, he is strange, isn't it?
Because you're you're in a city of disasters.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
Well, they're not our disasters.
You know, they're disasters.
And you've seen all of them.
Everything but locusts that I can think of.
I've dated a few.
But Russ, I mean, Russ is right.
If he showed a if he showed a vaccine card that had a penis drawn on it, nobody knows
the difference.
Yeah, that's fine.
You'll take it pretty much.
I mean, nobody's checking to make sure that the name matches your ID.
And, you know, but, you know, I'm happy to show it.
I'm proud that I got it.
Yeah, it's a lot to put on waitstaff.
It is tough enough.
They got to check your ID and worry about that.
And now you put this on them and you know, they've been yelled at and screamed at and
called everything.
So I'm sure they're over it, too.
I mean, I know that I'm not saying it's right.
Well, I mean, the other thing, too, that, you know, not many people talk about is, I
mean, the state of California, you know, basically they're doing it because the state of California
has lifted the restrictions here.
But you know, it was at one point the most restrictive state in the entire country.
And there might be a tad bit of politics happening right now.
You know, but also at the end of the day, you know, it does feel like the numbers are
coming down.
It does feel like this thing is starting to go away.
But every time that we felt like that, it just comes right back.
Yeah.
Again, I'm not saying you're right or wrong or they're right or wrong.
It's just where we are.
So today we haven't even talked about this yet, but today we're going to have a ban from
Nashville on coin.
I don't know if you know, Coin Queen's been to Bonnaroo before they got a couple of, you
know, really pretty good hits, including one I think is such a fun song.
Talk too much.
They're a great live band.
We spent about 20 minutes with those kids earlier last week.
And you know, I think that they're they would have my first thought was, oh, good, we get
to talk to some kids who have never been to Bonnaroo.
And then I forgot that they were at Bonnaroo.
We're getting to the point, Barry, that, you know, 17, 18, 19 years in going to this festival,
I've forgotten half the people that I've seen.
I'd be stunned if you if it was different.
I love hearing the story of how they got there, especially the drummer.
Was that Ryan?
That's a name.
I'm talking about it.
He told his parents, OK, I'm going to go next time I go, I'll be playing there.
That's pretty funny.
I mean, that's some Joe Burrow bravado.
I like it.
It's a good interview.
It's fun.
We're going to talk to coin.
But first, if you could, because it really helps us out and helps the consequence people
who have been so wonderful to us for the last year.
If you could rate and review the podcast, that would be quite helpful.
You know, just takes two seconds.
I don't know if you need to do it again if you have already done it before.
But you know, start a whole new account.
Yeah, rated from a whole new account.
Rate and review.
It really helps the whole thing, the whole operation.
So let's talk to coin afterwards.
I want to talk about a Bonnaroo ticket giveaway.
OK, yeah, we're going to do that.
Yeah, maybe.
Yeah.
Let's do it.
My home life because of you guys is so difficult.
Do you know how often my wife walks around saying you talk too much every day of my life?
I'm so happy that what a beautiful accident.
Yeah, I'm so sorry.
Somebody finally put it into words.
Yeah, you wrote the theme song to my life.
Yeah.
I'm knowingly, we're torturing you.
It's beautiful.
Yeah, that's right.
You know, it is pretty impressive to write a hook that can be repeated every single day
for years and years and years later.
Yeah.
So let's start here because you're talking to some fellow Tennesseans, Barry in Chattanooga,
Russ outside of Chattanooga and I left Chattanooga two years ago.
You're right up the road in Nashville.
Let's start at Belmont because, you know, for those that don't know, you guys met in
college, right?
Yeah, around that.
Yeah, definitely.
Formative years.
Yeah, Joe and Chase met in a music theory class and then I was dating someone who sat
beside them who volunteered me to basically go jam in Chase's dorm room.
So that's how the band started.
I know a guy.
You should follow.
I know a guy.
I think the word jam was definitely used.
Oh, for sure.
At that spry age.
Yeah.
Is anyone using the word jam anymore, by the way?
Nobody's.
I mean, no, I think they use free trial.
Free trial.
That's so good.
Were you just looking for, you know, somebody to free trial with on weekends or were you
guys looking for a band to put a band together?
Barry, I'll be honest with you.
I have no idea what we were after.
Well, that's what I wondered.
I mean, yeah.
Looking backwards, I really was, we had the expectations of being the biggest fan of the
world, but also the hope of absolutely nothing.
So it was really, it was a weird time where, like, you know, you know that you want to
make, you want to make songs that insult people around the world.
And then you also, you just, you also have no idea what to do and what the next step
is.
So just so glad I met these people.
And it's bizarre.
It's bizarre that like essentially fate led us to be like, I just can't believe it.
This is the same people that we started the band with.
Like I feel like there's always some turnover.
Yeah.
10 years, right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Was one of your early tracks, Brad's hair is overrated because that would cut me straight
to the core.
Did you go to school?
That always fascinates me how people get together.
I mean, you hear about, we put an ad in the paper or put a poster up on a bar, but Belmont's
a pretty serious music school.
So you obviously went there for a reason.
Was it, I mean, you said you weren't looking to start a band.
What were you thinking career wise that made you go to Belmont?
Well, I think each of us can speak to this, but I mean, moving to Nashville was more of
like, I think we all saw it as somewhat like serving as an incubator for our creativity.
And it just felt like fertile ground at the time and just felt like the next logical step
and not as terrifying as LA or New York seemed at the time.
It was just like a baby step forward.
And so Belmont was for sure just a catalyst for me to move there.
And I think the same for Joseph.
Just getting to a city with like-minded people and a place where some kind of movement was
happening.
But yeah, Belmont, it was less, my dad was a songwriter.
And so I always kind of saw it as a possibility to play music and really do it as a career.
It was never like insane for me.
So that was always beautiful to have that realistic element as an archetype.
So yeah, I can't put it into words.
I was not out to start a band.
I just had never played music in front of people.
And Joseph and Ryan had high school bands and they were like, you know what, we know
how to do this kind of and iron sharpens iron.
And here we are.
When you guys were first writing, do you still have some of those tracks?
Do you still go back to them?
What are you doing with those things?
Yeah, honestly, we put out, we wrote four songs because the goal of the band was to
play just one show to see what happens.
I just wanted to feel what that felt like.
And I had just recently been to my first concert around that time.
It was just like, this seems like what a beautiful connecting experience.
And I really wanted to experience that for myself.
And like I said, they helped me, but we wrote four songs.
So we played our first four song set, which was 13 minutes soaking wet.
And yeah, we actually put those songs out and that's kind of what those songs led to.
We've actually never not put out a song.
I don't think that we've written that.
I mean, we've written a bunch now, but like around that early stages, we just kind of
just kept putting out everything, whatever we had to date would get released and then
would help us have a longer set list.
Where was the show, by the way?
Wow.
So there was a magazine that existed briefly in Nashville.
I don't think it does anymore.
I don't know.
It's called Native Magazine.
And it was their launch party, which is such a funny word, but it was, and it was in this
warehouse building that sounded like a basketball gym.
So we always joke that we played in a basketball gym because it just sounded like one.
So we had like a drum shield and like, we were like the loudest band.
We were the first band and the loudest.
The first band and the loudest band.
And the shortest.
And I know we've all told this story differently about the same, but one detail we all remember
is that the next show we were offered was by someone from a venue, what was it, like
12th and Porter?
Something like that.
And they were like, Hey, if you guys can just play a little quieter, like we'll get you
some gigs and we can, you could play next weekend if you want.
And we're like, okay.
And I don't think we ever got quieter, but we definitely did the gig and then one gig
led to the, to the next.
So
it's some pretty lousy A&R advice to be honest with you.
I don't know.
It's like playing loud was like our genre.
You know,
I want to ask Joseph and Chase, the, when, when Ryan's girlfriend approached you, did,
how many times did she have to keep, keep suggesting it?
Was it first time or?
It was the first time.
I don't know.
Cause I wasn't there.
I still don't know the story.
It worked out well, obviously.
I mean, I hung out, I ended up hanging out with Ryan like two days later.
Yeah.
We became buddies.
Yeah.
She just really overheard us talking, starting a band.
She was like, you guys need a drummer and just really volunteered the rest of his soul
for the rest of his existence.
I'm 10 years in the saddle at this point.
So yeah, yeah, it worked out.
It would have been really uncomfortable if he sucked.
I mean, no, we got the free trial.
I feel like it would work out.
Yeah.
Thanks, Kristen.
I, and you guys just decided the fertile ground of Nashville, I guess, proved, proved, you
know, good for you.
You stayed and you never decided to bail.
Why is that?
I mean, we, we definitely chose, we moved away and we've kind of, it's a, it's a, it's
a, it'll always be home and it's always going to be roots.
It's always going to be where we leave for tour from.
But you know, I mean, who knows, who knows where we'll be forever, but we definitely
love it.
And it's, it's always served as a reset.
Even times we've spent so much time in LA or Ryan moved to LA, Joseph moved to Brooklyn
for a while.
It just, it's always that, that means that just like reset and come back to the roots.
And it's always served as such a, such a wonderful home place for us.
Speaking of drummers, Barry, I got news this morning that one of our best friends in the
world, Jared from repeat, repeat had you on their podcast.
Oh yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Jared's, Jared's a good friend.
I mean, I, I've known him and his wife since he was working at burger up and I used to
work on the same street and I feel like we were just kind of doing the scrappy, you know,
part-time job thing for a while.
And it's, it's been cool to watch him and his band flourish and he's kept up with us
too.
But yeah, they're, they're great people.
I mean, I, I've known Jared a long time.
I never knew he worked at burger up.
Yeah, that's how we met.
And he was like, he always would take care of me and be like, dude, like when he played
his show and I was like, I don't know, what are you playing a show?
We had like a fun relationship.
So he's a good guy.
So when you get, you get the, the, the, the records done, you get the tours moving and
then you get the call from Bonnaroo.
That first show that you did in 2017.
Talk about that, what that meant for you and your career, if it meant anything and what
that like that entry into festival world is like.
Yeah, honestly, I think at the time I just, it's so part of the zeitgeist, especially
like in Southern culture and just America in general, you know, and I feel like there's
something about, whoa, this like Russ just showed up.
What's up Russ?
How's it going?
I've been here the whole time.
Say hi to Laura.
It's literally going to be on tombstone.
I've been here the whole time.
I like that.
But yeah, there's something really special about being from Nashville and it being so
close and almost like a hometown show and just to participate in such a cultural moment
was really special.
And we're so glad to be playing again this summer.
Along those lines.
Let me, I don't know, Brad, if you looked at their tour, this, this, this list for the
next two or three, four months, looks like somebody's wish list, right?
I mean, this is pretty sweet with you guys going.
You got, you've got where to go top of the list.
Harrisburg.
Oh, of course.
Yeah.
Later this month, let's start there.
But then you go to Dublin, Belfast, London, Cardiff, Liverpool, Birmingham.
I'm skipping some Glasgow leads.
And then you've got shaky knees, forecastle, governor's ball, and then Bonnaroo.
It's not a bad summer.
No, and a lot more to come as well.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We're really excited.
We're super grateful.
It feels like honestly, what you just said really resonates because we used to look at
bands tour schedules and be like, oh man, that is so sick.
Hopefully we could do that one day.
I know it is special.
It's crazy.
So it's, it's, I appreciate you putting that perspective because we've worked so hard for
this and you walk inch by inch and you were like, of course I should be stronger than
yesterday.
Of course I should do better than yesterday.
But nothing's guaranteed.
And it's just, it's so cool to just take it in and breathe and, and realize that the songs
we're writing are resonating with people out there and people are assigning their own meeting
and to them.
It's just special.
When you, when you said that Monnaroo was so part of the Southern culture and the zeitgeist,
had you been before?
I had never been.
No, I had friends that started going as early as like 16 and experimenting with LST and
that sort of thing.
I was from Cleveland, Ohio and had a lot of friends who did like the party.
Let's go to, you know, it's a, you know, Nashville is only like eight hours from Ohio.
So I feel like a lot of people would care of it and down, but I actually remember, and
my mother brought this to my attention, but there was a large group of kids going and
I remember I couldn't afford a ticket and my parents were like, we can't afford the
ticket to send you down with them.
But like, and I just remember saying, okay, I'll just wait until I play it one day, which
was such a stubborn thing.
And it's such my personality to like set that goal for myself.
But when we actually played it, I was like, I told you.
So screaming at yourself in the mirror.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's funny.
We didn't even have a mirror at the at Bonnaroo the first year.
I remember thinking that the hospitality could be improved slightly.
We'll see.
We'll see what's up.
Well, if you ever talked to Bishop Briggs, the, the trailers that you stay in, they don't,
they don't hold up because I basically destroyed it in a matter of about 10 seconds.
I was trying to open a bottle, the whole thing came down and it's, you're right.
It's one of my favorite stories ever.
She said, just leave.
She finally said, just leave.
Was she in it when it collapsed?
Yeah.
Yeah.
We were all there.
I ripped down the wall accidentally and the whole thing was crashing down.
Yeah.
He tried to open a, it wasn't a screw cap.
So he tried to pop it on the side.
I was doing the really impressive, like manly thing.
I'll take care of this for you little lady.
And I went to open up the bottle and as I did that, the front of the, the cabinet tree
came crashing, crashing, crashing down to the ground.
The topo Chico flies across the room, everything sprays.
And literally after the mess of the day, she just says, well, then he did it again.
Just leave.
Yeah.
And then it did twice.
And that one spun around on the ground.
That's when she said, just leave.
Yeah.
And then she went back in the back window and then it didn't.
Alright.
So we were just playing as one team.
So we were going there.
Dude we all broke down, into four teams.
Everybody was having theirible games.
They were 프�ountain's representational.
And I was just doing my protection and the minutes went by and he was just right.
in state and Boone, North Carolina.
We're on the bus right now and I'm just as thrilled
to be playing here as anywhere.
And I'm just so grateful for any time we get to play
in front of humans.
Yeah, as this thing starts to normalize again,
getting on a stage and having people safely attend events,
whatever that might look like, we're just,
we're like so excited to play anywhere.
Yeah.
Are the European shows much different for you guys?
We've only been there a couple of times
and they've been super special.
So yeah, they know, you know,
the world is a wonderful place.
Everybody sings along the same, right?
It's crazy.
I hope so, yeah.
I'm grateful for anybody showing up, it's great.
That's really cool.
I love the new single.
I think that you guys are,
it feels like you got like a fast track.
It feels like there's a avenue for you guys
when you start to put something together
that is, you know, whatever the next step is.
Do you keep yourself in sort of like a lane
or knowing where your sound is,
or are you willing to pretty much go, you know,
and make a Jew and a lion and try, you know,
let's try a hip hop song.
Are you that far out of the lane
or do you think that you've got,
you're pretty in the pocket
and you stay exactly where you are?
I mean, somewhat of all the above.
It was, we had a really interesting time in 2020
with, you know, of course, touring canceled,
I'm sure everybody had a wild year,
but we just set out to write as many types of songs
as we've wanted to write over the years
and kind of, instead of letting our influences creep
into our music and the way we see it,
we just embrace and then fully jumped into, you know,
being like, just paying homage to our inspirations.
And so we were able to get out a lot of things
that would have otherwise been kind of squirrely
to put into our songs.
So by getting out a lot,
I think that it was such a good period of time
where we were able to really experiment with things
and really hone in on what we love to do
and what brings us the most purpose.
So no, we don't have a lane other than to do what feels right
and, you know, give the song the love it deserves.
Somebody told us one time that a song,
each song is a universe and if it needs more trees,
it needs more oxygen, it needs more oxygen.
And so you give the song what it needs
and then stop like questioning with the confines
of what does the album need?
What does it feel more like coin,
whatever these constructs you create for yourself,
just give the song the love it needs
and then everything will work out.
You don't have to put it out, you know,
but I think it's so important to fully realize these things.
But you're gonna put it out anyway.
I mean, we'll see.
Because you put everything out.
No, no, see, right, that was a long time ago.
We probably wrote 300 songs over the past two years.
Okay.
We're going back to that first, Chase,
when we asked what the plan was
when you put the band together
and you said you had no plan.
And 10 years later now, you're still very much together
and we talked about all the great stuff.
Now do you guys sit down and talk about the future albums
or is it?
Very much so.
Yeah.
We are very intentional.
Very intentional then, huh?
Very intentional and a lot of vision planning and goals
and responsibilities and assignments.
And I don't wanna say you run it like a business,
but you just have to be, yeah, like you said,
intentional and very careful with,
I've been very convicted by the amount of love
and that people have for this music.
And I wanna do what's best by it.
You gotta be just trying to respect it.
Cool.
Well, I wish you guys all the success.
I'm excited to see a Bonnaroo.
I'm excited to see how the show has developed and expanded.
I'm just glad to know that it stayed loud.
Yeah, that's it.
Thank you.
Yeah, we're excited too.
We'll make sure that we start building the dressing room now
so that it's-
Yeah, sure.
Yeah, reinforce everything.
It needs to be structurally sound for all of us.
Plastic cups.
Go with plastic cups.
Yeah, padded walls for me.
It makes things a lot easier.
There you go.
The kids of coin on the what podcast,
which bands this year that matter,
Barry Courter, Lord Taco, Brad Steiner.
So I know I mentioned this before,
but before we get to the actual ticket giveaway,
I think that we're gonna have one of my favorite artists
in the history of mankind on next week.
If we can make it work, Barry,
I got the biggest man crush on Britt Daniel from Spoon.
So if we can get it on next week,
the new album is absolutely incredible.
Lucifer on the sofa.
It is not even close.
My favorite album of the last year.
Go listen to that because Britt Daniel from Spoon
on the podcast next week.
Nice, very cool.
Do you even know Britt Daniel?
Do you even know anything about this man?
Not as much as you.
Because if you would,
I would appreciate you doing a little research
on Britt Daniel.
Look at him, check out his pictures.
Look at him.
And then realize that he looks exactly,
look at him and realize he looks exactly like Nick Turner.
Oh, Nicky T.
Nicky T hates when I bring this up,
but him and the Spoon guy look identical.
Does he talk like Nicky T?
No, no, a little bit more understated.
But I think Nick grew up huge.
More understated than Nick?
Yeah, I think Nick specifically grew a beard
so he would not look like Britt Daniel anymore.
He does look like Nick T.
I know.
So Nicky T, man, he does look like me.
All these incredible transitions that you hear on the show,
they are of Nick's incredible, incredible band.
We'll put the link up to check out their SoundCloud
and their Spotify here at the end of the show.
On YouTube, I'll put up a picture of Nicky T
and Britt Daniel next to each other.
See if people can pick which ones they agree with.
Which ones which?
Yeah.
So I have got a possibility.
I need to make total sure,
but I'm 99% sure we will have tickets
for the festival again this year
like we do each and every year.
So this is our yearly show meeting
where we discuss literally on the show
how we're gonna give these away
that will end up being something really standard
that we do every year.
So consider this our promotions meeting.
How are we giving these things away?
Well, we've tried to give them away for the last two years
and it keeps getting canceled.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Poor Jack-Jack.
I can't imagine.
Oh, well, maybe she'll win again this year.
I doubt it.
But still not hearing any ideas yet.
What do you wanna do, an essay?
An essay, I love that.
An essay, yeah, I like that.
You know what we could do actually
because we've never done it before.
We should come up with some sort of like graphic design thing.
Something that makes you creative
and you have to whip up something graphically for the show.
I like it.
Okay. I like it.
Something about our show or about Bonnaroo?
About the, I mean, let's be honest.
It's about us.
Okay, I like it, much better.
You're getting there.
I like it.
Yeah.
I just remember when-
Something creative about the show.
I remember when we gave away, at my old radio station,
we gave away Alabama Shakes tickets.
Was it Alabama Shakes tickets or Shaky Knees
or something like that?
I had like 200 people make pictures of me and Brittany Howard.
It was just me and her Photoshop.
So it was like me and her,
it's just like McCartney's head off
and my head on Paul McCartney's body
and me and her jamming together.
That's funny.
That's what I'm looking for.
When Cher came to Chattanooga many years ago,
at the paper we did a contest where we drew
like a cutout Cher and people had to
make their own fashion cutout thing.
Oh, that's cute.
Like in radio magazines.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It was awesome.
You mix and match hats and skirts and all that.
It was pretty cool.
For the kids listening,
magazines were these paper publications
that you would read on a weekly basis.
If I had one here, I would show.
Yeah, they're from the 1900s.
No.
No.
So is Barry.
Yeah, exactly.
All right, I like this.
So is all of us.
This is a good start.
Maybe, you know, we can do it that exact thing, Barry.
And on either socials or the site, TACA,
we give people available pictures that they can use.
I think that's a beard and put it on my face
through your face or something.
It'd be kind of funny.
If anyone touches my hair.
Yeah, I was waiting for you to go there.
If you want to win, stay away from the hair.
Stay away from the hair.
All right, there you go.
Anything else you need to get to this week?
No, I don't think so.
Looking forward to your interview next week.
And we'll have Jeff Quay are on sometime soon.
I'm very much looking forward to that.
He's always great.
You know, he's changed jobs.
So maybe we can get him to give some inside history
of the Bonnaroo and festivals in general.
He's a guy.
Oh, he better let it all out.
Yeah, spill it.
I mean, it's not like he's under some sort of NDA anymore.
Yeah.
Let's go.
I know he's, but people.
Spill it, pal.
If you listen to our show before, you know, Jeff,
he's been on a couple of times.
He knows festivals and he knows the industry
and very excited to talk to him.
So we got a lot of stuff coming.
As a very wise man once said, we got a lot of things.
Got a lot of things.
All right, Lord Taco, Barry Courter, Brad,
we'll talk to you next week on the What Podcast.
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