Hey, hey, hey, hey How y'all feeling? Journey through the stories that define the artist playing Bonnaroo Who are they? What are they? What will you see? The what? Which bands? This year? That matter? With Brad Steiner and Barry Courter You know, Barry Courter, love can be found in so many strange places in life Rest stop bathrooms Workplaces The grocery store and a chance encounter Or backstage at Camp Nut Butter That's exactly right In the middle of Tennessee summer in 2018 I was thinking driving over here, Brad Yeah The power that the what podcast has Yeah, what's that? How's that? These guys, nobody knew who they were Is that right? Yeah, teeny tiny They come to our camp at Nut Butter They come out of Bonnaroo and suddenly everybody wants them The thing about love is that it creeps up so quickly and then it hits you like a ton of bricks and it doesn't let go And it's there with you for the rest of your lives And that's how we feel about the guest that we have set up for today The very first ever repeat guest on the what podcast, ironically enough Repeating Is repeat repeat Repeat repeat Yes Alright, let's start off by telling you who we are I'm Brad Steiner from WDOD Radio in Chattanooga, Tennessee That's Barry Courter from the Chattanooga Times Street Press This is the what podcast, a podcast that focuses on the bands that matter this year Primarily the play of Bonnaroo, a podcast by Bonnaroovians for Bonnaroovians Even if you're not a Bonnaroovian, we appreciate you checking us out Listen to some of the others that you may or may not care about We've got some good shows back there If you want to stumble through a few of them and check out some history along the way Of other artists that we've talked about or other Bonnaroo tips that we've given Festival tips, etc. One of the episodes you can go back and listen to is a show that we did live on the live on site of Bonnaroo last year It was the very first ever, I think, I mean I've been there for a long time First ever backstage podcast interview of a Bonnaroo podcast in the history of Bonnaroo last year I think you're probably right I don't know who could prove this otherwise You know what, it's sort of like Donald Trump, it really doesn't matter, I can say whatever I want We stumbled across them right with Bonnaroolette Yes Right? Last year It was one of our Bonnaroolette finds and then reached out and asked them to join us back in camp And we found out, I'm sure we'll talk to Jared about it when we speak But their motto is yes, they are the most agreeable, what's the word, accessible people that I've ever dealt with Ever And we just like them Yeah, that's the other thing too, it's amazing what the power, and look there's a common theme when it comes to repeat repeat It's not just yes, but it's also love, right? It starts from a place of absolute, 100% love between Kristin and Jared who are a husband and wife who lead the band And what they're willing to do for you, it's all from them loving each other, them loving their product And them loving you as the person who's investing in their product I think we made fun of them didn't we during that podcast because they're so lovey-dovey They are all over each other, all over each other And look We thought they were newlyweds I've spent plenty of time with them since then, they're always like this, always like this They're just happy people and it was, we had a ball, I mean they came back and visited with us And then pretty soon we were swapping craft beers and they were back and visiting some more Yeah, let's set the table a little bit and start over so that you understand what we're going for here Now we know that repeat repeat not playing Monteroo this year But when I talked to Jared the other day and he told me what his plan was for insert new album and their new single We immediately said, well you need to come back and talk to us about the new project Because A, not only is it damn good, but it's also, he's got a lot of perspective when it comes to Bonnaroo I love their Bonnaroo story because we talked to them, we talked about them in the Bonnaroo Let Show from last year We stumbled upon Girlfriend as a song that we really liked We went to the show, we really really liked the show We talked to them before their show backstage at our camp and they were unbelievably gracious They couldn't have been nicer, they sat there for 45 minutes in our dirty rotten camp And then we were swapping phone numbers Yeah and then it became like a friendship and talking to him subsequently in the months after Bonnaroo We'll never forget, I sat down at dinner with him, it was the wife's birthday and we all had birthday dinner He looked me in the eye and said, that Bonnaroo show changed our lives That's where I thought we were going, yeah And I joke a little bit about the power of this podcast But that Bonnaroo for them and for other bands, but they're the ones that we know of specifically Playing a show like that can change your career and it did for them We're going to talk about not only the new record but who produced it All of that comes out of the excitement that was generated, Walk the Moon, similar instance That first Bonnaroo experience, that type of thing can, it puts a band in front of a lot of people It puts a band in front of media, legitimizes, whatever you want to call it, it can be that springboard And it certainly seems to have been for these guys And we're going to jump into some of the stuff that they did on site with Jared when he gives us a call here in a second But I want to, before we do that, I want to give a little bit of backstory to When they were backstage at Bonnaroo last year, I've never ever seen an artist more They were everywhere Every time you turned a corner Every single day they were there hustling, talking to every piece of press They literally, there was not somebody that they would say And you said earlier, yes, they would not say no to anybody I kept asking Jared, Kristen, you guys going to, what show are you going to go to? Well, we'd love to go see it, but we're going to go talk to Dumbledore Magazine Hang on one second, they'll be back there in an hour Well, it'd be Dumbledore once and then the day after they talked to us was at Rolling Stone Rolling Stone calls them, yeah, and then Billboard When then Rolling Stone found out we had talked to them That's what I'm telling it Yeah, it's amazing because, I mean, if you, not only do we have Bonnaroo listeners Or Bonnaroo fans that listen to this, but we also have musicians If you need a crash course on the way to get your name out there Follow Repeat Repeat's model because as people who do this for a living There's nothing we love more than an easy get Absolutely We need easy gets and Repeat Repeat, not going to lie, was an easy get because they said yes We didn't know why they said yes We didn't even know who they were But because they said yes We've never done a podcast from camp, but that would be a novel Sure Idea and they just were the first ones, yeah, absolutely And because we hit it off, I will be a fan I will prop them up and I'll do anything that I can for the rest of my career If you are a musician, take that to note Take that piece of advice that Repeat Repeat is giving you and do it Just do that playbook because you never know when you're going to make a contact that could do something for you Absolutely, the only thing that I like as much as the easy get is following an act From birth Right To superstardom and all the way through I love that, to me that's the fun part of the job Yeah And I remember when we spoke at Camp Nut Butter with them about this, yes being their motto They play just as hard for one person That's right In a small club as forever, I mean they are serious about yes, that's their motto You never know that that one person might be that guy or one of four people That's right Now we're not that guy We're not that guy But you just don't, you never know You never know So hopefully we'll talk to Jared and Kristen from Repeat Repeat here in a second Definitely got Jared, I don't know if Kristen is going to join us I know they're very busy this weekend with their big single being released And the subsequent steps that their career takes after this album drops in a couple of weeks But we also have a very special guest We're trying to incorporate you, the podcast listener, each and every week And this week we've uncovered a guy that's got a pretty fun story Yeah, Brandon Best reached out He's from Flint, Michigan, paramedic professionally So we thought it'd be kind of fun to get his perspective and tips on how to do a festival like this We now know that we need to look up and try to order some banana sacks Yeah, right Hey, that's not Barry talking dirty Right, right, it's not underwear You'll understand more here in a bit Plus we've got a little bit of homework for you And we'll see what podcast listener for next week's show that we will talk about here in a second But first, let's talk to Jared and or Kristen from Repeat Repeat Hi, we're great What are you guys up to? Are you in the van right now? Yeah, it's awesome We're driving through the woods So before we start, just to paint a picture of where you guys are You're leaving the house, which is this palatial estate in northern Nashville With the whole Repeat family in the most amazing van I've ever sat in in my life Please explain how great this van is Well, it has several benches We call it the Chateau Lobby based off of Father John Misty's song It's got a couch in the back and an ottoman and tapestry curtains And about 200 buttons Every time we get a button from a show, we put it in the roof of the van So we're trying to make a little button museum Nice Excellent Yeah, we're content A whole button museum from the places and the people that you have seen before One of which being Bonnaroo 2018 Now before we get into how amazing your life is today and how amazing it's going to be in the future Let's talk about before Bonnaroo and the conversations that we've had maybe before But not necessarily in this format The show that you guys had before Bonnaroo The band that you had before Bonnaroo And then the show at Bonnaroo and what happened in the immediate aftermath Explain what that whole process was like And guys, I need you to confirm because I claim that it's being on this podcast Which coincidentally happened during Bonnaroo that actually launched you guys So I need you to confirm that for everybody Consider that confirmed Yeah, I think when we started the band prior to Bonnaroo We were lost in the desert And then we came and we did your podcast And now our eyes have been opened I feel like we've become better songwriters because of it Yeah, right I feel like our comedic timing is better Oh, sure And you know Grass is a little greener, sky's a little bluer Yeah, the food tastes sweeter The shirt has gotten more stripes on it somehow How's that possible? Yeah, it's like so many stripes We're in the zone family of baby stripes now Everything is lost It's really exciting But also that could have also just been heatstroke Sure, exactly But honestly before Bonnaroo We were working our way up the ladder That is the music industry And we always are, we still are We're never not improving But I think there was a moment when we got on stage at our show on Sunday Well, we knew what to expect a little bit because we played Thursday night for the Roo bus Which if you're If you are, if Wednesday night I'm sorry, if you're like a Bonnaroo veteran If you want to see what like the Roo vets do Go on Wednesday night and go to the Roo bus and go party with them And we got to play on the farm that night And honestly we were the first band to play all of Bonnaroo last year Because no other bands played Wednesday night So we got to play out in the campground And that kind of gave us a taste of what to expect the whole weekend And then we were just surrounded by the energy and the magical power of Bonnaroo All the rest of the weekend and then we got to play our official show on Sunday And I feel like we walked off the stage a different band And I think people took notice I know Rolling Stone took notice And you know, it's not been the same since, frankly That's awesome, that's awesome It's the power of a festival that you guys had wanted to be a part of for so long too, right? Oh, absolutely It was sort of one of those things that we knew we were reaching for And you know, we thought that we could get there But also it seems like this far off land that you know was maybe even pretend It was part of the reason I moved to Nashville No way Yeah, because I knew three things I didn't know a single person when I moved to Nashville at all I didn't know how to make it in the industry I don't have parents in the industry I literally had no textbook, no rule book But I knew three things Paramore was from Nashville, Kings of Leon was from Nashville, and Bonnaroo was in Nashville So I was like, alright, that sounds like a good trifecta So they're doing something, right? So that's one of the three reasons I moved here So to get to play it was a game changer, you know, it was surreal We talked about leading into talking with you guys How your motto is yes And how important that has been for the band Yeah, I think if you think that you know every single answer for every single part of it Then you're really doing your music and yourself a disjustice So I think it's important to surround yourself with the right people Whether that's in music or at a music festival And then from that point forward, trust the process and just say yes to as many things Because you just never know how good something can be or can become If you go into it with more of a yes than a no But see, that's sort of a testament to you guys Because there was not, and we talked about this a second ago There's not been an artist that I've ever seen, at least at Bonnaroo But actually anywhere, that hustles as much as you guys do or did at Bonnaroo You said yes to everybody, you wanted to talk to everybody You were willing to get your message out to frankly anyone And I always thought that was a hustle But now that I know you guys, I think it's just who you guys are And willing to give whatever you have to the moment in which you're living in And not letting a moment go by without maximizing the potential and what it could give you in your life I think a lot of that is an attachment to the fact that we're not Jared, what's the word you always use? Self-sabotaging And so we sort of at the end of the day want to know that if this ever doesn't get to the places that we're trying to accomplish with it It's not because of us, it's not because we didn't say yes or we'll do whatever we have to do And also I think too, the music and the overall energy of the whole thing is an extension of our life So to get to go and do all these interviews, it feels just like Christian and I get to go have conversations with friends And we're just so lucky to get to talk about something we got to make So I don't know if part of it is because neither of us come from famous backgrounds or anything Or if it has something to do with we're always really high energy and as the kids say, sometimes a little extra But we always feel really privileged that anyone wants to talk to us about our music So we want to be as open to that as possible And honestly, Bonnaroo wasn't the first time we did that We played Four Castle the year before and we did 24 interviews in 12 hours And then I think we went to Floss Fest in Birmingham right after Bonnaroo And we did something like 15 interviews in like 4 hours So it's a great way to get our name out there But also anyone that wants to take 5-10 minutes out of their day to come talk to us and write about it We feel like super spoiled to get to do that We don't want to ever take advantage of that or take that for granted You know, sitting here listening, realizing that we've talked about how hard you guys work off stage I don't know that we've really said, it's a great show It's a really good show too, yeah You can't just talk the game, you guys, it's a fun show, it's great music, it's a lot of fun So for people out there listening, yeah, yeah, I don't think we've said that Well thank you, well Rolling Stone, like we said, we've never been in the same band since Bonnaroo Rolling Stone, in all the best ways, kind of fucked us Because they called us Bonnaroo's most enthusiastic band And do you realize now every single show, like if I'm sick or there's 10 people in the audience Anyone there, those 10 people are expecting Bonnaroo's most enthusiastic band They set up our, to say the least, but I think we feel ready to meet it I mean we, I don't know, we want to reflect the energy we want to see in the audience And so I don't know, if you go to a show and the band doesn't seem like they're having fun, however that looks Well you had to cut out all the emo songs, huh? All the mopey stuff Well that, you gotta outdo yourself every single show, so like, hey Kristen, so last night I smashed my guitar into your keyboards What should I do tonight? Let's set it on fire, every night's gotta be something Yeah, but that kind of makes it super fun for Kristen and I and for our band I think it makes it a little nerve wracking for our management, but every show is a little bit different every time I mean we don't have like some shtick where I have like some scripted thing that I'm gonna say or whatever I don't know, it's just, we go off the cuff To that I will say because of that, Jared is an inherently funny person And a lot of times people don't realize how much I'm trying to not lose my shit laughing at him Because he will do things sometimes that none of us are expecting and we can hardly hold our reactions I feel just very lucky that I get paid to get laughed at by my wife on stage I feel that way at my job Who doesn't want that? Jared, I can't even get mine to listen to my own radio show, so you're doing okay Well I'll say we all get laughed at by our wives, right? It's just I get paid for it I feel lucky when she laughs because that means she's not going for the skillet or something because of something I've said By the way, skillet is code word for something on Barry's body, by the way No, no You know, it's funny to hear you say that, Kristen, because that's exactly what you said after the show here at Songbirds You just had no idea what Jared was gonna do every night, so it was always a surprise I started somewhat acknowledging it every now and then because I'm very transparent You can tell exactly how I'm feeling at any point And sometimes I just can't resist cracking up at him That's good Yeah, so now that we've settled the Bonnaroo thing, I gotta imagine you guys are living in a little bit of a haze right now The past week you released your new single, you had Billboard write a very nice article about you and the new album, the new project And then you got your music video put on Billboard.com and now you are looking at the next 12 months of your life Probably set in stone for you and you're just sort of like a cog in a machine So first off, let's talk about how excited you are about the new single Tell me about the new album, how did it come to be? Let's just start from the beginning Well, we're also in a haze because we just woke up this morning and our friend Michelle Branch shared the video and how much she loved it And that was just, it took our breath away because you know, I don't know, it's just like, oh yeah, here's Michelle Branch That happened He didn't feel that way when I shared it yesterday What happened? Oh, I did, I cried But not warm and fuzzy I understand I felt those feelings in my skillet, you know what I mean? Oh nice, it's like the matrix, it all started in a weird spot It hits you right in the skillet Exactly So we're really, really fucking excited for the new single, it's called Hi I'm Waiting And yeah, it's about, it's a theme I feel like a lot of people can relate to At least people like me, it's like feeling really longing for someone that may or may not know you exist yet So you know, it's just like, I think it reflected similar feelings to like when Kristen and I met And just wanting her to fall madly in love with me because I was madly in love with her and just waiting for her to catch up When I think of you two and your relationship, unrequited love doesn't come into the picture There were about two months in the beginning that I thought he might be too good to be true, so I was cautiously optimistic Well we joked before talking to you guys today and even back at Camp Nut Butter How you two act like you're on your honeymoon all the time to the point where we had to make you stop It's a lot of giggling, it's a lot of giggling It's like being with high school kids It's giggling and soft, like oh stop it, a lot of that It feels like that, I don't know, man, honestly, I try to tell people not to base, not to use us as the, what's the word, the example Because we're weirdos, but we haven't spent a night apart in eight years Oh yeah, yeah, that's right Yeah, so We're just our own version of like weirdos now I mean like I think it's normal for people to be like I need some time alone, but we've just never felt that and we work together And I said this earlier when you guys, earlier before you guys called, but everything starts with you guys with love The middle of the circle is love and everything sort of surrounds that and circles that over and over And I'm hoping that's going to be the same thread that, I can't imagine, it's not But I gotta imagine that's the same thread that's going to tie this new project, this new album together, right? Yeah, actually, quick story So we just moved, so last time we talked to you guys on the podcast, we were about to buy our first home together Then we came back from Bonnaroo, went on tour for six weeks, closed on the house, and then we came home and made a record in the middle of moving So we'd move in the middle of the night an hour away and then wake up at 6 a.m., feed the pets, and then head out to the studio for a 12 hour day And then move again that night So we did that and then my sister-in-law came and stayed with us for about six weeks, she's getting ready to go to France for the summer We hit this really weird time just externally, you know, cars breaking down and house problems, you know, was your first home and like just I remember at one point I was trying to change the oil in my car and my car broke and I was covered in oil and I was getting rained on And right before I feel like really good, amazing things happened, seemingly really difficult things happened, you know? And it was just a really hard time externally, you know, just like Mercury in retrograde kind of shit, you know? And my sister-in-law right before she left, she was like, she was watching it, you know, basically from afar and she said like At one point I heard you in the other room like practically sobbing, but then you said to Kristen, I love you, and she yelled from the other room, I love you too And she was like, that was really sweet, that's true, I don't know, it's just like even in our like hardest time with like whatever's going on And this industry's not for the faint of heart, I don't know, we never lose sight of that part So I think that plays a role in our music and it played a role in this song because originally the song, before we sent it to Patrick, was going to be about a stalker So it didn't really reflect us at first Every time we try to get away from that subject, people will let us, it's like people that have their kids on a leash, they'll let you go a little bit of a distance But if you go too far, they pull you back, so every time we try to go a little bit too far away from that topic, whether that's if we try to, you know, get politically charged or talk about, you know, I mean there are plenty of songs that we have that are not about us And anytime we try to do that, people are like, okay cool, for this next one, let's go back to like what makes you guys like the essence of you guys At one point Patrick Carney said to us, he said, you know what your story is, it's you guys, he's like, people want to hear that story And I was like, are you sure? I mean like people aren't like sick of this, like the big part of it, and he's like no that's the story, like stop trying to make it something that it's not So I don't know, we just embraced it, and so I changed it from being a song about a stalker to being a song about, you know, that unrequited love in the early beginnings of like a relationship When you started writing the album and you started putting together your thoughts and what you wanted this to be, when did Patrick Carney from the Black Keys find himself in this role that he eventually became? That was like six months before Bon Roos, so we had actually had two, we had two of the singles recorded that are going to be coming out soon Two singles recorded, the two songs we played at Bon Roos actually that were new, we had those recorded, and so yeah, about six months before Bon Roos, he had heard some stuff of ours He had heard about some of the shows we were playing and all of that, and he wanted to meet us, so we met and then we did these two songs and that turned into like a 3 a.m. text of him asking if he could do the whole record And we got that news I think like the week before Bon Roos, so we came into Bon Roos knowing we were going to do a whole record with him, and it was 20 12-hour days, and it was the most life-changing 20 12-hour days that we've ever spent together And he has since become like a family member to us That's unbelievable, was there a moment where you questioned any of it? Was there a moment where you said I don't know if this is going to be right, but we're just going to trust the process and go with it? I think the only part of it that we questioned, because I mean there's not a lot to question when someone like Patrick asked to work with you, there was no question in working with him, but more so a question about we had never, this had always been sort of a self-contained songwriting operation Derek would write the structure and a chorus, and then I would kind of edit words that felt funny or I always like to add, I helped make choruses big and things like that So it always stayed between the two of us and our producer Gregory who had done the first two records with us, so like the first thing that we put out as a baby band and then our first official record with Danger Bird that we put out in 2017 So I think the process we knew was going to be totally different than anything we had ever done We knew we were going to be writing in the studio because we had something like 22 demos but no finished songs, whereas with the last record we had been performing the whole record out live and then went to record it This album was about several months before we saw ourselves trying to get into the studio, so we had plenty of material, but we knew it was going to be a lot of picking through that material and working closely with someone We were trying to just sort of psych ourselves up to be ready for that process Yeah, and also personally it was challenging for me because in the last record we did, Floral Canyon, so like I played guitar for 15 years and I studied guitar in college and stuff like that So guitar has always been the thing I felt like set in stone about, like really confident in my abilities and usually vocally is where I feel like shaky So with Floral Canyon, I nailed the guitars but it was the vocals and the harmonies that took a lot of tweaking and behind the scenes figuring out, is Kristen going to sing a third here or a fifth or whatever And with this record it was totally opposite, the vocals came super fast, I felt like Kristen and I were super in sync with the singing and our harmonies A lot of the vocals on the whole record we sang at the same time and I felt like you could feel that vibe and the energy But Patrick broke down my guitars in the best way, but it made me question my ability at times because he would tell me, he would say, you're thinking of the song as a guitar player, you need to think of the song as a listener or as a songwriter And so I would start to noodle or I would overthink it or I would try to make it like a guitar song and he would be like, no this needs to be a pop song, this needs to be a song for the masses not just for the guys who read Guitar Player magazine or something So I would take, sometimes I would take four notes and I would be like, how about this and I would practice it all night and show up to the next day and I'd be like, how about these four notes, it's only four notes and he would be like, that's too many notes, it needs to be two notes And that was a big challenge on me because I feel like almost every day in the studio we'd go home feeling fulfilled but feeling, I would feel exhausted and feel like, am I even a good guitarist, like maybe I'm overthinking it, maybe my skill set is like not where I thought it was But then Patrick just would keep reaffirming it and when we would get something right or when we would get a take that we all felt was good, he would really drive it home that that was really strong and really good and frankly I walked out of that, I finished that record and now I feel like I'm a better guitarist in the right way You know what I mean? Interesting. Yeah. Like I knew all the scales going into, I knew scales and how to play solos going into making this record but now I feel like I can make any record going forward thinking of it as what, how does the guitar best complement the rest of this record And I mean, and I wrote guitar parts, that's how Ego left, you know, he was in the process It's interesting to hear, as part of, you know, this is what I do is my job at the paper is interview bands all the time and the whole songwriting recording process fascinates me because it can change from year to year album to album song to song, and it's interesting to hear how important a producer or letting somebody else into the process, you know, I mean, we've read about bands who changed where they recorded you know Sometimes they'd go to an island, sometimes they'd go to a house, sometimes they'd go to somebody's basement just for a different vibe. Right. And just changing. I mean, it, it, it takes a lot of trust, right, to bring in like Patrick or anybody to mess with your baby basically. It can and it can mess with your head. It's like he's so Patrick is so passionately obsessed with music. And frankly, we thought we had the record done in, was it 15 days. And then a week went by and he called us back in, and we went back in and rewrote and re recorded two songs on the record that we thought were done. And there are better songs now because of it. And he's obsessed over it and until it's right, you know, it like doesn't fit well with him. And because we say yes, like, we were like, Sure, let's go back in and I don't know. I don't know how other artists do it, but we didn't want to be too precious with it, you know, we didn't want to be like, well, this is our record or these are my lyrics or this is my guitar part. I mean, Patrick play gets on it. And I mean, like, I would sing a part and then we would end up being like, no, Kristen should sing that part and I would write a lyric and we'd like, nope, scratch that lyric, like Kristen writes a lyric like, I think taking all the ego out of it made it something that we are most proud of. And it will make it make us better musicians going forward forever. You know, and that's awesome. I was glad to hear you. Yeah, yeah. Interesting to hear you use that word precious. I'm name dropping but I interviewed Glenn Till book of squeeze years ago and I asked him what you know what happened. What was it like after the world started calling him the next Lenin and McCartney and he said every word became too precious. Right. I thought wow that put it right, you know, nailed it right there. But that's what can happen. Yeah, and you know we wanted to make. We didn't just want to make a repeat repeat record with Patrick's name on it. We wanted to make the absolute best record at this chapter in our lives that we can make, you know, and I think some people may may misconstrue, especially now that Patrick's back in the limelight with that new black key single which we feel is the same way you described our song, Brad, it's like, I told Patrick it's a grower not a shower. I said I liked it when I heard it at first and now I love it. It's one of those things I think some people think of Patrick is maybe difficult to work with or kind of an asshole but we had because we approached it ready to soak any knowledge we could like a sponge. He never experienced anything like that. He, he was absolutely like wise and hardworking and passionate and generous and kind. And, you know, but he also cared about the product that he cared about making this thing really good and I guess some people could have misconstrue that but we took it as he was passionate and. And because of that I think it's like, I think we bonded over that and I think, you know, we were ready to learn. And we took it as you know he really feel something about this music in this record and we were ready to like you know push ourselves to the breaking point, if we had to. Well that's, that's the part that I wanted to pick up on when you said he really believes in this record. How did he find you in the first place. Now, before you answer that I find it to be really odd listening but knowing that Patrick did this album, and knowing that information I went back and listen to floral Canyon, and some of your other stuff. Man, there were some like traces of black keys already in you guys, like you guys already did like some of the driving drum lines and the hook stacked on top of hooks stuff already outside a girlfriend outside a girlfriend that was sort of you guys is you guys had that already in you so I got imagine he saw. He saw a little bit of that when he heard you and said yeah I want to be a part of this album. Yeah, I mean, we both been fans of the black keys. Since the beginning I mean how could you not but I mean Jared has seen them at the Ryman and you know 2011 and brothers tour on the brothers tour and things like that. So, yeah, we've always been fans and. Yeah, that's definitely always been there. I don't know how exactly he took notice to to us what what the specific thing was. There's a rumor that he saw our audio tree performance. And that was one of the things that he kind of took notice of. He also, like, he also, you know, had seen kind of the year we had we had, we had. By the time we started working with him we had at least announced Bonnaroo and floss fest. And, you know, we had a successful run at South by Southwest, and all of that. But also, you know, it wasn't like he wasn't both feet in right off the bat, like, like, like we talked about with Kristin he was cautious, cautiously hopeful, cautiously optimistic. So, you know, we walked in the first day. And just played him demos. And I probably had 50 demos in my phone and, you know, I would play my demo ego that's that's not good that doesn't have a hook, you know, something else and I play another one. And I don't know man I don't know if like, because I grew up, or I went to school for music, you know, and I had professors that would, you know, they cared about your ability and your skill, and because of that they would be very. They would critique things and they would be very critical at times so I learned how to take criticism constructively. And we did one song and we thought that was going to be it. And then he texted and was like let's do another. And then he texted and asked our permission if we could do a whole record with him. And the whole time we were just like, are you kidding me like I saw you at a sold out show at the Ryman like you're one of my idols like, yes, of course you can. But I think because he approached it that way. I don't know it just felt like a mutual respect. And he said, your music cool but I can make it cooler. And we said, that's awesome. Let's do it. That's a great story that I love that it doesn't fit my whole the what podcast narrative but I like that story. He did say at one point, he said, we played him, you know, he said I listen to Floral Canyon. And he was like, it's good. He's like, but I want to make a record that people take mushrooms to. Oh good. Okay. It's not a psychedelic record but it's a record that I feel like you can take and see and then you know you can, you'll see rainbows coming out of the speakers, you know. Nice. Well you guys are walking rainbows. So that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, Kristen's a unicorn Jared's a rainbow. It just works. It just works. Thank you. We were individually those types. So when we found each other it felt a little bit like, you know, like an 80s movie. Good. All right. So. Like pure magic and awesome soundtrack. So first off, well to wrap things up we really appreciate you guys not only your work, not only your time but also as friends. We love you guys a lot and we appreciate you guys being so important to the history of this little show but also in our lives in general. What is the album going to be like? What can we expect? What's the release date? What's your plan for the next few months? Okay, so the release date for the album is May 31st and you go and preorder that. Now you can go to repeatrepeatmusic.com and preorder that. There's also merch bundles and stuff if you want to get all that. And also in the next month or two before May 31st if you if everyone listening out there if you all dug hi I'm waiting just you fucking wait for the next three songs we have coming out before the album because we feel like to put it this way hi I'm waiting is the first track off the record and I think one of the best reviews we got from a close friend was hi I'm waiting is great but the album only gets better. So if you all like hi I'm waiting we the band I think Patrick I feel like that the songs coming out next are only gonna are only going to be stronger rainbows and stronger unicorns of what we've done. So we're really excited about all of that. And we have some incredibly huge news that we can't share yet. But we will be sharing very soon. But very very big news that I think all of the listeners and all of you guys will be very excited to hear. So stay tuned for all of that. I have a feeling I know what this is. If I know this industry I think I know what you're about to say. When when is this little piece of information dropping. I can't say okay can you say when it when you can say okay all right. I've already said I've already said too much. Okay. But it will be but the world will know probably sooner than later. All right. Here's what I'm doing. Here's what I'm doing. Jared I'm writing down what I think the announcement is and I'm showing it to Barry. Now he's gonna have to put on his reading glasses. But that what do you think about that. You think that's what it is. Very good guess. Okay. All right. I'm writing it down and putting it in the annuals of the what podcast annual book history thing. And if I'm right I'm going to somebody's own me a drink. Yeah I think it's Barry. Oh dear. Okay. I also just want to say you made a brief five or six point list for new Bonnaroo people new group goers and some tips from us because we prepared not knowing what you guys want to talk about. Aha. Justice. So I can either send you the list or we can tell you the list. How about that. Is it. Let's do this. Is it a list that you guys have made as tips for Bonnaroo vians first timers or just in general. Bonnaroo vians first time. Well I have I have an idea. If you if you don't mind. I let's let's do this. Let's wrap up this conversation and let's let's pick it up next week. And you can be our guest for Bonnaroo first timers and give us your list that specific list next week on the what podcast. What do you think about that. That's our theme for next week. What do you think. That sounds great. And we'll be probably in the in the midst of South by Southwest. So we'll be able to give you a fun update on that. And before we wrap to we just want to say to you guys both of you thank you guys so much for being fans and being friends and for being with us and doing that first podcast with us at a very integral point in our career. Very excited that you wanted to do it with us. And we continue to be excited when we get to hang out with you guys. Yes. And thank you guys for being such lovers of music and for putting out such a great podcast. I know the listeners are thankful to you guys as well. And the fans of Bonnaroo are as well. So keep it up. We'll do episodes with you whenever you want. There are not two more charming people in all of the music industry that I've met at least than the kids from Repeat Repeat Mr. Repeat Mrs. Repeat the entire repeat family of which I feel very honored to be a small part of. I feel like I'm part of the repeat family like one of the dogs at the house. I agree. I agree. They're a lot of fun and they're very very sweet people. So that was a lot of fun. We're going to talk to Brandon a paramedic who's appeared at who's been to a few Bonnaroo's in his past coming up here in a second. But first we've got a little bit of homework for you. The what podcast listener and of course as always you can drop us a line the what podcast dot com or the what underscore podcast drop us a line and we'll immediately get you in for Bonnaroo tickets with camping passes. We got G.A. passes to give away like we did last year. So you just all it takes is dropping us a line. Say hello. Give us a story. Give us some feedback or you can fulfill our homework assignment for you this week. Next week we want to focus on Bonnaroo first timers. Last year we did Bonnaroo first timer show we focused on Bozzie next week we're going to talk to my buddies at H.A.R. and maybe a surprise guest and maybe a Bonnaroo first timer from last year. What I was hoping is to supplement our Bonnaroo first timer show. Give us your advice for a Bonnaroo first timer at the what podcast dot com or the what underscore podcast. You know I was thinking about that it's changed because of the changes that the festival has done to the site with the additions of things like the store the laundry mat out there and stuff like flushable toilets flushable toilets you don't have to bring nearly as much as you maybe did before. It's a good point. I found myself bringing much more garbage. Google stuff and stuff that's actually necessary. Like I don't I can't tell you the last time I really brought food. That's exactly what I was thinking. I bring snacks and now I plan to eat at least one meal maybe two meals a day in center because the food is so good. It's so good. Go in there and buy something. Yeah. Get a spicy pie. Yeah. And honestly when I'm waking up in the morning I really just don't feel like eating. No I don't eat a lot because obviously you don't want to spend your days in the flesh of all or not. You're trying to possess. Position your body for the maximum that you can for the day. It's better to eat many meals or small meals throughout the day. I do that. I do that my regular life. Yeah. I eat a lot of things like that. You don't need to bring a lot of that water. Golly the first couple of years was such a that was what everybody was concerned about. Bring water bring water bring water because you had to walk a half a mile or two miles or whatever to get ice. You know and it melted by the time you got it back. Boy that's a good question. How is the ice situation out there these days. I don't think it's as bad. I think that's what I mean with all the water stations that they have. I think there are more ice. Is it still ten dollars a bag though. I have no idea. We haven't. I mean I've never bought it. My biggest tip that I read before I ever came was buy a case of ice or bottled water and freeze it. Yeah. And then that's what that becomes your ice in your cooler and it doesn't get everything wet when it melts and you drink it as you go through. That's been huge for me. That's great. Yeah. So that's what we're looking for. We want your Bonnaroo tips and you're right Barry. But I didn't think about that. My advice to a first timer. It was advice that I'd be giving to me as the first timer 14 15 years ago. A first timer that went for the first time last year and is doing this all for the second time is giving somebody advice this year for a first time. Totally different. Totally different world. I didn't even think about that. We'll hear Brandon talk about tarps. That's still legit. Tarps tarps tarps tarp shade. I've you know I've told you my first year only because it was in the truck already. The only shade I had was an umbrella. Which we strapped to a table and then walked around there moved our chairs around it like a sundial. I just if you've ever seen Barry Courter. Barry Courter holding a little umbrella and just traveling in a circle like going around with the globe is the strangest sight I've ever thought of. I was thankful for that little patch of shade. That's insane. All right. So that's what we're asking you to drop us some Bonnaroo first timer tips that you would give and we'll read them next week during our Bonnaroo first timers episode starting AJR and some of the Bonnaroo first timers that we're focusing on focusing on to see at the farm in 2019. But until then let's talk to Brandon. Brandon a paramedic been to Bonnaroo a few times before our spotlight on you the What Podcast listener. Hello Brandon. Hey guys how's it going. We're guys out there listening. Brandon is a listener who emailed us and we've gotten so many emails and so many people happy and willing to be on the show which is cool. Yeah it's a lot less work for us. It's a lot really exciting. But this one this one is not one that I would have thought of on our own I don't think. But once you reached out I was like man that's perfect. Brandon is a paramedic who volunteers right. Is it volunteer work or you paid. Well I get paid. I work in the city of Flint in Michigan here so I get paid there but not at the festival. Yeah that's what I mean. Obviously yeah I hope you get paid in Flint. Hey sometimes it's volunteer. My daughter worked with the volunteer program at Bonnaroo and I was surprised to learn of all the people in the medical profession who volunteer to work there. I was surprised until she explained it but you guys get to hang out you get to go. But it's kind of also your reason for doing the job right. You guys like helping people. So what better place. Yeah I didn't unfortunately and I went I volunteered at Electric Forest 2017 and I didn't get to volunteer as a paramedic there because it was through a different company. I still volunteered and we did a bunch of other stuff like we helped clean up the grounds and we sat in like the VIP areas and did then they ran the stores for them. It was still a pretty cool experience. Have you ever volunteered at Bonnaroo before. No I had friends who volunteered at Bonnaroo and they were all trying to convince me to go to Electric Forest which is about two and a half years away. I was like two and a half hours from here in Michigan. I didn't really want to because I'm not into EDM as much as I am now at that point in my life. They just convinced me to volunteer because it was basically a free ticket and I went and I ended up loving helping people there and clearing the grounds so it was awesome. Yeah Barry's daughter being a volunteer coordinator and then me having friends that actually volunteered and then the third level of it when we talked to Paul Janeway last year about his festival experience as a volunteer. It sounds like just a really difficult life. I don't know how Electric Forest does it but Bonnaroo does you 12 hours on 12 hours off and then you got to do that for a series of you know I guess three or four days and then you're there the whole week before. Is that pretty much how Electric Forest works? Well it's the same company it's like workforce exchange or what is what they call themselves. Yeah Bonnaroo is different. I know when my friends did Bonnaroo they had to go like three or four days before and it helped set up and they got to leave and then but at Electric Forest it wasn't like that. We got three eight hour shifts. You could specify who you wanted to see and they tried to work on your schedule and so we got three shifts that were eight hours and luckily for us they were all between like noon and eight and at Michigan it's like 80 degrees at that point in the year so it really wasn't too terrible. It doesn't sound terrible. That's the problem. It doesn't sound terrible. It sounds perfectly logical especially when you're telling a kid who doesn't have much money that they can go for free when they're 19 20 years old and then you're actually doing it in the Tennessee heat. It's pretty terrible and then you have a guy pee down your back. They tried to convince me to volunteer at Bonnaroo in 2015 and I said absolutely not. I'd rather just pay because I'm not going to sweat for you know four days extra. So what did your what was your overall impressions not from just the volunteer aspect your overall impressions of Electric Forest versus Bonnaroo. It's Electric Forest is amazing. The grounds are awesome which is like Bonnaroo is doing the where in the woods this year so I'm really excited to see that to see how it compares Electric Forest because Electric Forest is just it's huge like there's like I think they fit like a 12 acre forest that there's like a couple stages in there and you can literally get lost in it. It's it's pretty cool if they had the music that Bonnaroo has. I think I'd go every year but I like the Bonnaroo music way more and it's just a lot more fun at Bonnaroo. Just quickly the volunteer sort of thing. What what's the were there pluses. What was the advantage to do in it. Because that's for the free ticket. I mean that was probably about it. It was our record for it to kind of put us out in the middle of nowhere to camp. We couldn't actually camp at TA which kind of stink but other than being able to go to the festival for free event you know being able to I guess to help her out and see the behind the scenes stuff. That was my feeling too good aspect so I'd rather pay every year. When you come to Bonnaroo you come with a group. Yeah me and a couple buddies here from Michigan have gone the years past 2014, 15 and then in 18 and we're coming back obviously at 19. And then this year we have a toss of eye. We have a group that we met last year that are all doing group camping and I would like to do group camping but my other friends want to stay in TA. We got lucky we were in pod two or plaza two last year. At some point you transition from going to just Bonnaroo as a patron and then into a like a volunteer paramedic. Yeah did you maybe I misunderstood that Brandon. Have you done the volunteer paramedic at any either of the festivals. I know I haven't but what I was telling you guys was that it's just I usually when I go there like I usually bring my bed bag just in case if anything happens. But I also try to I don't try to do a good job of looking out for people who might be having too much fun and you know who are running around and looks like they might need a water or you know. Back at camp I usually usually bring like an IV star kit just in case if somebody's dehydrated around us that needs to help and luckily for me with my medical license I get to carry a specific drug called Narcan that will you know that will bring somebody back if they decided. Hang on a second let me write that down Narcan. Pick one of those up on the way. I was thinking I don't know if Brad was in in our camp when this happened but it was one of those other moments that reminded me what's different about this festival though the kid that got so high was it two years ago and ran across the freeway and didn't make it back. He got hit by a semi truck and one of the guys in our camp looked at the rest of us and said that's his buddy's fault and that's that's everybody else's fault around him that they didn't take care of him. The guy was over partying or whatever you know and made a mistake but it's sort of it's that Bonnaroo mentality of take care of your neighbors and friends. Well yeah that is that is exactly what you you seem to walk and talk Brandon. That specific case though I can't imagine that being if something like that happened to us I can't imagine that being your fault or my fault. I can't when we say look out for each other yeah we look out for each other those who were struggling but we can't also make their decisions for them. No no no I think it was more the kid had made a bad decision so you know we we as a community should step up and take care of him. Sure it's the way I interpret it. Sure and we see that we see that anytime somebody like falls apart in the middle of the pit at the what right. You know somebody's going to be pointing and I can't remember the show that this happened but I'll never forget the way that the crowd reacted when a girl next to me fainted and literally all of us screamed like hey oh my god this was in the middle of the day. And even the guy on the stage was like hey hey she needs help she needs help and then that's when the medic just ran straight towards straight towards her and we all just like picked her up and handed her to him. I don't know if I don't know what happened to her I'm guessing she just got dehydrated but that's the looking out for each other thing that we absolutely absolutely love and adore about this festival. Yeah it happened all the time out in GA too I mean like last year we were at Kellett and I was with one of my friends and they obviously know that I'm a paramedic so probably two or three rows ahead of us two three heads ahead of us some girl fell. And then they started yelling for it my buddies are telling me watch out my friend's a paramedic he'll come and help her which I always do you know if I always do something like that or some guy laying in the field in the middle of you know today when it's 98 degrees then you know I always go up to them and make sure that they're okay at least if I get there before the other people they have that first line of care you know a little bit sooner. Yeah you know what's crazy about that think about if you're somebody like you who's always on the lookout making sure that that others are okay that's really got to change your experience going to the festival as well you can't necessarily let yourself go lose yourself in a moment because your eyes are always looking and your head's always on a swivel. Right yeah I mean I always look for it I mean I still don't worry I still have my fun but you know just I don't know I've always I've always been like that watching out for people who just you know just need help and it's I don't know it's a divestious perspective that I like to bring to the bottom and what is that and I hope that other people who are first responders do is that they you know look out for that kind of stuff and they can help people when they need it. I've seen it in big big examples and small ones where people you can't ever tell on that Friday Saturday or Sunday morning when people are asleep in the in center room you know are they are they passed out are they are they having a trouble or did they just fall asleep but it always seems like somebody's sort of checking on them. Right yeah there is always those moments of I'm not too sure about him. Like the story I told a couple weeks ago on the show that you know but guy that camped with us went to the gore show came back in the morning covered in the gore blood and the medics thought that it was his blood they rushed right over to him tackled him and took him to the medical tent. He wasn't there's nothing wrong with him he just was covered in gore blood. Yeah I'm sure there are poor people who fall asleep and keep getting awake awakened are you okay yeah I just wanted a nap guys let me take a nap. And there are those people who sleep in center room because they lost their their wristband or whatever and can't go back in and out so they just sleep there but I just think that's a big big part of the festival is that take care of each other sort of and it's like that nowhere else. I really don't think it's like that anywhere else now you we've talked a lot about you know how identity plays a big part in each festival but the thing about Bonnaroo is that exact thing I love hangout and I love shaking ease I'm not going to be taken care of by the fellow festival attendees like I will be a Bonnaroo. The culture at Electric Forest was it was it was similar to Bonnaroo but not as you know they don't go around and say Happy Forest at Electric Forest not that I've seen when I was there but at Bonnaroo we all say you know Happy Roo or whatever and I went to Mopop in Detroit which is a city festival and that was more something I thought it was but it's still not the same as Bonnaroo. I don't even know what that is I don't know I don't know what that is. It's super small it's indie rock like this year last year was Bonnaroo there and Portugal Demand this year they got Cayman Pala and Fanplayer Weekend and there's lots of other ones too. Your first Bonnaroo 2014 you went back in 15 you missed 16 17 and then you found yourself back on the farm last year. I love this conversation and I know Barry will ask you the same question from 14 to 18 what were the big differences that you saw? Just the accessibility of the festival like you guys remember 14 and 15 we went I mean there was nothing but porter potties and limited showers and limited bathrooms and now I feel like I don't know if we got lucky at pod 2 but you know I feel like that there's a lot more actual bathrooms and not porter potties there. I feel like it's a little bit easier to take a shower I feel like it's just it's just a better experience overall I mean it's we had to rough it out those first two years that we weren't. Oh yeah you think you think that's rough and how about 2004 pal. How about 2004 alright. Yeah if you think that's rough and boy do I have a story about dead and company for you. Yeah it was more pleasant on the moon. You gotta remember for us in Michigan it doesn't get anything above maybe 95 or 95 times a year so when we go down there like that in 2015 I think the coldest day the coldest quote unquote was like 95 degrees and we were struggling at times. Yeah how did you make the so when you went 14 and you felt what it actually was and how this whole machine works how did you then prepare for 15 so you were a first timer in 14 how did you change your mind and make things better for you in 15. We brought a couple more tarps to kind of put up around our canopy and then in 14 we didn't think about it we didn't fill up our gas tank before we went in so we only have limited yeah we only have limited AC so I know in 15 we filled up our both of our cars that we joked down. Make sure we had a full tank of gas and you know those who had sleeping those funs what they thought of our tent and then go into the car and try and sleep a little bit longer. I never even thought about that that is a really good point fill your gas tank before you get in now I don't they won't let you bring a spare thing gas will they. No they take that and that's a great point not just for the AC but you might be sitting in line for six seven eight hours depending on when you're right there so you better get that tank of gas before you let's people coming from our our direction they hit it on top of Monteagle they hit that gas station right. Stop it stop it Barry stop telling our secret. It's the last one. Stop what you're doing right now there are certain things that we keep a secret do not say that. Well we're going early. It won't matter those little tricks that you find along the way so more tarps fill up the gas tank what else which by the way let me say something about the tarps as somebody who is not a handyman you can tell me that we need to get more tarps more tarps more tarps but tarps don't matter unless you know how to tie the damn things. Unless you know how to pull slack and actually get water run thing these tarps don't work here's what I suggest you do find a guy like Brandon who's a medic find a guy with some some handy skills and find somebody who can hang a damn tarp because it ain't me. Well we've told the story Brandon and I'm gonna let you finish answering because I want to ask what you would recommend bringing from your professional point of view too but we've told the story before but every time I think of tarps last year on that Sunday morning when it rained we sat around dealing with tarps. Chasing rain. Chasing rain and one of our campmates had a tarp over his tent at the exact instant that a lightning bolt hit a transformer that tarp collapsed on his tent. Right on top of him as he was asleep he was trying to sleep through the storm lightning bolt hits his tarp collapses water drenches his entire campsite it was the best. We laugh and say he basically was birthed out of a little tent because he came out of there I'm convinced he was gonna see nothing but angels. It was pretty funny. The sight of a guy who's soaking wet coming out he looked like Ace Ventura too coming out of that back of the rhinoceros man it was just the strangest thing in the world. Eyes wide open thought he had been struck by lightning it was just the best. Professionally what do you see you know just observationally that people don't bring or don't do to take care of themselves drinking enough water I would think would be right at the top. Yeah I mean professionally you just gotta just take it easy I mean you got four days or five days depending on like we show up on Wednesday morning so you got five days to have fun just just relax just try to get through the heat and just you know drink as much water as you can eat. I notice a lot of people don't eat especially myself and just try and stay cool especially like I said if you're from up north like we are it doesn't get that hot you just gotta stay cool and make sure that you're you know we got electrolytes and just do your thing. Don't try and get don't try and get too messed up at three o'clock in the afternoon with a 98 degrees. Pace yourself. Yeah it's good pacing. Don't blow yourself out. Okay well that brings me to a rookie question and I will say this by the way we'll do a Bonnaroo first timer episode and in Bonnaroo first timer I'd love to go through some of the rookie mistakes that we make and talk about some of the things so if you have a rookie mistake that you've made or a rookie mistake that you've seen send it to us at the whatpodcast.com or the what underscore podcast and we'll feature some next week but I will say this first and foremost I've got two part or one never never never never get drunk at Bonnaroo ever you can get a little bit never get obliterated because there's nothing that will feel worse to you than a hangover in when you wake up and it's 95 degrees. There is no relief from that. It does not get better from there. There's nowhere to go. There's nowhere to go from hangover at 95 degrees. Don't get drunk at Bonnaroo. And if you think you want to just consider this port-a-potty. Yes okay that's my first part. Second part if you decide that let me don't decide maybe you stumble in to a drunk night at Bonnaroo and you are hung over what is your hangover remedy as a trained professional Brandon. Well luckily for me I have banana bags that if I'm really that hung over I can just start an IV on myself and let it run so that gets it pretty quick. So your banana bag you mean like an IV. Yeah it's like an IV. It's yellow that's how we call it. How can I pick up some more of my own IVs. That's a pro tip right there. Is that available to Dicks? Can I get that? I got a stack of them if you run into some trouble there I'll just get a hold of them and I'll come and help you guys out. That is a pro tip. Find somebody who can give you an IV. A banana bag. Jesus as long as it doesn't come in glass I think they're gonna let you bring it in. That's hardcore. No it's plastic that's it. Alright so if I'm not privy to said banana bag how am I curing my hangover Brandon? Air conditioning, water, Gatorade, sleep, food I don't know it's 95 degrees that sounds absolutely miserable. I'll take your advice exactly where I'm going to go at night maybe I'll have you know I get to a decent point but stay away from the liquor. Try and just drink beer and just don't get too crazy that sounds miserable being a hangover. They took away Brad the best thing our favorite I mean it was there that one year for me poutine. Yeah. Has to be a great hangover remedy. Now look the poutine was amazing but if you think that was doing me better after a hangover you are out of your mind. Perfect. Let me put on a weak stomach some gravy from Canada. Absolutely some good greasy. Alright well Brandon we really appreciate you calling we appreciate you listening. Let's ask him who he's looking forward to seeing. Yeah that's a good point yeah we always go through this I forgot whenever we try to talk to podcast listeners and Bonnaroovians we like to get your picks for the year. So who are you looking forward to this year? Well this is a weird year for me because I've actually seen a lot of the people on the lineup but I'm really excited to see the Aver brothers again. I have not seen the Lumineers and they don't tour very often so I'm really excited to see them. I'm really excited I think you guys talked about a hippocampus I just discovered them. Maybe three weeks ago and I am so pumped to see them. You know Chris is who I remember he's from Michigan and I'm really glad to see him there. Next Mark was another good one Catfish and the Bonnamans. You have you have other people from Michigan coming with you? Yeah I think there's going to be three or four of us from Michigan and then the group that is getting together I know they're from everywhere. There's a couple guys from California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas they're from everywhere. You're not driving though are you? Are you flying? Oh we're driving. Nice very nice. What's your transport? What's your mode of transport? What do you got? Well I actually just bought a new car a few weeks ago and I kept Bonnaroo in mind and I switched from a Buick Lacrosse and then I bought a Chevy Equinox. So yeah the hatchback and my buddy Wes he said he's seen the new car and he was like oh this is the perfect car to take to Bonnaroo. I kept that in mind. I will tell you that when we bought the car that I have now a GTI I mean I was in love with it and I was going to buy this car but the first thing that I stopped myself when I really came to after I fell in love and took it on a few dates and I tried to reset myself I looked over and said is this car going to be okay for Bonnaroo? It was the first time I had even had a doubt about the vehicle I was purchasing and it had something to do with Bonnaroo. You're considering vehicles based on Bonnaroo. That tells us how far we've come. And I'll never forget Brandon I went over to Caravan up with them one year and they literally could not fit a hula hoop into the car. I was so packed I needed Barry to come by and get this hula hoop off my hands because I just couldn't squeeze it one more thing. We did that in 2015 we drove my 2011 Chevy Malibu and there was three guys and it was so packed and then obviously after five days of being there and one shower maybe the car right back did not smell so good. That's the other tip I'm going to maybe mention and make a note of it for next week but whatever you think that you've packed into the car when you're leaving the house reduce it by 20% because that shit ain't getting back in the same way. It's not getting back in the same way. That's why we have, is it Gearheads? Is that the company here? Yeah here in Chattanooga yeah. Gearhead we're an hour away Brandon and people like you that Sunday or Monday morning it's like no it can just stay here. Yeah. They're not going back in the car and so they go and collect it and then resell it goes to a lot of social programs. There you go. Yeah we pack everything up and it's about nine and a half hours down there without any stops so that's the one stinky ride home. I didn't even think about that part. That's a big drive, that's a big drive because I'll tell you there's no shorter drive in the world than getting to Bonnaroo and we live 45 minutes away. There's no longer drive in the world than getting home from Bonnaroo. Well by and large that's why it was bad. We came next to these people in 2015 that were from Maine and you think oh East Coast it's got to be you know 10, 12, maybe 15 hours at the most. They were 26 hours away. I could never do that. I love it. I love it so much. I do it all the time. But yeah you know we were talking about the heat and a lot of people who don't have the kind of humidity that we have they need to they need to count on that. It is unbelievable. It's hot for us. It's more it's the only place that I can tell you it's like the only people who would be comfortable in this would be somebody that maybe came from the bayou. Amazon for. Something around the Delta. This seems comfortable to them. Other than that this is going to be rough for you. Well Brandon thank you so much for talking to us and hopefully we'll see on the farm. All right. Bring a banana bag for me. Put my name on it. Yes absolutely. I'll see you there today. Thanks buddy. See you soon. As sad as it is everything that starts must also end. Repeat repeat Brandon. Barry Courter Brad. An exceptional day here on the what podcast. We hope you enjoyed it. Of course follow along the what underscore podcast on Twitter or the what podcast dot com. We're down to double digits. Isn't it nuts. Like we've got less than 100 days left until Bonnaroo. And before we go I wanted to mention something that robust dropped a line on from Twitter and I didn't I didn't want to bring this up but he did. And I thought it was a very valid point this past week we celebrated International Women's Day and robust made a very good point. Dear AC Entertainment in all of the years Bonnaroo has existed you have not had a female headliner. Wow. That hit me like a ton of bricks. So with that being said of the AC Entertainment people that listen let's try to do something about that next year. Wow. I hadn't thought about that. I know we got the Brandy Carlisle. I know we got the Casey Musgraves. I know we got the Cardi B's and I don't think there's anybody doing it on purpose. They're not that kind of group. They're not that kind of people. But it is something that is going to start being very apparent if we if we keep going some more years about this. There's all kinds of programs within Centauroo and stuff like that that they do. They do a ton. They do a ton. But it does but it does look strange. Yeah. No I hadn't thought of it. I didn't either. That's why I wanted to mention it here at the end. I don't really have any commentary on it but it would be nice. It would be nice. And you know the names are aplenty. The Lady Gaga's the Beyonce's the Dolly Parton's. We gave them Dolly. We gave you gold. Yes. I know you hadn't thought of that before. Right. So thank you to Jared. Thank you to Kristen. Thank you to their whole Repeat Repeat family. The new album in stores on your computer in your phone in a matter of weeks. The new single Hi I'm Waiting. Go check it out. Thank you to Brandon. Thank you to you the podcast listener. We'll talk to you next week. Bonnaroo first timers. Hey hey hey hey. How y'all feeling? Journey through the stories that define the artist's claim. Who are they? What are they? What will you see? The what? Which bands? This year? That matter? With Brad Steiner and Barry Courter.