Interview: Matt Chrystal Speaks with Straight into a Storm: A Film About Deer Tick Director William Miller

Thinking Hard About All the Things I've Been Dreaming: An Interview with William Miller 
By Matt Chrystal 

Ok, so I’ll just start by letting y’all know that I love Deer Tick. There. I said it. I love how they fuckin’ bring it when they come to play. John McCauley and the boys make music that can get me fired up, mellowed out, get me to laugh, cry, scream, makes me chill out, party harder, yell "Fuck the World," yell "Fuck Yeah," hug a friend, high five a stranger, drink a beer, picture a story being told, reflect on my own life, want to go on a drive, want to go nowhere and go everywhere. And that could all be during the course of a performance, an album, a song or just a moment. I love how they have introduced me to so much great music with musicians they have picked to play with them such as Joe Fletcher, The Black Lips, Robert Ellis, Johnny Fritz and Those Darlin’s, just to name a few. I love that their side projects actually live up to the moniker of "super-group" (Diamond Rugs and Middle Brother). I love that I can be walking around aimlessly at a festival in the middle of the night in Tennessee and find Deer Tick playing a set of all Nirvana covers, having the best time thrashing around and not giving a shit that they are totally being drowned out by Kanye West performing over on the main stage.

It goes beyond the music. I love the fact that the same year I was laid off from my ten year career at T-mobile, Deer Tick was hired to play one of their corporate parties and they got wasted and had the crowd chant, “Fuck T-Mobile!”

Yes, thank you to Deer Tick for avenging me. I owe ya one!

There’s this thing called the “Jeep Wave” where people who drive Jeep Wranglers will pass each other and give each other this little wave, quick salute, head nod or some little acknowledgement that conveys, “Yeah, we both know how awesome this is!”

Well, that’s how I feel when I talk to someone and find out they like Deer Tick, My Morning Jacket or King Tuff… Ya know, bands that are pretty big names, yet not everyone is in “the know” about just how awesome they really are until they experience it… Yeah, kinda like a Jeep Wrangler.

I also get excited when I'm talking about music with someone, and I find the person has not yet discovered a band like Deer Tick, because I know they are in for a treat as they work their way through the band’s catalogue of albums.

Speaking of working through the band’s catalogue, I was lucky enough to attend the majority of the run of shows at Brooklyn Bowl that closed out 2014 and celebrated the band’s ten year anniversary. It was there that I took note of William Miller, director of the upcoming rock doc about Deer Tick called Straight into a Storm. I would see him at the shows behind his camera. We would give each other the “Jeep Wave” and then both return to our business. My business being drinking beers (Beer Tick was on special for the shows) and his was capturing the epicness that was about to unfold.

During the nights that followed, Deer Tick worked through their own albums as well as through covers of classic albums by the Beatles, Elvis Costello and Lou Reed. There was a Middle Brother mini-set with Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes, and guests galore including members of Titus Andronicus, a very pregnant Vanessa Carlton and even Stevie Nicks. Each show was a rowdy, rocking celebration. Heck, I even watched Julia Stiles stage dive into an unsuspecting crowd.

“Someone should be filming all this,” I thought… Oh yeah, someone was… William Miller was!

I checked online and discovered that the DeerTick10Film (aka FuckDeerTick10Film) was in full swing. I followed along with each update and I couldn’t wait for it to be out. Actually, I still can’t wait, but it’s almost done. It’s called Straight into a Storm. It’s almost ready; and, this weekend on July 24th at NewPort Folk Festival in Rhode Island, where Deer Tick are from and where they keep the festivities going each year with a series of after parties, William Miller will unveil a preview of his film about Deer Tick.

So if you are heading up to the fest this weekend, be sure to check it out; and, if you see William, be sure to give him a little “Jeep Wave.”

I recently caught up with Mr. Miller and got to ask him questions. Here is what he had to say about his latest project.

CoolMattyC: Your previous work includes Don’t Follow Me (I’m Lost), a documentary about Bobby Bare Jr.; and you have an upcoming project on Warren Zevon… so my first question is… Why Deer Tick? What about the band inspired you to want to make a documentary about them?

William Miller: First, I think I'm drawn to John (McCauley) and his honesty. He is not afraid to bare his soul on stage no matter what is going on in his personal life. And with the film, we see that honesty in the last 10 years. This passion was there from the very beginning. The depth of songwriting and storytelling from him even at a relatively young age is remarkable.

But this is a band. It's not just John anymore, and that evolution is cool to see. They all contribute and write songs. They are all incredible musicians and make the music they want to make. There is no selling out or trying to be something they are not.

CM: Prior to filming, what was your relationship with the band? How did this project come about?

WM: I caught some shows (Bobby) Bare Jr. was doing in L.A. and Robbie Crowell from Deer Tick was playing bass with him so we got to hang. Then, later, when I was in New York, I saw Deer Tick was doing a residency for their 10th anniversary. I hit up Robbie and things progressed from there. 

CM: I had assumed that the project was centered on Deer Tick’s 10-year anniversary shows and then I attended a John McCauley solo gig at City Winery where you were filming and I have seen several Instagram  clips of various shows you captured… Will the documentary be primarily focused on the 10-year anniversary shows at Brooklyn Bowl or is it more of document chronicling the band’s career?

WM: I have been a fan of Deer Tick for some time but I didn't know much about the history of Deer Tick before really diving into the project. Originally, the film was going to solely be centered around the 10th anniversary and their residency at the Brooklyn Bowl. But the more I started to hang out with the guys and shoot, the more I was diving in deeper and deeper, the project just kept growing and growing. 

Plus those 10th anniversary shows were so special because so many of their friends were there.  So I got to hear so many stories…

I started to learn more about John and Deer Tick's evolution, and I knew it'd be a disservice to keep this just as a little thing. So it was really just hanging out over that week and being lucky enough to meet their friends.

Then, when starting to develop the film, I found out a lot of John's friends had the initiative way back in the day to be like, "Fuck, we should film this. Don't know what it's gonna be later, but we should be documenting this." So there was all of this amazing footage of these important shows.  I was lucky enough to connect with them, put these things together and go from there. I was also lucky enough to get in touch with a few other filmmakers that were filming Deer Tick back in the day and was able to bring them on to the project.

The film is still centered around the 10th anniversary, but within that, they did a New Year's Eve show with a fan-chosen set list.  And through those songs, we weave in and out of the years of the band. So it has continued to evolve over the last year or so.

Deer Tick at Brooklyn Bowl Courtesy of Partisan Records

CM: How active/involved are members of  Deer Tick with the development/direction of the documentary?

WM: The band has been great from the beginning. They are very supportive of the film. They have watched cuts along the way and have helped fill in gaps if there were questions about how they got from 'a' to 'z.'  Also they have given me access to some amazing never before seen/heard material. 

CM: While filming, the working title, or at least the hashtag, for the project was “Fuck DeerTick10 Movie” correct?  I assume this is a sentiment in a similar vein to “Fuck Primus” where fans used it as a ironic slogan to embrace their favorite band and also ties into the promos/competition where Deer Tick requested that celebrities and fans record their best “Fuck Deer Tick." But, in your words, why this title and how did you eventually choose the final title, Straight into a Storm.

WM: Yeah, the #FuckDeerTick10Film was just a play off the previous FUCK DEER TICK campaign. It was never meant to be the actual title. I chose Straight into a Storm because, the more I kept learning about the history of the band and John, I saw them always going head first into any situation, good or bad. And always having the music be the most important thing. So no matter what shit was out there they were going to push straight through.

CM: You have released several videos of various artists covering their favorite Deer Tick songs. Does one stand out to you as favorite or a surprise performance? Was there anyone you wanted to include but were unable to?

WM: That’s a hard one. There are so many great musicians that are a part of Deer Tick's world. I think of the ones we have shot so far. Taylor Goldsmith (of Dawes) covering “Day Dreaming” was fantastic. Another that was great was Keith Zarriello from The Shivers. This was a last minute interview and he covered “Dirty Dishes” and it was amazing. 

CM: Can you talk a little about the fundraising campaign for the film? What is being offered and how is it going so far?

WM: We partnered up with Pledge Music to launch a fundraising campaign to raise funds for post production. The campaign is going well so far, though we still have a good ways to go. On the site, you can pre-order the film, plus Deer Tick donated a bunch of one-of-a-kind items including a signed guitar spared from being destroyed during one of the Deervana sets. 

The campaign site is http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/deertickfilm.

Pledge Music Campaign Deer Tick Group Shot

CM: How did it feel to be invited to show a preview of the film at Newport Folk Fest? How did that come about?

WM: It's an honor really. Newport is a big part of Deer Tick's life, and they have been great from the beginning. I was lucky enough to interview Jay Sweet (producer of Newport Folk fest) for the film and we just kept in touch. As this year’s festival was approaching we began discussing the possibility of screening. In my mind there is no better place to have the first public screening of the film than at Newport.

CM: You will be showing a preview of the film on Sunday July 24th in Newport but when do you estimate the documentary to be completed?

WM: The goal is to have the film done by end of summer.

CM: What kind of distribution are you hoping for? DVD? Limited screenings? Shown at festivals? All of the above?

WM: All. Ideally we would officially premiere the film at a major festival then limited screenings/dvd/digital etc. It would also be cool to have the film play around cities that Deer Tick are touring.

CM: What message or statement do you hope this film conveys about Deer Tick?

WM: I think the film is a very human portrait — one which examines the life of the musician and the unusual communities they build to support that life. It explores the nuances of what drives them to define and redefine themselves.

CM: What message or statement do you hope this film conveys about you?

WM: I think for me... I have always been passionate about music documentaries, but I don't want to make the same movie twice. The film about Bobby is way more like one of my favorite docs, Don't Look Back, in the sense that I'd lived with this musician for 'x' amount of time. There are very few interviews. It's just a portion of Bobby's life at that moment, where Deer Tick is centered around a moment but looks at a bigger time period in the band's life. So I guess I’m always looking to grow as an artist and this film is the next step in that.