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| Lydia, courtesy of High Road Touring |
Better Than Being Poked with a Sharp Stick
by Matt Chrystal
Arizona-based indie rockers, Lydia are having themselves quite a summer. They just released their new album, Liquor, in July, put out a stunning Wes Anderson-inspired video for the track "Sunlight," and have embarked on a national tour with their "homies" in Jared & The Mill and Cherry Pools.
Lydia's 2018 arrangement is anchored by the core of Leighton Antelman, Matt Keller, and Shawn Strader; and they are all set to let the spirits flow this week at Asbury Park's House of Independents and Bowery Ballroom in NYC.
To whet your appetites for the shows, I caught up with keyboardist and guitarist extraordinaire, Matt Keller, for a round of questions and talk about all things Lydia and Liquor.
Lydia's latest release was entitled Liquor in hopes that the listener would feel something in the vein of celebration or comfort when experiencing the album. I'd be interested in hearing about what the band was feeling during the songwriting process and experience of making this album?
Matt Keller: We went through a whole bunch of celebration -- and struggle -- from when we started until we finished. Front to back, the whole process lasted about 2 years, on and off. We started off trying to write with some new people, which almost universally didn't work out, save for a couple of close friends -- so that progressed into us self-producing with me doing all the engineering, which worked great at first but eventually progressed into me and Leighton arguing back and forth about ultimately trivial details at the end of every night (liquor may have been involved). Our guys at the label suggested a producer named Eric Palmquist who turned out to be exactly what we needed. He was just super open to all new ideas, while not letting things steer off course too far. At the end of the day, we produced 3 tracks; and then Palmquist produced the remaining 7 and mixed the whole thing.
The band recently took part in an "Ask Us Anything" session on Reddit. I feel like that is something that might get out of control quick. What were you feeling going into the Q&A and how did it go?
MK: I've seen a few of those go pretty bad, but it usually has something to do with the person being asked questions giving bullshit answers. It was super simple, super chill, and we were honest about anything asked. But I was almost hoping that it would have gotten a bit more out of control!
And it's banana creme pie or ice cream sandwiches -- in case you were wondering what my favorite deserts were but didn't feel like hopping over to the AMA page...
Speaking of liquor and getting out of control quick, what is the band's go-to party drink?
MK: I'm a tequila guy, Leighton's a whiskey guy, and Shawn's a rum guy; but on this tour I'm having some success working towards converting them to tequila, which is, in my opinion, the ultimate liquor.
Lydia has been touring off and on and in some configuration or another for nearly 15 years. What is the best advice you have received on the road? Or do you have words of wisdom that you can pass on?
MK: Keep a positive outlook. You're out on the road chasing your dream, playing music to people who love you. Keep some perspective. It's infinitely better than being poked with a sharp stick.
On the other side of that, what is the worst criticism you have heard and how did you handle it?
MK: Being told you were too drunk and sucked, even though, in your own brain, you killed it and everybody loved your shit. Don't be a jerk, don't drink a half bottle of booze before you walk onstage. Problem solved.
Speaking of configurations, Lydia's core is currently stripped down to a trio… has it been difficult to learn, relearn or rearrange any songs from Lydia’s earlier catalogue?
MK: We're actually a full band live. We have a drummer and bass player out with us who absolutely kill it, so it's not really too much of an issue! We've just been a three piece when making music for a while because it seems to be the perfect amount of cooks in the kitchen for us. The three of us are opinionated enough as is!
Lydia recently released a video for "Sunlight." Is that that (Lydia guitarist) Shawn Strader's girlfriend that stars in the video (and who quickly steals the show)? And can you talk about the making of the video?
MK: It's actually an actress from LA, not Shawn's girlfriend; but the confusion is understandable, as Shawn's girlfriend is the girl on the record cover of Liquor. The making of the video was pretty straightforward from my understanding, but I couldn't make it out due to me being in a neck deep in a record I was producing for a different band, so you'll have to ask Leighton if you see him! I know he's a pretty big Wes Anderson fan...
Speaking of videos, Lydia's frontman, Leighton Antelman, recently did a "drunk history" retelling of the Shootout at the O.K Corral, which happened waaaay back in the day in your home state of Arizona. Leighton openly and hilariously admitted to "never being that interested in it." So, what kind of liquor did he imbibe to unlock his inner historian?
MK: That's the whiskey talking, for sure!
Leighton's co-facilitator on the lesson about "iconic names" from Tombstone's past was Jared Kolesar of the Arizona band, Jared & The Mill. Those guys will be coming with you when you bring the party to the House of Independents in Asbury Park, NJ on August 8th. Talk about your relationship with your "homies" in Jared and the Mill. Can you share some of your experiences from touring with them?
MK: They're just really really cool guys -- super grounded, super real. We didn't know them all that well before the drunk history video, but it was really like the ultimate team building exercise, you know? "Get drunk with these dudes on camera; see what happens." Hitting the road with them has been a super great time though -- freakin killer band. We've been popping out on stage to bring additional harmonies / tequila shots to the party, and we have their banjo player Michael come out with us to help us out on a song... You never know what might happen!
Lydia's guitarist, Shawn Strader, talked about his love for Kanye West and about some of his favorite albums in a June interview with hmv.com, but I'm curious to see if the band shares the same tastes and influences and what you all vibe on when hanging out on the road together?
MK: We're all big Kanye fans, and we all kinda come from similar backgrounds and have similar tastes. The Beatles are always a win, John Mayer will always go over well, and then a lot of times we just chill with no music at all, which can kinda help clear your head. We're just all really, really chill people, and a good chunk of our time is spent saying complete nonsense -- like total inside joke bullshit that only we would get -- in an effort to crack each other up. You gotta pass the time, you know?
Legend has it (or a reddit answer has it) that the band, chose the name "Lydia" at the last second at a gig at a pizza place in AZ. So I have to ask… pineapple on pizza, yay or nay? Favorite pizza topping?
MK: That's generally a no for me. I'm not above it, but it's one of the last choices for pizza that I would ever make. Pepperoni will do me just fine, but I'm also a big fan of a legit wood-fired Margherita pizza.
Speaking of gourmet creations, has the name Lydia ever led to confused concert attendees expecting to sit in on a woman's cooking show?
MK: It's actually a major issue that we're dealing with, and we're trying to get it sorted out as soon as possible. In the meantime we've added a cooking segment to the show, as a sort of band-aid until we find a way to fix the miscommunication.
Thoughts on today's America? Hopes for the future?
MK: First things first, let's all start treating others -- and ourselves -- just a little bit better. It's a pretty crazy time to be alive, and no doubt there's shitty things happening all over, but that doesn't mean you're not allowed to enjoy the things that make you smile. It just means it's more important than ever to pass that positivity onto somebody else!
Lydia with Jared & The Mill and Cherry Pools are playing House of Independents in Asbury Park, NJ on August 8th and playing Bowery Ballroom in NYC on August 9th.
Liquor is available now on Weekday Records.
For more info check out www.lydiaband.com.
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