This year’s edition of the Vans Warped Tour features one of the most diverse lineups in the festival’s seventeen-year history.
One of the most unique bands included on the tour is the Cincinnati, Ohio-based experimental rock outfit known as Foxy Shazam.
Prior to performing a wildly flamboyant set on the West Coast leg of the tour, bassist Daisy and backup vocalist Alex Nauth spoke with Ground Control about their inaugural run with Warped and the plans that they're already developing for their next album.
Ground Control: You’re five days into your first Warped Tour. How’s it going so far?
Daisy: It’s really cold out. That’s why I’ve got my long johns on. It’s really hard to stay warm.
Alex Nauth: It’s really neat. I’ve never been to a Warped Tour before. It’s cool to get the experience out there and to see the kids bearing the heat all day. Backstage it’s kind of like a weird summer camp without all the ‘Jesus.’ People are just hanging out, making burgers, throwing Frisbees, it’s a really, really cool experience.
GC: What’s been the best part of Warped Tour?
AN: The cookouts at night are a great, great bonding experience. If you haven’t got to meet anybody yet there’s no excuse for you not to go out and meet somebody. Everyone’s out having fun and everybody’s friendly and nice and warm. That’s probably my favorite part.
GC: What’s been the worst part?
Daisy: The fact that it’s so cold. Everywhere I go it’s just cold and I left my coat at home.
GC: You guys are known for a pretty elaborate live performance. How do you translate your live show on a tour such as this?
Daisy: We just do it.
AN: Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, it’s the same structure. We just go out there and put it all on the line.
GC: Have you ever experienced a tour similar to this before?
AN: Not an outdoor festival like this, but we’ve been touring for a very long time. I think we kinda have what we do under our belts pretty well. This is definitely different though. It’s a different type of challenge, just from the heat.
Daisy: It’s like man vs. the wild out here.
GC: How are you liking the intense schedule?
AN: This is our first tour with a bus. It’s so easy; we get to sleep and wake up the next day where we’re supposed to be. No one has to take driving shifts or anything like that so I think we’re definitely enjoying it.
GC: Is there a band on the tour you’re excited to see?
AN: I haven’t seen Sharks yet but I’ve heard great things about them. I’m very excited to see them. Brian [Fallon] of Gaslight [Anthem] is a good friend of ours and I know he discovered them and was telling us about them, I can’t wait to see them.
GC: Other than Warped what else is going on with the band?
AN: We just got off of tour with Panic at the Disco and then we had a little downtime between that and Warped Tour. We’ve been doing a lot of writing, rehearsing, spending time with the family…
Daisy: Which we hadn’t got to do for a while so we took advantage of that. Lots of writing though.
GC: Is there a timeline for a new album?
AN: We’re gonna go make a new record this year. I can’t tell you any more than that, we kinda wanna keep it a surprise and keep it a secret but it’s gonna be great. We’re very excited. It’s gonna be quite different. We never make the same record twice and this record is no exception, I can guarantee you that.
Artist:
www.foxyshazam.com/
www.myspace.com/foxyshazam
www.facebook.com/FoxyShazam
www.twitter.com/foxy_shazam
Tour:
Foxy Shazam will wrap up their first Warped Tour experience after the pair of Canadian shows July 15 in Mississauga,Ont and July 16 in Montreal, PQ. For a complete list of dates, go to www.vanswarpedtour.com/band/foxy-shazam
Album:
Foxy Shazam's self-titled album is out now. Buy it here on Amazon .
