When: 12:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. July 24
Where: Lewis & Clark Landing on the Omaha riverfront
Tickets: $33 at www.mahamusicfestival.com
Information: www.mahamusicfestival.com
Coming Next Week: More on the Maha Music Festival, including more from our exclusive interview with Spoon as well as interviews with Superchunk, the Faint, the Old 97’s and Ben Kweller.
It’s not too early to get geared up for Maha.
Some people are planning long trips to attend. Fans from as far away as California, Florida and even Eagle River, Alaska, are headed to town for the July 24 show.
Headlining the one-day fest is Spoon, an acclaimed indie-rock group
The band released “Transference” in March to coincide with a spring tour that kicked off with a performance at South By Southwest.
The record has Spoon’s trademark indie-style pop and rock sensibility that comes from frontman Britt Daniel’s songwriting, but this time without as much polish and sheen.
Bassist Rob Pope called in from the band’s tour stop in Chicago for an exclusive interview with The World-Herald to talk about all things Spoon, as well as the headlining gig at Maha.
Q: Are you excited to play in Omaha at Maha?
A: That’s going to be a good one. I’m excited to see Superchunk.
It’s a good time. I’ve seen them a bunch.
Q: Are you nervous to play in front of your label heads? (Superchunk’s Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance run Merge Records, Spoon’s label)
A: There are some ties there. But it will be fun. They always bring a party.
Q: Don’t screw up.
A: (laughs) I don’t think they’re going to drop us.
Q: Tell me about “Transference.” What’s different about it compared to your last album, “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga”?
A: With “Transference,” we approached it kinda differently. We didn’t work with a producer this time and we recorded it a little more sporadically.
We didn’t want the traditional approach of locking ourselves in the studio for five months. Instead, we’d get together all over the country since we all live everywhere and we approached it that way.
We’d get together in Austin, Portland, New York or wherever we could find time.
Q: The album sounds less polished than its predecessors. Was that a conscious choice?
A: We wanted to make a nastier-sounding record. The previous record kinda had some sheen to it, and we wanted to steer clear of that and make a tougher-sounding record.
A lot of times, we’d use the basic elements of Britt’s demo and add or take away from that. That was the end result.
Britt set up a home studio in Portland and was making these demos and sounded great. We thought it would be impossible to go back in the studio with a producer and capture that energy, so we just said (to heck with) it and used parts of the demos.
Q: There’s really not a “pop hit” like you had with “Underdog” the last time around.
A: We don’t steer ourselves away from making a pop hit, but I don’t think Britt ever sits down and says, “I wanna write a hit single.” At the same time, it wasn’t intentional not to have one.
Q: You guys have been on the road since the album dropped in March. Are you getting tired?
A: I really enjoy touring. We’ve been really busy. We did Australia, Europe, and then five weeks in the States. It’s a lot of fun. You just kinda have to find a way to keep a healthy balance and not lose your mind completely. You need to remember there is an outside world other than being catered to every day.
I’ve been living out of a suitcase for a year and a half now. I’ve become very used to this nomadic lifestyle.
Contact the writer:
444-1557, kevin.coffey@owh.com
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