Q&A with The Fishermen

Why did you all get started in music? How long have you all been performing?

Well, Phil and I have been writing music together since we were both 12 years old—when our parents bought us a guitar for Christmas. Neither of us knew how to play so we just messed around on it till we taught ourselves little ditties. Then we started writing. We started calling ourselves The Fishermen because we were both CRAZY about fishing (we grew up along the Potomac River in Georgetown). During the early years we played a lot of family functions. In high school we started playing at DC clubs—just solo acoustic shows for years—until we moved to LA and got a band together. The rest was history, so I’d say we’ve been performing now for more than 13 years.

What is the best show you've ever played and why?

Hmmm, hard to say. We’ve played hundreds of memorable shows over the years…usually my favorite shows are the little private ones where there is only a small crowd and everyone is really digging it. But sometimes, the big ones can be just as intimate. We opened for Charlie Daniels at a St. Jude’s benefit in Austin, Texas last year that was pretty unbelievable. Big open area with cathedral ceilings so the sound really resonated. We had to turn way down, and the crowd was incredible. People dancing like crazy…it fed us, and we played for way longer than we were contracted for. The director of the event was like “these people are raving about you, you can’t stop playing now. We’ll throw in a few hundred more bucks for you to keep going.” That was a huge compliment, and just made the night all the better. We did not accept the extra money : )a show that awesome is payment enough. Plus, if we were in it for the money we’d be a cover band.

Where do you all see yourselves and your music careers in 10 years?

The dream has always been to just be able to live off our music. That’s what we’ve been building all this time, and are pretty close to now. So if we can just maintain at this level for the duration we will be happy. Obviously it would be nice to have our music brought to the main stage, but that’s not what matters most. And there are some really wonderful big venues throughout this country that we would like the opportunity to play at some point. Hopefully it won’t take 10 years to get there.

Where do you get your inspiration for your songs?

The saying “art reflects life” is big for us…but then, where do you get inspiration for anything? Life, loves, hopes, dreams….we take from everything the world offers us. Whatever the day is bringing us is usually what will dictate what a song is about. Hopefully people identify with what we talk about, although I think the words are secondary to the beat, and the song. Those things can be different to each of us. Giving us what we want from it, as long as it sounds good to us.

What's the craziest thing you've ever done to book a show?

Ha ha, Well, lucky for us, we’ve never had to beg for shows. Perhaps we are fortunate that way…or unfortunate. Maybe our biggest problem is that we aren’t tenacious enough in that regard. When we parted ways with American Soul Records, I was thrust into the booking responsibilities for the band.I went out in Austin, Texas to get us in at some cool spots we scouted. Most places had already heard of us through the grapevine—Austin is a small place and we made a pretty big splash with the label when we arrived in ‘06—so it wasnt hard to book. I remember this one place, it was a little hole in the wall, but it had a lot of personality. So I talked to the GM and she gave me a number. I called the booker, and set up a meeting. She didn’t show up to the meeting, then rescheduled and didn’t show up to that either. At that point I was over it. But I DID like the room a lot, and we needed a place to throw a party, so I finally skirted her and got in touch with the owner. We ended up packing the place out. Then they were blowing my phone up for the next three months trying to get us back in there… a little role reversal ; ) certainly the most I’ve ever had to work.

If The Fishermen were trapped on a deserted island with no food–which one of you all would you eat first to survive?

Mike Walker, our beloved and robust bass player. He’s got nice thick thighs that could feed us for a while.Although we’d have to shave him first, a lot of fur on that dog.

Dog or Cat?

Both.