Texas punk pop veterans Bowling for Soup will ‘Bid Farewell’ to the UK after their final tour around the country next month.
The tour will follow the release of their entirely fan-funded twelfth album Lunch. Drunk. Love. which is out on September 30.
Ahead of their eagerly-anticipated Bid Farewell Tour and album release, MM met up with bassist Erik Chandler to discuss the band’s new material.
Erik said: “Once again like the last album it’s amazing not having the confines of a record label – no one can steer you.
“You have more artistic control and it’s awesome to do exactly what you want.”
After writing and playing gigs for 20 years it’s no surprise that touring life has taken its toll, but that’s not to say the group hasn’t created many fond memories.
“The first year playing on the main stage at Download is in my top five greatest moments of my career.
“You can’t replace the image of walking onto the stage and singing to 80,000 people. It’s just awesome.
“On tour with Simple Plan was the first time I saw a refrigerator go over a balcony and I got my nipple pierced on the tour bus by a pregnant woman on crutches!” Erik added.
Connecting with fans is something that Erik, along with the rest of the band, are keen to do.
Erik said: “There has been a change in the way people socialise – it started with MySpace and then Facebook and it changed the way society relates to each other.
“Some bands have said they are ‘so over’ Twitter but it’s not hard to say ‘I’m going on a date with my girlfriend’, people want that contact and the day-to-day updates.
“The music industry has to respond to the fans, it’s a good way to keep yourself fresh in their minds.”
PledgeMusic has allowed Bowling For Soup fans to be more involved in the production and recording of this new album by donating money.
This new method of recording the album was a completely new experience for each of the band members.
With their career spanning 20 years new album Lunch. Drunk. Love. was the first time since 1999 that they recorded their new material in Texas.
“It was special to all be back home to be in and among home restaurants and bars,” said Erik.
“We usually record all the drums first, then the bass, then Chris’ guitar then Jaret’s guitar then his lyrics and then my lyrics, you know adding texture and layers which usually takes us as long as a month.
“But this time we decided to try to record a song a day, it was our fastest process ever.”
With fourteen songs recorded in ten days the band were able to finish working seven-hour days in the studio.
Erik revealed: “By the second day we had recorded two songs so by the third day we were already two days ahead.
“It was like the perfect storm and I am looking forward to recording like that again.”
Erik added: “Whenever we do an album we have a list of names.
“Normally it is something somebody says like a snippet of something.
“For the album Hangover I Don’t Deserve Chris came up to me and said ‘I didn’t even drink that much and I have a hangover I don’t deserve,’ and we wrote it down.”
Erik explained: “Everything is based on something. In order to write lyrics you have to put yourself and experiences forward.”
Bowling For Soup will be performing at Manchester Academy on October 13 for the Bid Farewell Tour and are looking forward to returning to the city.
Erik said: “Manchester is our home town show. Fans are great and shows have been legendary. We love Manchester!”
Bowling for Soup have received critical acclaim since their first professional appearance back in 1994 – not only do they delight fans with their own original material, but have also been known to perform an eclectic range of covers from Bryan Adams to Britney Spears.
Erik told MM: “We have been talking about doing cover albums for well over a decade but we never really knew we’d get the opportunity.
“But with no confines of a record label we can – if you own it you can do what you want and look to the future.”
Picture courtesy of Iain Purdie via Flickr, with thanks
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