Minneapolis has spawned its share of noted musical acts — Prince, The Replacements and Soul Asylum among them. Indie rock quartet Tapes ‘n Tapes is the latest one to join the list. The lineup of the band has ebbed and flowed for a few years, the latest incarnation of which settled in earlier this year with Josh Grier on vocals and guitar, Matt Kretzmann on keyboards, Erik Appelwick on bass and Josh Grier banging the drums.
Since signing with XL Records — which re-released its debut full-length, The Loon, over the summer — Tapes ‘n Tapes has been busy. We nailed all four members down and stuffed ‘em in the mtvU Hot Seat to answer our burning questions.
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Q: Tell us about your craziest touring experience.
Matt: One time we watched Porky’s and City of God on the same drive. That was pretty crazy. A really horrible movie followed by a pretty excellent one. Both made me a little nauseous though, I think.
Jeremy:Having our van “Bruno” break down on the highway on our way to a Chicago gig at Schubas.
Erik: I don’t think anything that has happened on our tours this year would really qualify as “crazy.” At least not compared to something you’d see in a Pantera or Motley Crue tour video. I guess along those lines, it would have to be when one of the members (identity to be withheld) dipped his balls in a trough of salsa.
Josh: One time Matt and I stood in a drive-thru window line on the outskirts of London at 3 a.m. After about 20 minutes, a guy in a car told us we could order from a walk up window. Yeah, we’re that crazy.
Q: What type of college class would you most want to take and why?
Matt: I think if I had to do it again I would probably take a couple more art classes (studio or history). The couple classes that I got to take during college really piqued my interest and I would have liked to pursue that a bit more.
Jeremy: Any college class, because I am not in school right now.
Erik: Psychology of Sexuality. I took it as a sophomore and got a C. That’s bothered me for quite a while now.
Josh: I took a lot of math courses, but sadly neglected my computer science inner geek. So, if I could go back for a class it would be a CS class in Java programming. I was a nerd in college, and I’m a nerd now.
Q: What city in America is the most fun to visit and why?
Matt: This is a tough one. New York is the obvious answer, but can give me headaches when it comes to driving the van through town or finding a parking spot. I would give a vote for Austin [Texas]. It’s a city I had never been to before this year, but seems really fun and is always warmer than Minnesota, which for 10 or 11 months of the year, that is a plus.
Jeremy: New York City.
Erik: This is a tie between Chicago and New York City. Those cities embody everything that “fun to visit” is. Places stay open until 4 a.m. there. Minneapolis definitely does not do that.
Josh: If I’m not driving the van, New York is always a good time. But if I am driving the van, I’m gonna have to go with Austin, Texas. Both cities are beautiful, have great people, great bars and great record stores. What more could you want?
Q: What’s some of the best advice you were ever given?
Matt: Don’t be a dick.
Jeremy: Save a horse, ride a cowboy.
Erik: Don’t get your haircut the day before you have a photo shoot.
Josh: Learn to read and write better (I’m still working on both).
Q: What’s in heavy rotation in your mp3/CD player right now?
Matt: Juana Molina, Devendra Banhart, Dosh, Bill Evans, Destroyer, Bonnie “Prince” Billy.
Jeremy: Halloween, Alaska’s “Too Tall to Hide”
Erik: Not so much either MP3s or CDs but instead, LP’s: Dinosaur Jr “Where You Been”; Marvin Gaye “What’s Goin’ On”; Buddy Miles “We’ve Got To Live Together”; Parliament “Osmium”; Pavement “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain”; The ELO side of the Xanadu soundtrack.
Josh: Death from Above 1979, Sleater-Kinney, Destroyer and Liars.
Q: The last good book you read or TV show you’re addicted to.
Matt: Trouble Man by Steve Turner. It’s a biography of Marvin Gaye. Starts out kind of slow, but it is an interesting and sad story of a conflicted, but enormously talented musician. Also provides a good backdrop of Motown in its heyday.
Jeremy: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles.
Erik: Tolstoy’s War and Peace is the most recent read. Very good. Like soap operas from the early 19th century… in Russia. What’s not to like about that? TV-wise: Family Guy, Law and Order SVU, pro football, Scrubs, In Search Of (with Leonard Nimoy), Twin Peaks, Northern Exposure, SNL (well, certain eras specifically).
Josh: I’m addicted to Lost and I’m not ashamed of it.
Q: What’s the first concert you ever saw? How was it?
Matt: The first concert my dad ever took me to was the Beach Boys at Northrup Auditorium in Minneapolis. I was in second or third grade and the kids at school made fun of me the next day ’cause I wore the t-shirt. The first rock concert I ever went to on my own with a friend was Weezer on the “Blue Album” tour at the legendary First Avenue in Minneapolis. Holy H it blew my 15-year- old mind!
Jeremy: Blazer (My dad’s band, when I was a baby).
Erik: My parents dragged me to a Chicago concert when I was 14. I had officially grown out of my Peter Cetera fixation by that point so I was aghast that I was forced to be seen:
1) with my parents at a concert, and
2) at a Chicago concert with my parents.
Two years later I saw Morrissey, (awesome) and then later that year I saw the U2 Zooropa tour (awesome as well). These were more fulfilling experiences.
Josh: I’m not really sure what my first concert was. There were a lot of shows that my folks took me to when I was growing up and they all kind of flow together. but one of the first concerts I really remember seeing was Beck. The dude can dance. It blew my mind.
Q: What are three items you can’t live without on tour?
Matt: Facial moisturizer, Gold Bond powder and a good book (preferably with a cup of coffee).
Jeremy: My camera, cell phone and suntan lotion.
Erik: Not in this order: toothbrush, earplugs and water.
Josh: Toothbrush, earplugs and jeans.
Q: Who are your major musical influences?
Matt: Too many to recount really. For sure, most of my teachers of music over the years have been major influences and people that I’ve played music with. It’s more been a process of continually seeking out music (old or new) that speaks to me. There’s really no one figure or group of artists that I think about consciously when I sit down to play music.
Jeremy: Phil Collins, Neil Pert, Sheila E. and Neil Young.
Erik: For better or worse I’ve been influenced by everything I’ve heard, good and bad. I think the artists that have been influential to me in a good way are (again, not necessarily in this order): Marvin Gaye, Pavement, ELO, Dinosaur Jr, Curtis Mayfield, Prince, The Replacements, Wilco, The Jesus and Mary Chain, KISS, Radiohead, The Cure, The Smiths, Belle and Sebastian. I think this list reads like someone cooler’s “guilty pleasures” list.
Josh: When I was a little kid, my stepdad made me all sorts of mixtapes with The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Aretha Franklin and Bruce Springsteen. And my grandmother always had classical music playing when we were with her (lot’s of Mozart, Hayden and Bach). I think my stepdad’s mixtapes and my grandma’s classical laid a pretty solid musical ground work for me.
Q: Any random messages or tips you’d like to give to mtvU watchers?
Erik: Don’t ever graduate.
Josh: Learn to read and write good.
