SceneSC’s Band of the Month [October] :: Paper Route

BAND OF THE MONTH SERIES:
Â JULY – CHERRYCASE
AUGUST – RIVER CITY EXTENSION
SEPTEMBER – GRAYSON VENTERSÂ

When you think of Nashville, TN, whats the first thing that comes to mind? For most, there are two answers: country music or Jack White. Throughout the years, Nashville has become the country music capital of the world. Thanks to an influx of musicians moving to the area recently, a great folk and indie scene has sprouted. Leading the charge of the indie scene is our SceneSC’s October Band of the Month, Paper Route. I caught up with J.T. Daly, lead-singer of the band, to talk about the new album and tour

PAPER ROUTE

FACEBOOK – TWITTER – WEBSITE – @paperroute_instagram

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SCENESC:Â For someone that has never heard of you guys, describe your music. What are some influences?

J.T.:Â “We usually describe ourselves as a rock band that uses a lot of electronic instruments. In a live set we typically use two, or practically three drum sets, bells, accordians, etc. We have never wanted to be that band that presses the space bar and sits back. I guess you could say we’ve always been a painfully honest band. People always ask us what our influences are, musically. I mean, we are always listening to music, but I think literature and film are really where we draw our inspiration from. We all love Paul Thomas Anderson and Wendell Berry. We got the album title “The Peace of Wild Things” from one of his poems, and we got the title “Absence” from a word that was repeated a lot. As a band, we are just really drawn to intense literature and movies, and after we experience them we just write.”

SC: You guys announced that you would be releasing the new album, “The Peace of Wild Things” almost two years ago, and then released a couple singles periodically. Why did you choose to wait? Was it tactical Â or unintentional?

J.T: “To make a long story short, the big label we were on went under, then we foolishly signed to another. At the time it seemed like the best decision, because we followed the hype and who wanted us the most. Unfortunately, when you deal with a record label you can get dealt a bad hand. Through all of the issues, our management really pulled us through. We took with management to find the right team, and now we are completely independent We definitely went through alot…that’s why it was late”

SC: Your first release was called “Absence” in 2009. How is the new album different from the other one?

J.T:Â “We went through a lot before we made this album…death, cancer, marriage and divorce. There is a ton of resilience in us. I think we really took the hand we were dealt, and just pushed for hope. By the time “Absence” was released, it became a “best hits” from songs over the years. This album was all done in one house, at one time. It’s more unified. It’s also the most honest we as a group have ever been. Everyone really had the opportunity to have their own voice on this album.”

SC: What is your favorite song on the record and why?

J.T:Â “I was really happy with Calm My Soul. I hit my stride about the time we were recording that song, and it came out great.”

SC: I got the opportunity to see you in your hometown of Nashville back in July. How was growing as an indie rock band in Nashville?

J.T:Â “For starters, we’ve never really been Nashville’s darlings. At first we really wanted that love since we were such hard workers, but eventually we realized that wasn’t going to happen. Also, almost all of my friends are musicians, so you have to try really hard to not compare. You grow up and hang out with these guys, so you can’t compare your music. We would go out to bars, and these random people would get up on stage and absolutely silence the crowd. It really forced us to bring our best.”

SC: You have gotten to play some awesome shows with some big names throughout the years, do you have a favorite show or moment in a show?

J.T:Â “We went on tour with mewithoutyou and David Bazan. mewithoutyou has always been one of my favorite bands, so that in itself was awesome. David Bazan is one of the best songwriter’s ever so that was great. I did a cover of the song “Four Word Letter Pt. 2” by mewithoutyou, then Aaron Weiss got on stage during mewithoutyou’s set and yelled, “This one goes out to JT!”, and played the song. It was awesome.”

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