The Fireants Interview: SXSW 2010

Posted on Feb 22nd 2010 3:10AM by Victoria Lebron
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The Fireants aka "the fier-ants" aka "the feer-ee-ents" depending on the night, are a band of talented teens from Austin, Texas. Some might call their music bluegrass, but they describe their sound as "funkomatic, jazztastic, manic bluegrass yodel troll rock." With song names like 'The Deuce is Loose' (a nod to Deuce McAllister, former running back for The Saints) and a cover of 'Ophelia' off the Band's 1975 album 'Northern Lights Southern Cross,' this group has a style that extends beyond their collective years. Ian Stewart on fiddle, mandolin and vocals and Zeke Jarmon on guitar and vocals, fresh out of an all-day music competition, sat down to tell Spinner something curious and something serious about the band as they prepare for their showcase at SXSW.

Describe your sound in your own words.

Ian: A multitude of harmonious vibrations at higher frequencies that induce a sort of funkomatic, jazztastic, manic bluegrass yodel troll rock for our audiences.

Zeke: Our sound is the feeling of being plunged into ice cold water after just waking up in Texas.

How did your band form?

I: Lucky chemical bonding.

Z: It was completely stochastic.

What are your musical influences?

I: The Band, Brahms, Stuff Smith, Bill Monroe, Withered Hand and the Wu Tang Clan, plus all the great Austin musicians that we are fortunate enough to learn from.

Z: My main influences are the Beatles, XTC, Fats Domino, Richard Thompson and The Band. Spencer Jarmon the most, probably.

How did you come up with your band name?

I: The name was kind of like a stray dog that found us.

Z: A lot of people think we are the Fire Ants, but it's just one word, which gives the person saying "Fireants" many possible pronunciations to choose from. I think it's fitting because our music is never the same; we may play as the "fier-ants" on one night and the "feer-ee-ents" on another.

What are the Fireants plans for the coming year?

I: We want to rock the block as much as possible so we're looking to play at every opportunity, like every good band should. On top of that, we are ready to go studio with new material, but that will have to wait until summer. Some of us have to finish high school.

Z: Work hard, play harder.

What's the craziest thing you've seen or experienced in concert?

I: Audience members head-banging to our music while hanging from rafters like bats. That was a good show.

Z: My amp mysteriously moved to another part of the stage and turned upside-down within the span of one song. I still don't know what happened that day, but people were climbing on the ceiling, so I imagine maybe for a split second, the world turned upside-down.

What do your friends outside of the Fireants think of your band playing SXSW?

I: I'm not sure what they think, but they usually ask, "Can I get in free?"

Z: Are we?

Where would you put on a concert, if you could play anywhere in the world?

I: I would go with a free show in the Coliseum in Rome with a righteous sound system, magnifico stage and caged tigers dangling above the crowd. I think I had a dream like that once. Or just one more time at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in San Francisco. That was somethin'.

Z: In the middle of Big Bend National Park.

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