Deer Tick Interview: SXSW 2010

Deer Tick might hail from Providence, R.I., but the band's musical roots, aesthetically speaking, are in the rural South. This neo-hillbilly band fills in some gaps between roots rock and country, but is inclined to toss off a Sex Pistols song note for note at whim, too. In June, Deer Tick issue their third album, 'The Black Dirt Sessions,' which is named for upstate New York's Black Dirt Studios, where it was recorded in 2009. Joining gravely voiced founder and frontman John McCauley are siblings Chris and Dennis Ryan, on bass and drums, respectively, and new guitarist Ian O'Neil, a Massachusetts native formerly of indie band Titus Andronicus, who makes his Deer Tick recording debut on the forthcoming 'Black Dirt.' A documentary film about the band, 'City of Sin,' was also completed last year and is due for release in 2010. As if by initiation, rookie member O'Neil picked up interview duties with Spinner.

Describe your sound in your own words.

I would describe our sound as being similar to the sound you'd hear if you were sitting in a bar right before last call and you wanted another drink.

The sound of not-so-quiet desperation?

Definitely.

How did your band form?

John started the band by himself when he was 18 or 19, then overtime he picked up Chris and Dennis. Then I joined last year. The idea was to make it more and more of a band and have people writing songs together. Have it be more of a collective effort, which is what it's turning out to be. It formed pretty naturally.

So, you quit Titus Andronicus and joined Deer Tick?

I left Titus because I had some family issues. It wasn't anything to do with this. I had no thought of joining Deer Tick whatsoever at that time. I was just living in New York and hanging around. Me and John were hanging out and he asked me what I thought of joining the band and writing some songs. We did, and it was fun.

What are your musical influences?

Personally? Well, I'd tell you what's on my iPod but I don't have one right now. I've been listening to a lot of old musics. Like this guy Hoagy Carmichael. I like really old, like, first-generation of jazz music. I like that band the Felice Brothers. What else? We're also getting into ZZ Top, too.

How did John come up with the band name? Do you know?

Yes, John was hiking in Indiana and contracted an actual deer tick and he thought that it would be a really cool band name. I don't think there's a whole lot of significance to it. There's a lot of them in New England.

Did John get Lyme disease?

No, but our bass player has it. He was treated early, so I don't think it affects him anymore. It's terrible; they were everywhere where we grew up. You'd go into the woods and come out with them. There was a lot of paranoia from our parents about them.

What's your biggest vice?

I guess you could call restlessness a kind of a vice that we all have. We chose a career path where this desire to keep doing something different and moving around works. If it was something physical, I'd say tobacco, really. Some of us smoke; some of us try to quit. When you are on tour, you don't want to try and quit, it's impossible.

What's in your festival survival kit?

A good pair of shoes because of all the mud. A few of us would like to have some marijuana. There's definitely some of us who look forward to that at festivals. Other than that, we scoop up the free beer and try and to get to the food tent. We're pretty simple; we just like to drink a beer and see a few incredible people play. I feel like I'm just walking around with reckless abandon when I'm at a festival. You have to go with the tide.

Who was your first celebrity crush?

Well, I was very envious of Kurt Cobain as a kid; I idolized him when I was a kid. But a romantic crush, I always thought, when I was in high school, that Charlotte Gainsbourg was really beautiful. There was something about her that was very different in her movies. I don't remember, but I remember being aware of her.

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

In terms of music that I think is bad, I really like Taylor Swift. Absolutely, without a doubt. She's definitely cute, but she has a personality about her that comes through in her music. It's really personable and it's not unapproachable. Her and Lady Gaga, that group of people, the new female performers who are more left-field for their genres. It's not music that would change my life, but there's something else to it.

Beatles or Stones?

I love that Rolling Stones, I like the Rolling Stones' attitude, and I like the Rolling Stones' records more than the Beatles records. But, having said that, some of the Beatles' records are amazing. I like John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band records more than any others. It's funny, because those two acts, that's a question that comes up a lot. I don't think I got into the Beatles as much as the Rolling Stones, but the Beatles exist as this beast in the Western world; it's an achievement. There's a lot to be said about that. It's unreal.

What's the craziest thing you've seen or experienced while on tour?

We were on tour for a few weeks in the Northwest and it ended up that we had a very scary experience. Like, we had a stalker. Yeah, it was really bizarre. This person would be at all of our shows and it ended up in this big, dramatic thing where she said she knew us and she should be in our band. She was crying and sleeping outside of our hotel. I think that's the most extreme thing that's happened on tour that wouldn't happen with any other band I've been in. I'm giving you the mellow version of it. It got pretty extreme at one point.