Set to hit our shores for the third time in a four year period is LA DISPUTE from Michigan, USA. Frontman, Jordan Dreyer was kind enough to find time for a chat about the band's love affair with our fine country.
Personally, how would you describe the sound of La Dispute? When you listen to your latest album Wildlife, what does it sound like to you?
I don’t know really, I’m terrible at explaining this sort of thing. I hope when people do hear La Dispute they hear five guys who are really passionate about the music we are making. When I listen to Wildlife, to me it sounds like a year and a half of hard work, along with all the fun and stress that went into making it.
Hypothetical question here. Say you run into someone from high school you haven’t seen in years, who would be a staunch commercial radio listener and he asks what your band sounds like, what do you tell him?
Oh man… A staunch radio listener? Hmmm I don’t know, I’d say we are like a heavier Beyonce Knowles. No I’m kidding. I guess I’d just say we are a punk band perhaps.
This will be your third tour of Australia since 2009. What’s the big appeal for La Dispute in coming back here so often?
It’s a multitude of different things. Over the last two tours we made an incredible amount of new friends that we will have for the rest of our lives, but we don’t get to see them terribly often. So it’s great to have an excuse to be able to come back and visit friends. Australia was the first country we ever toured outside of the US, so it holds a special place in our hearts with a lot of great memories. Every time we played, people went out of their way to show us a really great time and have been really hospitable and warm. Once we touch down back home and get off the plane, we already want to come back.
Do you encounter any culture shock or anything bizarre about touring Australia?
I don’t know that I’ve ever experienced culture shock anywhere we’ve ever been. The funny thing about being in a punk band is that as soon as you are at the show, its pretty much the same everywhere, regardless of where you are playing. You guys do have a lot of funny animals though. I’m sure you hear that a lot from people who visit. But, as I said, once you’re at a show all the differences just kind of melt away.
Who in the band will be the first to complain about something on this upcoming tour and what do you think it will be about?
That would usually be me complaining I’m hungry, or something. I tend to do that a lot and get a lot of shit from my band mates about it. We generally aren’t a big group of complainers as a band, just real excited to be somewhere new with the opportunity to play. It’s hard to complain when people are coming out to see your band on the other side of the world. Any complaints are relatively minor really.
Photo: John Hatfield
What would be the worst place, anywhere in the world that you have ever played, that you got off stage or out of town and thought, fuck I hope I never return to this place?
We’ve been together a real long time as a band and have played countless shows, a lot of them have been pretty forgettable. But, usually that’s because we played terribly or had sound issues, so you can’t hold that against a town or a place though. Having said that, some of our worst shows have been in my home state actually. I got punched in the face at a show once.
Oh what? Why? How did that happen?
Oh I touched a masculine guy and he took offense to it. But, its one of those things, you can’t let a bad live experience shape your perception of a town or a place, as you only really see inside the venue and the surrounding area.
Okay another hypothetical. Say Fugazi offer you a support on a show at the place you got punched in the face the same night as you’re meant to do a tour in Australia? What do you do, what do you do?
No offense to you guys, but I think Australia will always be there no matter what, but the opportunity to tour with Fugazi would be a once in the lifetime chance. They haven’t toured since 2002 or something and they are such an amazing band. I really don’t think you could pass up an opportunity like that regardless of where it was. I would tour Antarctica with Fugazi if I had the chance to.
Have you listened to any of the shows in the Live Series that Fugazi have recently posted?
No I was only just reading an article about it on NPR today. I haven’t had the chance to yet. Have you?
Yeah I streamed a couple of them to see how the sound quality was and it sounded really good. I did that for an Australian show in Adelaide and a few of their earlier shows too. It sounded real good for a live recording.
That’s interesting that you say that, as I was reading an interview with one of the sound guys, Joey (Picuri) and the rest of Fugazi and he was saying that a lot of the early shows where in these wooden halls with a lot of reverb and echo and were just a nightmare to do, and the sound quality doesn’t come through all that well on a cassette tape. I guess you would have to set aside a fair chunk of your life to get through all of those shows and would happily skip the low quality ones. Funnily enough in the same interview Guy (Piciotto) also said the only show they lost a recording to was in Australia, as someone stole the DAT recorder from a show in Perth.
Oh wow, way to go Australia. So that’s what we are now famous for, funny animals and stealing things. Okay so the last time you toured Australia was with To The North from Brisbane. Any other bands you’re looking forward to seeing or catching up with?
I know this sounds like I’m blowing smoke, but on our last tours we enjoyed every band we got to play with. We are really good friends with the guys in To The North, so I’m sure we’ll be hanging out with them even though they are no longer a band. I haven’t seen the supports for this tour or what’s been planned, but I’m really hoping we get to play with Hira Hira from Sydney and Fires Of Waco from Brisbane again.
What separates an amazing La Dispute show from a good show?
That’s a hard one to pinpoint, as you never really know how a show is going to go and its something that really can’t be controlled. I think crowd involvement and participation really define a great show. The more the audience interacts and gets into it, then the better the show is really.
Why should people come out to see La Dispute?
I know this is like the lamest of answers to give, but I think it will be a genuinely good time, so just come down and hang out and have fun and don’t be afraid to come up and say hello.
