Jukebox the Ghost are heading to Shaky Knees Festival this weekend to play alongside the likes of The Strokes, the Pixies, Brand New, American Football, Death From Above 1979, TV On the Radio, Wavves, Tennis, The Kooks, Surfer Blood…and that’s just the Friday lineup. Having just signed to a new label and released a brand new self-titled album, Jukebox is already having a big year. We grabbed some time with guitarist/vocalist Tommy Siegel to talk about Shaky Knees, their new release, and what’s up next.
Be sure to catch these guys on their US tour this summer, and check out our interview below!
Vinyl Mag: I saw you guys at South by Southwest, and you were fantastic. How did you enjoy the week?
Tommy Siegel: SXSW was totally crazy, per usual! It’s such an insane event, and it’s hard to see just how weird it is unless you’re playing. Under normal circumstances, you’d be nuts to do four shows a day with no soundcheck while borrowing other bands’ gear, but that’s totally par for the course for the festival. We’ve done it enough years to learn to embrace the chaos!
VM: Did you see anyone you loved?
TS: I saw Deerhoof, who are my favorite band…ever, possibly? They never disappoint.
VM: Who are you most excited to see at Shaky Knees?
TS: I’ve never seen Ryan Adams, so I’m looking forward to that!
VM: Are you staying for Friday and Saturday (I see that you’re in Virginia on Sunday)?
TS: Unfortunately just for Friday! So we’ll be missing some great shows.
VM: What is your favorite song to play live?
TS: Right now, I love playing “Girl.” It’s so refreshingly spacious and slow in our catalogue, and I love getting to play bass for a change.
VM: Do you prefer touring or recording?
TS: Totally different animals! At this point in music history, you can’t really do one without the other. If you only did one for your whole life, I think your head would explode.
VM: Where did you record Jukebox the Ghost?
TS: Los Angeles! We recorded most of the record with Dan Romer, an amazing producer and long-time collaborator with the band. Love that guy.
VM: Why did you decide to make this album a self-titled? How does it differ from your previous releases?
TS: It felt like the first album we’ve ever done where we threw all of our previous constraints to the wind – and I think it set up the kind of intensity that we’d like to apply to all our albums in the future. Not to say we’ll always be making records as slick, but that the process was so intensely rewarding and open. Felt like hitting the reset button.
VM: How did you choose the single for the album?
TS: We kinda didn’t – the label did! But since we went in with the concept of recording an album of all singles, we didn’t disagree with the choice. Any song would’ve been fine.
VM: You signed with Cherrytree in January – how did that come about?
TS: Oddly enough, Martin’s (the label head) daughter heard us on a movie trailer!
VM: How is the tour going?
TS: Going great! Right now we’re just in the middle of some random dates in a relatively calm period.
VM: What is next for you?
TS: In June, we’re doing a national tour with Ingrid Michaelson that we are PUMPED for.
Jukebox the Ghost Tour Dates:
May 06 World Cafe Live at the Queen Wilmington, DE
May 08 Shaky Knees Festival Atlanta, GA
May 10 THE BROADBERRY Richmond, VA
May 30 Hop Sauce Festival Beach Haven, NJ
Jun 03 Wolf Trap Filene Center w/ Ingrid Michaelson Vienna, VA
Jun 04 The Ritz w/ Ingrid Michaelson Raleigh, NC
Jun 05 Iron City Birmingham w/ Ingrid Michaelson Birmingham, AL
Jun 07 House of Blues w/ Ingrid Michaelson Dallas, TX
Jun 08 ACL Live @ Moody Theatre w/ Ingrid Michaelson Austin, TX
Jun 11 Greek Theatre w/ Ingrid Michaelson Los Angeles, CA
Jun 12 Humphreys By the Bay w/ Ingrid Michaelson San Diego, CA
Jun 13 Fox Theater w/ Ingrid Michaelson Oakland, CAe
Jun 15 Knitting Factory Concert House w/ Ingrid Michaelson Boise, ID
Jun 16 Edgefield w/ Ingrid Michaelson Portland, OR
Jun 17 Paramount Theatre w/ Ingrid Michaelson Seattle, WA
Jun 19 The Complex w/ Ingrid Michaelson Salt Lake City, UT
Jun 23 Northrop w/ Ingrid Michaelson Minneapolis, MN
Jun 24 Chicago Theatre w/ Ingrid Michaelson Chicago, IL
Jun 25 TBA w/ Ingrid Michaelson Ann Arbor, MI
Jun 27 Blue Hills Bank Pavilion w/ Ingrid Michaelson Boston, MA
Jun 28 Thompson’s Point w/ Ingrid Michaelson Portland, ME
Jun 29 Summer Stage Central Park w/ Ingrid Michaelson New York, NY
Jun 30 Skyline Stage at The Mann w/ Ingrid Michaelson Philadelphia, PA
Aug 15 Pinelands Music Festival w/ A Great Big Pile of Leaves Millville, NJ
Emily is an over-enthusiastic lover of music, books, movies, fashion, and culture in general. Her love of music spans across all genres (what is a genre anymore? she waxes poetic to herself), though she was nursed on true punk and will never understand “redneck country” music – tractors are not and cannot be sexy. Emily currently lives in Brooklyn, NY and considers herself to be a great wit, though she is still waiting on validation from a credible source.