Interview - BoomBox (Portland, OR; Fall, 2009)

BoomBox has a huge following all around the US. I have personally been a fan of theirs for three years, even since another relatively obscure band (Particle) introduced me to them. I’ve been hooked ever since! They rarely come to the Pacific Northwest, so when I learned of their show here in Portland, at The Crown Room, I jumped at the opportunity to see them live and to get to meet them!

We were set to meet with them right after sound check, around 7:30pm. When we arrived, they had just gotten there from their previous show in Seattle. We all know how horrible traffic on I-5 southbound can be sometimes! So we reassured them of the normality of it all and told them to let us know when they were going to be ready for us. Sound check happened and then a quick trip to the green room downstairs to grab wallets and van keys, and we were off! We joined them for a quick bite to eat at a local burger joint around the corner from the venue and immediately hit it off! Zion and Russ and their crew were genuinely interested and mesmerized by the facts and figures and little bit of trivia Josh and I gave them about Portland and they sincerely wished they could stay for a couple of days after the show to take in the scene and the local people. They promised us that the next time they come around, they will!

Their opening act, Ana Sia, started playing and the room was bumpin’! Pretty close to a packed house an hour or so before BoomBox was even supposed to start. We took advantage of the down time after dinner to ask them a few questions downstairs in the green room. Read on below for the interview.

One last note. If you have never heard of BoomBox, know this: two members, Zion on guitar and voice, Russ on synthesizers and other complicated equipment that makes their sound what it is. They are genuinely peaceful and sweet people who do what they love. Dance, house, trance, techno—whatever you want to call their style—it’s live and always fresh. Light shows always accompany their performances, making it not only pleasing to the heart, soul, and ears, but to the eyes too. They play everywhere from smaller venues like The Crown Room in Portland to giant festivals like 10000 Lakes! Give them a listen and be sure to put them on your concert calendar for their next show! You will NOT regret it!

Melophobe: How has the tour been so far?



BoomBox: The tour has been good, interesting. Trying to break in new markets and new promoters and getting everyone to know BoomBox. The sound is very important to us, we are perfectionists and our performances can be affected by sound problems. We played a gig in southern Oregon where the venue was on noise ordinance probation and we got shutdown! Another show was in Seattle where the venue did not have enough power and the power kept going out. It was tough for us and for our fans.

Melophobe: Do you get to mingle with your opening artists?

BoomBox: We do, occasionally. The schedules are really tight and by the time we get to a venue, get setup, do sound check, immediately we have to do the things we have to do. A lot of the times, by the time we finish getting ready, the opener is already on. There are times we get to hang out though. Festivals are really good for that. We get to hang out backstage and catch up with other musicians. It’s cool that Ana Sia is opening for us on this tour and to have a constant opening act.

Melophobe: Were you impressed by any bands that were completely new to you? 



BoomBox: We try hard to promote our local music scene (Muscle Shoals, AL), there is a lot of talent coming out of there. We try to educate off of what we have learned and help the bands pave a road out of town on to their own thing. As we learn, covering so many bases, our goal is to develop the record label and help develop talent. We feel like we’re part of a movement in Muscle Shoals, and it’s really cool to feel that.



Melophobe: What are some of the cool sights across the US that you have been able to see on your tours?

BoomBox: A boat. We did a boat party in NYC that was crazy, get on the boat at midnight and play out to the Statue of Liberty. It’s crazy! Getting paid to play at the feet of the Statue of Liberty. There’s another cool cruise in Boston that we like: Harper’s Ferry. The festivals are cool; the small ones usually fall under the radar until you hear about them from another band. We are really blessed that basically every city we roll into we get to meet really solid people and a cool scene.

We stay in hotels now, but four years ago we would couch surf in the cities that we played in. We would book one show and stay in the city for a couple of days after, just to get to know the people and the city. It’s a unique perspective that you can’t get from a normal job.



Melophobe: What’s next for BoomBox?

BoomBox: The New album! Downriverelectric should be out in early 2010. The first record was sold out of the trunk of a car! This new record will be a whole new step for us as independent artists. We both go down the road with headphones working on this album, it’s needed for our souls! It’s literally been eating at us, we need this record. Also: we want to eventually hit Europe. We’d love to be in with the crowds overseas. Eventually it will happen!

Some Related Entries:

Galactic + Crown City Rockers - Showbox Market (Seattle, WA; Nov. 7, 2008)

Goldfrapp - Showbox SoDo (Seattle, WA; Sept. 17, 2008)

Justice + Diplo - Showbox SoDo (Seattle, WA; Mar. 24, 2008)

Phish - The Gorge Amphitheatre (George, WA; Aug. 7th, 2009)

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