rockyourlyricsHow do you usually write the lyrics of your songs?
Every song starts with a concept, or an anchor line. Then it can go a few ways… Sometimes you go and finish the chorus and then fill in the verses… And sometimes, the verses just come right out and you find yourself trying to just make the chorus perfect!
In your opinion, what is the most important thing in songwriting?
Not getting stuck. When you get stuck, you gotta break it up! Either move on to something else and come back, or take a break…Something!
Are you ever scared of revealing aspects of your personal life/experience to strangers through your music?
I used to be. The first several BFS albums, I was super guarded. And then once I did one from the heart, it was so therapeutic, I just gush it now!
What is the best lyric that you ever wrote (the most meaningful for you)?
The lyrics of ours that comes to mind is.
What inspired “Here We Go”, part of your latest album “Sittin’ In A Tree”?
I woke up with it in my head the first day we were writing together. Kelly cam into the studio and I just started messing around with it and we were done in a few minutes! We looked at each other like, “oh…OK…This is going to be fun!”
And “That Night”?
The idea was to write a sing from both points of view. A magical night. Where you could feel the nerves and the love just by listening. The idea of the cell phone being smashed and there being no way to find one another came later. Hopefully these two find each other on Facebook or something! 🙂
Do you remember the day you wrote “Yourself Again”?
I do. I had the “You’re better than that” part in my head and we start working from there. The fact that it turned into a song about a friend that is in turmoil kinda just happened naturally. I think we both had situations that led us that way in our lives.
Is there a link/a common theme among the songs of the new album?
There isn’t. Each sing was a completely different set of circumstances as far as where we were, time of day, what we were laughing about at the time, and how much red wine we had. There was a time when I think we started to wonder how they would all fit together. But we just kept writing and kept demoing!
What is the best suggestion your producer gave you?
He had some great input on our harmonies. So there is that. But we left the music completely up to him. We handed him our demos and just said, go crazy! HE nailed it!
What are your plans for 2019?
We are both busy. Bowling for Soup turns 25, so we will be in the road a lot. The Dollyrots have a new album coming out, so same for them. We are looking to 2020 to try and get J and K on the road…And hopefully back in the studio!
To conclude the interview a short Q/A session, please answer the first thing that comes to your mind:
- Define in one word your album “Sittin’ In A Tree”: Heart-Felt.
- The best show you ever played: Download Festival 2014.
- The one thing that you must have in your backstage: A toilet.
- The soundtrack of your childhood: Willie Nelson.
- Your favorite song lyrically speaking, but not written by you: “I knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous” – Frank Turner.
- Last question is “unusual”, we want to know your best relationship advice: Laugh often. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Never say “I don’t care” when asked where you want to eat. Because you fucking care!
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