The Hangout 2013 Featured Artist: The Weeks

Photo by: Joshua Black Wilkins

Photo by: Joshua Black Wilkins

Simply put, The Weeks rock. The Nashville-via-Oxford, Mississippi based group just returned from a full US tour to release their Serpents & Snakes debut, Dear Bo JacksonIt’s good to know the spirit of rock n’ roll is alive and well (and touring Europe with Kings of Leon this summer). Since we’re stocked up on SPF 75 (you don’t get a tan editing articles all day), and ready to head to The Hangout later this month, we wanted you to know who you need to spend your days with, you beach bums. The Weeks play on the BMI Stage on Friday, May 17th at 5:00pm.

It’s been nearly a year since the last time I chatted with you guys.. What’s been the biggest change for you all since then?

SAM: I’d say the biggest change is that we’ve got Dear Bo Jackson under our belts now. We’d put out a few EP’s that we’re really proud of, but in my opinions bands are defined by full lengths. LP’s. Before this record, we hadn’t put out a full length album since Comeback Cadillac in 2008. That record is a great barometer for The Weeks at age 17, but at that age you’re not thinking about making a concise, coherent album where every track can stands on its own. I feel like we accomplished that on this record. We’ve also spent a lot more time on the road this past year. Most bands can handle a week or two out with only a mild dose of squabbling, but testing that out for 2 months is a totally different story. The little arguments never go away, but they don’t ever escalate either. We’re spending the majority of 2013 on the road supporting this record, which is also something we’ve never done before. The last year has been really formative for us in the sense of settling into a rhythm and sound that we’re comfortable with and know we can maintain for a really long time.

'Dear Bo Jackson' Album Art

‘Dear Bo Jackson’ Album Art

The newest record, Dear Bo Jackson, came out on Tuesday the 30th and you guys are celebrated with a big throw-down last Friday at the Mercy Lounge in Nashville. For all us sorry-asses that couldn’t make the drive, what did we miss?

SAM: The show was an inordinate amount of fun. We had a few guys playing horns, three backup singers, Bucky Baxter on the pedal. My dad was there singing with us, too. At some points we had 13 people on stage, playing the record from cover to cover with an encore full of older songs. Nashville really does treat us incredibly well. I don’t think it will be long before Nashville loses their reputation as an arms crossed, non-merch buying crowd. The city really has gotten behind the scene here and is willing to wear their support proudly on their sleeves, and we love it.

You all just returned from 2+ months on tour, a somewhat grueling route. What fateful lesson did life on the road throw your way this time around?

CYLE: Honestly it went off without a hitch. No van troubles, no huge arguments between band members. It was our first tour out West and we were just really excited to see that part of the country for the first time. We’ve always been big on stopping in National Parks, seeing the odd landmarks that every state has. Whether it’s Daniel Boone’s grave or the Craters of the Moon National Park in Idaho, those kind of stops are always morale boosters of sorts.

One of the highlights of your upcoming tour is a featured slot at The Hangout Music Fest in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Congrats on that! For your first (I assume) beach fest, you’ll be up against Grizzly Bear & Ryan Bingham. Our readers should come to the BMI Stage at 5:00pm because…

SAM: Nothing against those bands, but who wants art rock on the beach? I’m excited to drink mojitos on the beach and play some rock and roll. Pina Coladas on stage. We’ll have zero backup tracks through a computer, loud ass guitars and unrivaled energy. You can bet on that at the very least.

I read that you’ll be making the trip to Europe this summer with your friends in Kings of Leon. I think every person that I’ve talked to is excited to see them returning to the stage, but I can’t even begin to imagine how exciting Europe with them will be. Any expectations so far?

CYLE: We are just so excited to have to the opportunity to play for that many people every night. Every night we hit the stage we say we are going to play as if we are playing to a full arena even if it isn’t even a half full club, so to get the chance to actually do that is amazing. You just can’t beat a chance to make a favorable first impression on tens of thousands of people. We’ll also be doing a club tour simultaneously so I think it’ll be a great experience for us to learn how to transition from 20,000 people to 200 people every night without a hitch.

[youtube id=0Azpm7_hjqM]