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Fading from the Blue
By: Emmy Boyce
New beginnings might be a trend with
the band Blue October. Having been signed to the same label once before,
the pair has a new beginning in the rekindling of their relationship.
With three albums under their belt and a single on the "American
Wedding" soundtrack, Universal's interest in the band sparked up again.
One might say that, lead singer, Justin Furstenfeld, has had his own new
beginning after personal struggles in October 1997. Rising again with
band in tow, Furstenfeld et al came to find themselves with a tour in
2005 boasting a number of sold-out dates after not having released a new
album in 2 years. With their new album "Foiled" released April 4, 2006,
Furstenfeld is optimistic about what's in store for Blue October.
Alternative Addiction: In the 2
years between albums what were you doing to keep your fanbase engaged?
Obviously, they were waiting when your 2005 tour was booked.
Justin: We did nothing but record and write. That’s why I was shocked to
see everyone. Wowed, actually.
AA: How excited are you to be going out on the
road?
J: Very excited. That’s my favorite thing. Once you get the studio done…
being in the studio is when it’s crazy, you’ve got to get it perfect,
got to be all anal retentive about everything, be a prick if you have
to, get it all done the right exact way to where you’re perfectly happy.
And when you finally get out of there, it’s like the biggest anxiety
attack that you’ve ever had in the studio, but then when you get out of
there it’s just like [breathes a huge sigh of relief]. You know? And now
we get to go just rock it, which is great. It’s like a big breath of
fresh air and now we can just play.
AA: When you’re recording is it like, “Let’s get
through this so we can get out on the road”?
J: No, not let’s get through this. It’s more like, we know we’re going
out on the road, let’s focus our ass off and really, really, really work
like computer technicians, if you will. You know what I’m saying? Just
very precise and very pristine, down to the ride cymbal * ding * in a
song. So, it’s very, very calculating and very tedious at points, but
it’s a beauty. It’s my favorite part of it all, but going out on the
road is a big plus for us. It’s like our reward for working so hard.
AA: How much touring has the band done up to this
point?
J: Oh, that’s what we’ve done for the last 10 years is just tour. It’s
like we put out an album, we tour for two-and-a-half years, put out an
album, tour for two-and-a-half years… so, we’re basically road dogs.
AA: I’ve heard even here up in Minneapolis your
current single on the radio.
J: Really?!
AA: Yeah. I was just flipping through stations the
other day and I was like, “What? Blue October?” So, that was cool.
J: That’s great!
AA: Surprise! What regions tend to be going strong
for you in radio right now?
J: [laughs] Every one of them! It’s like everybody who’s added us is
going really good, and I don’t get it. [laughs] I’m just like, what?
Where’s the joke? Who’s going to pinch me? I’m like, I’ve never had
anything blast off like this. It’s crazy. It’s really, really weird. I
get calls from my manager and he’s like, “Well, remember that station
you played at? They added you. They’re up to 3 spins a day.” I’m just
like, what? It’s a blessing, really. Especially such a song about… such
a diary entry. Just to have it on the radio is really special.
AA: Funny that you used the word “blessing”. It
kind of leads into my next question. Tell me about being a band from
Texas, because you know, you watch movies and Texas has this Hollywood
cliché about being this Bible banging strict southern community. Is that
way off base, or have you actually encountered chastisement for being in
a band?
J: No, it’s way off base. It’s almost saying that we ride horses to
school. It’s like any other place. It’s just bigger than any other
place. There’s a lot more people involved. I hear all the time, “God!
You Texans!” Well, we’re almost a country, for Christ's sake. Put three
of your states in ours and I’m sure you’ll have just as many problems as
we do. But no, coming from Texas is awesome. We’re very humble down
here, and very thankful for what we get, and just work hard at what we
can do. If we fail, we get back up and wipe ourselves off. It’s just the
mentality. Very kind and generous, and manners. If we didn’t have
manners, that’s one rule, our parents would slap us if we were rude.
[laughs] You know what I’m saying? So, at least we’ve got that going for
us.
AA: All of those movies are wrong!
J: Oh, yeah. Completely wrong.
AA: I know. What’s different this time from the
last time that you were signed?
J: Support. This time we have a whole label backing us, and the time
before we didn’t really know if we were a priority at all, I didn’t even
know if they knew that we were signed to them. We’re an eclectic band,
so we obviously weren’t going to make it. So, we got dropped. I’m not
mad about it. A business is a business. If I ran a shoe company and
someone designed a shitty shoe, I’d probably lay them off, too. Now, I
guess it’s our time to get a chance, and we’re up to bat. We’re getting
a lot more support and a lot more love, which is great. I’m actually
talking to each person involved in Universal like they’re a personal
friend now just because they care about my career.
AA: What musical comparisons do you get that
irritate you?
J: Peter Gabriel. Dave Matthews – only because of the violin.
AA: Were there times when you were in the throes
of your struggle and thought there was no way you’d be where you are
now?
J: That’s how I always feel. I’m slow in that way, you know. It’s a
day-by-day, one day at a time life for this guy.
Interested in hearing tracks from Blue
October?
Check out their myspace page at
http://www.myspace.com/blueoctober.
Keep up on other news and updates at
http://www.blueoctoberfan.com.
Special thanks to Justin Furstenfeld,
Shawn Koonin, and Paul Nugent.
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