We just can’t get enough of Californian rock band Zebrahead here at The Midlands Rocks, so when we heard that the band were going to be performing a set at this years Download Festival (reviewed here) we just had to be there. After performing a high-octane set over on the Opus stage, we just had to corner guitarist Dan Palmer for an exclusive chat.
How has Download been for you so far?
It’s been great. We got here yesterday; we were only supposed to play today but Download asked us if we could play an acoustic set last night and we were like “OK!”. So we arrived yesterday, slept a bit in the hotel then played last night, it was raining hard but at least we played under a tent.
Are you one to look back and analyse your performance?
I don’t usually like to look back on it, because I’m often a little too self critical and it upsets me so I’ve stopped doing that to myself. I tend to get hypercritical and all that bullshit so I now I tend to let it go.
It looks like you have a lot of fun on stage, but I’m sure there’s days when you feel a bit “off”, so how do you always keep that aspect of fun in your set?
Sure, I have a great time, I always do. I love playing the guitar, travelling the world, drinking some beer. What else is there?! I miss my cats, but I have friends who take care of them, but I live alone, I don’t have a wife or kids or any of that. I’m originally from Sheffield, so travelling like this I get to see friends and family who I wouldn’t get to see. So I don’t feel like I’m missing out, I’m actually gaining.
You have a very lively stage set, but do you feel you’ve made a rod for your own back? People are always going to expect that now.
I don’t mind. If I want to stand there and do nothing, I’ll do that, I don’t give a shit. We run around like we do because we like it, if it gets to a point where we can’t move around, we won’t do it any more.
How do you find playing a festival crowd with people milling around in the background? Do you ever feel like shouting at them to pay attention?
No, they can do when the fuck they want. They can do what the hell they want, who am I to tell them to pay attention? I don’t care if they don’t pay attention, I’d rather focus on the people who do.
The core of the band (Ali, Ben, Ed) has been together since the group’s inception in 1996. That’s longer than most marriages. What’s your secret to good band harmony?
Patience. Tolerance. Compromise. Pick your battles. It’s like anything, people test your patience, but if you feel upset about anything then go take a walk. Give yourself five minutes to chill out and then you’ll realise that it is no big deal.
Do you feel tension helps with the songwriting process?
We are really hard on each other when it comes to writing songs. We sit in a room and argue over whether a chorus needs another couple of syllables. I can spend hours and hours just working on one guitar riff. I once went through 72 guitar riffs for one song in the studio and when I finally got it I was ready to kill everybody. But I like that, nobody is going to put up with mediocrity.
You have a pretty extensive discography, so how do you go about picking a set list?
In some territories some songs will do better than others. We’ll only play some songs in Japan, some songs we’ll play more in Germany…we like to base it upon that, but we like to sprinkle in a few different ones here and there to try them out, but usually we play the ones people want to hear.
After Download you are back in Europe for a run of dates. How do you prepare for a tour like that?
We rehearse a lot. We practice so much that when we play we don’t have to think about it and that way we don’t fuck up so much. We mix it up a bit; we have a festival set and a headline set.
Looking at the chart placings of your albums, it seems like you are “Big In Japan”. Your albums place better there than anywhere else in the world. What makes your sound jump cultural barriers?
I don’t know. If we knew the formula, we’d all be rich! I don’t know why Japanese people like us, in fact I don’t know why anybody likes us…ever! But we’ve been lucky that people do like us in Japan, and it is a beautiful thing. We’ll keep going until nobody likes us any more and then we’ll stop playing.
Your last two EP’s were titled III and II (reviewed here) respectively, so I assume you are counting down towards something?
Yes, I is coming out in November and we have a new single coming out June 26th and we played the new song today; ‘Mixed Drinks About Feelings’. Everyone says the new music is great, we think it is, but it’s probably not! We’ll wait and see what happens.
Your last two releases have been independent?
Everything has been independent. The only place we have a label is Japan. I’d say it has been easier that way and it has been working out better for us. You don’t need a label any more; everything is digital and vinyl. What’s a label going to do for you? They take half your money when you don’t have any anyway, so what’s the point?!
Hailing from California did the band feel a weight of expectation starting out?
The musical history and the quality of bands in California means the level of expectation is very high in general, but we don’t worry or care about that too much. We do what we do and hopefully people like it.
Finally, it is magic wand time, so if I could make one wish come true for Zebrahead, what’d it be?
We want to end world hunger…with beer!
