Okay, I wanted to first tell you like congrats on your six month anniversary of just because being released. It's really great, you guys. Thank you. Yeah, because it's released in March, I did the math, you know college.
Nice. I want to ask you, I guess the first question you probably get a lot though. What is the meaning behind the name the Belbergade? Oh yeah, that is actually a lyric from an old song that we had.
And it was kind of about a bunch of kids dressing in drag and like starting a revolution pretty much. So that's what it's about. Is that kind of what you want your music to do? Is start a revolution?
I know. That's not really our intention, but if it does, and if it's a revolution based in love and positivity, definitely. So you guys have toured with Grace Potter and the Necternals, Katie Lang-Daws. Who was the most fun, and then who was the most inspirational, like literally musically?
Oh, well, they've all been really fun. We had a really great time with Daws and Blitz and Trapper. That was a really fun tour. And Katie Lang and her band were just like the best people, they were such nice people.
And so fun to be around. And we get to play in Raylumontain's band, so that's a really fun tour. But really, I mean, each one is kind of a, you know, it's such a different experience being around all the different types of music and bands. So they all have their awesome moments.
This question is for Ethan. Is it true that your strongest influence musically is Paul Simon? One of them. Yeah, at certain points in my life, definitely my strongest influence a couple years ago.
That's what I would have said. And still, I mean, he will always be one of my favorite songwriters. Absolutely. Then who are you feeling right now, then?
I'm liking a lot of people. I mean, I also always love Peter Gabriel. I'm really liking James Blake right now. There's just so many, you know.
I just, I don't know. I'm kind of always checking out new stuff. But yeah, right lately, I've been really loving James Blake. Because you guys, I was reading online and I saw some stuff about how you guys are being compared to like the Everly Brothers and Fleetwood Mac and Simon Garfunkel and the Beatles.
How does that feel to be compared to some of the greatest? Pretty, it's awesome. I mean, it's really very flattering and really cool to be compared to people that we've loved for so long. Without embarrassing each other, could you tell me a story about growing up with each other?
Ooh, without embarrassing? Are you sure? No, go ahead. Let's see.
Any particular subject you want to hear about? No, I'll let you guys take the wheel. Well, Ethan is like an avid amateur magician. And so when he was like seven or eight, he started practicing magic very, very seriously and heavily.
And he's actually kind of begun to do it again in the past couple years. But he was like practicing, you know, from eight to, how, when did you start tapering down? I kind of stopped when I was like 12, I think. Yeah.
So from eight to 12, which is like, you know, that's like 50 years for a kid. He practiced like for hours and hours and hours every day. And he got really, really, really good. And the story, I guess, is that he was so in love and protective of his plastic supplies.
And when he would, you know, our parents were divorced, so we would have to kind of like go back and forth between their house every couple of weeks. So Ethan would have to bring all of his magic supplies, his magic kit. And when he would bring his magic kit in the car, so in love with it that he had to put the seat belt on it. So it was like his child.
Yeah, totally. I would do it. I would do it again. I gotta keep it safe.
You gotta keep your gear safe. It's like, you know, the seat belt was like the road case of the magic kit, you know. Did you think you're going to be a professional magician? Definitely.
Yeah. I mean, once I, that will happen by sampling in my life where at least I'll do, I'll attempt one professional show. Are you going to have Barbara be your, your wingman? Your sidekick, your side show?
I'm going to, I'm going to be great. I'm here. Okay. And I'm going to do whatever he tells me to do.
And it's going to be fantastic. I'm going to rough down his coat tails, literally. So what about a story about Barbara? Okay.
It's hard to think of one after the top of my head. Oh, we have like a little gate at our house. And, you know, Barbara was maybe like, it's Robert 13. And I was, I was really young.
And she used to kind of like, like, it was, I was closing. She was like, wait, and like, try to like, you know, jump through it right when it was like almost closed. And one time we went home and after a walk or something, and she went in and she got totally stuck in the gate. And it freaked me out because I thought that the gate was like, going to totally crush her.
Thank God she was okay. Yeah, she almost got back in a gate. And I do remember that it really hurt. Yes, sucked.
This question is for Barbara. Would you say that you guys are kind of different? Because when I'm listening to like the lyrics of your songs and comparing like to who's on lead vocals, even takes on this like, hopeless romantic with songs like Sweet Louise and Shirt. And you take on this like, independent woman with songs like Rusted Wheel or Not the One.
What do you guys think of that? Well, to answer your first question, yeah, we're completely different people. But I would say that we, you know, just because, you know, just because we hear something in a song doesn't mean that you're, it defines who you are. But I would say, yeah, and those songs I do come off as an independent woman and there's parts of me that are that and there's also parts of me that are hopeless romantic.
And there's parts of Ethan that I'm sure are. I'm an independent woman. Completely an independent woman. I'm actually the most independent woman you'll ever meet.
But yeah, we're totally different. We have similar qualities because we grew up together and not then we're human beings and human beings have a lot of similar qualities. And yeah, totally. But thank you for noticing that.
Thank you for noticing those things. Yeah, I picked a part like every song. I had to narrow down some of the questions that I had for like the meaning behind each song. Can you explain the story behind your song with Tropolis?
Yeah, there's no real story. That song just kind of came from, you know, living in LA and how about it? I mean, it can really kind of be about living in any major city and just, and especially now just where, you know, we're also connected by the internet and all the different kinds of social media where whatever you're doing, it's so easy to kind of like be out there and be vulnerable and just kind of like dealing with all the connectivity that happens in life now. Currently, College Radio is in a state of flux between University selling off their FCC license to the rise of internet radio.
How is College Radio influence the Balbrigade? Well, I have to say, neither of us are college graduates. I think that it's influenced, I'm sure it's influenced our music just because, you know, being a younger person and like keeping up with what was happening in the now is basically College Radio is doing a college radio influence on even the mainstream radio stations. I would say like, especially in the 90s and early 2000s, like all of the cool underground stuff eventually became, you know, the mainstream stuff started with College Radio and so it influenced us as, you know, musicians and people, but in terms of like specifically how it influenced our music is going to tell you.
Thank you. What is the message that you want your fans to learn from your music? Well, there's not like, we don't want them to learn anything. We just want them to enjoy it and hopefully find something in it that resonates with them individually and it can feel like it's their own.
And then what's next for you guys? Well, we're going on a, on a, about eight week tour and we're going out with a couple of different people we're playing. We're going on a tour with the head and the heart for a couple of weeks, a couple of shows of Jenny Lewis and then another leg of touring with Rayla Montane. And so we're, we just have a busy next couple months of touring and traveling across the US and all of the dates and stuff on our website.
Do you guys write while you're on the road or do you wait until you get back to like a studio to write? Sometimes yes, sometimes not. Whatever you're feeling. Yeah.