A Conversation about Two Conversations

We tossed back a few with Chris Crisci of Appleseed Cast following a recent show at Boston's Middle East nightclub and talked tunes, politics, and the hottest women on earth.

Appleseed Cast
Two Conversations
Tiger Style, 2003
Pick this up!

A_P: First things first, what's the story behind Two Conversations, which is a fantastic, very listenable record?

CC: Well, it's really a two-part album. The first half is the painful depiction of a relationship crumbling, and the second half deals with the aftermath, when the relationship is over and the two people find a sort of friendship.

As it came together, I also found a sort of political allegory in the album as well - sort of the crumbling of America.

A_P: I wouldn't have picked you as a political band; what's your stance?

CC: Well, it's sort of frustrating to see how most people today don't believe in the democratic system. Especially people our age. If people only realized the power they had… I am a big fan of Senator Paul Wellstone, how he tried to get people involved.

A_P: That's the guy who went down in the plane crash, right?

CC: Yeah, go back and check out some of his views… makes a lot of sense.

A_P: So Appleseed Cast is one of those bands that's very good, but hard to describe. Who were your influences?

CC: Well, I'm a fan of some pretty big bands, like Zeppelin, U2, the Cure—they were a big influence. Fugazi. I also like the songwriters, Bob Dylan. One of the coolest bands I've heard right now is the Polyphonic Spree.

A_P: How do you put together an album like Two Conversations?

CC: It's easiest for me to envision scenes and write about them. Each song is a scene really. But I think the album is very cohesive.

A_P: You guys have been around for a while, but I only heard of you this year - and I'm in the business. Where have you been finding your fan base?

CC: Well, we started really small, but we've been growing very gradually. We do well in Chicago and LA. Boston is a good city for us. And we do well in Europe. We're headed back there this winter.

A_P: Okay, so who has the hottest girls?

CC: Well, Chicago is pretty good, and LA of course, but hands down the most beautiful women are in Prague.

A_P: Prague? Really?

CC: Oh yeah. Tall, high cheek bones. They have that whole Eastern Europe thing going on.

A_P: Hmmm. Really? Well, I better fire up Google and search on mail order brides. So how do you judge fan reaction to your show? You bring the rock, but your music isn't necessarily the type to get people dancing and jumping around.

CC: Yeah, we don't really get a mosh pit… I don't know; audience response is deceptive. The crowd will seem totally mellow and out of it, but afterwards people will come up and say, "Wow, you guys really rocked," or "You blew me away."

A_P: So I see you're manning your merch table tonight.

CC: Yeah, just happens to be my turn. We had to cut our merch guy to keep our costs down. But I'm a rock star. An international rock star no less.

Appleseed Cast
Two Conversations
Tiger Style, 2003
Pick this up!