North Carolina jam powerhouse, Big Something don’t know how to slow down, but that definitely isn’t a bad thing. Following an incredibly busy 2017, which included the release of their full-length, Tumbleweed, the band is already charging headfirst into 2018 with their upcoming follow-up, The Otherside. Out April 20th, The Otherside continues to build off of the post-apocalyptic story established on Tumbleweed and finds the band expanding on their dynamic sound even further.
With The Otherside out this month, it’s no surprise that Big Something already has their sights set on the next step, be it tour dates, festival appearances or even their annual Halloween Costume Ball. Big Something aren’t planning on hitting the breaks anytime soon, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Interview by Shannon Shumaker
The last time we caught up with you guys, you were just celebrating the release of Tumbleweed and now you’re already getting ready to release your new album The Otherside this month. What are you excited for listeners to hear on this one?
Jesse Hensley: Im really excited for listeners to hear some new colors and flavors in our writing. I feel as if all of our albums have their own personalities and stories to tell and the The Otherside is no exception to this. From the production and mixing to the writing and artwork, I feel that it is some of our best collective work to date and I really hope people love it as much as we loved creating it.
Casey Cranford: I’m excited for people to listen for fresh sounds within our music. As we get older and the years go by, we change and evolve as people and musicians, thus the music does as well. Our new album exemplifies a slight evolution in the sound of Big Something.
You had an incredibly busy year of shows and new music in 2017, so how would you like 2018 to top that?
Casey: 2018 will hopefully bring more listeners to the table. Radio of all sorts has helped with that, so with the new album I’m hoping to reach new audiences all over the world. It would be amazing to play outside of the country, I hope to do that as well.
Jesse: Wow, it seems as if everyday and every show tops the last recently and couldn’t be more stoked for the remainder of 2018 or all of the shenanigans and adventures that festival season will soon bring. Honestly though, I don’t think there is really a comparison from year to year… Just being grateful for every opportunity to make music and for all the experiences that it brings.
With Tumbleweed only a year old, you guys have been quick to get back to writing and recording. What made you excited to get back in the studio so fans could hear what you’ve been working on?
Casey: We had fresh material and felt tight as a band I think. There was a special energy going on and I feel like we all noticed that, so we planned a studio session and went at it.
Jesse: We all enjoy writing together and think there has been no shortage of inspiration or fresh new musical ideas over the last couple of years. I’m really happy that we aren’t letting any songs slip through the cracks so to speak.
The Otherside continues the story told on Tumbleweed, as well. Where does this journey take listeners this time around?
Jesse: Out of the desert heat and through a cool cave of comely soundscapes.
Nick: The first track on the new album, “Sundown Nomad” is kind of like the conclusion of the story from Tumbleweed but it’s a little ambiguous and his fate is left open to interpretation. The nomad has made his way through the night walking towards the sunrise in an endless desert post apocalyptic landscape.
Sonically, what goals did you have in mind for The Otherside?
Casey: Sounding like ourselves is probably one of the biggest goals we have, and I believe that we accomplished that with this record.
Jesse: I think we all wanted these songs to be as dynamic as possible in order to feel the rise and fall in the energy of each. Editing in some late night, in-studio improv jams really added this effect to the album as a whole as well.
You guys recently released your new single, “Wildfire” from the album. What inspired this track?
Ben Vinograd: I think the mindset of people today can be a little destructive and hopeless because of all the negative things that are projected to them in politics and the news etc…to me it’s kind of a mantra that things are never really as bad as they seem. Even if it seems like things are burning down the world keeps turning and things keep moving ahead. At least that’s my take away from it.
Can we expect to hear any more new music before the album drops?
Jesse: …Never know???…
Casey: If you come to a show it is very likely that you’ll hear something new, whether it be a cover song, a new idea for a tune or just an improvised jam. There’s always something new going on at a Big Something show.
With the album out this month, can fans expect to catch a live show anytime soon? Any upcoming tour dates?
Jesse: Sure thing, We stay on the road touring throughout most of the year but readers can go to www.bigsomething.com and keep up with what venues and festivals we’ll be performing at!
Do you have any other big plans for the rest of 2018?
Jesse: I’m personally really looking forward to this years The Big What! It’s a festival that we host every year at home in NC. Check it out at www.thebigwhat.com!
Ben: Lots of stuff! We’ll be announcing a new city and venue for our annual Halloween Costume ball which we’re really excited about. We’re also attempting our first Big What Roadshow at the beach in Wilmington April 27th and 28th at Greenfield Lake Ampitheater which is gonna be an amazing way to celebrate the release of our new album and cap off a super busy Winter and Spring of heavy touring.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us! Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Jesse: I like turtles!
Casey: We hope you enjoy the album!
Ben: Keep coming out and supporting and we’ll keep pushing ourselves for you! Every person that walks through the door of a show gives us a little more energy to keep plugging along and creating!
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