Safety Meeting – Interview – Thanks for Asking!

We ran into Kirth Rector from the band Safety Meeting. This is what he had to say.

RRX: Like songs, every artist has a unique feeling about their first show. What was your first show like? Was it your best show? If not, what was your best show like?

KR: Our first show was definitely not our best show. It was at a very seedy bar in Troy. We all decided that taking mushrooms before hand was a good idea (it was not). Tripping out while playing music to a bunch of uninterested biker dudes was a bad vibe. Pretty sure someone got shot at the bar a few days later & now it’s been closed ever since.

RRX: We have to play somewhere, and sometimes those places have more going for them than a stage and a power outlet. What is a memorable place you played, and bonus points if it’s not a well-known place.

KR: Gugs in Glens Falls was one of the best hole in the wall music venues we’ve ever played. It was in the middle of no where but somehow always had a good crowd. The owner/bartender was a fan of ours so we basically became the house band for a while & the owner couldn’t help but try & get you as plastered as possible. Miss that spot!

RRX: Sometimes you gotta go on the road. Miles can build up, and it can stretch the comfort level of any travelling act. What do you bring on a road trip, or tour? What will you forget to bring?

KR: If we have a case of beer, some weed & a pack of cards we can occupy ourselves pretty well. We’ve probably played this one card game “Palace” over a million times & it never gets old. We’re most likely forget to bring our toothbrushes which is pretty disgusting.

RRX: I know when pitching it helps to tell someone it’s “this meets that.” So let’s try that with you. If you had to give me two bands that meet each other in your sound, what are those bands? More than two bands?

KR: I like to think we’re a perfect blend between The Black Lips & Natural Child. Maybe with a little Pavement thrown in. I’m a sucker for finding new bands I like and going “let make a song that songs like them”

RRX: Would you rather have one of your songs blow up and make you a one-hit wonder and household name, or would you rather have all your songs be solidly received, but no chart-climbers? (You have to pick one or the other here.)

KR: Something about being a one hit wonder seems cool to me. I would love to be “the band” that had “that song”. Usually one hit wonders other music isn’t even that bad it’s just the one song is sooo good. I’d take that all day.

RRX: What historical era would you like to visit if the sole purpose was to put together a Battle of the Bands? How would you set it up?

KR: I would go with the 2000s just to see some of those bands live in their primes Plus it would be funny to watch The Strokes battle Nickelback. It would have to be called “Woodstock 2004” or something. Hopefully it would go just as poorly as ‘99.