The last time we posted about Turnspit was in POV, where we declared that they would fill the hole in your heart that The Gaslight Anthem had left since they went on hiatus. We stand by that statement and today have a stream of the band’s debut EP ‘I Wonder If They’re Happy’. The EP is out on Friday, when the band open on of the shows the Lawrence Arms are playing in Chicago this weekend. You can listen to the EP below and read an interview with Gillian McGhee, Jason Swearingen and Jason Duarte on the band, the Chicago scene and playing with one of their biggest influences.
So you guys have only been around for a year, let’s kick this off with you telling us about your band and your new EP
Jason: We started the band a year ago and kind of knew general what we were going for but it was kind of like learning as we go for what our sound was going to be, we just knew we wanted to play poppy punk stuff. Originally it was Gillian, me and Jason (Duarte) and our first drummer Kyle, and the four songs on the EP are the first for songs that we wrote together. We’ve been working on these songs. Kyle parted ways with the band, it was a mutual decision as he was real busy with a ton of other bands like City Mouse and other awesome shit. We got our new drummer Dan Tinkler and we spent some time relearning the songs together. We were planning to record in October and November anyway, and then we got the Lawrence Arms show and we were like “SHIT! We need to get into the studio and record these songs!”
Gillian: For these songs it’s cool because Jason and I are both songwriters, and Jason Duarte too. We have a couple more songs we’re going to work on once this EP is out with the three of use doing the song writing. But I think what’s cool about this is Jason and I write our songs kind of designed as solo acoustic stuff. What’s neat about that is, especially with ‘To the Moon and Back’, that one went from me just being sad in my room playing guitar by myself to being one of the best songs I think that we have. Seeing it progress from just being me on my guitar to this really full, tight sound, and very definitive sound is really cool!
Jason D: This is the first band that I’ve been in where I’m part of the band, every other band I’ve been in it’s just “hey we need a bass player”, but I’m a guitar player but you know bass is close enough so I just usually join and play bass. That’s pretty much how I met Gillian at Mike’s birthday party and then we practiced the next day and it was kind of awesome. None of us went in with crazy expectations but in my opinion it’s snowballed into this really cool, big thing that we want to keep going.
You’re opening for The Lawrence Arms, that’s a pretty big deal and they are a pretty influential and major Chicago band. How does that feel?
Gillian: So I got the message from Toby (Jeg) when I was at work, and I work at a start up down town with people who wouldn’t really get it you know? An office job. I looked at my phone and I started yelling “Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!” and everyone was going “What’s wrong?” and I was like “Give me a second everything is okay” and just freaked out. Then I explained “My band just got a really big gig and none of you will understand” but they all started to cheer anyway which was awesome. It’s stupid, I have a Lawrence Arms tattoo and they’re a hugely influential band for me. There are 5 bands that have really changed my life and the Lawrence Arms are one of them. You know, it’s a dream come true across the board. I never thought, especially because this is our seventh or eighth show, we’re in the single digits still and this is the biggest compliment and a huge honour. Words escape me for it.
Jason: A large part of why I moved to Chicago when I moved here in 2006 was because of the music scene at the time, The Lawrence Arms, Rise Against, Methadones. I loved everything that was coming out of this city. At the time where we were from I didn’t know many people who knew the Lawrence Arms and when we moved here they were still not quite at selling out the Metro level yet. So there was still this pipe dream in my head that maybe one day I could play a show with them. I also have a Lawrence Arms tattoo! Then they got so much bigger and stopped play a whole lot, I mean Chris doesn’t even live in Chicago, so I sort of gave up hope. So I was driving home in my car and my phone vibrates and I check it to make sure it’s not an emergency and I see “Open for Lawrence Arms” and I was like “WHAT?”. Then my phone just vibrates continuously with messages and so I had to pull over and check my phone. I’m just sitting on the side of the road going “Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!”
Jason D: I remember I was sat at my desk at work and I get this buzzing from Toby Jeg from Red Scare. I saw the question asking if we were interested in opening for the Lawrence Arms and immediately, I don’t think a minute went by, and I was like “Yes! Fuck my bandmates, yes!” I knew we’d make it work so I made the executive decision, I mean I knew everyone would be down for it. They were one of those bands for me too though, I remember walking to the bus stop in High School listening to ‘Apathy and Exhaustion’ on my headphones for the first time being like “Yeah this rules”. They have always been one of those staple Chicago punk bands where their words mean a lot, their music means a lot and it still does. It’s amazing to me that at 29 years old, I dunno, the High School version of myself would be freaking out right now. It’s one of the coolest things that has ever happened to me and I’m so excited.
Jason: I just wanted to add that when “Greatest Story…” came out I remember listening to it on a listening station at a record store Magnolia ThunderPussy in Columbus, Ohio and being like “I need to get this record”. I wasn’t sure if I was gonna buy if for sure but I thought if I find it used I might, and I found it used in the back. By the time I got home I was obsessed. It also gave me kind of a crisis because that record was like literally everything I was trying to do with music at the time done better then I could ever hope to do it. It was kind of like… I freaked out because I was like how do I continue to write songs without just blatantly ripping this off? So I just blatantly ripped it off for a couple of years.
What are the plans for 2016? You’re ending 2015 on a really high note so you must have some great plans to come.
Gillian: We’re waiting to talk about everything until we got the Lawrence Arms show it was full force straight ahead making sure we could get this record out and have shirts made and have merch in time for the show. I think, even though we haven’t fully talked about everything, we are definitely going to be putting out more music whether that’s full length or splits. I know we do have a split, a covers split of the Jealous Sound which will be neat. We would definitely like to go on tour, try and do a mini something here and there. Our main goal in 2016 is to try and get on FEST, I’ve never been to FEST and that would be a huge deal. I think we can do it! We’ll see.
Jason D: I’m open to anything at this point. I’m starting nursing school in like a month so I don’t even know what my own schedule is going to be but as far as band stuff is concerned I think I’d like to keep the door of opportunity open. Record as much as we can, play as much as we can where ever we can and have fun with it.
Jason: Also Jason Duarte writes songs, and there’s none on the EP but we’ll have some songs with Jason Duarte singing them next year.
The Chicago Punk scene is one of my favourite scenes at the moment, it’s so up and coming and exciting. What are your fav bands in this scene at the moment?
Gillian: I love Dog & Wolf, they just put out a record and I think Kyle Geib is a really great songwriter and I love the new record. It’s got that same kind of twang thing that we also have. Also anything Mike Petruccelli touches is pretty much golden. The Flips are really good alternative emo, really heavy, really emotional lyrical writing that hits me in the feels.
Jason: We’re friends with so many good bands.. Two Houses, Tens, Rapids, Otto Mann, Regular Oatmeal, there are so many great bands. The two that I don’t get to hang out with as much as I wish I could but that I really like to plug are Lights Over Bridgeport who are phenomenal and Gar Clements who has solo project and he is amazing. It’s folksy country stuff and his voice and song writing is incredible. Also I’m gonna throw in that I used to be in Gunners Daughter and they’re still a band and they are rad. Burn Rebuild are also great, they are Frankie from Much the Same’s new band.
Jason D: As far as Chicago bands go Rapids are awesome, their new songs are really good and they’re also good friends of ours. They are also opening for the Lawrence Arms! They are playing the first night. Most of the other stuff I’ve been listening to is kind of like not Chicago punk, like 70’s power pop like Big Star and Revolver by the Beatles. Also some 90’s shoegazer stuff like Swerve Driver from England. A lot of that kind of very layered, guitar complex stuff which has been kind of cool. There’s a lot of really great Chicago bands at the moment though!
Jason: I am sure we missed someone though. If we forgot to mention your name know we mean it and we love you.
Gillian: I think Chicago in three years is going to be what Philly is right now, I think we’re in that really awesome songwriters and bands really going for it and trying to make a name for the city with their music which is cool and we’re so stoked to be a part of that.