Chicago – Every festival brings a barrage of talented up and coming acts just waiting to be discovered by the masses, and of course music journalists, too. In preparation for Lollapalooza 2015, I did my homework, combing through the the line-up for the “best new bands,” reading bios and listening to YouTube and Soundcloud uploads. When I found my way to Black Pistol Fire, I was intrigued by the band name, then by the fact the band is a duo. Duos are always interesting, but many would argue they’ve been played out. We’ve certainly seen our fair share, and inevitably, each duo gets compared to anther duo, from Little Hurricane being compared to The White Stripes and Royal Blood to The Black Keys. Are they bringing something new then? How will they manage to blow you away? Black Pistol Fire immediately caught my ear, reminding me of early Kings of Leon, with more of a blues twist. I knew I had to not only see guitarist Kevin McKeown and drummer Eric Owen perform at Lolla, but I also had to sit down with these two Canadians, who spend most their time in Austin these days.
After their mind-blowing set, filled with high jumps, stage diving, and crowd surfing, which seriously sealed the deal for me as a life-long fan, I sat down with Black Pistol Fire to talk coming to America, being besties, and chasing rabbits.
According to your website you’re based in Toronto, Ontario and Austin, Texas. How does that work? Is it like shared custody?
Eric Owen: Well, we spend most of our time in Austin. The band is based in Austin.
Kevin McKeown: We moved from Canada down to Austin about five and a half years ago. Then there’s been a game of on and off.
Eric Owen: It’s a work visa issue. We constantly have to get new work visas, and that’s why we go, “We’re Canadian.” We’ll always be Canadian citizens.
Kevin McKeown: We claim Austin.
Eric Owen: The band was born in Austin and that’s the home base of the band.
Did you experience any culture shock when you first moved to The States, especially in the South?
Kevin McKeown: In Austin, yeah a little bit. Texas is a little different than Toronto, Canada, but in terms of the music is scene in Austin, Texas, that was an easy sell for us.
Eric Owen: I think not necessarily in Austin, but once you venture outside of Austin, in the north of Texas, it’s definitely a lot different than growing up in a big city like Toronto. If you go to the country in Texas, right Kev?
Kevin McKeown: Yeah, but even the South itself, they have a different attitude, the way they treat musicians and the way they respect music. In Toronto, it’s great, but I mean, they really cater to the musicians and music in Austin. Toronto is such a huge, huge city. It’s easy to get lost in the shuffle there.
Also, I think for a lot of Canadian bands it’s really hard for them to break into the U.S. music scene. So you guys have an advantage being in Austin. You won’t have that problem.
Kevin McKeown: You just hit the nail on the head! We realized that too because there are artists in Canada that are massive. I mean they’re selling out arenas. They come down to Austin for South By South West and…
Eric Owen: They play for thirty people. We’re the opposite, where we’ll go to Canada and, and yeah, it’s kind of a different trade-off, isn’t it?
Kevin McKeown: Now it’s more the lines of we gotta break Canada. [laughs]
Eric Owen: But aren’t you from Canada? [laughs]
Kevin McKeown: But I mean, right now we’re in a good spot. [Spots a friend and stops to call him over, getting on all fours, screaming, "John, John, John, John!" Eric jokes that Kevin looks like a dog barking. He also insists this must go on Facebook. Johnny Bradley, of Gary Clark Jr.'s band, comes over for a brief, hilarious conversation, which includes birthday wishes. The Austinites reminisce about touring together and discuss the previous night's show at the House of Blues in Chicago. Then Bradley goes on his way, leaving us to resume the interview.]
It’s pretty amazing that you’ve been friends since kindergarten. I bet your friendship adds to making music, like knowing if one of you isn’t feeling something or bringing lyrics together? You probably don’t even need to talk half the time; you just give each other a look.
Eric Owen: That is probably one of the biggest benefits of playing in a band with somebody you’ve known for a long time. They’ll be able to pick up on social cues and physical cues that you do. When it comes to playing music or improvising live on stage, there’s always a umm…
Kevin McKeown: There’s always a trust!
Eric Owen: Truthful, truthful!
Kevin McKeown: We’ve been playing together since we were teenagers, in his parents’ basement [points to Eric], so we kind of know everything, like if I play a little riff or there’s a hiccup on something, we both know where it’s gonna go. We’re pretty lucky in that sense.
It comes through on stage! I saw you play earlier today and you were amazing!
Both: Thank you!
While I was photographing you, the photographer next to me, in the pit, showed me his arms. He had goosebumps. You gave him goosebumps!
Kevin McKeown: Wow!
Eric Owen: Alright!
Kevin McKeown: You know that is so cool because I’ve been at shows before, and I’ve been there. I’ve been like, “Holy shit!, can you feel this right now?” And I’ve thought wouldn’t it be cool if I could do that!
Well, you did it!
Eric Owen: Mission accomplished.
Let’s talk about some of your music. “Hipster Shakes,” was this inspired by life in Austin?
Kevin McKeown: Yeah, we had already been living in Austin for a couple of years. The title of the song was just something that came to me one day… it has a duel meaning for me. You know how you get the shakes from withdrawal, hipsters will get the shakes, like scene is not cool enough for me, I’m getting the shakes! Or do the “hipster shake,” like do the “mashed potato” or something. [everyone laughs]
Eric Owen: I thought it was because you were watching a bunch of King Khan videos and the hipsters were like doing this crazy shake dance. Wasn’t that part of it?
Kevin McKeown: Yeah, yeah!
And “Run Rabbit Run,” what is this song about?
Kevin McKeown: It’s kind of about my dog. I have a beagle. He chases cats, rabbits, and all kinds of other furry animals. I had the idea to write a song using the idea of leading up to a chase, you know a chase sequence, and it built up around that.
You ought to run to your nearest record store to pick up Black Pistol Fire’s album Hush Or Howl. You can also chase Black Pistol Fire on tour. Follow the band on Facebook and Twitter for tour date announcements.
Sarah Hess
After attending The School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Sarah went on to study education at Dominican University, earning a degree in history. When not teaching, writing, or taking in a show, she is most likely to be found with a camera to her eye or hanging out in a darkroom.
You can follow Sarah Hess on twitter at @Sarahhasanh and view her music photography on her website: smhimaging.com.
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