Buxter Hoot’n is two parts family, five parts rock ‘n’ roll revivalists. The San Francisco-based quintet is heading south for a show at The Mint this Saturday along with Honey Island Swamp Band and Sioux City Kid. Earlier this week I spoke to lead singer Vince Dewald, curious about everything from the band’s diverse influences to how the band lived together in San Francisco to their new eponymous album. The record marks their second full-length release, and don’t miss the music video for the third track “Blue Night” below.

Laurel Kathleen: You’ve been together five years as band. What’s one thing that’s really changed, and what’s really stayed the same?

Vince Dewald: Well, when we first started we played a solid year before we had Melissa in the band. Before she joined, we were doing a lot more acoustic stuff. I was playing acoustic guitar, my brother was playing upright bass, and Ben was playing more violin. As far as songwriting and vision goes, we were still very connected to what we’re doing today but it was still was more on the acoustic side. We’ve definitely evolved into more of a rock ‘n’ roll sound. We’re using more…not overtly modern elements or sounds, but more contemporary sounds. It’s not completely roots music anymore; we’re moving into our own staple sounds while incorporating what we’re hearing today as well.

Buxter Hoot’n “Blue Night”

LK: I noticed on your Facebook page that you all live together. What’s the dynamic like at home?

VD: We all lived out in Sunset together for a couple of years. Now it’s just the three of us. It was already creative. We did a lot of playing, we would play our songs and just improvise out of nowhere and create on the spot. Play a bunch of old blues, getting kind of deep into each other’s musical psyche. We spent so much time just picking different tunes and playing all kinds of stuff. We have a pretty wide spectrum of influences. Between the five of us, a lot of bases are covered. Melissa’s father was a blues singer and guitarist so she’s steeped in the blues, Jimmy and I grew up listening to blues and rock ‘n’ roll, Ben and Jeremy have a lot of jazz and world music. We learned a lot from each other over that period, honed in on a unique sound.

LK: You guys are playing The Mint this Saturday. Have you played there before?

VD: No we haven’t. We came down to LA a few years ago and really enjoyed it. We haven’t been back in LA proper though.

LK: Got anything special planned for this show?

VD: Couple of new songs to unveil. Definitely excited about our new material. Just playing our set, our strongest songs off of the last album, and some new ones.

LK: What’s your favorite city or stage to play, and what’s one you’d like to play in the near future?

VD: We’re heading back to the Midwest and east coast for touring in the fall, we’ve played a lot of good shows in that part of the country. We’re at a stage where we’re looking to the future, and setting it up as we can. We’re doing it all ourselves as far as booking goes, and the intensity has jumped up as far as the workload. Every step along the way, there’s more to do.

Album cover

LK: Anyone in mind for future tour mates?

VD: A lot of shows we’ll just be headlining, but we’ll get local openers. As far as other gigs, we’ll probably just fish around in the area and find bands we’re into. We definitely want to keep linking up: the musical community is why we all ended up in San Francisco. Being around other artists, creating a larger community. It’s definitely something we’re all interested in continuing.

LK: Name an artist that you hope makes it big.

VD: There are a lot of great bands in San Francisco that are all in similar stages as us. We’re all releasing new albums and getting our names out there. One band that’s really kind of blowing up is The Stone Foxes; they’re a great band. Lot of bands in San Francisco though, it’s an exciting time. The underground emerging scene is really coming together; and a lot of festivals.

LK: How do you make music that sounds like it could have been made yesterday or 30 years ago?

VD: A lot of it’s just as we were growing up, listening to music. We write a lot of stuff together and we grew up in Indiana listening to old blues and rock and country. The old rock ‘n’ roll golden age: The Beatles, The Stones, Bob Dylan, The Band, et cetera. Being around all that stuff so long, it just seeps into our core creative process. We always try to use what we hear today in our music so we create something new and fresh.  A lot of current bands we listen to like… The Felice Brothers from New York, Modest Mouse, Arcade Fire, Wilco, Radiohead, The Black Keys, all these kind of bands. There’s a lot of modern stuff we all enjoy.

If you’re in Los Angeles this weekend, catch Buxter Hoot’n at The Mint. Doors open at 7, the show starts at 8, and the event is 21+. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at the door. The Mint is located at 6010 West Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles. For more information on Buxter Hoot’n's upcoming tour dates, please visit their Facebook and Twitter pages. Their eponymous full-length album is now available on iTunes.