This weekend, Brooklyn-based indie-rock outfit Pela will be heading to Jersey to hit the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, serving as a support act for Garden State sensation the Gaslight Anthem on Friday (May 8) and Saturday (May 9).
"I think the Gaslight Anthem's fantastic," said Billy McCarthy, singer/guitarist for Pela. "I haven't felt like I related to a band so much in a really long time, if ever. I really appreciate where they're coming from, it feels really honest to me, and I like (Gaslight Anthem frontman) Brian (Fallon) a lot, he's a sweetheart and he's really talented. (They're) just a great, solid band; it seems like very no-bullshit."
While McCarthy doesn't waste words in praise of the Gaslight Anthem, there are plenty of good things to be said about Pela, too, including the fact that their debut LP, 2007's "Anytown Graffiti," should be a must-listen for fans of Kings of Leon and the Pixies. he adds that music aficionados should be ready to hear a lot more about them with their second full-length effort sees the light of day later this summer.
McCarthy recently spoke with Metromix Jersey Shore.
You guys have a new album in the works. How's that coming along?
Oh, it's done, yeah. It's going to be coming out this summer; we're like beyond thrilled about it and excited. It was a long, long trip recording it. We actually did it once and weren't happy with it, so we started all over; we actually did the record twice and are finally satisfied.
Listening to the new record and your first album, what kind of progress do you think you've made from record to record?
I feel like "Anytown Graffiti" was sort of about small towns, I'm from a small town and it was kind of about leaving or wanting to leave. And I think New York has been a place that I had to kind of stay, so I'm writing from the perspective of planting your feet and staying and fighting for something.
I had a lot of upheaval throughout the year. I went to the hospital, I think I counted 40 times, I've had some injuries, both stage injuries; I had like 50 stitches in my hand and I broke my foot, and I had a lot of family problems and stuff. And, there were the elections and everything the country has been going through. It's just conceptually really different, and it's actually kind of bigger rock sounds, higher highs and lower lows.
And how was the experience of producing this album yourselves?
It was quite a task. We produced our last record as well, and I think that we started working with somebody who we were co-producing with, and when we finished the record we just really felt like we wanted to keep working. I think what we realized is that we like to take our time with our records. I know people do records in one or two months, and it's just not our style; we prefer to take a full calendar year and just document stuff and produce it. Hopefully one day we can find a producer that wants to spend time on it, too.
And how have live audiences been responding to the new material so far?
Oh, fantastic, it's been really exciting. We have a really good fan base, and everyone's just been asking, and so when we finally play something off the record they get really excited and they'll write us on our Web site and ask us for lyrics and it feels really good to know that people are excited.
What's the band's record label situation right now?
Well, we are not disclosing who we're going with, and we're going to announce it pretty soon. We are signing with a new label; we parted ways with the indie that we were on (Great Society) and we're going to go public with it pretty soon, probably in the next couple of weeks. And the release date will be in August, we think.
Like you said before, last year you had a couple of stage injuries: you cut the tendons in your hand in Chicago and you broke your foot on stage in Seattle. Did those accidents ever make you think about dialing back the intensity of your live show?
Yeah, they have, actually, because what happened was unfortunately I lost a tour the first time and I had like, I don't even know, $20,000 in bills, and then the second time I ended up on crutches and in bed for like six weeks. And I mean, I don't think it's possible for me to dial anything back, but before I get on stage I think about it a little bit. But once I get up there, I'm still jumping off into drum sets and jumping off stage; I can't help it, it's just how I feel music.
And you were mentioning about your fan-base before. After the Chicago injury, you guys actually had fan donations to help cover your medical costs, is that right?
Yeah. I think like 50 million Americans or something don't have health insurance, and I don't know anybody that really does, at least no musicians that do, and what happened to me is sort of a sad commentary on our healthcare system.
I actually severed tendons which actually make your fingers move, and all the hospital was obligated to do was sew the hole up, so they sewed up the cut and they told me I had ten days, roughly a week and a half, to have surgery, otherwise I was going to loose the ability to move my fingers because the tendons were going to retract.
So it threw everybody in a panic, including me, and I went to five hospitals in New York and was turned away because I didn't have money. And then radio stations helped, and fans all over America and Europe and Australia, everybody helped, and actually allowed me to get my surgery. It was amazing.
So, if anybody needs a reminder that the music community is alive and well, I'm here to tell them it is, because it saved my hand. I don't mean to be dramatic, but it was really weird to have a hospital say, "You might loose a tendon in your hand, but we can't help you," and I was sitting there like, "I have some money, I'm a taxpayer, but you won't help me," I just really didn't understand it.
Oh man, that's rough.
It was really rough.
But thankfully, everything worked out for the best and the fan-base stepped up.
And, as if I didn't already just adore people that come out to shows, it just completely bonded me to the people I meet out there, because they really stepped up for me and I really appreciate it.
