Polar Bear Club

A few months ago, I interviewed Jimmy Stadt of Polar Bear Club and it was one of my favourite interviews I’ve ever done because it ended up being so very random. When I was introduced to Chris Browne, the guitarist of Polar Bear Club as we waited in the catering line up at the opening day of the 2010 Warped Tour, he immediately brought up the interview saying how he had enjoyed reading it which meant I wasn’t the only one who really liked it. We talked for a bit, ate some delicious food and then he headed off to play their set for the day. When we met up again a few hours later, Chris and I found a quiet table to sit at and talk about the tour. Chris began the interview saying how he didn’t know if he’ll be able to give the same type of interview that Jimmy and I had done the last March but that he’d try; and while the interview wasn’t quite as random (we stayed more on topic this time around), it was still an exciting, entertaining and – most importantly – insightful interview. I’d say he held up pretty well. Turns out all the guys in Polar Bear Club know how to give a good interview.

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Bobby: Today is the first day of the 16th annual Vans Warped Tour; you guys are playing the first half of the tour – are you excited to play Warped Tour this year?

Chris: I’m very excited actually, more excited than I was expecting to be.

Bobby: How so?

Chris: I was nervous. I don’t like unfamiliarity which is kind of weird being in a touring band because you’re always confronting it. I think now that we’re here and immersed in it and seeing what it’s like, now I’m really excited. We’re seeing all of our friends and eating good food.

Bobby: Very good food.

Chris: Yeah, I know. So I’m excited. It’s going to be good.

Bobby: So this is obviously your first time doing Warped Tour then, have you heard any tips or advice for what to do to survive the next few weeks?

Chris: We have some friends bands that are seasoned vets of the tour and they’ve given us a lot of little pointers here and there just about how to live.

Bobby: Such as?

Chris: Bringing a solar shower that was a big one. Just like stuff about how to store your equipment, tents and all that. I always blank when I get this question.

Bobby: Did you end up bringing a solar shower?

Chris: We did, we did. We just picked them up yesterday. I’m kind of psyched to use it today because I feel gross already.

Bobby: Yeah, I was talking to Bryan from the Souls and he was saying that was the first thing they brought to the tour back in ’97 when they played and they’ve been bringing it ever since. It’s not something you’d think about necessarily, to bring a solar shower, but it’s good.

Chris: I actually have to thank Joe from Set Your Goals for that; that was how the information got passed on to me. But no, I didn’t think about that at all. I just kind of assumed we’d find a place to shower.

Bobby: Last year the tour kind of rearranged how it’s done. They used to have two main stages, they played thirty minutes on and off; now its one main stage and they play forty minutes and then there’s downtime. That kind of makes kids have to walk around and explore the side stages, are you glad that they did that?

Chris: Absolutely, I think for a band like us, that does nothing but help the cause. I mean, we’re primary playing for new people who haven’t heard our band. So the more people that are just going to walk by and check it out and maybe like what they hear – the better.

Bobby: Do you think that’s a good thing about Warped Tour? To be able to just wander around and discover bands? I’ll never forget finding Oresakband two years ago, this six piece Japanese all girl ska band. Do you think it’s good that you’re able to discover new bands or maybe come to see one band and then end up seeing Alkaline Trio or GBH?

Chris: Yeah, I think it’s all good. It’s interesting. I feel that people maybe our age think of Warped Tour maybe differently than younger people but I went to Warped Tour when I was fourteen years old and I got introduced to bands that stuck with me until now.

Bobby: What are some of your favourite Warped Tour discoveries then?

Chris: I’ll never forget the first Warped Tour I went to I saw Pennywise and Blink-182. You know, I was already a fan of those bands but I had never seen either of them live and they were like demi-gods at that point to me. I also got to see bands that I didn’t know about which maybe didn’t stick with me but at the time I saw Sevendust which is weird but I was fourteen and I really liked them. I wouldn’t have discovered them other than for Warped Tour.

Bobby: Now Kevin Lyman – and Warped Tour – has been criticized for the slight expansion in sound and style of Warped Tour; especially last year with Brokencyde and Millionaires. What’s your stance on the whole “Warped Tour should only be punk” debate?

Chris: I completely disagree that it should only be punk only because I don’t think it’s ever been only punk. I think punk fans who go to Warped Tour and think of it like that, they want only punk but that’s just not what the tour has ever been. I mean, like I was just saying back in 99 and 2000 or whatever it was, there were bands like Sevendust and Limp Bizkit was on one. There’s been questionable ones.

Bobby: Black Eyed Peas played it in ’99.

Chris: Yeah, yeah. There’s been bands that stuck out like a sore thumb since the tour started and I think it’s just that bands are sticking out differently now because the whole tour is different. So the allegiances, your allegiances to bands are different but the whole point is the variety. You or I may not like the bands that stick out but it’s not for us to say.

Bobby: Do you think the whole punk ideology of only listening to punk bands can kind of limited your growth? Like if you only listen to punk bands, you have no other influences. You may not want some of these influences, but it does expand your palette.

Chris: Exactly. It’s kind of ironic because a person who says Warped Tour should be only punk bands or only any kind of bands – that’s a very unpunk thing to say as far as I’m concerned because being into punk music and culture is about being opened minded. So even if you don’t like these other weird bands that you see walking around – that’s the whole point. They should be able to share the stage next to each other and contribute something different.

Bobby: At the same time, how would you define punk? Would Big D and the Kids Table be allowed on it because they’re a ska band?

Chris: Yeah, where do you draw that line? And who’s in charge of that?

Bobby: I am.

Chris: [laughs] Fair enough, I’ll come to you next time.

Bobby: Exactly. Of course, with so many bands playing their set times kind of overlap which means bands have to fight for an audience. You have to go out, flyer and say “hey, come see us at four o’clock or five thirty or whatever.” Do you have any plans for how you’re going to convince people to come watch you?

Chris: I mean I think we’re going to try to walk the line between being lazy and being annoyingly in your face because we obviously don’t want to be either. I think we’re going to do the usual, put up posters and stuff that say we’re playing here and this time. We’re doing a fair share of signing type stuff, meet and greet type of things. We want people to know when we’re playing but there’s certain bands that you see their shit everywhere and people are walking around shoving it in your face – to me, that takes away the mystique of the band. People like to discover bands for themselves and we want people to discover our band by themselves.

Bobby: Do you think it also kind of re-invigorates that DIY ethic of punk where you do have to go out and hand out flyers, talk to the fans and not just sit behind a computer?

Chris: In that way it’s great. It’s cool, bands have to work for everything they get on this tour and I think that’s something that maybe doesn’t get talked about enough. Like bands being on Warped Tour – like a band like us, it’s sort of a weird step and people think one way about it but we plan on working harder on this tour than we’ve ever worked before.

I think that’s a really good thing. It’s the competitive aspect that we don’t like. It’s not a battle of the bands and we’re not pinning ourselves against any other bands. We should all be able to help each other.

Bobby: You also just mentioned that you do a lot of interactions with fans. I know you guys did an acoustic set earlier this afternoon.

Chris: Actually we didn’t. We were supposed to, it got cancelled.

Bobby: Oh, well you were supposed to do an acoustic set. So there’s a lot of fan/band interaction at Warped Tour do you think that’s good to kind of eliminate the space between the fans and bands?

Chris: Absolutely. I mean, we’re kind of a band that we don’t want any space between us and the fans. The whole concept is it’s for all of us. The stage, figuratively, shouldn’t even exist – we’re on the same level. It’s sort of a different want to get introduced to fans, doing the meet and greets and signings and stuff but it’s maybe for younger kids who are more timid or don’t know who we are, we can put ourselves out there and say “hey, you know, we’re people like you;” but we can still walk around and shake hands with friends and say hi. So it’s a different way of doing it but I think it’s equally as valid. It’s important.

Bobby: That also creates a unique atmosphere of Warped Tour. Like Warped Tour is primarily for music but there’s a unique atmosphere here too – with the fan/band interaction, with the skate ramp, with all the entertainment. How would you describe the atmosphere at Warped Tour?

Chris: Hectic. It’s just a zoo of people having fun and checking out new things. It’s cool. I love how open minded everything is so far. Again, I’ve only been here for a day but I’m impressed by how people just want to be exposed to new things – including the bands and the people on the tour. I expect everyone to be jaded and the mentality is more “hey, we’re here to have a good time. Let’s have some fun!”

Bobby: Well that’s another unique thing about Warped Tour – is that it’s a lot of fun. There’s a lot of hard work with the long drives and long days but there’s also a lot of downtime where the bands hang out at the barbecue, in the parking lot and stuff like that. Do you think it’s good to have all these bands hanging out to strengthen the punk community, build friendships and create possible touring partners?

Chris: Absolutely. We’ve only been touring full time for a short time now but the best part of it is then feeling like we’re a part of something. We started out touring and it was just our band and we’re trying to find where we fit in; and as a band, having friends on that tour – like for us, Four Year Strong, Set Your Goals, Every Time I Die, The Swellers – it’s like we’re going to tour together again in the future and we have in the past and we hang out and it’s like we’re all ideologically about the same thing. I think it’s great.

Bobby: Of course with all these friendships there’s also a lot of unique collaborations that happen.  Like I know when I talked to Four Year Strong when you guys were in Edmonton and they had recorded a song with Keith from Every Time I Die and they were hoping to pull it out at Warped Tour. So there are some unique collaborations. What would be one collaboration that you would like to either see or be a part of on this year’s Warped Tour?

Chris: Jimmy, our singer, actually does… there’s that Set Your Goals song that Hayley Williams sings on the recording and Jimmy does her part which I think is just hilarious. He did that on our tour with them and I would love to see him do that again. But really any old school band that I grew up listening to collaborating together I think would be just amazing to see. Like The Bouncing Souls and Face To Face or Alkaline Trio and anybody; or just really be a part of it with any band on the tour. We’re here to be friends and play music so I hope that happens a lot.

Bobby: I was actually wondering about that Set Your Goals song since there’s a lot of female fronted punk bands on this year’s tour, so I was wondering if one of those would come sing the Hayley Williams part but I think it would be interesting to see Jimmy do it too.

Chris: It’s an interesting take on it, for sure.

Bobby: Kevin Lyman has also said many times that he wants Warped Tour to be a safe place for kids to come out to for their first concert or first punk show. It may not be their first concert but for many kids this would be their first time going to Warped Tour. Do you have any advice for kids coming to the show for the first time?

Chris: Well the theme of the interview is be open minded, so I’m going to say that again. I don’t think that’s really even a problem. I just hope kids will walk by stages and not make a snap judgment within five seconds. I hope kids will take the time to watch two or three songs of the band and really get a sense of what the band is about.

I remember walking by earlier and I’m pretty sure it was Pierce the Veil and Face To Face playing right next to each other and the different types of fans was astounding but that’s a great thing that we’re at the same show and those two bands are playing next to each other. I hope that the fans of the one band will give an earnest listen to the other band because I think there’s a lot to like about both.

Bobby: Just one last question. This is the sixteen edition of the Warped Tour, you said you’ve been going since you were fourteen – what are some of your fondest memories of Warped Tours long gone?

Chris: I actually only went when I was fourteen. I actually only went once, so it’s kind of weird to be back now and being full circle – almost twice as old now. But I would say my best memory of going to that Warped Tour was seeing Blink 182 for the first time. I was like the biggest super fan – as were a million kids our age. Seeing Blink, crowd surfing to Blink for the first time. I actually got to sneak back by the tour buses at age fourteen and hang out with Fletcher and Jim from Pennywise. They were Gods to me at that time and they were such nice guys and I just remember thinking “this is what a punk band should be.”

Bobby: Awesome, thanks a lot.