Riverboat Gamblers

Austin, Texas’ Riverboat Gamblers have been busy making a name for themselves over the past few years. After a few smaller releases, the band broke to a broader fan base with their breakthrough 2005 Volcom Entertainment debut, To The Confusion of Our Enemies, and never looked back. A constant touring schedule has kept them busy – touring all over the world in small venues, big venues and the occasional festival or two. One of those festivals is, of course, The Vans Warped Tour and 2010 saw the band play the entire tour for the second time. Touring in support of 2009’s Underneath The Owl with a recovering Ian Macdougall on guitar, Riverboat Gamblers were out there every day putting on a hectic performance that seems to, more often than not, end up with front man Mike Wiebe climbing all over the stage and speakers.

On the first day of the tour I caught up with the energetic singer to discuss his anticipation for the tour and everything he remembered from doing it before in 2005. Our conversation is below.

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Bobby: I guess the main question is today’s the first day of the Warped Tour – you guys are playing the entire tour – are you excited for it?

Mike: It’s real daunting, anxious I guess is the word. I don’t get excited anymore, I just get anxious and want it to go well; but yeah I guess I’m excited.

Bobby: Have you ever done the tour before?

Mike: Yeah, we did it in 2005 and it was hard. But we were in a van then, we’re in a bus this time so it’s going to be a little bit easier. But I never know – it’s a weird audience, I don’t know if they know who we are or anything like that. It’s hard when it seems like nobody’s even heard of us.

Bobby: Well it is one of the more gruelling tours. 43 cities, 51 days, long drives, long days, no showers. What do you do to mentally prepare yourself beforehand?

Mike: You know, the last time we did it was five years ago so I kind of forget. In five years I’ve kind of forgot about a lot of the negative stuff and just kind of remembered the positive stuff. Now, like the first day here in California, I’m kind of wrapping my head around like “oh yeah, I got do this. Oh yeah, I gotta stand in line.”  There’s a lot of little tricks like when you should get food and sunscreen and pacing yourself and playing and I’m just starting to remember all that stuff now.

Bobby: Do you have any tips that you do remember for bands that haven’t done it before?

Mike: I would say get sleep when you can. It will be a different experience on a bus this time, so I don’t know. Everything I’ve ever learned in my life, I’ve learned the hard way so I’m sure I’ll make a lot of mistakes and learn the hard way and I’ll have lots of newfound advice by the end of the tour.

Bobby: Every day there’s fifty to eighty bands playing depending on the city. From Alkaline Trio to GBH to Hey Monday to Call The Cops. Is there anybody you’re incredibly excited to see and why?

Mike: I’m actually really excited about the old school stage here in California. I want to see Fear and the Dickies. I’m really excited about that but at the same time I’m excited about – well, not all the other bands; but the bands that I’m looking forward to are like Alkaline Trio, Bouncing Souls, Casualties, Andrew WK always brings it, there’s a couple others. The Flatliners are here for a few shows, they’re really cool. Fake Problems are buddies of ours. Sure, they’re all bands I’ve seen a bunch but it’s always good to see them again.

Bobby: Warped Tour is, of course, a place to be introduced to new bands. You walk around and you just suddenly hear this awesome band. Are there any bands that you remember discovering on Warped Tour?

Mike: Yeah. Actually they’re from Canada – Bedouin Soundclash. I’d never heard of them at all. Probably wouldn’t have heard of them if we hadn’t done Warped Tour and man, they’re so good and they’re friends of ours now. We actually toured together about a year and a half ago in Australia on this Australian tour. Yeah, that’s like the one band that sticks out in my head. That was awesome like “what is this? Who is this? Oh my god, this is awesome.”

Bobby: Do you think it’s also good that kids can come to see, lets say Riverboat Gamblers, and then be introduced to bands like Fear or Dickies or Adolescents? Be introduced to old school bands that they may not know about?

Mike: Yeah, yeah. That’s really good. It’s really hard for me to put myself in their perspective of being that young and not really knowing about that – Fear and the Dickies, GBH and stuff like that.  I don’t know how much of it that it’s actually going to trickle down, that they’re actually going to  get something out of that; but the ones that it does, it’s very important. There’s definitely a lot of kids who just want to see the pretty boy bands or whatever that they’re here to see – and that’s okay, that’s fine; but I think there’s a couple kids that it’s going to be an affirming thing for them to see Fear and then they’re going to really appreciate it further down the line when their musical palette expands a lot more. My mind just gets bigger and bigger the older and older I get and my pallet just keeps broadening.

Bobby: In a way, the Warped Tour’s sound pallet has also expanded over the last few years. Some people like it, some people hate it – Warped Tour has gotten some flack for having some bands on it. What’s your whole opinion on “Warped Tour should only be punk” debate?

Mike: Personally, I would like that but from a business model, that kind of doesn’t make any sense. They have to keep a broad pallet to keep a festival this big going. If it was a perfect world where they could fill huge venues with people that like exclusively music that I like, that would be amazing; but we don’t live in that world sadly. But then at the end of the day, maybe there’s some kid that came to see one of those bands that I’m not into that’s just kind of like kids stuff and maybe this is their turning point where they see Fear or they see the Bouncing Souls or – god forbid – even the Riverboat Gamblers and kind of get them into a whole new genre.

I listened to a lot of really, really crappy stuff when I was fourteen, fifteen and sixteen. Partly it was because I didn’t have the most amazing taste – I was young and my musical palette hadn’t opened up but also I wasn’t exposed to it. I didn’t have anybody; I didn’t have an older brother or a school friend. I lived in a crappy – well, not a crappy – but I lived in a smaller town and I didn’t have anybody to show me stuff like that. So you gotta start somewhere, so I really try not to be too judgemental about where somebody’s musical tastes are at a young age.

Bobby: So I guess Warped Tour kind of acts like the cool older brother and introduces you to new bands.

Mike: Yeah, totally.

Bobby: You also said that your musical palette has expanded a lot – is there any style or sound that you would like to see added to Warped Tour?

Mike: I miss the hip-hop acts. It seems like for a while they had more hip-hop acts – I’m really into a lot of the hip-hop stuff – and it doesn’t really seem like they’re doing that anymore. I’m sure they have good and valid reasons why they’re not but I miss that. I don’t know, I would like to see some weirder indie rock stuff as opposed to some of the other stuff. You know, with the punk basis, there are a few bands that they could kind of pull of. But this is kind of a little bit more off-the-wall stuff; but there’s some stuff out there for sure.

Bobby: Also, with so many bands playing, their set times overlap which kind of means that the bands have to go out there and fight for an audience. Do you think that kind of re-invigorates the DIY ethics of old punk? Handing out flyers, meeting fans, stuff like that?

Mike: I don’t know. It’s a bummer that it turns it into a little bit more competitive because it’s all like one day and it’s not really the same as trying to build up this show that you’re doing this night a week from now in a certain town. It’s a lot different when all the bands are playing today. It turns it into a little bit more of a carnival atmosphere – which is fine, I’m not knocking it – but I don’t really think that it really connects with the whole DIY thing too. It’s almost more of a weird type of corporate marketing.

Bobby:  One thing I always found fascinating about the Warped Tour is that it’s more than just the music. There’s a unique atmosphere with the skate ramp, there’s a midget show on this year’s tour. How would you describe the atmosphere of the tour?

Mike: A carnival, kind of. Behind the scenes it’s kind of like punk rock summer camp. It’s pretty interesting. That’s the part I kind of like about it. You kind of make friends with some of the other campers, there’s kind of a little bit of rivalries, everybody’s trying to have fun but you don’t want to get into too much trouble or else the counsellors with come down on you. That part of its pretty fun. It’s definitely like a carnival mixed with summer camp.

Bobby: Well, like you said, Warped Tour is a lot of works but bands also have a lot of fun with poker tournaments, parties, the barbeque and stuff like that. Do you think it’s good for the punk community to be able to get all these bands together, build connections, meet possible future tour mates and stuff like that?

Mike: Yeah, yeah, for sure. When we did it in ’05, that’s how we met Bedouin, that’s how we met Strike Anywhere. We did a whole tour with Strike Anywhere and they’re like super good friends now. Against Me!, we did touring with them and we met them through Warped Tour; so it’s definitely good. It’s kind of crass to say networking; it’s more like friend building.

Bobby: Also with all these friendships building, there’s been some really cool collaborations on stage with bands joining other bands. What would be one of your dream collaborations to see or take part in on this tour?

Mike: One time in New York, the Gamblers and Valient Thorr – who are not on the tour this year, they were on in ’05 – we teamed up and we played Party Hard and Andrew WK was in town and he came and sang on it. I’d like to do something with Andrew WK again, that would be fun.

Bobby: Everybody seems to say that.

Mike: Yeah, yeah. He’s a super talented dude and really fun to be around. He’s a good guy.

Bobby: I guess the punk community has always been kind of unified. Last year, your guitarist Ian was hit by a car and he spent a few days in intensive care and you guys went out and got donations from everybody to help pay for his medical bills. Where you surprised with the reaction? Where everybody did make donations and did lend a hand and help get the name out and promote the cause?

Mike:  Yeah, I mean it was really cool. I was surprised, we were all surprised. It was really touching. I’d like to thank everybody. It was really cool.

Bobby: I know Ian played a hometown show with you guys; but is he back?

Mike: He’s back; he’s back for the whole tour. He’s still kind of recovering and stuff but he’s doing good.

Bobby: Just a few more questions. Kevin Lyman has always said that he wants the Warped Tour to be a safe place for kids to go to for their first concert; while it may not necessarily be their first concert but for a lot of people here, it may be their first time going to Warped Tour. Do you have any recommendations for kids going to Warped Tour for the first time?

Mike:  Sunscreen. Maybe because I’m older now but I’m like you gotta pace yourself. You gotta pace yourself – whether you’re drinking or not, anything in life, you gotta pace yourself. It’s a long day and definitely if it’s your first show, I’d try to take in a little bit of every band that I could. Kind of check it out and see what’s up. Don’t just go to the three bands that you know you’re here to see. Go check out a bunch of stuff. Check out the old school stage.

Bobby: I guess that’s about it. Do you have any final thoughts you’d like to add?

Mike: Just I hope I live through this summer and our new single, you can download it for free on our website and there’s a video for it.