We hit you with a One Song yesterday and now we’re following that up with a Q&A with Andrew Brown of The Appleseed Collective, who will be taking the Cafe Nola stage at 9:30 p.m. Sunday night. We would say more, but who wants to hear us?! To the questions, we go:
Have you been to Frederick before? If so, what were your impressions, and if not, what are you looking forward to the most when you come to town?
We have not been to Frederick before. In fact, we have never been to Maryland before. I am excited to add it to the many places that I do have impressions of. I considered looking it up online to try and seem like I knew something about it, but I think instead I will let my impression form with no prior knowledge. We recently played D.C. and loved it. The country and the architecture is amazing, and one thing I really noticed was that it was a very international city. I heard lots of different languages and met a lot of different people from all over the world.
So, you’ve been working on a record since May? What can you tell us about it and when might it be out?
Our second album “Young Love” was released this year, and we have been touring on it all year. We are playing and writing a host of new tunes that will form into our next album, which will come out sometime next year.
Who are some of your major influences and why?
Django Reinhardt and Duke Ellington are instrumental in the fundamental “swing” of our music. Tom Waits and the Punch Brothers are huge inspirations to us in terms of songwriting and arrangement.
Where are some of your favorite places to play (cities/venues) and why?
Well, we are at home in our lovely Michigan music scene and love playing at the Ark in Ann Arbor and at the Earthwork Harvest Gathering. But we also love playing all over the country. Some highlights include Sisters Folk Fest in Sisters, Oregon, and Prescott Park Arts Festival in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
You guys being from Michigan, who are some acts we should know about over here in Maryland who we might not already know about?
There is a band that influenced us a lot called Steppin’ In’ It. Check them out.
And finally what can we expect from your show here at Cafe Nola?
We will be playing songs from our first two records and brand new songs, as well as telling stories and playing old swing tunes. We will be bringing our unique brand of pre-World War II fusion/moody poetic songwriting to Frederick. It’ll be everything from slow sad songs, to barn-burners that almost border on psychedelic rock, to Motown inspired songs, to songs that will make you want to swing dance.
Dig what you hear? Like what you read? Remember: The Appleseed Collective will be at Cafe Nola Sunday night. There’s a reason they call it Sunday Funday, you know.
