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Speed The Plough

 By Phlis

Named after an old Scottish song Speed The Plough have been entertaining us for 30 years.  They have just released The Plough And The Stars which provides us with takes us on a musical journey through Speed The Plough’s life, giving us old favourites but yet adding a few little extra gems that we have never heard. Wicked Spins Radio got chance to catch up with Speed The Plough and here is how it went.

WSR – Thank you so much for giving Wicked Spins Radio this interview, can you tell our readers a little bit about yourselves?

Speed the Plough – We’ve been a band/collective that’s been in operation for almost 30 years, centered in and about Haledon, NJ. The band grew out of an earlier group, The Trypes, which included most of the members of the Feelies, who were also based in Haledon. The Trypes released an Ep on Coyote Records, The Explorer’s Hold, in 1984 and contributed a song – “A Plan, Revised” – to the Coyote compilation Luxury Condos in 1985. When the Feelies reformed in 1985, founding Trypes members John Baumgartner, Toni Baumgartner and Marc Francia continued as Speed the Plough.

WSR – 30 years together is amazing even with the hiatus, what have been some of the high and low points of the last 30 years?

Speed The Plough – The high points continue to happen regularly, thankfully. Every time someone brings a new piece of music to try on, whether an original or an occasional cover idea. Sometimes the high points happen at a rehearsal and it’s just for the band. Those can be the most inspiring moments. And sometimes that happens on stage, in front of other people, and that’s the best thing. Low points? The last Trypes show, at CBs, incidentally. A couple of STP shows. A few years of wallowing. The closing of Maxwell’s.

WSR – What is it that has kept you together and performing for so long?

Speed The Plough – Nothing more or less than a love of playing music. There were quite a few years, almost a decade, when we played fewer gigs than you could count on one hand. But we played just about every week in a group we called Sunburst, which included John, Toni, Marc, Glenn Mercer, Stan Demeski, and Dave Weckerman. And it was just about working through whatever someone was writing, just for ourselves really. Then, after that came to a natural conclusion when the Feelies got busy again, our second generation members spurred us back into action. And that’s helped us write a whole new chapter.

WSR – Do any of you have any niggling habits that sometimes annoy each other?

Speed the Plough – Of course. But since most of us have played in a bunch of different bands over the years, you figure out how to work through those things.

WSR – So how did you choose what tracks appear on The Plough & The Stars?

Speed The Plough – Toni, Marc and John had some definite ideas, many of which segued nicely. Then we asked for some input from fans of the band and that helped round out the selections.

WSR – You had a few special guests on The Plough & The Stars, who were they and what did they do?

Speed The Plough – There were so many guests who contributed to this project, starting with Bill Million, who produced and played some guitar on our first two albums; to Mountain Stage guitarist Michael Lipton, who contributed signature parts on four of our albums; to banjo genius Tony Trishka, who graced a few songs on Wonder Wheel; to Blood Oranges mandolinist Jimmy Ryan, who made a mark on Mason’s Box. Then there’s Lois DiLivio’s violin, Don Sternecker’s keys, and our Labyrinth string trio, Eric Xu, Aled Roberts, and Kristine Kruta.

WSR – Tag Sale features some wonderful added extra endings to a few song, what are a few of these endings?

Speed The Plough – They range from a simple, verse-length guitar figure on the end of “Peggy Oki” to an extended fade with sound effects on “Jane.”

WSR – Over the 30 years of Speed The Plough you must have had a few bum reviews as not all music appeals to everyone.  How do you feel when you get a bad review and what is the most inspirational thing someone has said about your music?

Speed The Plough – That’s interesting. I think we exist on a level of indie music where a critic is usually not going to waste the page space, column inches, whatever, to give you a bad review. So the response, while not overwhelming, has been positive. The best thing someone’s said about the music? “Hey, thanks, I was having a really shitty day until I happened into this club tonight and caught your set.”

WSR – You had a bit of a hiatus, what was the spark to start Speed The Plough again in 2009

Speed The Plough – The kids, simple as that. Marc’s sons Dan (bass) and Ian (drums) and John and Toni’s son Michael (guitar) joined the band. Time to get busy again.

WSR – The name of the band Speed The Plough comes from the name of an old Scottish song, why did this fit the band?

Speed The Plough – We scheduled our first gig, at Maxwell’s, and needed a name for the newspaper ad and didn’t have one. So someone thumbed through a book of Scottish reels and came across one named “Speed the Plough.” Seemed nice enough.

WSR – You have had a few changes in line up over the years, what do you feel this has done to the music of Speed the Plough?

Speed The Plough – It’s continued to breathe fresh life into it. And I think it’s challenged everyone to reinterpret music that’s been done before. To make it new.

WSR – Your music has some lovely psychedelic elements that are best enjoyed when you just put your music on, sit back and relax.  How do you bring those elements on to the playing field when you play live and give the full fealing and flavour of your music?

Speed the Plough – That’s still a work in progress. There are a lot of quieter, folk-pop songs in the catalog that are a little trickier to put across live. Or it requires the right venue because it’s not always right for a rock club. Fortunately, our songs have been trending toward the louder lately, which is a good setting for psychedelic elements too.

WSR – Where do you feel the best place in the world would be to enjoy the music of Speed The Plough?

Speed The Plough – John here: I have a very specific answer to this. The best place for me was a two-lane highway between Vienna and Budapest in 1998, with our 6 year old future guitar player asleep in the back seat, driving through endless fields of sunflowers, going to meet Toni who was playing a concert, listening to a cassette of Marina, and thinking everyone should do this.

WSR – To me music is food for the soul, but what does music mean to you?

Speed The Plough – Being able to sometimes communicate all the things that words alone can’t say.

WSR – Thank you so so much for giving Wicked Spins Radio this interview, is there anything you would like to add?

Speed The Plough – Listen to as much music as you can, live preferably, and if you want to own it, pay for it. Thank you.

http://www.speedtheplough.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Speed-the-Plough

Photo credits John Baumgartner & Sadie Wechsler