After watching the Divine Fits performance of a Springsteen cover (see the previous post), I happened upon Britt Daniel's AMA session on Reddit from December 2012.
I've highlighted some of my favorite Q&A's below.
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Q: Hey Britt! Could you recommend me an album? I need some new music. And what does "humanize the vacuum" mean?"
A: Victorialand, Aladdin Sane, Sign O The Times, Go, Bo Diddley, Primary Colours. i always pictured it meaning someone doing the vacuum cleaner tube
Q: What was the first record that you owned?
A: "Songs of Safety / Manners Can Be Fun." that was some sick shit.
if i had a kid these are the first records I'd make sure she'd have:
Chronicle, Supremes, Revolver, 1999, Never Mind the Bollocks, It's Only Right and Natural
Q: Hello sir! If you could take only 5 albums, besides your own, to a deserted island, what would they be? Movies? Thank you! Love your music!
A: LPs: Beggars Banquet, Ethiopiques Vol 4, Wreck A Pum Pum, Powerage, Back To Black
Q: I went [Spoon's] show in Chicago at the Aragon.* I believe the mix was a bit off that night. You and the other guys were doing all you could do to perform through it, and still did a pretty good show. You said something along the lines of, "I've been putting on shows for 22+ years, and have never experienced something like this." In your now 24+ years of putting on shows, what is your least/most memorable show? Did you find a new engineer after that show? Thanks for the AMA and for being awesome in general.
A: Ha, yeah that was a rough one. Apparently the Aragon is just a really tough room. By the end of it I think I was able to get more into it but it was rough for a while. We did NOT fire Hot Pockets. He's the best sound guy I know of. right now my most memorable show is the last one Divine Fits played -- in Denver at the Bluebird. The crowd was insane and everything felt exactly right.
Q: I was at the Aragon show too. I remember at the end you and the guys chatted for a second then busted into Jonathan Fisk. I got a setlist that night (thanks for coming down and giving them to us!) and I noticed JF wasn't on it at all. I've always felt like you played it special at the end for everyone dealing with the bad sound. Thank you.
A: I think that's true. It wasn't on the list but we wanted to throw it in there because it always goes down well live. I also remember trying to shake as many hands as i could after the show to let people know I really did appreciate them being there. I knew it wasn't our best show.
Q: I saw you guys (Divine Fits) at Schubas in Chicago* and you all killed it, look forward to the next time.
A: Schubas is such a great place, it's easy to kill in there. thank you.
Q: How did you end up in that old footage in that recent Eleanor Friedberger video?
A: She was my girlfriend for five years before she started the Fiery Furnaces.
Q: Hey man. Can you tell us what your experience with Conor Oberst on 'Home' was like?
A: I remember the two of us going to walmart to buy pantyhose to make a homemade microphone pop screen. Wish I had a picture of that.
Q: You worked on sound and music in video games for a while, right? What kind of work did that involve? Did you actually write songs for any games? Thanks!
A: I wasn't writing music, only making sound effects. What a job that was.
Q: do you still hate Axl Rose?
A: He's a prick.
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*I was also at this show.
