Fat Freddy's Drop sets sights on US

Fat Freddy's Drop will play three Kiwi concerts before heading to America.

On the back of another Best Roots Album gong at the New Zealand Music Awards, the concept of "roots" music has Fat Freddy's Drop trumpeter Toby Laing confused.

"It kind of almost looks like the best Wellington band as judged by the Auckland music industry," he says.

It felt "a bit weird" when he was hanging out with the Woolshed Sessions band members after the show - the band that grew from simple jamming sessions in a woolshed in Golden Bay.

"Cause we spent two years editing our music and stuff and they just went to a woolshed and recorded this beautiful album and, sorry, not roots enough."

He's not complaining, however - the seven-man band appreciates the recognition, as well as the opportunity to party with other industry insiders.

"I met a few celebrities, I met the dad of the Mint Chicks," Laing says, delightedly.

"In the past when we'd gotten nominated it was at the Aotea Centre and it was a bit more low-fi, and this was crazy actually.

"There was pyrotechnics and music playing and it was pretty ridiculous actually, it was a great scene to behold."

After sold-out shows in Australia and three months off following the release of their second album, Dr Boondigga and the Big BW, Fat Freddy's Drop are finally ready to showcase their new work live for a home audience.

But New Zealand will only get three chances to see them before they head off overseas again - this time expanding their horizons to America.

Laing says it would be impossible to "break the States", but the band wants to add some US cities to their global circuit, starting with those in California.

"I think our chances of doing what we want to do are very good... We know that we've got some fans in California and we're gonna go there and do a couple of small shows and test the waters.

"I think it'd be crazy for us to go to the States and be like 'yeah, we're gonna be household names in the States' because the States is enormous, I can't get my head around how big it is, how big the market is, but if we can just sell a couple of CDs and do some good shows and maybe get in some festivals I think we will have reached our goals."

The apparent lack of shows at home is explained as venues being too small for the band's ever-growing audiences.

"In the old days, we used to just play in nightclubs, and that's cool, but now when we play we've actually got to provide a certain level of production for the fans and for the people that have been following us and supporting us all these years.

"Sometimes it feels a bit rough if we just do shows in clubs and people come along and they've got to fight to see the stage and they've got to fight to get a drink.

"There's kind of a little hospitality in there when you throw a show and because we've had such great support over the years we kind of feel like when we do a show it's got to be a good one and got to be somewhere comfortable and somewhere where people actually want to get the babysitters and make a night of it."

Not only are their shows better quality, but their music is too, Laing believes.

"[The] group musicianship has gone up quite a few levels from the early days, when we were just feeling things out and trying to work out how to play together.

"It's not only second nature, but first nature to jam with each other and know how to do it, and the funny thing is, projects take on a life of their own."

The story behind the latest album has also taken on a life of its own, which Laing relays after taking a few seconds to remember the album's title.

"Dr Boondigga is our nemesis, definitely our enemy, he's a completely irrational foe who is hellbent on stopping us from doing any gigs, making any music, he just fouls everything up along the way, so we're always struggling against his malign influence.

"The Big BW is his sidekick, a robot, who's a brainwashing robot, so what's happening is Boondigga has finally decided he's sick of trying to use more subtle means of stopping us so now he's just kidnapped us and he's gonna brainwash us."

Luckily for their fans, the band has managed to escape to play their upcoming shows.

They may even emerge on their next album as superheroes, Laing says.

"It's possible, definitely possible. Who knows what the next thing will be?"

Fat Freddy's Drop play Wellington's Front Room on October 31 and Auckland's Powerstation on November 6 and 7.

- NZPA