Playing shows in Auburn is nothing new to Nashville, Tenn. band Moon Taxi; in fact, Moon Taxi played at War Eagle Supper Club last April from midnight to 5:30 a.m. Moon Taxi will return to Supper Club Nov. 2.
Tommy Putnam,(Moon Taxi’s bassist), tells The Plainsman about playing in Auburn, touring with Tea Leaf Green and details on their newest record.
MK: Although you’ve played here a few times before, how do you like playing in Auburn?
TP: Auburn was the very first place we ever played on the road. I’m from Birmingham, and I had a lot of friends who went to school at Auburn. It was the first gig I actually booked ever, which was at Quixote’s. It’s always been a special place for us. It was the first time we ever got in a car and drove somewhere to play a show.
MK: What are you looking forward to the most about playing again here?
TP: It’s been a while since we’ve played Auburn. We’ve made a lot of friends over the years. Getting to see them and playing for our fans. They haven’t seen us in their hometown in a while.
MK: How does Moon Taxi usually prepare for a tour?
TP: We pack accordingly. We were out all summer. You kinda just have to say no to a lot of different things that normal people would do, like weddings and birthdays. You gotta miss a hell of a lot of those things that people generally get to do and take for granted. We write a lot on the road, too; at least I do.
MK: What is one of your favorite songs to play live off the new record?
TP: Mercury is the best one because the crowd enjoys it the most. It feels like every time we play it, the crowd just goes nuts, and we kind of just feed off that.
MK: How does your sound vary from your first album in 2007 to now?
TP: The first one we made in college, and we really did not know what we were doing. We played a lot of shows, and we tried to define ourselves somehow. Almost five years to the day, we put out this other one, and I think there’s a lot of maturity that shows from the first album to the newest one. The one in between was live, but I felt like we weren’t quite ready to put out another studio effort, and I think that one bridged the gap between the first one to this new one.
MK: How is touring with Tea Leaf Green?
TP: They’re great. They’re awesome dudes. Reed Mathis, the bass player; he’s a monster. Everybody knows he’s one of the best guys around. He proves it when he gets out there, and I really respect that. That makes me want to step up my game. They’re from San Francisco, and most of us are from Alabama. It’s a different world, and it’s really fun to meet these people that grew up North.
MK: Future plans?
TP: In the end of November and December, we’re going to do another East Coast run, like New York, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia. We’re doing one of the days with Umphree’s McGee in Atlanta after that, and our New Year’s Eve show in Nashville. Those are some things we’re really looking forward to.
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