▶ Tell us the interesting story behind the bands moniker.
Every sport has a ready stance, or ready position. We liked the name and the idea of being able to use classic imagery of boxers, wrestlers, etc However, it’s so difficult to find ‘available’ names these days, we couldn’t believe it wasn’t already taken!
▶ When did the band form and how long did it take to find the bands own sound?
We played our first show in 2010 and, with each of us having been in touring bands before, our sound was a pretty immediate amalgam of our individual styles and approaches, but it’s definitely evolving into something unexpected with constant surprises.
▶ What releases have you put out thus far, and which would be the one to listen to for the uninitiated?
Our debut record, Damndest, is just coming out and we’re really proud of it. Folks should…heavily ‘initiate’ themselves with it, so we can get started on the follow-up release!
▶ Is there a particular live show that stands out amongst all the rest?
Fountain Square is the geographic center of our hometown, Cincinnati. We’ve been fortunate to play a couple of big outdoor summer shows there, which are a blast and always memorable.
▶ Can you talk about a Highlight and a Lowlight of the journey so far?
The highlight, by far, is simply getting to spend time together. We all genuinely enjoy each other and would probably be hanging out, with or without music. The lowlight, if any, would just be that the sheer volume of bands/records out there these days makes it more difficult than ever to get one’s music heard, or more importantly, actually….listened to.
▶ What does ‘success’ mean to the band?
For us, just having an audience and the opportunity to keep playing music together is already a huge success, but forsaking our day jobs….that’s the… wet-dream.
▶ You are in control of forming a 4 piece ‘supergroup’ – who is in it and what do they do?
Damn…the only answer is (pointing to each other) …us!
▶ If you and 3 bands of your choosing were to do a world tour; who would the other 3 bands be? (Active or not)
Some of our favorite bands, Big Dipper , The Feelies, and The DB’s have recently reunited and there’s even been some preliminary talk of doing shows with the Dippers, which would be absolutely amazing. Hell, we’d love to tour with any of those guys. Beats driving to all their shows and buying tickets! As for ‘not active’, let’s see. As wonderful as it would be with Television, or the Velvets, or Big Star, (or Beatles / Stones, etc)….we’d probably round out a better tour lineup with The Band and R.E.M.
▶ What will be the 3 strangest things on your rider when you’re able to make any demand?
Active beehives? Glass eyeballs? Sensory deprivation chamber(s)?. Nah…we’re honestly pretty satisfied with cold beer and a decent bite to eat, but we’ll always request a good Kentucky Bourbon, along with an emphatic notation that Jack Daniels is NOT bourbon!
▶ Finally, in a climate saturated with bands vying for listener attention; why should the good old folks at home listen to you guys?
Saturated, indeed! And there does seem to be a sort of….hipster cabal governing the filtration process, who often seem to prefer form over substance. Our eye-wear’s not all that esoteric and our jeans aren’t particularly ‘skinny’, nor do we have any exotic instruments, (although Chase would look fantastic on stage with a lute and racing goggles!), so there’s an element of the media that aren’t going to look past our photo. One U.S. magazine recently called our record “A masterful work of honest, gimmicks-free rock & roll from the heart of it all.”, which, we like to think, pretty much says it all..
