Sugar High

In 2010 my cousin asked me to meet with a couple of struggling musicians named Lucius. We met at a cafe, nothing really happened, then like a year later they blew up. I've always been curious about what happened in that year. When I met them they were just recent Berklee school of music grads. But what happened? This week I sit down with Jess and Holly to discuss how they approached their career and where it goes from here. 

Hello friends. Have you ever wanted to travel around the world with gigantic bands and take photos of them? Does partying with rock stars on a nightly basis make sense to you? Then listen up. Jonathan Hoeg here is a rock photographer that's lived the damn dream. He's toured with Panic at the Disco!, New Politics, and 5 Seconds of Summer. Listen up and learn how Jonathan went from a kid in business school to taking photos in arenas. 

Hello everyone, we are proud to announce that the Tour Manager's Guide is now called Sugar High. Every Wednesday we will be sitting down with fantastic musicians, producers, and industry professionals to talk about what it's like to live a life in music. In this weeks episode we preview some of the upcoming material with Chris Whitehall from the Griswolds. We also talk to him about losing a band member and his last tour.   

Please note that this is the last episode under the name The Tour Manager's Guide. Next month we will return under the name Sugar High.  Bears Den are a folk rock duo from London, England. In the last four years they've gone from playing open mics and small club nights to headlining large theaters around the world. Initially I wanted to interview both members together but I found both of their stories so interesting that I split them up. Today we sit down with co song writer, multi instrumentalist, and co founder of Communion music group, Kev Jones. I knew Kev's story was interesting and filled with challenges but I had no idea what I was in for. This episode is a history of Bears Den, but it is also an abridged history of the mid 2000's west London folk scene. A scene that touched or somehow involved bands like The Vaccines, Mumford and Sons, Mathew and the Atlas, Catfish and Bottlemen, Daughter, and many more. 

Allday is the moniker of Australian rapper, Tom Gaynor. Over the last few years he's slowly risen to the top of the Australian rap game. He has a massive social media following, headlines shows, and is played regularly on Australian radio. amidst this success Tom decided to move to America. I have no idea what Australian hip hop is or what it's supposed to sound like, but if Tom is the average, it's great. I sat down with Tom to talk about how he rose through the ranks in Australia, his ambitions in America, and how in gods name you get over 150k Instagram followers. 

The word record executive conjures up images of a ruthless businessman surrounded by mountains of cocaine, destroyed artists, and sharkskin suits. At least, it used to for me. Not anymore, because I know people like Chris Swanson. Chris Swanson runs The Secretly Group. A group of labels comprised of Secretly Canadian, Dead Oceans, and Jagjaguwar. They've signed and released records with Major Lazer, Jens Lekman, Bon Iver, The War On Drugs, and more. All of this was started in Chris's college dorm room. I frequently get asked by people how they get signed and I just decided to go to the source. 

This is episode is part two in my dissection of Walk The Moon's hit, "Shut up and Dance". The song has been streamed over 3,000,000 times and was inescapable last year. But ever since it came out I've been fascinated with one thing... why that song? Why not one of the others? In today's episode Eli from Walk The Moon talks about his origins in Cincinnati, playing guitar, and why he thinks the song made such an impact.

RAC is the moniker of Portuguese American musician, Andre Allen Anjos. For the last few years he has become a fixture in the remix game. But Andre doesn't do your normal club mix. He takes the raw vocal stems and builds an entirely new song around them. He also makes money as a DJ AND has released successful solo material. Did I mention that he's been nominated for 2 Grammys? Andre was kind enough to sit down with us and discuss how he went from a Portuguese immigrant, to one of the music industries most sought after remix artists. He has remixed The Shins, Bloc Party, Depeche Mode, Lana Del Ray, and on and on. 

Today I'm going to preview all the fantastic artists we are going to have on this year including Lucius, Mumford and Sons, Alex and Sierra, Tony Hoffer, Michelle Cable (Mac Demarco's Manager), Alexi Blue, Bears Den, Vancouver Sleep Clinic, Computer Magic, Tim Heidecker, and so many more.

Last year Walk the Moon was inescapable. In a few months they went from a semi successful indie band to the top of the Billboard charts with their single, "Shut Up and Dance". In this episode we sit down with the band's drummer, Sean Waugaman, and talk about where he learned to drum, how he joined the band, and how exactly they went from kids in Cincinnati to a worldwide sensation.  Check this episode out if you are interest in: -Walk The Moon -Musicians -Drumming -Starting a band -Signing your band to a label -How a band becomes successful

Seth Haley aka Com Truise is an interesting dude. He's a one man synth army that went from advertising to internationally touring electronic musician. But how'd all this happen? How did a kid from Oneida that worked at his dad's furniture store begin writing synth space operas? What's his schedule? And why does he wish he had a job at a record store? Is advertising actually better than being a musician? 

311 is a multi platinum selling band from Omaha Nebraska. In the mid 90s they went from dudes bumming around LA to multi platinum selling artists. They've been touring and making music ever since. I cruised over to their singer Nick Hexum's studio in LA to learn about how they made it, and everything they've been up to since. 

Australia's the Griswolds rose to prominence in America with their single, "Beware the Dog." In the years since they've toured with Walk the Moon, Magic Man, and headlined venues around Europe and America. In this episode we hang with singer Chris Whitehall and talk about church, getting kicked out of bands, and how getting a record deal is half the battle. 

In this episode I answer student questions about management and touring. It was a lot of fun. They all failed. 

Neon Indian is the most successful moniker of Mexican American Alan Palomo. In this episode we discuss how Neon Indian got off the ground, his influences, and the artistic struggle.

Reuben Hollebon is a singer songwriter from a dreary part of England. He worked as a studio engineer for years before taking the plunge and becoming a full time musician. He's a thoughtful guy and kept me entertained. In this episode we discuss solo artists, Jeff Buckley, and why it's never too late to learn. I found this to be a particularly inspirational episode. 

I can't count how many people I've met that want to make beats for a living. Rey is one of those people. He's so good in fact he received a Grammy nomination for his work on Beyonce's "Flawless". He's also produced for Britney Spears, and Will.I.Am. In this episode Rey breaks down what it takes to make it in the insane world of beat making. 

In 2010 Boston's Aer were an internet sensation. Within a year they went from hometown heroes to a legitimate national touring act. Then this year, without any warning broke up. In this episode Danny heads to Carter Schultz's apartment in Brooklyn to learn about how Aer blew up online, and why they decided to call it quits.