It’s a Sunday afternoon in Happy Holler and the Black Cadillacs are rehearsing some new material.
Guitarist John Philips has made the three hour trek from Nashville to meet up with his mates: bassist Philip Anderson, drummer Adam Bonomo, guitarist Matt Hyrka, and singer Will Horton, for a reunion of sorts, gearing up for a fall run that kicks off on Market Square for a headlining slot at the second annual Blankfest.
The boys have come a long way since we first interviewed them over five years ago, when they embarked on their first east coast tour. “We just got in the van and drove; we barely had any money and scraped by on that tour,” said a reflective Anderson. We’ll have more on that later.
But since then their career has seen a steady rise that’s included a European tour, shows at Bonnaroo, Hangout and several other festivals, sold out shows in cities as big as Chicago and a wacky performance aboard a Southwest Airlines flight. “We did 27 shows in 32 days; we made a lot of money and became famous,” said guitarist and co-founder Matt Hyrka jokingly.”
The Black Cadillacs graciously gave us some time from rehearsing to wax poetic about the successes and challenges they’ve experienced and talk the town that adores them and gave them their start.
Touring off their latest self-titled EP, The Black Cadillacs have morphed into a mature indie rock band and they’ve shed the “southern rock” moniker in the process.
“When we toured Europe, the circuit we were playing expected Southern Rock, so we felt we really had to cater to that,” said bassist Philip Anderson.
Enter producer Ken Coomer, who liked what he had heard previously from the Black Cadillacs and invited them to Nashville. “We bonded over a love of Hunky Dory and Ziggy Stardust and really hit it off,” explained Hyrka.
Coomer, drummer of Uncle Tupelo and Wilco fame, recorded The Black Cadillacs over the course of several days last November at his home studio. The result is an album that is their most complete and “sophisticated” as front-man Will Horton put it. The EP was recorded in mostly traditional methods, mixing tracking with live recording. The recording session was also a time for the Cadillacs to nail down their sound for new material they had written. “After being on the road last year, it was really good to get back to writing and creating new music again,” said Horton.
Coomer’s handy work and influence can really be heard on their standout track, “Go for the Gold.”
Another boost for The Cads came in the form of a madcap viral video entitled “Live at 35” which saw the band performing on a Southwest airlines flight from Dallas to Memphis as part of a Tennessee Tourism promotion. The promotion was for tourism focused on Memphis, the hometown of 3/5 of The Black Cadillacs.
“My snare was my carry on,” explained Bonomo when he was asked how he got a drum on a plane. USA Today picked up the video and posted it to social media and the rest was history, as they say. “In retrospect it was a lot of fun and we had eight to ten people from the flight who actually came to our show that night,” said Anderson. “It was a very fun, positive and interesting experience,” added Philips.
But the performance was also met with a little anxiety from the band. “We didn’t want to be responsible for holding up a flight or performing AT people,” said Hyrka. But ultimately the performance went off with out any major issues or hitches.
Much like that plane show, The Black Cadillacs successes haven’t come easily or without challenges. Surrounding themselves with the right people who may or may not have their best interests at heart has been part of the journey. As John Philips so eloquently puts it “It is so much worse to make a decision for your career based on other people’s advice and fail than to have your own decisions fail. It’s a really bitter pill to swallow.”
In the early days, the Cadillacs were a confident young band being pulled in different directions by different people.
Not knowing the ins and outs of the business, they were forced to grow up quickly. Ultimately, they found good management and are now able to pick and choose when to tour and when to write. “At least we put our best foot forward, and it’s our ideas now,” explained Philips.
Not being on the road as much in 2015 as the past two years has freed the band up to evolve their sound and write more songs, all the while maturing as a band in the process. “Trying to guess what people will like is impossible, so you play the game for awhile… But no more; we like these songs and that’s what we got into this for,” said a defiant Hyrka.
Hearing the guys be so reflective and honest shows a rock band that gets it.
Knoxville has certainly been kind to The Black Cadillacs over the years. Since starting out as a resident Preservation Pub band packing the house regularly, to playing Market Square (three times previously), including the last ever Sundown In the City, it’s only fitting that the Cadillacs will headline a Knoxville music festival that boasts a who’s who of the local scene.
Said a reflective and wiser than his years John Philips, “Knoxville is home and has always supported us. We’re going to play Market Square in a town that gave us our start in front of a lot of people. It’s hard not to be appreciative.” Bonomo added, “What’s cool about Knoxville is, it’s so diverse with acts ranging from Americana, to punk, to wizard rap,” in an obvious nod to Knoxville’s Lil Iffy. “At the end of the day we get to wake up and play on a stage in front of a town we love,” said Horton.
While the members may not all live in Knoxville and see each other all the time, it’s obvious that this town has built and solidified their bond and that Knoxville is without a doubt the home base for The Black Cadillacs. “This is why we do this and love the camaraderie and support of the Knoxville music scene.”
Don’t miss the return of The Black Cadillacs on historic Market Square on August 22nd for the second annual Blankfest, as this promises to be one of the most entertaining downtown events of the year.
To check out a complete schedule and info about all of the acts performing, check out page 20 of this very publication.
john@blanknews.com
