“Fifteen years ago the music scene in Birmingham was practically nothing. A waste land. Now it’s a real scene with cool clubs, and interesting people who are interested in enriching this town, and not moving to Austin or Seattle or LA or New York etc . . . We all owe The Bottletree a big thank you for the fantastic scene that we now enjoy. “
Name: Vulture Whale
Creative Industry: Performing Arts
Creative Industry: Performing Arts
1. How did Vulture Whale get its start?
Well, I came back to town around 2003 after living in Athens, GA for several years; I was looking for a band to back me up on my solo stuff and knew Jake and Les already from high school and college bands. The guys from Through the Sparks introduced us to Keelan (bass player). We started playing out as Wes McDonald and The Fizz. We ended up getting on great and digging what we were doing so we became a real band and named ourselves Vulture Whale after we made our first record, which came out in 2006.
Well, I came back to town around 2003 after living in Athens, GA for several years; I was looking for a band to back me up on my solo stuff and knew Jake and Les already from high school and college bands. The guys from Through the Sparks introduced us to Keelan (bass player). We started playing out as Wes McDonald and The Fizz. We ended up getting on great and digging what we were doing so we became a real band and named ourselves Vulture Whale after we made our first record, which came out in 2006.
2. Has the band dynamic changed much since your last release?
Aluminium is our first release in four years. Not much has changed as far as how we go about things, but our personal lives have all changed a lot. Between us, we now have seven kids. When we started out, I was the only one married and nobody had babies (that we know of). So, we now have to be smarter about managing our time, etc.
Aluminium is our first release in four years. Not much has changed as far as how we go about things, but our personal lives have all changed a lot. Between us, we now have seven kids. When we started out, I was the only one married and nobody had babies (that we know of). So, we now have to be smarter about managing our time, etc.
3. Are there any local or national artists you draw influence from?
There are many that we love and respect. We’d be here all day if I started naming bands. I don’t think a genuine artist is aware of what his/her real influences are, and I don’t think a musician is necessarily only influenced by other musicians. It’s also a waste of time to sit around and try to sound like somebody else or even think about who you should sound like you are influenced by. What’s the point of that? Either you have something original to say or you don’t. I think we are most influenced by the little man inside our head. But, you know, that dude is half crazy, so you gotta watch out for that, too.
There are many that we love and respect. We’d be here all day if I started naming bands. I don’t think a genuine artist is aware of what his/her real influences are, and I don’t think a musician is necessarily only influenced by other musicians. It’s also a waste of time to sit around and try to sound like somebody else or even think about who you should sound like you are influenced by. What’s the point of that? Either you have something original to say or you don’t. I think we are most influenced by the little man inside our head. But, you know, that dude is half crazy, so you gotta watch out for that, too.
4. How have you seen the music scene in Birmingham change in the past ten years?
Fifteen years ago the music scene in Birmingham was practically nothing. A waste land. Now it’s a real scene with cool clubs, and interesting people who are interested in enriching this town, and not moving to Austin or Seattle or LA or New York etc . . . We all owe The Bottletree a big thank you for the fantastic scene that we now enjoy.
Fifteen years ago the music scene in Birmingham was practically nothing. A waste land. Now it’s a real scene with cool clubs, and interesting people who are interested in enriching this town, and not moving to Austin or Seattle or LA or New York etc . . . We all owe The Bottletree a big thank you for the fantastic scene that we now enjoy.
5. Who are you looking forward to seeing at Secret Stages this year?
Sleepwalkers and Motel Mirrors!
Sleepwalkers and Motel Mirrors!
