Bringing an international twist to the storied tradition of the American Warped Tour is Moose Blood. Hailing from Canterbury, England, this will be the band’s first tour of America in its short history. Forming in 2012, the quartet quickly gained a well-deserved backing and put out several EPs. One track that garnered particular attention was “Boston,” with its energetic guitar work and clever namedropping of Long Island rock group Brand New’s seminal album Deja Entendu.
The young quartet epitomizes the best parts of emo: the heart-on-your-sleeve lyrics, the employment of true earworm melodies and just enough moodiness to add emotional scope.
Though Warped is their American premiere, it will not be Moose Blood’s first trip to the States. To record its debut album, I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time, the band traveled to Los Angeles to work with producer Beau Burchell of Saosin. Released in October of 2014 from No Sleep Records, the LP quickly gained traction reaching No. 45 on the U.S. Billboard Heatseekers chart—an incredible feat for a band that has been operating for less than three years.
The album also signified a great change in the band’s personal lives as well. All four members quit their jobs to commit to an increasingly demanding touring schedule, allowing for several Moose Blood milestones including their first tour of Europe and inaugural headlining venture.
Eddy Brewerton, who takes care of vocal and some guitar duties, talked to us before he left England about doing extra acoustic sets, the band’s decision to quit their jobs and being compared to Brand New.
Are you guys still in the UK?
Yeah we’re here for another week.
What kind of things do you have to get done before flying to the States in a week?
We’ve got the Kerrang! Awards we’re going to tomorrow and then we have a week of packing and getting all of our gear ready and stuff like that.
Are you guys nominated for anything?
Yeah, we’re nominated for “Best British Newcomer.”
Are you guys doing anything in the States before the tour starts?
We literally have like a day, maybe a day and a little, to just get all of the stuff we need for the bus and stuff like that so it’s nothing too exciting.
Do you have any expectations for touring in the U.S.?
We’re really excited. We’ve never toured there before so we really don’t know what it’s going to be like besides it’s going to be a lot hotter and the drives are going to be a lot longer.
You’ve said about your first tour of Europe that change from touring in the UK to touring with so much driving was a bit difficult. How are you guys feeling about the workload of Warped Tour?
We’re a little bit daunted by it I think, but it’s just such an incredible opportunity, so it’ll be more than worth it hopefully.
A couple of your No Sleep labelmates are on the tour too, have you been talking to them?
Yeah, we have Major League and we toured with them last year in Europe and we can’t wait to see them. I can’t wait to see a bunch of the bands again.
How did doing acoustic sets come about?
We just got asked to pop in and do it. I’ve done a few sessions and things like this for like YouTube… but I’ve never played shows on my own before. So we got asked to do it and we just thought it’d be a cool thing to do. It’s a little bit different.
Are you worried about the vocal wear and tear at all?
A little, yeah. Two sets a day for two months might take it out of me but I should be all right.
It’s been about eight months since you guys quit your day jobs to give touring a real go, how’s your home life and routines changed?
We’re away a lot and we’ve been quite busy in that period of time but I mean it’s great. It’s a bit more because we’re away so much touring but then when we are home we get a lot more free time just to be with our families and spend some extra quality time at home.
Looking back on it now, was it the right decision?
Definitely. So far we’re getting by and we get to do this and we’ve always wanted to do it since we can remember so yeah, this is a decision that I’m really happy that we’ve made.
You’ve said elsewhere that you started writing record number two already, how’s that going?
We’re just throwing some ideas about; there’s nothing set in stone or any massive rush. We’re just always writing and there’s definitely some ideas [we’re] talking about. We’re gonna get to some right away and concentrate on the stuff we’re doing and then we’ll definitely sit down and start properly writing.
You’ve always raved about work with Beau last time, would you try to work with him again?
If that would be even possible then it’d be incredible.
Have you guys stayed in touch since you finished recording in Los Angeles?
Yeah, we speak all the time and some minor things like that. We’ve been in touch with him last weekend and hopefully he’s going to try and come to one of the Warped shows and we’ll get to see him again.
Everyone asks you guys about Brand New and some people even compared I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time to Deja Entendu. When you started the band two years ago did you ever imagine you’d be drawing comparisons to a band like that?
Not at all. It’s really a flattering thing that people are saying. We didn’t set out to try and sound like that, but I guess when as a band you have an album that influences you so much I guess little bits of that come out in the songs you write.
How have you seen your fan base grow since the release of the record?
It’s been great. Like doing our first headline run in January and just the amount of people that come to the shows and sing along it’s definitely getting a bit bigger and it’s great. A lot more than we expected.
Have you seen a lot of stuff on the Internet from the U.S. as well?
A little bit. We’re not sure how it’s going to go or how many people over there know who we are really.
Do you have plans lined up for after the tour yet?
We’re doing a festival called Reading and Leeds in England and then like I said I think we’re going to start writing again.
What was it like finding out about Reading and Leeds, that being such a big deal over there?
Yeah it’s huge it’s like a dream come true, just like Warped Tour. We can’t believe we got the opportunity; it’s going to be great.
How has No Sleep helped with coming over to the U.S. from the U.K.?
Oh they’ve been great even down to the little things. Like they’re sending us out little Warped survival packs. They’ve been great from day one really helping out as much as they can even if it’s just down to the little bits like life and things like that. They’ve been great.
And how was playing with Taking Back Sunday a few weeks ago?
It was incredible. They’re one of my favorite bands of all time and it was great. We played a one-off show with them in London and then Slam Dunk Festival with them over the weekend as well. They’re incredible people, just the nicest people.
Moose Blood will be playing every date of the Vans Warped Tour this summer. The tour stops at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ on July 10, the Jones Beach Amphitheatre in Wantagh, NY on July 11, and the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ on July 19. Their latest release, I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time, is available now through No Sleep Records. For more information, go to facebook.com/MooseBlood.
