Chicago Band Summer Girlfriends interview published 2011.
Chicago band Summer Girlfriends plays an easy, breezy brand of rock music that connects the pop dots from the early sixties to the late 70s. They only have one summer under their belts as a band so far, but they’ve already released two songs via Facebook and have a full-length LP in the can (slated for an early 2012 release on Addenda Records).
What better way to get psyched for another long, cold, crappy winter than to daydream with (or about) Summer Girlfriends? Let’s do that now! — Chris Auman
How, why, and when did Summer Girlfriends form? (This only counts as one question)
Summer Girlfriends started during the terrible Chicago winter last year as (as cheesy as it sounds) a New Year’s resolution; a way for five busy friends to dedicate to spend more time with each other all while making music. We really did it to have an excuse to eat more pizza and become better friends, and discovered along the way that the better friends we became the better music we made and the more fun we had. We all knew each other from the Chicago music scene or previous bands, and had all wanted to be in a band and weren’t currently, so it was a really good fit. We wanted to start an all-girl band so we could experiment in a comfortable setting and just make it really fun.
2) What’s the history of the name change—you were previously Canadian Girlfriends—you received a cease and desist letter from My Canadian Girlfriend’s lawyer, right? Have you patched things up with them? (Only counts as one question)
Yeah, so we received a cease and desist letter from a band with a similar name and they weren’t willing to compromise so we decided it was just easier all around to change our name than fight it. Since we never knew them, we can’t really say we patched things up, but there are no hard feelings (at least on our side.) We’re happy with our new name and our fans seem to really like it.
3) Is a Summer Girlfriend the same as a Canadian Girlfriend? Because the Canadian Girlfriend is, presumably a fictional girlfriend. Is the summer girlfriend Canadian? Or what? (Only counts as one question)
No, Summer Girlfriends are better because first off they’re real, and they are usually the ones that guys remember for the rest of their lives. You know the idea that “everyone remembers their first Summer Girlfriend.” We certainly hope our fans won’t forget us anytime soon…
4) When’s the new record coming out? How many songs? What’s it called? Where was it recorded, etc.? (Only counts as one question)
We’re told that the record is coming out sometime in Spring 2012 on Addenda Records (the sister label to the very popular Plustapes) and it will be 11 songs in total. We still haven’t decided on a name, but during recording, we got sauced and threw around the idea of “Kickdrum, Drugs, & Girls.” So, we’ll have to get back to you on that one when we’re not full of pizza and beer. As for the recording, it was recorded at the infamous Shape Shoppe on South Michigan Avenue by Kumar McMillan (of Plustapes/Addenda) and Justus Gillette Roe III (of Perseus Noble, Royce) over two sessions. We are all really excited to hear the final mixes and are super happy with how everything has turned out so far!
5) What happens at a typical Summer Girlfriends practice?
That’s simple. Pizza. Beer. Giggles. Rock n’ roll. High fives. Repeat and fade.
6) What’s the best live experience you’ve had in your relatively new career as the band, Summer Girlfriends?
Our last show at Whistler. It was just the perfect venue, perfect cause (CHIRP benefit), perfect crowd, perfect everything. The vibe was just so great there and we really just rocked it out. It was an all-girl bill with our friends Swimsuit Addition which made it really fun. We even got to sneak down to the basement and discover the secret to the Whistler’s most amazing ice cubes (although don’t ask us to divulge it, we’ll never tell.)
7) Let’s flip the script, what’s the worst?
We honestly haven’t had one yet. The worst thing that happened was we ended up having to go to the emergency room after our show with The Coathangers at Pancho’s. We’re all big fans of The Coathangers so it was really great to get to open up for them (it was only our 2nd show as a band.)
We all had a great show and were loading our stuff out to the cars when someone came out to us and said that Nicole, our drummer, was bleeding. We had no clue what happened so we rushed inside and found her in the back room with Dan the Fan holding her ear with a very bloody napkin.
We found out that she had somehow tripped over one of our guitar amps and fell head first into the wall. Turns out she had split her ear open, pretty punk rock right?
Dan the Fan was amazing and kept her calm and focused. Nikita, our guitarist, then took her to the hospital where a couple stitches later she was good as new again. We’re pretty sure there is still a blood stain in that back hallway at Pancho’s, so needless to say we left our mark.
8) Who would play who in the 2012 summer blockbuster Summer Girlfriends movie in 3D?
-Nikita would be Christina Aguilera circa anything but Dirrty
-Caitlin would be Chloë Sevigny
-Nicole would be Jennifer Grey circa Baby in Dirty Dancing
-Sara would be Mary Stuart Masterson circa Some Kind of Wonderful
-Kristin would be Liv Tyler circa That Thing You Do
9) What are the Summer Girlfriends doing to prepare for the Winter Doldrums?
Playing shows to keep warm and welcoming our newest Girlfriend, Kristin!
10) What are your New Year’s resolutions?
Well, since our last New Year’s resolution already came true, this year we’re wishing to go on a sweet tour (European perhaps, hey dream big!) in support of our album.
BONUS QUESTION #1: Are you gonna eat that last slice of pizza?
It’s already gone, bitch!
Damn! That’s it for the RW interview with Chicago Band Summer Girlfriends…
BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE!
Read an interview with Plustapes labelmates Blasted Diplomats.