Interview... Two Gallants

Two Gallants

Interview with Adam Stephens

Words: Ashley Marie Sansotta

Photos: Ashley Marie Sansotta

When first listening to the lyrics of Two Gallants, one pictures a couple of haggard old cowboys singing the blues of yesteryear. In actuality, they are a couple of boys from San Francisco who have mastered the ability of bringing seemingly decade-old tales to life through music. Their poetic stories of depression, pain, love, and lost fill your ears, and you can’t help but feel an affection towards the characters they sing about, regardless of the sometimes taboo lyrical content.

Frontman Adam Stephens and drummer Tyson Vogel have been making music together since the age of twelve and started playing shows in San Francisco when they were twenty. Since then, they have been touring like crazy all over the United States and Europe.

On October 13, 2006, Two Gallants made some unintentional waves in the media. When playing a show at a club in Houston, Texas, a disgruntled police officer interrupted their performance, investigating a noise complaint. A fight broke out, and he attacked Two Gallants and their fans with a Taser gun. Vogel was charged with a misdemeanor, but the case was finally dropped. In June, Two Gallants played free show back at the scene of the crime, where they “finished” the set that was cut short back in October.

Now that they have been able to move on from this unfortunate situation, Two Gallants are back to the relentless touring. They are planning to release their next full-length album, Two Gallants, on September 25^th.

REAX: What kind of a response did you get from your fans after the Houston incident? I can imagine them to be very supportive, especially after that free show.

Stephens: Yeah, they were... A lot of people that didn’t even know us came to the show. They just knew of us from the case and came there to support us. I mean, people even gave us gifts and baked us cakes.

REAX: You guys have been touring pretty much nonstop all over the place for the past couple of years. Where’s you favorite place to play (besides San Francisco, of course)?

Stephens: Hamburg is probably one of my favorite places in Europe. Their reception is very kind and enthusiastic... Americans can be pretty apathetic sometimes.

REAX: What’s something you guys want to accomplish in your lifetime as far as music?

Stephens: I guess it’d be nice to someday make a record that I didn’t have any regrets about when I listen to it like a year later.

REAX: So, you have regrets about some of the records you’ve made in the past?

Stephens: Yeah, all of them. Every song, I feel like there’s something wrong. It’s impossible to know that when you’re making the record.

REAX: You’ve said before that you try to let you songs do their own thing. So, I’m curious as to what your song writing process look like?

Stephens: It’s usually a long, agonizing experience. It’s not really that easy. I tend to sort-of over analyze things a lot. I get a little dissatisfied with the things that I write, so I keep on working on them over and over again. Most songs sit around for like a few months before they’re really done.

REAX: How do you think the new album, Two Gallants, differs from the last ones?

Stephens: I’ve been told that it’s a lot quieter. Which I wasn’t really aware of. We did some interviews in Europe and everyone that heard the record was like, oh your new record is so much tamer than your last one. I guess it is. It’s a little bit more under-control in a way. There’s not as much screaming and recklessness. The songs, to me, are a lot more solid and a bit more composed than the last record. Not as schizophrenic.

REAX: After you release the album, what’s next for you guys? More non-stop touring, I’m assuming?

Stephens: Yeah, we just started this tour last night. We’re pretty much going to do this, and then go to Europe – then go back to America – and then back to Europe.

REAX: That sounds exhausting.

Stephens: Yeah it is. But, I can’t complain. I mean, there are worst things to be doing, I suppose.