The Sam Chase to Open OutsideLands – Calls Out Mumford & Sons…
Friday, August 7th, the band that Outside Lands is calling “an avalanche; picking up speed”, The Sam Chase will open the massive San Francisco music Festival in Golden Gate Park but not without some controversy. The Sam Chase’s live shows have become somewhat legendary around the bay area, their violins, guitars & bass mix to form a rock n roll, folk combination with a lot of soul. Sam Chase’s voice gives people a need to both dance and drink whiskey furiously. We got to ask Sam about his favorite artists, his SF party regiment, and how he and his band got cheated by their rivals, in a scandal involving Outside Lands. Enjoy
Name: Sam Chase (The Sam Chase & The Untraditional)
where ya from?
Born and raised in San Francisco
what was your first job job? Jamba Juice in the basement of Macy’s in Union Sq.
Where did you first perform in SF? How did it go?
My first gig ever was with my band at a school dance in 8th grade. I played bass and sang. We played two songs, “In Bloom” by Nirvana and Marilyn Manson’s version of “Sweet Dreams.” We played in Bloom instrumentally because I couldn’t play the riff and sing at the same time. It was my first time ever singing in front of anyone actually. There is home video of it somewhere…. Maybe I can get that to you…
We heard Mumphord and Sons paid off Outside lands to switch spots in the Lineup with you, now you are opening Outside lands Friday, and they are headlining, any comment?
“It’s true. Mumford and Sons were originally going to open the festival and we were going to headline. Through an anonymous tip, I heard that Marcus Mumford bribed the festival to change the line up with his award winning strudel recipe. Apparently, he makes an amazing boysenberry strudel, because the festival took the bribe, then switched us to the opening act. Of course, this came from an anonymous tip, so I can’t verify that any of this is true, but it does make total sense if you think about it….”
Who are you looking forward to seeing in outside lands the most?
The open bar backstage… That, and Sir Elton John. I want to shake that mans magical hand, or at least be able to make eye contact with him and give him a thumbs up from behind the wall of his personal security guards. I’m also looking forward to St. Paul and The Broken Bones, Fantastic Negrito, Langhorne Slim, & Shakey Graves.
Any stories about a crazy night out in SF?
Yes. Thousands. Here’s a quick one. Went on a bender of a night with my friend. We met three Australians in the Mission. Got wasted at Kilowatt, Climbed a tree on 16th and Guerrero that couldn’t hold all 4 of us very well, broke a branch, fell 15 feet, landed on my back, was magically fine, hoped the fence of my pre school and ran around in the playground that I hadn’t seen since I was 4 years old, peed on the wall of it (not terribly proud of that moment), tried to walk home, bought some fried chicken and cookies at Safeway on the way, friend and I passed out in the doorway of a random apartment building covered in friend chicken and cookies.
I wouldn’t say that was the best one, but definitely one that I don’t mind sharing with the masses… Some of those nights can ruin a good name pretty quickly.
Who do you like to perform with?
I love the Bay Area music scene right now. SF and the East bay have such eclectic and talented artists that are doing some really amazing things. The scene that I am loving the most though, and the scene that so many down here in SF don’t even know exists is the scene up in the North Bay. Petaluma, Sebastopol, and Santa Rosa are amazing towns for music right now. The bands that are coming out of there are so talented, and the scene is a tight group that looks out for each other, collaborates constantly, and really knows how to create and exciting and supportive scene. I try to bring them down to SF as much as I can because I really want everyone to get into what’s going on up there.
Favorite artists out there right now?
Here is my short list of local (ish) bands and artists that I am really into these days:
Frankie Boots & The County Line
The Crux
Arann Harris & The Farm Band
Kelly McFarling
La Mandanga
David Luning
The Easy Leaves
Marty O’Reilly & The Old Soul Orchestra
Crow & The Canyon
The Brothers Comatose
The T Sisters
Royal Jelly Jive
Battlehooch
Foxtails Brigade
Doncat
Debbie Neigher
Tim O’Neil Band
John Craigie
Willie Tea Taylor
Favorite free thing to do in SF?
Go to the top of mountain, or stand on the top of a roof, drink beer and look at all of the pretty SF shit.
Favorite dive bar?
You know, I’ve got a few, and much like a mother can’t choose her favorite child, I can’t pick one over the other… So here is my list:
The Riptide
Wazema
The Lucky Horseshoe
Heart & Dagger Saloon
Zam Zam
Molotovs
That is a solid list of places you might find me drowning my sorrows and/or celebrating my successes.
How would you describe your style of music?
When people used to ask me that question I would give a long drawn out pretentious answer that often started off with, “It’s hard to really pinpoint what style we are…” But, really, it’s just rock n roll folk.
What can we expect at a Sam Chase concert?
A hell of a good time. We will share some laughs, maybe a tear depending on the show, definitely a few beverages, pound our fists in the air and stomp our feet on the ground. It’s a party where the crowd is just as important to us as the people on stage… That is why many of our shows end with a fair amount of the crowd up on stage with us.
What’s coming up for you?
This summer is the season for festivals. We’ve got a good number under our belt already, and a handful to go. We also have a PNW tour taking us all the way up to the Canada border later in July and leading up to our Outside lands show. The late fall will hopefully see the release of a new album. From there… who knows… Maybe I’ll run for mayor… 😉
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