VIRTUAL INTERVIEW: CHRIS HOUSER OF THE WERKS
06 Nov 2015
for The Lot Scene by Parker
The Lot Scene has been looking forward to the TWERK TOUR hitting up Colorado for many weeks now. As part of the preparation and promotion of the tour, we were able to snag a bit of Chris Houser's time out on the road to answer a few questions for us. There's some great stuff in here so let's get to it, shall we?
TLS: Please tell us a little about how the Twerks Tour came to be. Do the bands have a history playing together? Was it something that the band members decided they wanted to do or is was it more of a management idea?
CH: The "Twerks" is a fun little name mashup that we came up with the first time I sat in with Twiddle for their Grassroots acoustic set at Wakarusa two years ago. We didn't have too many opportunities to play together before that but immediately after that we started mixing it up with each other any chance we got. The Twerk Tour was started as a band idea but we all teamed up (bands and management) to make it happen and to be as equal as possible throughout the entire journey. It has worked out wonderfully, and I think this is each band's favorite tour that we've done to date.
TLS: How exciting is it to bring a tour like this in for a nice Colorado run, playing venues like the Boulder Theater?
CH: We're always so excited to play Colorado any time of the year, whether it be by ourselves or with a local opener or even with friends on a tour. This time is especially exciting because we'll be here with our best friends Twiddle. The chemistry between the two bands is so electric, combine that with the energy that Colorado fans always bring to the shows and this is going to be an explosive Colorado run. Both bands are incredibly excited to play the Boulder Theater and intend to pull out every stop imaginable.
TLS: What has been one of your favorite aspects of this tour collaboration thus far, both on and off stage?
CH: The camaraderie between the bands and crew is the best I've ever seen. That is what really stands out to me. The willingness to help a situation whether it has one's own interest in mind or not. "What's best for the whole?" is the most commonly asked question in this group and it couldn't be working out better. As far as the on-stage aspect, all of the sit-ins and special encores we've been doing (such as the all-acoustic "The Weight" that we did in Baltimore thanks to Martin Guitars) have been a chance to step out of the box and play songs that we ordinarily would not play in our own respective projects.
TLS: Obviously this isn’t your typical tour for many reasons and all tours have their difficulties — what has been one of the biggest challenges for a two-band tour like this?
CH: The biggest problem we've come across is The Werks tour bus broke down and we also lost a trailer tire. The thing is, we're all in this together, all for one and one for all. We think of this tour as our collective baby and we're all doing what we can to nurture it. These problems that would ordinarily be big dilemmas on a tour like this have ended up being small speed bumps and we have overcome them together. Aside from that, we all get along famously and we're very happy and grateful to be in each other's company.
TLS: Assuming you guys haven't completely gotten on each others' nerves already, are you excited that both of you will be playing Jam Cruise 14 this January?
CH: We are all family at this point, if anyone has gotten on anyone's nerves, we got over it real quick. As far as we're all concerned, Jam Cruise will be an extension of this amazing experience.
TLS: Have you had a chance to look at the other bands/musicians that will be on the Boat? Disregarding how likely it is to happen, who on Jam Cruise this year would you most like to join you on stage for a song or two? Is there anyone you would really like to sit in and jam with?
CH: With all of the all-stars on this lineup it's hard to say who will be sitting in or who we will end up jamming with. We'll have to wait and see who we end up rubbing elbows with and who our new friends will be. We're very excited to say the least!
Many thanks to Chris for sharing his time and getting some really great answers back to us. Sounds like the tour is going extremely well, all logistical difficulties aside. Really making us look forward to seeing these two dynamic bands tomorrow night at The Boulder Theater as well as catching up with them once again on Jam Cruise. Thanks for reading, as always, Friends of the Scene!! Hope to see you in Boulder tomorrow night!!