Me Like Bees: the Q & A
In issue 6 of The Joplin Toad magazine, we interviewed local indie rock act “Me Like Bees”. This is the accompanying Q & A. Enjoy!
Photos and interview questions by Mark Neuenschwander.
Lyrically: what percentage of your lyrics are drawn from personal experiences, and which ones are drawn from a more abstract idea?
I would say a large portion of our lyrics are about themes and ideas. Most are are about the compelling emotions that our individual experiences led us to feel. So where we may be telling a story or writing a linear song, the driving force is the emotion behind the experience. Not necessarily telling the story how it went. Now, some of our songs are about specific experiences, but I wouldn’t say that’s all the time.
What are you all listening to RIGHT NOW that has you musically inspired?
SPOON’s new record, we’ve been listening to a lot. Listening to a lot of Simon and Garfunkel, The Killers, and obviously Jake’s been making us listen to some hip-hop as well. Tyler, The Creator and Kendrick’s new record have been played in the van on the road.
How would you describe each of your band’s members, in the format of a 90s boy-band press release written for teen fans? You can start off with who the “sensitive one” is.
Pete is the mysterious hearth-throb, Luke is the lovable face of the band, Jake is the sweet one (but only due to his excessive candy consumption), and Ben is the tattooed one
We know you’re all deeply rooted in the Joplin community. What else do each of you do?
Luke is on the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, and also owns and manages the building at 228 S Main St that is home to Bearded Lady Coffee Roasters and Frosted Cakerie, which is run by his wife.
Jake roasts coffee for Joplin Greenhouse and Coffee Shop, and runs a podcast called This Podcast Is Not For You with 2 other Joplinites, and also has started a pop-up board game cafe called the Cardboard Cafe with his wife and best friend, Natty, and Natty’s wife.
Why choose to stay here- this humble little midwest city- instead of building a musical career in a place more built toward that life, like LA or Nashville?
We’ve always loved it here. It’s cheap, our wives all have awesome gigs here that allow us the freedom to do what we do, while also holding down steady work while we’re here as well. Joplin has been home since the beginning for us, and the upside is now with the internet making the musical landscape less focused on geography, it’s been ok for us.
Obviously the glamor and online clout that comes with “being from LA” or “being from Nashville” is cool and all, but really we aren’t chasing that. We’ve never been the band that chases trends or puts on a front: we’re 4 dudes who write, record, and perform music because it’s compelling to us and we love to do it.
What do you miss most about Joplin when you’re on the road for long stretches (besides your loved ones and beds, of course)?
What we miss most about Joplin is the routine and the tempo. Also never having to search for parking for longer than a few seconds, ha. We also miss The Bruncheonette and Blackstone and Downtown Burgers and having great coffee every morning.
What was it like navigating the pandemic as a band- did that get scary? What did you all do with that time you were unable to tour?
Man, it was a crazy time. Lewis (our previous drummer) had just quit in January, and promised us 6 months to play our upcoming shows and to help train whoever we found to replace him. Fast forward 5 weeks later and all those upcoming shows were cancelled, we couldn’t get together with new people to try them out, and we had no idea how long that would last.
We took a few months off, doing occasional interviews and sort of staying in contact through our text group but we just weren’t getting together in person much.
Pete wrote a lot, and once we got together we started working on the album that is coming out in October, Disco Two Step, so putting that together after sorta “taking a break” was a lot of fun.
But yes, getting through that existential “will this ever end?” Was hard, and obviously it was hard for everyone. As an artist that enjoys meeting and seeing the fans that are listening and connecting with your music, not having that experience on the road and on tour was tough. But we made it through.
What “season” would you say you “Me Like Bees” is in now?
I would say Me Like Bees is in the early springtime when the frost is starting to thaw, the flowers are showing a little sign of what they’re going to be in the future, and we’re ready to blossom again in a new and (hopefully) exciting way.
What’s your favorite song you’ve written… and what’s your favorite song to play?
I think The Man, off our new record, is a favorite song for sure. It’s such a great blend or feels and emotions and sentiments, as well as being musically moving. Our favorite song to play is probably Iconic (has to be a favorite if we’re still playing a 10 year old song!) or Radio off our new record is a lot of fun to play as well.
Would you ever consider changing the name of your band to “Me Like Toads?”
Not unless there was a heft paycheck involved
If you could possibly agree on one Nic Cage movie as a band favorite… what might that be?
Ghost Rider, no question
Want to read the full in-person-interview? Check out the rest of the feature in issue 6 of the Toad- Find it around town or visit the store to buy your own copy!