Buck Meek sounds familiar; that’s because one would recognize the name as the lead guitarist and co-founder of Big Thief. The musician has ventured into the realm of solo artistry and has created a record that is self-titled. The release will be seeing the light of day on May 18th via Keeled Scales. The singles that have been presented thus far find the musician in a swirling realm of dynamics and tiptoeing melodies, as heard on “Maybe.” The intimate approach to the soft swells of guitars on “Cannonball!” seduce the listener. The vocals are extremely engaging, having an infectious quality to them. All of Buck Meek‘s tunes are memorable and familiar, shining through the sky with a beautiful ebb and flow.
The artist will be doing a small run of tour dates in the U.S. later this summer, but has already toured extensively via Big Thief. New Noise Magazine is pleased to be bringing forth five tips to living on the road from the ethereal, ambient intellect that is Buck Meek.
One.
Comfort is a rare bird on tour, and one of the few sanctuaries I’ve found is my own pillow, in a desert of hardwood floors and cold van window glass. Spend a days pay on the best pillow you can find, an 800 thread count case, and a lavender sachet, and even the hardest broken spring motel bed will fly you home.
Two.
If we don’t have time to sit down at a legendary breakfast joint, I like to make my own coffee and oatmeal at a gas station first thing in the morning. I carry a thermos, a foldable pour-over, and good coffee beans, along with a camping bowl and spoon, oats, dates, cinnamon, cloves, honey, etc. Every gas station coffee machine in the world has a free boiling water spout, which is ideal for heating things up.
Three.
A comrade who works for Gold Bee recently hipped me to the healing trick of putting a few drops of essential oil on the floor of a hotel shower to create a aromatherapy steam bath. Eucalyptus, tea tree, and lemon are all lovely.
Four.
Carry hot sauce in your bag. Swag
Five.
Even on a month long run, you actually spend very little time with the support or headlining band, despite the commune of traveling in tandem across thousands of miles with like minded people sharing a unified purpose, seeing each other in passing every afternoon at load in and sound check, and watching each other bear your souls on stage time and time again, in vulnerability, embarrassment, and victory – elements that would generally result in true friendship, but with the dense schedule and constant stimulus of each individual band in separate vehicles, often leave you with a certain unrequited camaraderie. My friend Greta of Frankie Cosmos taught us the tour hack of playing two truths and a lie via text message, with unknown contacts – just the numerical phone numbers of the entire touring party – with the intention of guessing everyones identity though context clues and assumption, resulting in the seed of real understanding.
Live Show Dates!
May 30 | Kerrville, TX at Kerrville Folk Festival
June 07 | Allston, MA at Great Scott
June 08 | Brooklyn, NY at Rough Trade
June 09 | Washington, DC at Songbyrd
June 10 | Durham, NC at The Pinhook
June 12 | Nashville, TN at The High Watt
June 13 | Bloomington, IN at The Bishop
June 14 | Chicago, IL at Schuba’s
June 15 | Millvale, PA at The Funhouse
June 16 | Philadelphia, PA at Johnny Brenda’s
June 7-16 with Sam Evian
June 7 & 8 also with Katie Von Schleicher
