According to Near Beer guitarist Joey Siara, the band started with tacos and margaritas at a house party. While friends chatted about babies, others had a very different conversation.
“You know, aging indie rockers pining for the glory of a perfect power-pop tune while the rest of their friends become responsible, child-rearing adults,” recalls Siara.
With past lives in bands like The Henry Clay People, Kissing Tigers, and The Polyphonic Spree, amongst others, this isn’t Near Beer’s first rodeo by a long stretch; rather a second chance to make things right and leave a mark in the spirit of such north stars as The Replacements, Pavement, and The Clash. What followed was their debut full-length (for Double Helix Records) in 2022.
Now, the band is back with a pair of singles for digital release on March 1, and one such mini-anthem is below.
“There is something about ‘bandness’ that I love,” admits Siara. “And the ‘bandness’ of Near Beer has grown. Two of my dearest friends from totally different eras of my life, Joel Wall and Stephen Kirkham, joined the band last year, which changed the entire dynamic and expanded the sound. They each bring their personalities. And their personalities are super fun.
“We are now split between Los Angeles, New York, and Austin — which makes the practicalities of recording much more complicated. But, it means that we appreciate band hang time more than ever before. These new tunes were recorded at Joel’s studio. The whole process was pretty relaxed; fueled by lots of pizza, burritos, and beer; and impromptu Beatles jams. Despite the slackery aesthetic of the band, I am prone to nit-pick, but something about the new line-up and the looseness of the recording process made me a lot less nit-picky.
“‘Your Favorite Band’ was the first tune written with the expanded lineup in mind. It’s about ‘bandness’ coupled with the anxiety of getting older. And while that’s familiar thematic territory for us, it all feels like it hits differently with the other guys in the band. Two of them are dads. Three of us are not. So, I don’t know if we qualify as a dad band. I mean, we love Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen. So, sure. The key line of the song I think is ‘your favorite band are just some tired old dudes of middle age, trying to stay up on their wave, and that’s okay.’ That line was written about a different band I admire and finding peace in that space between the glory of a rock & roll show and the grime of real life. My favorite bands are collections of regular flawed humans. And that’s why I love bands.”
Catch them live at SXSW next month.
Near Beer photo collage courtesy of Near Beer.
