Scorpios kicked off its North American tour last week, June 27th, in California. After Seattle on July 2nd, the guys will be on their way for their first Canadian stop. July 4th, Vancouver will welcome the eternal kids. Before they hit the road, I had the chance to speak with Joey Cape.
Scorpios is the perfect act of synchronicity, when time, events and great musicians meet. It all starts with Joey Cape, Lag Wagon’s lead singer, composing songs for his band, scratching his guitar and singing on his own. He mentioned that there is a kind of responsibility when you write for a group and that there are so many songs in his head. When you realize that your band is on a major label and its doing great and someone tells you that it is actually quite good to listen to you in your process of putting lyrics and music together with your guitar… Well why not give it a try. Jon Snodgrass (Drag the River) initiated Joey to solo acoustic appearances. He sure liked it and will eventually convince his good friend, Tony Sly, to join the experience. The scene was set and for our pleasure it would last and grant us with bunch of songs, concerts and great memories. During a tour, Brian Wahlstrom joined Jon, Joey and Tony on stage. That’s when they realized that they would all be celebrating their birthday that month. October is when they were all born Scorpios!
It will soon become a running gag when meeting some great songwriters on the road that want to collaborate with Scorpios. “When were you born?” If you are not a scorpio than your just not one of the Scorpios. In September 2011, Scorpios released its first and only album with the original four scorpios, Tour Record. This summer, the band is crossing the US and Canada and invites you to join them in a tribute to Tony Sly. The great Tony Sly left this world July 31st 2012, in Gainsville “Rock City”, Florida and this is our chance to give him the big farewell he deserves. They are also taking advantage of each of their stops to promote local bands as opening act… And you know what? You DON’T have to be a scorpio to perform and/or attend! So go sing out loud!
After the current tour, Scorpios future will remains uncertain. It is still quite emotional for the remaining members to play those songs and they don’t want to feel like they are exploiting the project. As Joey Cape is letting time to try to cure the lost, he is currently writing for his new solo album and working on new stuff for Lag Wagon as well (He mentioned something about an upcoming live record!). They don’t want to shut the door on Scorpios and Joey said that there are great scorpios out there (Yup! He did state CHUCK RAGAN!). But as for now, To All My Friends Tour is the opportunity to shout and celebrate a random act of birth and support and enjoy awesome music.
Scorpios will be in Vancouver this Thursday at The Media Club and in Whistler the next day, July 5th, at Dusty’s. After visiting Canada’s west coast, they will start their journey toward east and stop in your town on their way to Joey’s beloved Montreal where they will perform July 15th at the Café Campus. I took some time to ask what makes Montreal so special. Nah! It is not the delicious poutine comfort food and the amazing scenery. It is all about the people that lives there. They never change, they stay loyal and they make the city such an incredible place to come back every times. It is because of their integrity that Joey Cape dedicated a song, My Montreal, to the amazing punk scene public there.
US and Canada form June 27th to July 24th make sure you go give the love back and give Scorpios a good time!
For more information and for tour dates visit:
http://scorpiosmusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Scorpios/145366025540475
http://www.joeycape.com/category/blog/
*** Joey Cape wants you to promote Scorpios Tour in your town. Visit his blog for more details. You could score a free ticket to the show!
FUN FACT: Did you know that if Joey didn’t turn out a musician, he would have become a doctor or a chef? Oh well, he might not be saving lives and cooking for people literally but, good thing for us, he won’t forget a scalpel in our tummy and he can always feed us with his music!
Special Thanks to Melanie Kaye for hooking me up and to Joey Cape, it was more than an interview to me, it meant a lot. Thank You!
