Philly Music!
A few weeks ago I went to a house show at The Pouch and saw Philly band "Ronald Reagan? The Actor?". They did a good show. As this was my first time seeing them, I wanted to learn a little more about them, so I got in touch with the band and talked with Chris, who plays bass. Other members of the outfit are Ryan who plays guitar and Travis who's on the drums.
So first of all >>> Bob: Of course, I guess everyone would want to know, how did you come up with the name?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our name comes from the movie Back to the Future. It’s a line that Christopher Lloyd says to Michael J Fox after he tells him that Ronald Reagan is president in 1985. The way that Christopher Lloyd delivers that line is so funny to us and we just thought it would make a great band name. On the other hand, it’s also satire and meant to make fun of Reagan too so we love that because that guy was the worst.
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our name comes from the movie Back to the Future. It’s a line that Christopher Lloyd says to Michael J Fox after he tells him that Ronald Reagan is president in 1985. The way that Christopher Lloyd delivers that line is so funny to us and we just thought it would make a great band name. On the other hand, it’s also satire and meant to make fun of Reagan too so we love that because that guy was the worst.
Bob: When did the band start?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We officially started playing together back in 2011. We didn’t take ourselves very seriously back then and just liked jamming together and hanging out. We played a good amount of shows in those earlier days but we all feel like we’ve hit our stride in the last 5 years or so and are now kind of in our “prime” as a band.
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We officially started playing together back in 2011. We didn’t take ourselves very seriously back then and just liked jamming together and hanging out. We played a good amount of shows in those earlier days but we all feel like we’ve hit our stride in the last 5 years or so and are now kind of in our “prime” as a band.
Bob: How did you meet each other?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Travis and I( Chris) met through a mutual friend in like 2007 and actually started playing music together around then. Then I met Ryan in 2009 through my girlfriend at the time(now my wife). Fast forward to 2010-2011, Travis and I were roommates and would throw a lot of parties that ended in impromptu jam sessions. Ryan brought his guitar to one of those parties and that led to the formation of Ronald Reagan? The Actor?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Travis and I( Chris) met through a mutual friend in like 2007 and actually started playing music together around then. Then I met Ryan in 2009 through my girlfriend at the time(now my wife). Fast forward to 2010-2011, Travis and I were roommates and would throw a lot of parties that ended in impromptu jam sessions. Ryan brought his guitar to one of those parties and that led to the formation of Ronald Reagan? The Actor?
Bob: Did you form the band first and then decide on surf and space/rock, or have the interest in the genre first and then make a band out of it?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We formed the band first and without any particular genre in mind. We knew we wanted to be an instrumental band but didn’t have a set direction. When we started we leaned heavily on the psychedelic and experimental side and we also had a gimmick where we would sample audio clips of pop culture references at our shows. The surf rock always kind of snuck in with some of Ryan’s guitar lines but within the last 5 years we finally figured out that we should be writing more songs with a cohesive sound and then really started to focus on that space surf sound that we like to refer as Interstellar Surf Grooves.
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We formed the band first and without any particular genre in mind. We knew we wanted to be an instrumental band but didn’t have a set direction. When we started we leaned heavily on the psychedelic and experimental side and we also had a gimmick where we would sample audio clips of pop culture references at our shows. The surf rock always kind of snuck in with some of Ryan’s guitar lines but within the last 5 years we finally figured out that we should be writing more songs with a cohesive sound and then really started to focus on that space surf sound that we like to refer as Interstellar Surf Grooves.
Bob: When was your first show?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our first show was 2011 at this place called The Station( shoutout to Dave Kiss for booking us for that)
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our first show was 2011 at this place called The Station( shoutout to Dave Kiss for booking us for that)
Bob: How do you write the music? Is it a collaboration or does one person create the songs?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our writing process is very collaborative. A song typically starts with an idea for a bass line or guitar part and then we continue to build onto it as a group.
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Our writing process is very collaborative. A song typically starts with an idea for a bass line or guitar part and then we continue to build onto it as a group.
Bob: Any ideas or plans for the next couple years?
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We have a batch of new songs that we are planning to record in the near future. We are still working through some of them and are trying not to rush into anything but we are definitely excited about how they’re sounding and we’ve been playing some of them at shows. Other than that, keep playing shows. We really started to branch out this year and have played some shows outside of Philly so hopefully we’ll continue to do that. We have some “bucket list” venues that we’d like to play in Philly as well so we’ll keep spamming the emails of those venues until we get a yes some day.
Chris / Ronald Reagan: We have a batch of new songs that we are planning to record in the near future. We are still working through some of them and are trying not to rush into anything but we are definitely excited about how they’re sounding and we’ve been playing some of them at shows. Other than that, keep playing shows. We really started to branch out this year and have played some shows outside of Philly so hopefully we’ll continue to do that. We have some “bucket list” venues that we’d like to play in Philly as well so we’ll keep spamming the emails of those venues until we get a yes some day.
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Here is a sample of the band's interstellar space grooves. The song is "Crooks Like Red (Live)", and it's the third track on their album "Live At Hidden Fortress", which was released in December :::
Chris / Ronald Reagan: Thanks so much for taking the time to interview us! We appreciate it. We’ll be playing in Philly on 5/9 at Tin Can Bar and then at West Philly Porchfest on 6/8. Maybe we’ll see you at one of those!
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