A month ago, Family Force 5 brought their thunderous beats and rock n’roll music to the Social on their “It’s All Gold” tour, in support of their latest album “lll”, which is out now on Tooth & Nail Reocrds. Now, as the tour wraps up, guitarist Derek Mount describes to me how life’s been for him and the rest of the band on the road.
How would you describe your band’s music?
Southern rock n’ roll with a BBQ twist.
Is BBQ sauce your favorite type of condiment?
No, I would say Soyake. I usually eat it with chicken and shrimp. It’s a little pricey but worth the splurge.
Has Soyake played a role in your diet this tour?
No, because we eat out mostly but I’m a health nut, especially on tour. For example, I ordered a grilled chicken salad with whole wheat bread for lunch today, while everyone else ate fried chicken and French fries. Of course, they all made fun of me. But as a performer you need so much energy and healthy food gives you tons!
Your band is described as party bangers and grimy rockers. Which description have you related to most on this tour?
Definitely on this tour I’d have to say I relate with grimy rocker. I’ve walked around cities for up to six days of not showering. It got pretty gross.
Why’d you choose not to shower?
There’s not much time while touring so it just kind of happened.
What’s the personality of your tour bus been like?
We bought the bus from the Dixie Chicks a few years ago. We like to keep a creative vibe going by writing songs, throwing around new ideas and seeing what direction we want to go in as musicians. We also have three brothers in the band so awesome fights break out sometimes.
Do you guys have anything special planned for your last few shows?
Not yet but we’ll definitely do something. We’re a bunch of pranksters so we like to plan innocent fun.
What pranks have you guys been guilty of in the past?
Oh, hmm, let’s see. On our AP tour we poured flour all over our opener’s drum-set. As he started drumming, flour flew everywhere but they had already started their show so he had to keep playing. We’ve put a chicken in a piano once. That was really funny. The band flipped out and the chicken was running around everywhere causing havoc on stage. We’ve also been known to raid other band’s wardrobes and dress in their attire.
Overall, what’s mainly distinguished each show from one another?
We’ve had a karaoke challenge for our fans prior to each show. Fans have shown up dressed in old attire of ours and sing our song “Love Attic.” It’s fun seeing our fans all fired up and excited to play our music because each fan is so different.
What’s next for Family Force 5? Any New Years Resolutions?
Hopefully we’ll play in Japan and South America this year. We have a lot of fans out there so it would be great to finally make it out there!
