Well, River City Extension are relatively new — both to our readers and to us personally. After catching them open for the Get Up Kids, we took a liking to their music and their overall energy as a band on stage. They seemed to be having more fun than most bands, and we can definitely get down with that.

While the band’s currently out on tour with another one of our favorites, Kevin Devine, members Joe Michilini (Guitar/Vocals), Nick Cucci (Guitar/Percussion/Background Vocals) and Mike Costaney (Drums) sat down with Sunbear and I to discuss many things, including the current tour, SXSW and their general outlook on music and the industry they’re in. I have to say that this was one of the most engaging and fun interviews we’ve done, as these three fellas are some of the most humble and genuine folks we’ve ever met.

If they ever come to your town, do yourself a favor and see their show. Buy their record, The Unmistakable Man, and read the interview before the jump.

-grizzly

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Roshan Bhatt/Grizzly, weworemasks.com: For the record, state your name and position in the band.

Joe Michilini, Guitar/Vocals, River City Extension: I’m Joe and sing in River City Extension.

Mike Costaney, Drums, River City Extension: My name’s Mike, I play drums.

Nick Cucci, Guitar/Percussion/Backup Vocals: My name is Nick and I play guitar, backup vocals and percussion.

WWM: How’s the tour been going so far? I know it just started and you’re making your way back [home].

Nick: Yeah, this tour’s been fun. We started about a week and a half ago in Pennsylvania with Kevin Devine. We’ve had a blast. I know Joe’s been a big fan of his music, and I hadn’t heard any of his music starting out on this tour and as you just saw, he’s been incredible. We just finished up South by, too.

Joe: I feel like we have about a week until we’re home?

Nick: Yeah, this Saturday.

WWM: How were your South by shows? Yall had a few of em, right? Like the showcase with Kevin/Favorite Gentleman?

Mike: Yeah, we played a showcase with them. It was a bunch of bands that we’re used to playing with. All Paradigm bands that we’re friends with and used to playing with so it was very low stress and an almost party-like atmosphere. But very overwhelming; people everywhere.

WWM: This is your first time, right?

Collective: Yeah!

WWM: Yeah, and they said that the population grew by like 40% up from last year, so it was ridiculous.

Mike: Yeah there were riots and…

WWM: Death from Above!

Mike: Yeah I saw it.
WWM: AW YOU WERE THERE?!

A.J. Gutierrez/Sunbear, weworemasks.com: Did everything that I read actually happen?

Mike: Yes, I went to see Omar Rodriguez and they weren’t letting anyone in, so I walked across the street and DFA was playing. I was kinda peering through these gates, and these people were going crazy, tearing the fences down and…

Jenn Fannticione, Cello/Percussion: DFA! DFA! DFA!

Mike: Yeah there were horses and pepper spray, it was [crazy].

Sunbear, WWM: Well the South by shows went great for you guys, did you see the Paste Mag write up about how you were one of the top 10 bands they saw?

Joe: I did. That was wild. They’ve been very supportive of us and that helped us.

Nick: I love Paste. That was so cool. Josh Jackson came up to us after the show and told us that it was really cool. We got an encore call! Joe didn’t wanna be disrespectful of the other bands on the tour, so we just invited them all outside and played a song called “Friends and Family.” It was great. It was a sweet crowd and every one was supportive. Granted, we were all “feeling pretty good.”

Grizzly, WWM: It’s ok. I was drunk the whole time. It’s all good. I guess back to the topic of your band, the first thing you notice is that you have a ton of band members on stage. How do you balance the dynamics of 8 different people while performing?

Joe: We added people over the course of maybe 3 years. So as each member came in, there was time for them to adjust and learn the songs, to figure out what they were doing in the band. We brought them in for a specific idea, but that’s changed. They’ll say “Well I can do this!” or “I can learn to do this!” and that’s great. we’re changing, we’re expanding and we’re learning. we’re a band that’s about growing, both through our music and personally. We encourage each other to pick up a new instrument and expand your creative boundaries. There should be no creative boundaries.

Nick: It’s actually really cool the way the writing process works. Joe would bring us a song that was very organic, regardless of who was in the band at the time. Everyone at the time would talk about what they could bring to the song and what it would come to be.

Joe: We’d rehearse it acoustic, in our living room. We all play it acoustically and we’ll sit down and listen to each other. When you’re rehearsing, you’re rehearsing the live show. You should know the songs by then. [A place called] The Practice Room is something you have to pay for. You’re paying hourly. When we’re learning the songs, we’ll hang out at one of our houses, drink orange juice and hang out. We’ll listen to each other and give each other input. We’re not the usual band because we don’t write songs together, but we are a usual band in a way that pleases me to where we are aware of what we’re bringing to the table creatively and emotionally.

Grizzly, WWM: I guess after the Grammys, they had that big performance. You know, with Dylan, Mumford and Sons and The Avett Brothers…

Nick: That was awesome.

Sunbear, WWM: We both noticed that there was a resurgence of folk music. You know, like Troubadour, DIY bands.

Nick: Absolutely!

Sunbear, WWM: And now they’re on a tour on a train with Edward Sharpe and…you know. So I feel like in the wake of it, how does it feel to be on this end? Has there been a different type of response to you guys?

Joe: We have no idea.

Mike: We were talking to somebody and they explained that when you’re in a band, it’s like a vacuum. It’s happening, but you don’t hear anything around you.

Joe: You know, friends of us tell us that and we don’t see that. And it’s better we don’t. If every fan told us that they enjoyed our music, if every reaction was on your plate, how would you even deal with that? We just do what we do. There’s stuff like that happening around us and we are pleased to know that there are people getting something from this experience. The only way to accept these compliments is to turn your head down and keep working hard. You put your blinders on and work as hard as you possibly can. I think live shows are the opportunity to take those off and see what’s going on around you and enjoy it. Live shows are 50/50. 50% the fans, 50% your show. We are getting as much from them as they are from us. It’s a mystery. It’s enjoying other. It’s special.

Grizzly, WWM: Going back to your live show. We were at the Get Up Kids show in Houston, and we walked in during your set. We caught the last three songs, and you know you did the whole set-closing routine of getting in the crowd and [playing “Bone Marrow Twist & Shout”], so I was like “What the fuck am I watching?!” And it was awesome. No one was standing still. And even here, there was a bunch of people who didn’t know you and when you guys did that, everyone just starts clapping and enjoying it.

Nick: Yeah! And that’s kinda the beauty of the whole thing. We’re all enthusiastic and behind the music. It’s something we’re passionate about and believe in. Physical contact and just like me being able to have one on one contact with someone – that’s huge! It means the world when all 8 of us can get out there and do that with strangers and interact, it’s a good moment.

Joe: And that’s the whole thing. There’s no way to explain the other side of that, what it feels like to be on our side of the show. And there’s no way for fans to express how they feel. If someone comes to you and tells you that it has affected you. And you know, “maybe they’re just saying that.” And we go to East Lansing, MI – one of our favorite towns to play in – and we tell them that, I’m sure they’re thinking the same. It’s this constant struggle to communicate.

Nick: A struggle of trust.

Joe: Right. And it’s not about that. It’s about music and heart, and the feeling you get, which is something that is unattainable.

Grizzly, WWM: And now, East Lansing, Michigan is on the record. So they know.

Joe: [Laughs] They know.

Nick: “So they weren’t bullshittin’ us!”

Grizzly, WWM: You know, when you read about your band online, you see the words “chamber punk” thrown around. That’s the coolest thing I’ve ever heard. Since you do have trumpets and cellos, I guess what are your more orchestral [classical] influences?

Joe: We were all raised in a classical environment. My parents used to have me listen to classical music and watch animals chasing each other. It sounds silly but they’d name instruments as different animals.

Nick: That’s amazing! You’ve never said anything like this before!

Joe: And they’d have this whole story that was there while they were chasing each other and the music raised and dropped. We all have a semi classical background and appreciate classical music. It’s not in the forefront of my mind when writing, but we definitely think about it. I’m a pianist, so I learned the guitar to be in a band and start writing songs and I don’t know as much about classical guitar —

Mike: [Laughs] I mean…

Grizzly, WWM: Are you laughing about “pianist?” [sounds like “penis”]

Nick: Ahhhhhh that’s what I thought! [Laughs]

Grizzly, WWM: I knew it! I saw him smirking and I was trying not to laugh.

[All laugh]

Joe: [Laughs] I’m a classical penis.

Nick: [Voiceover] When interviews go wrong. But that’s awesome, you’ve never mentioned that!

Joe: Yeah and my parents would be like, “That’s the [animal] chasing the [animal],” and I’d envision it in my head. The whole thing was visual.

Nick: And that makes sense because you’re excellent with arrangements! In a band where there are 8 members and potential chaos, you always have a vision.

Joe: Yeah, and that’s probably where it comes from. Yeah and it took a lot for these guys to trust me! While we were doing the first EP, I remember sitting in the studio saying that “you were in a green field, and I want you to play like a gazelle!”

Nick: And that’s what I’m saying! This is blowing my fucking mind.

Sunbear, WWM: He didn’t know your approach before this!

Nick: It is! I get it! This is a classical penis blowing my mind!

Mike: Yeah, and you taught me that. I was in a band while I was in RCE for the first year, and I remember I was doing “Joe-isms” to the band while we were writing, and they’d look at me like I was crazy.

Joe: Music for me is visual. Maybe if I wasn’t in a band, I’d be directing music videos, or try. I don’t know how it would translate. I mean, have you seen Ratatouille? It’s like how he is with food and how he sees it. That’s what it’s like for me.

Sunbear, WWM: It’s called synesthesia.

Joe: Is that what it’s called? I mean what do you see when you close your eyes?

Sunbear, WWM: The inside of my eyelids!

[Laughs]

Joe: You just see it, you just are. When you feel the need to close your eyes on stage, it means you are so comfortable with your band and with what you’re playing, that you’re able to let go. I remember when we were playing with Flogging Molly, and it was our last song on stage, The Battle of Oregon, I closed my eyes, and I felt like I was gonna cry. I was thinking, “This is not me. This is a gift.” I always feel that it’s a gift. It’s out of my world. I think that’s where humility as a musician comes from. I think that’s great. We have a great team of people working behind us. There are a lot of great bands that go unheard.

Nick: You know what they say – The best guitarist in the world is working at a Walmart in Michigan somewhere.

Joe: Right, “making it” is 50% talent, 50% luck.

Grizzly, WWM: Well your album’s almost been out for a year. I know you guys just put out that split [Tour 7’’ Split with Kevin Devine – 2 new songs recorded after The Unthinkable Man that were released for this tour]. Do you have plans for a follow up anytime soon?

Joe: We’re writing for that record now. Those recordings are very special to us. We will rerecord them and release them on our album again. If you like the [7’’] versions, then you like those. If you like the album version, then keep those. We’re not trying to bastardize the songs, you know?

Grizzly, WWM: You’ve had some high profile tours. The big Get Up Kids reunion tour, you’ve done shows with Lydia and Max Bemis. What are your plans for the rest of the year.

Nick: Well, we are doing Warped.

Joe: You know, we’re new to this. We’re doing whatever is best; whatever our team feels is best. I know people ask what your plans our, but we just kinda figure it out as we go along. These people working with us have been doing it a lot longer, and we expect that they’ll choose what’s best for us. There’s a blind trust, and we’re sure they will choose what is right.

Sunbear, WWM: I mean that’s a big crowd. It’s young, though. There are always a few left field bands each year. Where do you feel you fall with a crowd like that?

Nick: Well, we played inside Emo’s yesterday, and that crowd is very much so who we’ll be playing to on the Warped Tour. We played with Conditions and The Ready Set and a few others, it was an Alt. Press show.

Sunbear, WWM: That’s deep into AP world!

Nick: But they were very receptive of us, which was very cool.

Joe: Right, but the world that we fall into and the world that I hope we fall into is the world of honest music. It’s not about genres. It’s especially not about egos. I mean, do I want a review on Pitchfork? Yeah! Do I want to be a “hip” band? Yeah, I guess so. I want those things, but I don’t care if it doesn’t happen. I just would rather be who we are. And if that’s the crowd that gets something from us emotionally, then so be it. We don’t judge them, they don’t judge us. It’s about an experience. It’s not about pop-punk, folk-punk or punk in general. We’ve met some of the best people in the world from tours with those bands. They make honest music and are straight forward songwriters. We’ll I’m a songwriter and we make honest music.

Nick: It’s something we all get behind, too. It’s something that resonates, and something that we all believe in.

Joe: It’s what we stand for.