Michigan band Foundry Town Survivors have become firm favourites of ours over the years, and for good reason! Their own brand of hard rock also mixes in moments of Americana, the blues and country, combining the genres in a glorious way. It’s been a couple of years since we last had a chat with them, so I decided it was high time we caught up with the band after the release of their single, RPM.

By Jane Howkins

It’s been two years since we last caught up with you. How are things?

Hi Jane – it’s so good to be back with you! Everything is much more than OK and we’re excited about all the projects we have cooking in the back alleys of Foundry Town… (not to be confused with any cooking you may have seen on Breaking Bad!)

You recently released a new single titled RPM. What can you tell us about the track? It’s a great sounding song!

Thanks so much for the compliment! We were a little unsure about letting the beast out of the cage. We’d been hinting at our heavier roots for some time now. It just felt like the right time for us to expose ourselves, so to speak…The song echoes the drive and energy that came out of so many garages in our hometown at the time. It was euphoric and highly addicting, and we’ve never stopped incorporating that into everything we’ve done. We even included a proper ‘strangling of the cat’ wahwah solo that always makes us laugh, it’s so over the top!

The track was inspired by your experience seeing the MC5. Are you big fans of their music? How have they inspired you?

We’ve been a little nostalgic lately. Back when we were just starting to play, we were rocked to our very foundations and we’ve been vibrating ever since. As you know, we were there when the MC5 and their contemporaries were launching their assault on popular music, as well as their influence on the social structure of the time. RPM is our love letter to that point in time. It’s a very MC5 influenced track, on purpose. It embraces the story of the beginning of it all as far as hard rockin’ music is concerned. We are huge fans of the MC5 and Iggy and the Stooges, as well as all the other bands who supported the efforts of the day. If not for the 5, there would not have been punk! Anyway, we tried to capture what we thought was the most important part of all that musical revolution and that was the energy! RPM is a BANGER! It takes you right back to the MC5 at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit!

How has the reception to RPM been so far, and where can it be purchased?

We’re getting some airplay and that makes us happy. We’d love to have even more! It’s a great summer rocker of a song, it fires you up! We should mention that we are getting some intense reactions to the video (all good!) that accompanies the track. Assembling it was a total labor of love. So many of our friends are in the video, and so many of them have passed on, it’s a fitting tribute. RIP Brother Wayne Kramer, who passed just before we released RPM, so he never got to hear it. We’d bounced off Wayne many times in our career. He was the real deal. We’re gonna miss him…

You can see the video on our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/…rs4963

And the single is available from your favorite online music source.

Do you have any more singles planned for release soon?

We’re going to ride RPM for the summer. We’re throwing around some ideas for the next single, maybe in the fall… We’ve got plenty to choose from and we like this hard rockin’ vibe that we’re on now, so we may continue down this road or we could change it up. What do your readers think? We’re always open to suggestions…

Are there any plans to release an album or EP anytime soon?

The big question is, does anybody want to hear an album or an EP anymore? Again, what do you or your readers think? Popular opinion is that albums are dead. We hope that’s not true and if it’s not, we’d love to do a full length album.

What/who are you most influenced by?

Comedians. Most comedians are very intelligent and their observations of everyday situations usually walks along a razor’s edge between reality and absurdity. That’s why you laugh! We love that. It keeps us sane.

What have you been listening to recently?

On Mark’s phone, he has 3 genres selected. Blues, jazz and classical on shuffle. On Tommy’s phone, he has bird and frog sounds.

Do you have anything else exciting coming up over the next few months?

We recorded a live show, audio and video, at the end of last year, that we’ve been trying to decide whether to release it in some form or another. So far 5 people, 3 cats and a dog have seen it in its current form. We’ll keep you posted!

Do you have any tour dates lined up for the UK?

We would love to get back to Europe and do some dates in the UK… We just need to work out the tour sponsorship with Dunkin’ Donuts and Vernor’s… Any suggestions from your readers?

Any last words for the fans?

Always get paid in advance – in cash. Oh, yeah, and thanks for your support and don’t be afraid to reach out and talk to us!
info@foundrytownsurvivors.com