[Interview] Goo Goo Dolls Bassist Robby Takac: "Life's Good In The Bubble, Man"

Robby Takac @ Beacon Theatre 10/15/2018. Photo credit: Angela Cranford/MSG Photos

After speaking with Goo Goo Dolls bassist Robby Takac the Friday before their show at Beacon Theater as part of their 20th Anniversary Dizzy Up The Girl Tour, I can confirm that he is indeed Some Kind of Awesome. The music community, not just Goo Goo Dolls, are truly beyond blessed to have someone so passionate about music the way that he is. In addition to his rhythmic duties in a band whose career spans across more than three decades, he's also been running the music non-profit Music Is Art and the boutique record label Good Charamel Records for over 15 years in addition to owning the recording studio GCR Audio in his hometown of Buffalo, New York. "You know, owning a recording studio is very akin to owning a boat," Takac jokes over the phone last Friday, "You do it because you enjoy it. It's not necessarily a cash cow, that's for sure."

Some people would find keeping themselves so busy to be exhausting, especially given the extensive amount of touring that Goo Goo Dolls do (including the tour they’re currently on), but it actually has the opposite sort of effect on Takac. "All these things, Music Is Art included," he explains, "helps to exercise parts of my brain, my emotions, my creativity, that probably might have driven me crazy to not be able to exercise." 

He went on to detail the beginnings of the Goo Goo Dolls from a business standpoint, " We did everything, you know, Johnny [Rzeznik] and I did 30 years ago. Everything. We had this hilarious briefcase that we used to carry around with us like all our papers, and it was pretty much our whole world was in that briefcase." As the band became more popular obviously the briefcase became an inefficient form of handling the band's business."Little by little we let started letting go of parts," he recounted, "It took many many years, but since then we found people who did it better (...) and all these people took a little piece of what we did in the beginning and started doing a much better job of it, but that didn't mean that those things weren't still inside me, you know, clamoring to be exercised, and so I think that that's why I still keep up with all of this stuff. Because it allows me to be better at being in the Goo Goo Dolls if that makes sense at all."

Of his three side passions, Music Is Art is by far his biggest focus outside of the Goo Goo Dolls. The most admirable part about his approach to the non-profit is his acknowledgement for the need for art/music comes from personal experience. As he shared:

“(...) There are some people (and I was one of them) whose lives could not be shaped correctly if they weren’t exposed to these things because that’s just where your mind operates. Their minds don’t operate in the classroom all that well. You know, they’re not debate team folks. They’re not gonna star on the college basketball team or even be able to dribble a ball for that matter, you know? BUT, you put a paint brush or a guitar in their hand and they realize that they can move on. So they have that. I think if you rob young people of that then you’re really doing an unbelievable disservice to a huge amount of kids out there.”

— Robby Takac

To be clear, Music Is Art does incredible things for the music community. In addition to its yearly cornerstone event, the Music Is Art festival, which boasted 20 stages this year, they also organize a variety of battles of the bands both in corporate and public settings. Most importantly, they've been doing instrument drives and to date have donated a half of a million dollars worth of both new and refurbished instruments to schools and communities in the Maryvale School District in Buffalo, New York. While the organization never has an issue with finding volunteers from both musicians and the general public, even with it's rockstar affiliation they share the same struggles that arts-centered not for profits have when it comes to funding. "The hard part is actually keeping it going, you know," he admitted, "and all the realities that you have to face when you go to a lawyer or an accountant. As the festival grows bigger it becomes more and more of a responsibility."

It's not often that I get to speak with someone who has been in the business of music for as long as Takac has, so obviously the conversation drifted to technology. Like any music lover who was  actively collecting music pre-iPod, living in this new era of streaming services is the biggest change in music that has him buzzing with excitement. "(...)Coming from a guy who collected records when I was younger like that is MIND BLOWING man.(...)If you and I are talking about something I could play it for you right now just on my phone. That is MIND BLOWING. Seriously." 

He also had nice things to say about our friend The Algorithm™. He even shared that Discover Weekly had gotten him into The Heavy and Beach Slang recently. He raved, "(...) The ability for Spotify to build algorithms and like expose you to things that it's discovering that you might like, I think that's unbelievable." A kindred spirit, he too has mixed feelings about how algorithms like Discover Weekly are lessening the emotional connection that is made between people when they share music with each other. "(...)It's a little bit sad because I used to have those same experiences but I would have it with my friend Gary Sperrazza down at Apollo Records in Buffalo, or I would have it down at The Record Mine with my friend Dave, you know? It's sad that human interaction is taken from it, but I think the resources that are at hand with music is just unbelievable." 

Another big difference is obviously the way social media has shaken up the music landscape. To an extent Goo Goo Dolls were pioneers in the early age of fan interaction, dating back to the early America OnLine days. Now the band has amassed a massive online fan base, with over 3 million fans on Facebook at the time of print. When they started, fan engagement was primarily about promoting a single, album, or tour. These days Takac observed that having a digital presence has a different impact on musicians, specifically when it comes to access. "You know, we always laugh about guys like Jimmy Page, like you've got this image of Jimmy Page living in his castle somewhere, you know, like whatever," he observed, "Or this weird image of what Led Zepplin was like or all of these bands cause there was a mystique to them, but this current social atmosphere of immediacy, you can't really be that way anymore." He's also a realist when it comes to fans having their smartphones at concerts, as he noted, "It's all out there and it's all out there in unprofessional, unairbrushed, you know, like 'here's our pimples' kinda world. It's changed."

In Takac's mind the archetype for the modern day musician on social media is Kanye West. He further clarified: 

"Kanye makes some cool music but like it's not so much about that with him, you know? A little bit of it is, but it's more about everything else, you know it's about his social media. It's about his wife. It's about his wife's family. It's about their TV show. It's about his sneakers. It's about like all these things that the music is sort of in the background as something that he sort of does, you know? It's why he's such a big star, 'cause I don't think the music can make you that big of a star anymore... It's all this stuff, you know, that figures in now that, you know, didn't figure in when I was thinking about Jimmy Page in his castle. I never thought about any of that stuff with him. He was just that dude in Zepplin. That's what he did, you know? It's way more than that now."

“I don’t think the music can make you that big of a star anymore... ”

Things that are also very different than when Robby and Johnny started Goo Goo Dolls over thirty years ago: the two are both sober, with Robby over ten years sober and Johnny around four years sober. It's easy to assume that backstage while on tour is packed with opportunities to slip back into substance abuse, but Takac was quick to shut that fallacy down:

"It is what you make it," he said, "It's your bubble man. You're in a bubble when you're out here [on tour] but it's your bubble. Like we say 'life's good in the bubble, man'. You know, for a lot you get to choose what's there and what's not, you know? So we just kind of keep it sane back there, and there's not a lot of parties and that kind of stuff. Not that there's not but there's not a lot."

“Like we say ‘life’s good in the bubble, man’.”

— Robby Takac

While they've admittedly had a few decades to get heavy partying out of their system, it was refreshing to hear that there are legacy musicians that acknowledge their ability to be personally responsible for the toxicity level of their touring environment. These days Takac's number one tour essential is his teapot, which is his way to bring a piece of home with him while he's out on the extensive touring schedules with Goo Goo Dolls. "It's just you need those kinds of things to keep you warm, you know, keep you happy," he offered, "It's tough but you try to get a little bit out here." 

Make sure you catch Robby Takac with Goo Goo Dolls while they're still out on their 20th Anniversary Dizzy Up The Girl tour. I can attest that it is an energy packed night that you won't want to miss even if you're a casual fan. 

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

[SONG OF THE DAY] Yoste - "Blue"

Today in Damn Maybe I Really Should Move To Australia For Their Music Scene we have Brisbane-based chanteur Yoste (pronounced like 'lost’)’s “Blue”, which is the second single from his forthcoming EP try to be okay, which is slated for release on February 19th, 2019 courtesy of Akira Records. The title is an excellent representation of the song itself, which is gentle little melancholy-filled electro-pop tune. Yoste’s vocals are perfectly delicate and earnest, which further builds on the song’s sad but soothing vibes. “Blue” is a follow up to the lead single, “Arc”, which was released earlier this year and worth checking out as well.

[SKOA PREMIERE] + [SONG OF THE DAY] Stalking Gia - "PTSD"

F - R - I - D - A - Y

Proud to be going local today for this Some Kind of Awesome Premiere. Today NYC-based alt-pop powerhouse Stalking Gia has unveiled her brand new single, “PTSD”, an infectious poptastic little number that touches upon the aftermath of an emotionally traumatic experience. Gonna be honest, it’s been wild to watch Stalking Gia climb the ranks since the first time I saw her open for Dragonette at Bowery Ballroom back in 2015. Fast forward to present day where the songstress will be supporting blackbear at The Red Rocks Amphitheater this very night! That was almost 3 years ago to the day.

In addition to opening for blackbear tonight, “PTSD” is the first release from her upcoming project, which was executive produced by blackbear and released on his label, beartrap. As you’ll recall, the two met collaborating on blackbear’s “Digital Druglord” album with his song “Wish You The Best,” which sampled Gia’s “Second Nature”. The two have highly anticipated duet, “Miracles”, which will be on her forthcoming EP which drops later this year.

I’m so excited to see what this new era of Gia brings! She’s certainly earned all the good things coming to her!

[SONG OF THE DAY] LP GIOBBI - "Kupsa Kupsa"

If you’re not yet familiar with Los Angeles based producer, DJ, and fashion designer LP GIOBBI, allow me to get you well acquainted. After launching her project earlier in the summer with “Amber Rose”, a “fuck the haters”-esque anthem centered around reclaiming the world’s gaze in the same way that the feminist icon has in the past 10 years, LP GIOBBI (née Leah Chisholm) has continued to release songs over the last few months that promote self-love and champion inclusivity.

Her latest release, “Kupsa Kupsa” is a playful take on the central theme of her music. As LP explains, "The commonality in my tracks is a diversity of perspectives from the top lines,” Collaborating with Parisian rapper and producer H3RY LÜCK, the song features purely French lyrics that were written spur of the moment in the Uber ride to the studio. It’s been way too long since I was in AP French Lit so as with listening to any Yelle album I can only pick up bits and pieces, but I’m told the lyrics capture H3RY's love of cooking and detailing recipe steps for creating a perfect song. Apparently LP is in the same boat as I am regarding the lyrics, as she details,

“French and Malagasy are H3RY's first languages, and it was awesome to see him work so quickly and fiercely to throw down on this track. I was so impressed with his talent and how clever he is. It was further proof to me of how universal music is, because even though I couldn’t understand what he was saying, I could still feel it."

NY fam if you’re looking for a bomb ass night of dancing on Friday night you can come find me at Output catching sets from LP Giobbi, Crush Club, and SOFI TUKKER. You’ll be able to spot me easily as I will most likely be doused in all of the body glitter. ✨

LP GIOBBI Tour Dates:

* Supporting SOFI TUKKER​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

October 18 - Ledyard, CT  @ Foxwoods Casino*
October 19 - Brooklyn, NY @ Output*

October 21 - Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa*

October 24 - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West*

October 26 - San Francisco, CA @ The Midway (support for MK + Camelphat)​​​​​​​

November 1  - San Francisco, CA @ August Hall (FEMMEHOUSE Show)

[SONG OF THE DAY] Tourist - "Apollo"

Photo credit: James Lyndsay

Last month, UK-based Grammy winning producer and composer Tourist released his latest single, “Apollo” (which somehow got past me when it dropped). Yesterday he unveiled a video to accompany the song directed by acclaimed British photographer Nigel Shafran. William Phillips (aka Tourist) is a big fan on Shafran’s work and was thrilled to be collaborating with him on the visuals for the song. Regarding the context of the video itself, Phillips said, “I suppose this video reflects on the space where I work and live. Nigel came over, we had some coffee, we talked, he shot some videos and then he decided to play my music to me whilst filming me. You can see how uncomfortable this makes me feel, and I guess there is something quite interesting about that."

The video adds an extra layer of intimacy to an already tender and vulnerable track. “I want my music to connect and to tell a human story through samples, sounds and melody,” he explains. “I have always found these components of music much more interesting than words / lyrics.”

[SONG OF THE DAY] Ry Jones - "Choose"

Yooo check it out we got a baby band that’s so fresh that his debut single is less than 24 hours old!

Fam, please meet Ry Jones. Despite being raised on grunge in Seattle, Jones opted to immerse himself in R&B and pop upon moving to London. As he devoted his time to working on songs, he happened to meet Blair MacKichan (who wrote/produced Sia’s “The Greatest” featuring Kendrick Lamar) and things really started to fall into place.

His debut, “Choose”, was written about the crossroads we sometimes face in deciding between pursuing what we're truly passionate about and what is expected. Of his decision to become an artist Jones says, "I knew music had to be part of my life. But I want to find a way to make it all work together, bring people together from all fields and perspectives who wouldn’t otherwise. To solve problems and communicate meaning and a message that we couldn’t while we’re all isolated in our own worlds."

Very much looking forward to hearing more from this project as it unfolds, amirite?

[SONG OF THE DAY] Yak - "Bellyache"

Photo credit: Zackery Michael

I have been cheering along London’s Yak for quite some time now and I am SO THRILLED that their latest single, “Bellyache” was released on Third Man Records last week. These dudes are the real fuckin’ deal and I genuinely hope that being on a label like TMR will get them to the audiences that they deserve.

Believe it or not, the song was written while frontman Oli Burslem was living out of the back of his car. As he explains, "I was living out the back of my £205 car, completely broke as I had put all the money we had from the label into the band. It really felt like the last piece of music we would ever make and that we had to put everything we had into it. That's where the last lyric "if you're going for broke just make sure you don't choke" comes from."

Real. Fuckin. Deal.

Love them!

The band will be hitting the road in the UK at the end of the month. Hopefully they’ll make it to the US of A early next year. Fingers crossed!

Yak's upcoming tour dates:

October 23rd: The Crescent, York
October 24th: Think Tank?, Newcastle
October 25th: Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh
October 26th: Picture House Social, Sheffield
October 27th: Deaf Institute, Manchester
October 30th: The Horn, St Albans
October 31th: The Exchange, Bristol
November 1st: Heartbreakers, Southampton
November 2nd: The Haunt, Brighton
November 7th: Bethnal Green Working Mens Club, London

[SONG OF THE DAY] Mason - "Disruptor"

NEW MUSIC FRIIIIIIDDDDAAAYYYYYYY 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

It’s officially October because I’m so overwhelmed with everything that dropped today but in the spirit of making sure you can dance your way through the weekend I am leaving you with the latest from Dutch DJ Mason, “Disruptor”.
For over twenty years now Mason has had this “fuck you I’m doing it my way” approach to both music and the industry, which has in turn made him into one hell of a musician. His sound is so wonderfully eccentric and distinctive that you always know when a new track drops it’s going to be catchy quirky little banger and “Disruptor” is very much that.

The single comes with 2 remixes from the likes of Pimpo Gama and Malikk as well as a single edit in case you don’t have a minute and a half extra to be a proper house head.

Happy weekend!