Fitz and the Tantrums Sweat it Out

We were all melting like popsicles from the heat on Sunday at Coachella last weekend, but that didn't stop festival goers from checking out bands performing under the beating sun. Before hitting the main stage, we talked to band Fitz and the Tantrums about their festival experiences, the sweaty walls from their last show at Detroit Bar and what they've been working on for the next record. The band's energy was high as you could tell they couldn't wait to get up and perform for the large amount of eager fans standing just a few yards away.

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OC Weekly: So, when is the next record coming out?

Michael Fitzpatrick (Vocals): We are going in with Tony Hoffer (M83,
The Kooks, Depeche Mode, etc), producer in May to record. We have been
writing for the last two months and if all goes well, fingers crossed, a
mid-September release.

During Coachella, were there any bands that you have been wanting to see that you finally got to?
Noelle Scaggs (Vocals): Well, we actually got to hang last weekend (week
one of Coachella) and I was actually able to see Radiohead, able to see
Snoop and Dre do their thing, Justice played, Sebastian, we saw
everybody.
Fitzpatrick: I want to see Calvin Harris today.
Scaggs: Yeah, definitely.

Was it weird for you to play the same festival again only a week later?
Scaggs: No, it was fun.
Fitzpatrick: All the jitters are out of the way and we're just here to kill it.

What did you all do to prepare yourself for the heat of the weekend?
Fitzpatrick: We all have an IV drip of Gatorade.
Scaggs: We've played other cities where it was this hot, if not hotter,
with the sun beating down our foreheads, so this is actually a bit VIP
status for what were doing now. At least there is a breeze happening so
hopefully it hits us while we are on stage today.

Us being from Orange County, we've seen you play small clubs like
Detroit Bar- do you like playing festivals or small intimate clubs
better?
Fitzpatrick: They are both so different. There is nothing like playing
in front of 20- 30,000 people, for an up and coming band like us, you
don't get that many opportunities to play in front of that many people.
But at the same time, there is nothing like playing in a hot and sweaty
nightclub where the energy cannot escape the walls and we're feeding
off the audience in a really different way.
Jeremy Ruzumna (Keyboards): I remember when we were at Detroit Bar last
time, the walls were literally dripping with sweat and it was soo cool.

With this new album, can we expect any collaborations or guest appearances?
Fitzpatrick: I don't know. We'd definitely be open to it. We haven't really wrapped our head around it yet.
Scaggs: Actually, we haven't really thought about it yet. Definitely some remixes.

When do you head back into the studio?
Fitzpatrick: May 7th. We go to Mexico City, we fly home and then the next day we start.

Where are you heading after the festival?
Fitzpatrick: Home for three days, then St. Louis, Maryland and one
other place. We were in Vegas last night, Nashville the day before and
San Francisco the day before that. We barely know that we are in the
state of California right now, except the heat is reminding us.

You've been working/touring pretty extensively. When you get a chance to be home, how do you unwind?
Scaggs: We don't (laughs). We've been really busy. We finished our
last tour in January and then we went straight into working and cranking
out songs for this record for the last two months. This is actually
the month where we have actually done more gigs than the last two
months. We just like to be calm and spend time with our families and
friends, going to dinner like normal people.
Fitzpatrick: Any little bit of normalcy or any sort of ritual is a much needed thing after being on the road for so long.
John Wicks (Drums): I watch Portlandia.

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