PREVIEW: Steep Leans vs Drug Dogs [Great Scott 4/28]

Steep Leans and Drug Dogs are playing a show together tomorrow night at Great Scott with Rick Rude, Dead Trains, and Idle Pilot. Before the show, Matt Altieri of Drug Dogs and Jeff Somers and Joe Beaton of Steep Leans asked each other some hard hitting questions, because they were so excited to play together. We’re equally excited for Steep Leans‘ return to Boston after their life as a local band before migrating in the exodus to Philly. Rick Rude is a truly amazing band out of NH/ME that you should see tomorrow as a precursor for their stint up at Waking Windows next weekend. Dead Trains plays blues rock that isn’t vomit coming out of Dan Auerbach’s mouth. Self-proclaimed “post-whatever three piece” Idle Pilot are coming to ya from way up north Lowell. If you want to experience the rock n’ roll lifestyle boy is this gig for you!!! Here is what Matt, Joe, and Jeff have to say about Hulk Hogan, birds, Kurt Cobain, and the typeface of your tombstone among other topics that may or may not have anything to do with their actual music.

Let’s play 19 questions with Steep Leans

Drug Dogs: I just want to get this one out of the way…what is a “Steep Lean?”

Steep Leans: he’s this sort of lone wolf vigilante cowboy figure think clint eastwood. think mad max. Steep Leans. it’s like a name. get it?

DD: Favorite Hall & Oates member?

SL: i guess i’d go with oates, because he’s always got a sick looking guitar in every video. he’s kind like a miniature lionel richie. check this video out it’s chill AF 

DD: Who is a person that is going to change the world one day, that nobody knows about?

SL: john brown (of world cup) and he doesn’t even know it

DD: Would you rather have a phone-shaped-banana or a banana-shaped-phone?

SL: damn this is a good question. I guess the phone shaped banana….that i would dip in some sort of lacquer to preserve and then eventually i’d turn that into an actual phone so it would be phone shaped banana banana phone.

DD: What is your least favorite type of bird?

SL: i think i find all birds equally irritating/entertaining. i could say something obvious like the seagull or the pigeon. but what fun would a beach be without a seagull. there’s no excitement there. they’re hilarious

DD: What is your favorite hot pockets flavor?

LL: cheese and roni obviously what the hell?

DD: If Steep Leans existed in the 1970s, peace-and-love hippie era, who would you be jamming with?

SL: big star. and we’d both be broke. :^)

DD: If you could cast the current Steep Leans lineup into a film, what film would it be?

SL: Hmmm, maybe Wild Hogs.

DD: Did Courtney love kill Kurt Cobain?

SL: nah but she definitely didn’t help him out too much. i think she was definitely a contributor to his downfall. but that’s also his own fault. poor guy.

DD: If you had to cram your entire existence into one guitar pedal, what guitar pedal would you become?

SL: i’d probably go with my Visual Sound tap delay. that’s how I get my sound. it has this modulation knob where i get my warbly guitar sound, as opposed to using chorus or phaser which i used to use, but i found that this pedal sort of
combines all the shit i want into one place. this pedal is the culmination of me fucking around with a lot of sounds for a long time.

DD: What color did you see the dress as?

SL: god dammit. i think blue? wasn’t it gold? the dang dress/ dang the dress.

DD: You must enlist all of Steep Leans to wrestle a 4-on-1 handicap match against any professional wrestler of your choosing, alive or dead. Who do you go up against?

SL: i think we’re gonna go with Hulk Hogan, cause he’s like bad a guy. a pretty poor father from what i’ve heard. and check it out, cory is already prepared:


(editor’s note: he is clearly dressed up as macho man randy savage, not hulk hogan, but i’m gonna let this one slide)

DD: If you have Marilyn Manson’s phone number, what would you text him?

SL: 15/m/boston u? no i’d probably see if he wants to party. he likes to party

DD: Favorite drinking hole?

SL: in boston, i’m going with michaels in somerville. in the US i’m going with Charles Hanson’s 169 Soul Jazz Oyster Bar in LES NYC. $3 beer and shot combos before 5pm/$5 dollars after. the tip jar says “drug fund” but the G is backwards. there’s a free pink leopard print pool table. tiki drinks. a dinosaur coming out of the wall and a stripper pole that they pay like, older middle aged women to dance. it’s not like sexual thing. it’s more like a david lynch thing.

DD: Steep Leans has an eating contest. Who wins? What is eaten?

SL: [Jeff turns to look at Steep Lean member Tim Cushing] mussels.

DD: You’re in charge of writing a children’s book. What do you write about?

SL: I’m gonna let Joe take this one:
Joe Beaton: “The hippo that saved the day.”

DD: Most underrated or under appreciated band you’ve heard this year?

SL: My boys in Jaw Gems from Portland, ME and YVES TUMOR

DD: if you had to be trapped on a desert island with only 2 of the golden girls who would they be and why

SL: So I never watched a lot of golden girls as an adult. I used to watch it when i was like 10. i guess i’d probably just choose jenny lewis as an adult (tho shes tech not a golden girl, she was the daughter) because i really liked her band rilo kiley’s first record in high school and had a crush on her. Then i guess B Arthur would be like our chaperone or something.

DD: What is the one conspiracy theory you’re most likely to believe?

SL: Bill Hicks went insane and disappeared and came back as alex jones. It sucks. i know.