BOM - You guy’s have been extremely busy with touring for your new release: “Not as Far” which I have to say  in my opinion is your best work and the first time I heard the album I had tears of joy in my eyes from how far you guy’s have come.  With that said how long has this album been in the works for and how did the title of the release come about?

3LF Kyle - Well we started writing for this record about 2 years ago when we wrote “Back Again.” At that point we really just wanted some new original songs to play out live.  As our collection of original material grew, we began to focus our efforts and really tried to put together a cohesive group of songs for this record.  There are a couple songs that were only released on our “Live @ Grapestreet” cd as they didn’t fit the vibe we were going for on this one.  “Not as Far” carries a strong positive message lyrically.  Musically it represents a good bit of the sound that we have carved out for ourselves.

3LF Kory – Thanks very much for the kind words.  The new album has been in the works for a long time; really since the end of 2007.  And actually there are two songs that made it onto this new album that date back to 2007.  But to narrow it down, around the early spring of last year (2008) we knew we were going to have the opportunity to make a real album in a real studio.  So a little bit of writing started around that time, but mostly we were looking for a direction.  Who was going to produce?  Where would we record?  We went and played for a few producers who were interested in taking us on, and in May we met Chris D’Benneditto, who works with all kinds of big name artists.  He came to a few rehearsals and we knew pretty quickly he was the one we wanted to work with.  So the bulk of the writing happened early last summer.  We first went in to Philadelphonic Studio with him in August.  And then we finished about two weeks ago.  So from cover to cover its been about ten months.  As for the title of the album, it’s actually the title to one of the tracks on there.  So once the listener hears that song, the title should make a little bit more sense.  But it’s a cool title because it’s open-ended and leaves a lot of room for interpretation.  Basically the lyric from which it’s taken talks about a day-to-day personal journey towards bettering ones character.  It goes, “stay pointed to where I am going, with everyday it’s not as far.”

BOM – When you guys are writing new material is it usually a collaboration of ideas that are tossed around and you say, “well I like that but what if we put this and that together.” Or do you guy’s come to your band practices with “rough music” “rough lyrics” whatever it may be and work from there.

3LF Kyle- It’s different every time.  Sometimes we’ll just play with an idea until a song comes out.  This time we really wanted to make an album as opposed to just a bunch of songs.  Kory and I spent a lot of time getting the “songs” together in their purest form.  Once the foundation was laid we’d bring it Brody and Eric and, if they approved, they’d put the finishing touches and the catchy nuances in to it.

3LF Kory – For the first album it was very much like you just described.  We often had six-hour marathon rehearsals and it would be the four of us in the rehearsal space bouncing ideas around until everyone was pretty satisfied.  This time around, most of the writing happened outside of the rehearsal space until it was a clear cut structure of the song.  Sometimes there was a completed song of lyrics, with no melody or music.  A couple of times the lyrics came very last.  And then a couple times it was somewhat a mixture of both.  But we had the idea of a forthcoming album constantly churning in the back of our minds.  And that helped in the sense that, as the music for the album started to shape itself, towards the end we were able to say, ‘okay, I think it would be a good idea to have a happier sounding, more upbeat song to help round this thing out’.  As silly as it sounds, ultimately all these tracks started from a simple idea, whether it was a tempo, a certain feel, a single lyric, or a specific mood.  And then yes, eventually the song structure is introduced to everyone at rehearsal.  And that’s where they become 3LF songs.  Even subconsciously, everyone puts their mark on it, and that’s what gives it the vibe/sound that people know us for.

BOM – What are your guy’s favorite tracks off the album…songs that really dug down deep into you musically and lyrically that when it was complete you said to yourself, “damn! Did we just write that?”

3LF Kyle - For me the song is “I Believe.”  This song is truly epic as far as I’m concerned.  It’s a fantastic musical and lyrical journey with a strong message.  The JBB horn section did an amazing job on this one and I really love how Jacob (SOJA) ties in the idea of change in the broader sense of “we” at the end.

3LF Kory - … well I don’t know if we’ve ever said ‘damn, did we just write that?’ But I get what you’re alluding to.  And you’re right certain songs are more intricate than others.  And sure, at times there is a sense of achievement on a musical level when the more complicated stuff seems to come together.  I think across the board “I Believe” is that track.  For one thing, its five minutes long,(which is really long for us)  but it’s also the track that Jacob from SOJA sings on.  And that alone makes the song stand out for us;  considering his band is much of the reason we even exist.  But on a musical level, that song probably went through the most transformations.  And I guess we’d like to think we got it pretty close to right.

BOM –You put forth a lot of time and effort on this album. An example of this would be the special guests that play a part on the album.  They included members of SOJA and John Brown’s Body, OG from Slightly Stoopid, and Mark Boyce from G. Love & Special Sauce.  Now, I’m sure all of these were done separately but was there any traveling that was necessary for this or would they just send it to you via internet.
3LF Kyle - Mark, the JBB horns (Alex, Kal, and Scott), and our backup singers (Joliette and Micki) all traveled to the studio to record.  We wanted to do it this way because it gave us an opportunity to work with these musicians as they wrote their parts; although most of the time we just stood back and said, “Sounds great!”  Chris flew out to Cali to record OG in his living room and Jacob recorded his verse at his home studio with Jim Fox from Lion and Fox.

3LF Kory - Well actually Jacob’s part was the only one done via the internet.  His touring schedule simply didn’t allow for him to come up to Philadelphia and record at the studio.  Mark Boyce came out from San Diego to lay down keyboards for us.  The kind folks from John Brown’s Body drove down from Boston for the day to do horns.  And our producer Chris flew out to San Diego and recorded all of O.G.’s percussion parts out there with him.  This was all over a span of two or three months.  We just kept at it until the schedules lined up, and they were all kind enough to take their own time out to be a part of our album.

BOM– Was this a group decision to put some special guest on the album or a recommendation from producer Chris DiBeneditto?  Either or, it was great idea because it added some unexpected extra dimension to the album which kicked it up another notch.
3LF Kyle It was definitely a group decision.  We new that we wanted to add some elements that would really make this record stand out among our previous releases.

3LF Kory – It was a bit of both actually.  With such an awesome opportunity to make a full out album, we knew we wanted to do some things that we didn’t have the luxury of doing the first time around…specifically horns.  Having Chris produce was amazing because he knows so many amazing musicians.  So really, he lined up O.G. and Mark Boyce having known them both from his work with Slightly Stoopid and G. Love and Special Sauce.  We had a few rough ideas to guide Mark with the keyboard parts.  But we wisely gave the JBB horns and O.G. free reign to interpret the songs and we let them do what they do best.  And yea, it worked out great and we’re real happy with it.  We are tremendously grateful to have them on there.

BOM – You guy’s have been touring for a little bit over two years now.  What are some of your favorite music venues that you have performed at?  What are some elements of a venue that must be present for you to consider it a “Good Venue”?

3LF Kyle - Every venue that provides bands with the opportunity to showcase original music is a great venue.  The most important element of a great venue is the audience.  The people in attendance are what makes or breaks the show

3LF Kory - Before Grapestreet shut down in Philadelphia, that was definitely up there.  We’ve been to a cool spot down in VA called Fat Tuesdays which we really like.  The Electric Factory in Philly is obviously a fun place to play.  Obviously, a nice sound system with an attentive sound guy running the board makes playing places a much more pleasant experience.  A light rig is always great.  But mostly we tie a ‘fun venue’ in with the energy of the crowd.  If there are people out dancing and having a good time, then the specs of the room start to matter a bit less you know?  So really, there is that potential any place we go.  The way a venue stands out in a positive light to us, is directly linked to the type of crowd that was there.

BOM– One thing I noticed about you guy’s and I believe is one of the reasons I like you guy’s so much is because your live shows are incredible.  I don’t think I have ever been to a bad 3LF show.  The energy and emotion you put into a show gives the audience some energy to feed off of.  Do you believe you get lost in the music mixed with the energy from the crowed and it feels so good kind of like a high?

3LF Kyle - Absolutely.  There is always a give and receive relationship between us and the audience.  We give them our energy and if they feel it, they’ll give us theirs.  After that exchange has been made there is really just a general vibe and a feeling that we’re all equal participants of the show.  It’s the fans that inspire us to perform and it’s the fans that allow us to go out and give it all away every night.

3LF Kory - Thanks a lot. Just like all the other original bands out there doing it, you learn quickly that music is very much a business…and that can cause adverse energy.  But we have become much better at leaving all of that off the stage and for the 45-60 mins a night that we play, it becomes all about the songs.  We like to play as well as we can as a unit.  And you come to learn there’s a difference between one guy just shredding solos or whatever, and the rest of the band not feeling it, thus not playing well.  We work as equals and we equally effect how the listener decides if that particular Three Legged Fox show was any good.  And that’s our goal night to night: to play our songs well, and to have a good time doing it.

BOM– I was checking out your Myspace page the other day and I just like reading comments that people put on your wall because I like to know what fans like myself have on their mind.  I saw a couple comments basically saying, “You guy’s rock, come play in my town.” Which is easier said than done, due to time, money and life in general.  Do you plan on reaching farther out from the east coast this year?

3LF Kyle - We do indeed.  After we feel we’ve truly dug our roots in regionally, and the new record has had some time to spread, we plan on hitting the road hard and touring nationally.

3LF Kory – Yea we absolutely do.  2009 will undoubtedly be the year we do more traveling than we ever have before.  You’re right in the sense that life gets in the way of packing up and driving all over the country.  But there are many, many places that we have yet to get to.  And believe me, none of those comments are made light of, when people say that stuff, it’s appreciated, and we’ll occasionally meet just to discuss how to make some of those cities happen.  But this year we hope to land a booking agent and be able to do longer, more extensive runs to other regions of the country.  We didn’t make this album just so we could sit behind our computer at home and see what people say about it….we’re going to try and go play to the kids who want to see us.  With so many different choices out there as far as music is concerned, we’re honored to have the fans we have, and playing the songs out live is the best way to connect with them.

Thank you for taking the time to sit down with us to discuss some stuff that was on our mind and hopefully will let your fans understand more about Three Legged Fox.  Congrats again on the new album and we will see you on the road.

by: Ryan McKeldin