Proceeds from Thrice's records help fund both local and national charities. The band’s albums have been named after, among other things, Thomas Pynchon books (2005’s “Vheissu” was taken from the reclusive author’s debut novel “V.”). And, as the scream/sing dynamic has grown, the band (an originator of the sound) has broken away, diving more into electronics, odd time shifts and experimental noise.
Now, in their biggest creative leap, the guys in Thrice have discovered…the elements. In October, the group recently released the first two parts of a four-part theme album known as the “The Alchemy Index,” with a section of each record representing Fire, Water, Air and Earth—both lyrically and musically (the second two parts are due out in April). At 24 songs, it’s an exhausting project, a fact that became all the more apparent when we spoke with Thrice singer/guitarist Dustin Kensrue. In the man’s most unconventional move of all, he decided to bring his wife and newborn kid along on tour, which may explain why he slept through our first attempt to reach him. We had better luck on our second try.
You sound exhausted. How’s the tour?
Yeah, sorry—the phone rang, it was sitting on my stomach and I slept through it. It’s going really good. I brought along my wife and new baby girl. It’s the first time they’ve toured with me together. It’s very different for me—but it’s definitely cool. I’m just getting the hang of it.
Sounds a little rough.
Yeah, and it’s my first kid, too, so there’s that. [Laughs]
Speaking of touring, I read your online tour diary, and…this I cannot believe. You just played a celebrity poker tournament with Slater from “Saved By the Bell”?
Yeah. We’ve done celebrity poker tournaments before, which is funny, because no one knows who I am. Meanwhile, I’m like, “I know that guy!” There’s a lot of TV actors there. Me and [bandmate] Ed [Breckenridge] did this one recently in New York. Ed won $10,000 for charity, so that was awesome. Funny enough, I did poorly. I’m not a bad poker player, but I was at a table with other band players. That makes it harder—there’s no rhyme or reason to how they play!
Also on your tour diary, there’s a picture of you guys dressed as anchormen.
Yep, ‘70s anchormen. We did that for Halloween; we showed up on stage like that. We always make it a point to dress up and get something together on Halloween. It was certainly more functional that the time we all dressed up as big lizards.
You’re from California, and your new album has a theme of fire; there’s even a song called “The Arsonist.” How did the recent fires in your home state affect you?
It was definitely weird, as our album came out the same week as it all started up. I think it’s just a strange coincidence. And, fortunately, it wasn’t close to our house, but yeah, it did get really near my parents’ home.
The “Fire” record is pretty hardcore, while “Water” is very electronic. What’s going to be different about “Air” and “Water” when they’re released in the spring?
“Earth” is stripped down. It’s inspired by roots music: jazz, blues, folk or even genres older than that. It’s funeral dirges, stripped down classical and a lot of acoustic instruments, upright bass, horns, piano. It’s very woody and natural. With “Air,” it’s our most diverse and varied album. It has some of the most fragile moments in the whole project, but also some of the most energetic and strange. There’s an openness that ties it all together; it certainly pulls the strongest elements from the other three records.
A lot of punk bands are creating complete “albums,” be it concept records, double albums or records with common themes—everyone from My Chemical Romance to Green Day to Say Anything. Why do you a think a genre that you’re associated with is putting so much emphasis on the album as an art form?
I don’t know. The whole industry, it goes in waves. Usually, things like this are in reaction to something. But we’re isolated from all of it. It was just an idea that popped into my head, and we did argue about it a bit—like maybe it was too proggy or weird or cheesy. But no matter what, I respect people trying to make cohesive albums. I think that gets lost in a world of singles.
Live, how are you incorporating these songs?
We’re starting to bring in the new songs, but adding 24 of them to a set is a lot. [Laughs] We actually are playing some of the more electronic songs on “Water,” too—if what we used isn’t available, we try to pull it off with whatever we’ve got. We use a real bass instead of a synth bass in “The Whaler,” for example. We want it live, as little programmed as possible.
As with other records you’ve released, a portion of the album’s proceeds go to a charitable cause. How did you guys choose “Blood: Water Mission” as your recipient? [Note: the organization’s goal is to reduce the impact of AIDS/HIV and provide clean water for African communities in need]
I knew a guy who works there who worked at the Invisible Children organization. We like the fact that the organization is very grassroots. It’s about empowering communities, not just throwing money and Western ideas around. It’s about basic things: AIDS relief, clean water, getting rid of parasitic diseases. And it’s about helping those communities get involved in making those changes, and creating more sustainable solutions.
