To be honest, I don’t know Cracker very much and when I was asked to interview co-founder Johnny Hickman, I had no idea how to approach it. One thing that I can say, after looking them up online, I felt embarrassed that I didn’t know who this band was! I mean, they really have their accomplishments stacked up: twenty plus successful years as a band, they just finishing a sold out tour of Spain and they have numerous MTV and radio airplays with songs such as, “Low” which I’ve actually known since high school… I just never put a name to the song.
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Cracker: Johnny Hickman & David Lowery
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Playing February 16, 2010
Space
Evanston, IL
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Although, their music does take me back, I knew I would have to result to the generic questions, “Who are you, what are your songs about, where are you from, etc.” By-the-book, yes, but it’s nice to hear the answers from them rather than from a Wikipedia description of them. Hickman answered my questions in a simple and gracious manner. However, he was quick enough to remind me that for every question I had, he probably already answered it a thousand times before… a sign of a well-seasoned artist.
What is Cracker? Can you describe your sound? What are your songs about? Who are your influences?
JH: Cracker was formed in 1991 by David Lowery and me. We are a rock band, pure and simple although our songs are anything but. Our influences run from Captain Beefheart to Black Flag and to novelists like Cormac McCarthy and Kurt Vonnegut.
Can you tell us how you guys came together and why? Where are you from?
David and I knew each from other bands from early punk rock days in Southern California. When his other band Camper Van Beethoven broke up we got together and started writing songs. Luckily for us it worked out. 10 albums and 19 years later we have a very strong cult following worldwide with new fans joining all the time.
Where did the name come from?
We both spent time growing up on Air Force bases across the southern United States so the name just felt right in a very tongue in cheek sort of way.
What is the reason that you guys are playing a duo show and not with the whole band?
It just feels good to get back to the very core of our songs, which are for the most part based around the musical conversation between David's singing and my guitar playing. We don't do the duo shows nearly as often so it is also something the fans really look forward to as well.
What has been the most memorable and rewarding experience as a band that you’ve had in the span of your whole career so far?
There are a thousand high points for me but the sold out tour of Spain we just finished would be at or near the top.
What has been the most difficult thing about creating and maintaining Cracker? For example, not many bands have survived 20 some years as you have, what have you done differently? How have you changed or adapted to a music culture that is constantly changing with new technologies and influences.
The average life span of a band is around 5 or 6 years so we get asked that question often. I think it has a lot to do with our working class roots and work ethic. As David and I like to say, "Stay the course". It's not always easy, but nothing worth doing ever is. You have to rise above the occasional music business paradigm shifts and personal differences, most of which are trivial in the long run. The way you present it may change but music is not going anywhere.
Are there any specific plans or goals in the near future for Cracker for the fans to look forward to?
We will continue to tour constantly and make new music of course, aside from that the future is unwritten.
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