Q: Where did you come up with the name American Hi-Fi?

Stacy: Scott Staff from 'Creed' gave us that name one day. We were drinking one day in a bar and he was like "ERRR, you guys are American Hi-Fi." So that's where we got it. He actually named one of his kids after me, which is pretty cool.

Q: Is that right?

Drew: No, there's no good story.

Stacy: I just made it up. It sounded like a cool name.

Drew: Band names are hard to agree upon, so once you get four guys to agree on one thing you just go with it.

Stacy: And I'm glad. I think it's a cool name. I think it's a timeless rock-n-roll kind of name. It doesn't sound like one kind of music in particular but it could be all things. Which is what kind of band we are. We're all kinds of things.

Q: How long has the band been together?

Stacy: About two years.

Drew: Yeah?

Stacy: No that's what I always say.

Drew: Seven, seven years.

Stacy: It can't be seven.

Drew: This July will be Seven years.

Stacy: Our first record came out in 2001, but we started doing stuff before then.

Drew: 1998.

Stacy: But we weren't really doing stuff. We were just kind of goofing around. We didn't play any shows until 2001.

Drew: I didn't have a job until then, so I figured the band was a job.

Stacy: That's true, that's true.

Stacy: When we finished our record, it didn't come out until a year and a half. I don't count that much.

Drew: I do.

Stacy: I don't

Drew: well then we agree to disagree

Drew: Yes.

Q: Are you getting a good response from the tour so far?

Stacy: The tour has been great.

Drew: Yeah it's been amazing.

Stacy: Yeah, all the shows.

Q: How is the crowd reacting to your new material?

Stacy: They seem to be enjoying it, which is good.

Drew: They appear to have a good time.

Stacy: I haven't been pelted with any raw fish or vegetables.

Drew: Nope, I haven't seen a lot yawning or any of these…

Stacy: Nope not a lot of thumbs down. People seem to be enjoying it, putting their hands in the air. Singing along jumping around.

Drew: Yeah that's good.

Q: What are your plans after the tour?

Stacy: We are going to be touring and touring and touring, I think. That's the idea.

Drew: Yeah.

Stacy: The new record just came out. So we're kind of just getting started.

Q: What bands really influenced you to help you get where you are today?

Stacy: Beatles.

Drew: Clash, Elvis Costello.

Stacy: Dam, I say one then you say one.

Drew: Pixies.

Stacy: Blur.

Drew: Nirvana.

Stacy: Oasis.

Drew: Jimmy Jam and the Bad Kids (laughs).

Stacy: Joe Jackson.

Drew: (laughing) A lot of bands we listen to, we listen to a lot of music.

Q: What is your favorite song to play live and why?

Stacy: I've been enjoying playing 'Rise' lately.

Drew: Yeah 'Rise' is fun.

Stacy: That's a song from our second album. I get to scream a little in that one and let out my frustration when I'm pissed off.

Drew: I like when were playing 'Happy', that's a good song.

Stacy: That's a fun song.

Drew: Good to get your aggression out.

Stacy: Yup, Yup.

Drew: The ones you could get your aggression out, those are pretty good.

Stacy: Those are good.

Q: What bands would you like to play with in the future?

Drew: Greenday.

Stacy: Yeah.

Drew: We just saw them in Jacksonville.

Stacy: It's like one of the best shows I've ever seen.

Drew: I want to tour with them.

Stacy: Me too.

Q: Any thing happen on any of the tours that you will never forget?

Stacy: I forget a lot of things. (laughing) It's kind of hilarious, I'd like to remember more of them.

Drew: (laughing) Yeah, exactly.

Q: What would you say to someone who has never heard your music before? How would you describe your music.

Stacy: You're an ass for not checking out our band.

Drew: (laughs)

Stacy: What rock have you been living under? No, I always say we're a rock-n-roll band. We're influenced by punk , rock music and pop music, polka and disco and jazz and funk and…

Drew: You've got all of them.

Stacy: It's just all rock and roll.

Q: Is there any particular direction you would like to see the band move towards in the future?

Drew: Go up.

Stacy: I think up-wards in term of world domination.

Drew: Yeah.

Q: How is it working out with your new label 'Maverick'?

Drew: They've been great.

Stacy: They've been awesome. Totally, totally great.

Q: What changes have you seen since starting with the new label?

Stacy: People actually seem to be paying attention to us and actually promoting our album. Which is nice.

Drew: Yeah.

Stacy: Nice change from the last album.

Drew: It seems like a good pace in the way that they are doing it. It's not like all at once. Every week there is something else coming out of the works. Good way to do it.

Q: Lets talk about your new album, are the lyrics inspired by personal experiences?

Stacy: Yeah a lot of it is personal for me. Some things I make up. I event stories about people. There's a song on our new record called the 'Highs and Lows' and I was watching the local Los Angels news broadcast one night and I was noticing how when news people try to talk to each other through news segments they don't know how to communicate. It's funny because when stuff isn't scripted, they don't know how to react to each other and they don't know what to say and they cut to this weather man who seems really uncomfortable in his own skin so I invented this story about the TV weather man who everybody knows in town, he's famous. When he goes out people buy him drinks and buy him dinners he's red carpet everywhere, but then when he goes home, he's lonely, he doesn't have a significant other in his life and doesn't have that many real friends and so that's kind of what the 'Highs and Lows" is about. The sad weather man in Los Angeles.

Q: Who writes the majority of the songs?

Stacy: Usually I kind of come up with something and we all go hash it out. It's a collaborative effort. Now if he (Drew) wasn't here I would say I write it all.

Drew: Hey Hey, don't tell anybody.

Q: What is your favorite song off the record?

Stacy: It changes.

Drew: Yeah.

Stacy: From night to night from day to day.

Drew: I like 'Hearts on Parade' track.

Stacy: Title tracks good. USA Today called the title track 'cloying' which I think doesn't really sound like a compliment.

Drew: I don't even think that's a word.

Stacy: Cloying, maybe they made it up. Lets look it up.

Q: Where do you see American Hi-Fi in five years?

Stacy: Five years hmm….

Drew: I see us getting pretty old.

Stacy: I see us having tea at the Ritz.

Drew: That sounds good.

Stacy: And then Drew picking me up on his Yacht to take me to the Virgin Islands where I just have purchased a new home.

Drew: And a new island.

Stacy: I bought an island.

Drew: I bought Richard Branson's Island.

Stacy: Yes, I'm going to buy Richard Branson's Island and we're going to furnish it with all the beef jerky and Gatorade that we could drink.

Drew: Great, I like that story.

Stacy: That's five years from now.

Q: Being from Boston what did you think about the Boston Red Sox winning the World Series?

Drew: I bought this hat (points to Red Sox hat) last year at spring training.

Stacy: The lucky black hat.

Drew: The Red Sox Hat.

Stacy: We were very happy about that we actually have been very fortunate to meet and get to know some of the players on the team for the last few years. It makes it even more special that we know the guys who broke the curse.

Drew: Yeah, and they trashed the Yankees!

Q: How helpful do you think online publications such as Florida Entertainment Scene are in promoting bands like American Hi-Fi?

Stacy: Very important! I think the main stream media is getting so small it's hard to learn about new bands. A lot of the magazines seem to be focused on picking one style of music and only one kind of thing only. I think people are reaching out to the internet to discover bands. I think it's great.

Q: Is there anything you would like to say to your fans that read this interview?

Drew: Thanks, thanks for your support.

Q: Thank you for your time and giving me this opportunity to interview the both of you.

Stacy: No problem.

Drew: Thanks for interviewing us.

American HI-Fi is from Boston, MA. They tour on a regular basis. Their latest CD, "Hearts On Parade" is now available at the usual outlets. For more band information visit American Hi-Fi.com or to sample
music visit the American Hi-Fi page at Myspace.com.

Interview by Domenica Acquarulo - Copyright © 2005 Florida Entertainment Scene - All Rights Reserved.