"It always seems like Rusted Root relaxes their fans, said one fan from Philadelphia. " They take music to another level."
Rusted Root, seemed seemly sharp for not touring since December of last year and they sounded just like what many expected them to. Through out the hour performance by Rusted Root, many fans were dancing in the aisles and jumping around especially when they played "Send Me On My Way" from their When I Woke debut album."
Most of what Rusted Root plays seems to have joyful effect on fans as most of their music comes from every member of the band being multi-instrumentalists. It is very hard to find a band in the music industry that is extremely talented with all of their instruments. Most bands focus on one type of instrument and they stick with it, not the Root who delight fans with their utility that is definitely conveyed in their music.
Below is the interview ECA conducted with Jim DiSpirito prior to the show at the Lakewood Ampitheatre in Atlanta, Georgia.
ECA: Tell us a little about your current tour on the Further Festival, are you excited as everyone else ?
DiSpirito: " I am very excited. Although this going to be our first show, I have great vibes about being with Bob Weir, Hornsby and all of the others." "This is a great chance for me to meet everyone I have heard so much about."
ECA: How do you feel about these types of tours as opposed to touring with just one or two different bands?
DiSpirito: " These are fun, but we want to do our own thing with a couple of other bands." "You know, Rusted Root and someone." We want to be the headliner having a few other great bands with us." We have played with great bands, Page/Plant, Allman Brothers and Santana, so we know what it is like."
ECA: How do you think the fans are going to react to Rusted Root touring with basically the Grateful Dead?
DiSpirito: " I think they will love us, we have such a great following and the older crowd that follows the dead will enjoy us too." Its like mixing a great bunch of mellow tunes together and getting everyone to dance around."
ECA: What are the plans for Rusted Root over the next year or so? Are you currently recording new material? If you are not when do you anticipate doing so?
DiSpirito: " We are in the middle of finishing a record that we have about four more weeks left on." We sort of stopped to do this tour." "We hope that it will be released prior to Christmas of this year."
ECA: What has the band been doing in their spare time when you are not recording or touring?
DiSpirito: "Mostly individual projects." Jim Donovan just had a release on Tribeca Records." Liz just finished a record." Were making our music better with these individual efforts that we are putting forth."
ECA: If you could change anything about this tour what would it be?
DiSpirito: "We would tour as the headliner with three other bands that fit into our groove." " Otherwise this should be a great tour."
ECA: How do you feel about all of the success of Rusted Root on Mercury Records? They really have shown a lot of loyalty to the band.
DiSpirito: "They are great." "They have stuck with this band since we started "When I Woke" and have showed no signs of letting up after the success and I am pretty sure that our next record will be released on Mercury as well."
ECA: What Cities on the tour are you most excited about ?
DiSpirito: "Ending with the two shows in San Francisco on July 24th and 25th will be fun." "The New York and Boston shows should rock as well." But, it is the fact the Grateful Dead started in California that will make it special for us."
Overall, the show at Nissan Pavilion was one well worth attending and the performances by Hot Tuna and the Other Ones including Mickey Hart, Phil Lesh and Bruce Hornsby on the piano made this a concert to remember for years to come.
Special thanks to Shannon Mc Sweeny from Mercury Records for helping with the interview and to Denise Iacona and her very professional staff at Nissan Pavilion.