Artist's Corner: Lucero

Hailing from Memphis Tennessee, the southern rock group called Lucero has gained significant recognition as of late for joining of folk melodies with punk rock angst all wrapped up in raging southern rock riffs.  

Their most recent album "1372 Overton Park," which was Lucero's first on the major label universal records has appeared on many top ten music lists for 2010.

On their most recent tour, they took a night off from opening for Social Distortion to play a small intimate show at the Mercury Lounge in New York City.

Before they went on to play a three and a half hour set, singer and rhythm guitar player Ben Nichols was kind enough to sit down and talk about the music industry in the digital age, the differences between the South and everywhere else in the world and how ketchup from packets will never be as good as ketchup from a bottle.

Jesse Strauch: So this is your first album on a major label, how are you guys finding the transition from an Indie band to more mainstream?

Ben Nichols: Not too bad. When we told our friend about a year and a half ago, they all thought that we were going to be turned into some country western boy band but the guys at Universal have been really nice. They still treat us like a small time band from Tennessee, even though they've sent us all around the world.

JS: Now that Lucero had its first taste of mainstream success. has there been a difference in the way you're received at shows?

BN: If we're within 100 miles of Memphis, my mom and all her church friends will show up... that's a sight to see. But all jokes aside, we've been seeing a lot more people out at the shows and even a few know the words.

JS: Recently I read in Spin that you own the rights to all your albums, which is different than most bands when their starting out. Has this had a positive effect on the amount of money the band sees?

BN: That's what we thought when we went through the tedious process of owning all of our material.  But that's not how it worked out. If we were getting paid for downloads, we would be doing all right with album sales. Right now we make all our money from touring which doesn't bother me any.

JS: So I was instructed by Roy Berry (drummer) to ask you about your newly revised ketchup philosophy.

BN:  We were drunk one night on the long drive between Las Vegas and L.A, and we picked up some burgers. For some reason, we had a bottle of ketchup. Anyways I decided in my drunken wisdom to taste test the ketchup from a bottle and from the packets. Somehow, I was able to equate the differences in taste to our conflicts in the Middle East.