Sleeper Agent visits the High Noon Saloon on Thursday night for their first headlining tour. The garage pop band from Kentucky (insert Badgers-Final Four comment here) has been touring relentlessly since their 2011 debut album, Celebrasion, including in support of such big names as Weezer, fun., and Grouplove.
Their follow-up disc was released two weeks ago, and frontwoman Alex Kandel recently answered a few of our questions leading up to their Thursday show.
What has changed with your new record, About the Other Night, compared to your first album?
“A lot has changed. We changed our whole approach in making a record, I pushed myself to change and grow as a vocalist, and the songwriting became more complex. We set out to do something different.”
How has touring shaped the progression of Sleeper Agent’s sound? What’s the best advice you’ve received on the road?
“When you tour you’re put in a position where it would be nearly impossible to fail to become a technically tighter sounding band. You get show after show, night after night, to work all the kinks out. That being said, the best advice I was ever given was to not get too hung up on the technical sound of a show. It’s called a show for a reason, and it’s my job to put on a good one.”
You played an acoustic set at the Tennessee State Prison a couple years ago. How did that come about, and what is something that you unexpectedly learned there?
“It came about through us searching for a cool location to film a session honestly. It’s no longer a working prison nor is it a historical walking tour, so it wasn’t like I had a guide. We kind of just wandered through the empty cell blocks. It felt very heavy.”
Imagine you’re attending a concert and one of the band members spontaneously combusts. It’s very unfortunate except that you get pulled onstage to replace that person. Who is the band?
“The band is Steel Dragon. Oh, and in my fantasy I am also Mark Wahlberg.”
When you hear “Madison” or “Wisconsin,” what do you think of?
“I immediately think of the night before we played there for the first time. Our hotel was across from a Hooters, and we honestly had a great time. It was one of those band meals where you remember how much fun touring can really be, despite the sleep deprivation and workload.”