Mike Ganzter

So you’ve stated you’re an Umphrey’s fan. How long have you been listening, and when was your first show?

Mike Gantzer: I think since I was 15 or 16 probably, about 10 years.

My first Umphrey’s show was October 22, 2007. It was at a venue in Rochester, NY called the Harro East Ballroom. I remember a few things about it specifically:

-I only knew one song at the time, “The Bottom Half.” I was pretty confused about what they were, you know, musically. Was this a metal band? A prog band?

-Strangely, in my mind, I pictured whoever the guitar player was having huge muscles. So, I was pretty confused when I went there, and it was Bayliss, and Jake. I was like, “This guy is as skinny as I am! That’s cool.”

-This venue feels like there should be a wedding or something there, it’s kind of strange. We got super close to the front and it was super raging. They opened with “Funky Dutchman” and “Wife Soup,” and I was just blown away. I had never seen anything like it. At setbreak, it was so hot that I turned Bayliss’ fan around on me and everyone around me thinking I was doing us all a favor with the breeze. Of course that was not cool to do, and everyone was telling me to quit messing with his stuff! Looking back, I’d be uncomfortable if someone did that to me now. But, I’m sure I have it coming, since that’s just how karma works. (laughing) I had just graduated high school. I think I was 17 or 18.

Oh that is prime-time. Was this one of the first road trips with friends to see music for you then?

MG: Honestly, yes I think it was! This show was one of the first rock shows I traveled for, and obviously, they’ve made an impact.

When you were at this show way back when, did you ever think that opening for them on a bunch of summer dates would even be a possibility?

MG: I guess the answer is no. Don’t get me wrong, part of seeing live music as young musician is wondering what it would be like if it was you up there playing. You know, imagining and dreaming. Never thinking once that it could really come true! If anything, we’re just very grateful, and this whole thing is very surreal. I think it’s very inspiring.

Absolutely, and Congratulations. What would you say to young musicians that Aqueous has done to connect the dots from dream to reality as a band?

MG: I think the timeline is interesting and speaks to the whole thing. Don’t forget that this show was in 2007, so this took 10 years to achieve. I also think that there’s a lot to be said for just powering through it and creating your own fanbase.

Sometimes when you’re young, you think that if you’re a good enough band, or if you do these certain things to get in front of someone else’s audience then it’s gonna do everything for you. And yes, that helps a ton, tremendously. But, I think really, the secret it, there is no shortcut.

I actually remember reading an interview with Joel that said that awhile back, where he basically said this exact thing and it stuck with me.

One thing that shouldn’t be overlooked is the power of fans. A lot of our fans have been very involved in communicating with and at bands like moe. and Umphrey’s McGee. Being like, “hey check these guys out,” and being persistent and bugging them to listen to our music. That’s not something you can do! It’s too weird. Like, “Hey, Joel, I swear my band is really cool!” (laughing) So I just want to give specific credit to some of our fans who are reaching out online or at shows, whatever works. Thanks. A lot of this comes down to our fans going to bat for us to the artists that we respect, and kind of, creating that relationship and connection.

I think that speaks volumes about you as a band. When we asked Joel if he hears an Umphrey’s influence in your stylings, he explained that he can tell you work on being really tight as a band, which is something Umphrey’s strives for as well. Is this a direct influence?

MG: Well, let me just say that even before I had heard of Umphrey’s McGee, there was something kind of strange that was going on with that.

That approach was happening on our end already, because of a lot of shared influence I think. For example, I was super into progressive rock before I even knew about Umphrey’s. Prog rock is all very tight and mathematical, and the point is to be very sharp. Which, you know, I did eventually get into other bands like Phish and the Grateful Dead after expanding my horizons and realized about “the other side” of things, but prog was my roots.

It was interesting picking the tunes for the Dookie set we did at Summer Camp because once Kris, Ryan and I started exchanging song selections it was even more clear. We all liked the same stuff, even though we’re different ages. Stuff like Pennywise, The Ramones, or some random punk music that in the jam world you don’t hear a lot.

I think we were already on the path of a band who focused on a tighter sound, and musicianship, and being as clean as we could. Steely Dan was a band I was super deep into at this point, early on, and that’s because of my Dad. So having all of this stuff being influential before we even were Aqueous, was sending us on that path. But then I saw Umphrey’s McGee, and I was like, “YES! That’s how you do that .” [laughing]

They incorporated a lot of things that I didn’t know you could incorporate. Once I got into the jam scene, I wasn’t sure if there would be a place for some of these influences. I didn’t know if people would be frightened by heavier, dark stuff. Then I saw UM and it was like “oh, well they just played three metal songs in a row. And people love it.” Who knew.

People have always compared us to Umphrey’s, which we’re humbled by. But, I think more so, they validated where we were already heading. It was like, “oh, we’re allowed to be like this.” And we need to give credit to Umphrey’s for leading the charge on that path, so that we could move forward the way we have too.

Jam: Is there anything that stands out that you’ve learned from Umphrey’s?

MG: Yeah, I think so. I think they’ve taught us that you can be fearless in your songwriting. You can experiment with different genres and you don’t have to be afraid to get into different sounds. They do that so effectively, while still sounding like Umphrey’s.

Can you speak to the new album you guys have been working on?

MG: Yes. We’ve been in the studio since January. Now that we have more tour responsibilities than ever before, we had to plan better. We’ve readjusted the approach, and are now recording between tour dates. We’ll work out three songs or something, instead of having to knock it out all at once. It’s been AWESOME. By the end of this year, there will be a new Aqueous album.

There are definitely songs that people have heard a little bit, and then there are songs that we haven’t ever played and people have never heard. And they won’t til the album comes out, which, is very tough to do! I want to play them now. Like five minutes ago. But we want the opportunity to deliver recorded material first, compared to the live approach that is more common in the jam community. So we’ll see how it goes. To be honest, I think that’s something Umphrey’s does really well, that isn’t always true in the jam-world, is their studio work. We want to say the same for our stuff and make it great. So we’re putting in the time.

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