While what see of an act on the road is their time on the stage, that’s only a small part of a tour. There is so much more, mostly driving and sleep, but for many artists, the big off-stage stand-out is the food. You’re going to new places, and while everything else is dedicated to putting the show on, food is its own separate, unique thing. This is doubly true for your hipster types in indie music, who might not make a lot of money, but do try to experience where they are, and that’s usually through food. Alex Bleeker (Real Estate) and Luke Pyenson (Frankie Cosmos) give us a window into that world by rounding up musicians to talk about what they’ve ate on the road in Taste In Music.
Aside from an intro and a few interstitials, Taste is musicians talking about food on the road, which is really life on the road, which is really life. The book is broken into three sections about the road, one on hospitality, one on self-care, and one on the touring group, but each story revolves around food. There are also some great pictures littered throughout the very visually appealing book.
The musicians interviewed do lean heavily towards the early 2010s indie music world that both authors came up in, and if you’re not familiar with that scene, many of the people and their bands will be unknown to you (or long forgotten), with the praise heaped on them by the authors in their intros sometimes repetitive and distant. However, there are some that made it big, some from earlier decades (who also made it big), and some who’ve transitioned into other things more food-related. Who you’re most excited to read depends on your musical tastes, from the likes of eighties punk Bob Mould talking old school ‘eating econo’ to the touring private chef of today’s queen of sad girl pop, Phoebe Bridgers.
The stories naturally focus mostly on the highlights, rare instances in some random place where they eat special. This is particularly true in the first hospitality section: Damon & Naomi (and others) in Japan, Kevin Morby in Portugal, Sasami Ashworth in Dublin, Chris Frantz (Talking Heads) in Paris – yes, going non-American, but also New Zealand’s The Beths in Ohio. There is some balance to the fancy eating, such as Mould’s nice reality check, or a story of failed fancy restaurant in Iceland only saved by gas station hot dogs, and Mark Ibold (Pavement) talking the importance of vibes in American road food.
As the book goes on, food comes to represent more. Adam Schatz (Landlady, Japanese Breakfast) talks about his favorite place in Nashville closing to represent all endings in the second section, though there are also times where the book gets either too airy about holistic balance, or too in the foodie weeds. An interesting point/counterpoint in the third section has first ex-vegan Robin Peckhold (Fleet Foxes) and then current “vegan reply guy” Sadie Dupuis (Speedy Ortiz). Some non-American viewpoints come in thanks to the likes of Stephanie Phillips (Big Joanie) on diaspora food (such as Surinamese in Amsterdam), and Uruguay’s Juan Wauters finding his food elsewhere. Sen Morimoto gives a nice piece on being a Japanese-American eating in Japan.
Like any good tour, there are highs & lows in Taste In Music, experiences to remember (and some you might not). But it gives you a great taste of the road.
