Picnic Lightning from Fort Worth, Texas are a rock band whose raw and brooding desert punk is the sound of summer heat and dimly lit clubs. On Youth Group, their latest single, their dark, post-everything wall of sound howls like a dust storm, delivering a spiritual stomp that dwells in the shadowland of trenchant questions and orphic revelations. Picnic Lightning formed in 2013 with Thomas Edmond Ketchersid on vocals, guitar, Cole Alvin Watkins on lead vocals and guitar, John Lenox Cope on bass and vocals and Cameron Joseph Navarro on drums and vocals.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hey Picnic Lightning, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Thanks for reaching out, we're excited to chat. We all grew up with music as an integral part of our childhoods. In some cases, secretly listening to music in our rooms as teenagers provided a desperately needed escape. Thomas and Cole started playing guitar together in high school and John joined in shortly after. The three have been playing in bands together for almost twenty years at this point.
Describe your favorite and least favorite part about being a musician.
There's nothing better than being in a room with your best friends and creating a song. Our songwriting has always started with one person's idea and then we all start to build on and let the song go where it wants to go. It's a truly collaborative effort and it makes us feel connected to something bigger than ourselves in that moment. We have countless recordings of jams and song ideas that we've never taken to the studio, but the writing process itself is our favorite part. The least exciting part is the business aspect. If we could concentrate solely on writing, recording, and playing shows, we would all happily sign on. The reality is you have to market, network, and partner with the right people to get your music heard. None of us were the most popular kids in school or anything like that, so we haven't been able to build a following just with our charisma. It can sometimes be a bummer to feel like you've crafted a really great song, but you're unable to get it in front of many people.
Your latest song is 'Youth Group'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
The main riff on "Youth Group" dates back to one of our older bands, but we never completed it. Thomas brought it back a few years ago to work on and musically it fell into place very quickly. The vibe is a little brighter than a lot of our tracks and sometimes we questioned whether it was getting too poppy. We ended up spending a lot more time on the vocals for this track than the other songs on the album and there was a time in the studio when we said we never wanted to hear it again. That's not the first time we've felt that way about a track, and it doesn't take too long to get over it and start to enjoy it again. It's a fun track to play live and Thomas's lyrics are very on brand for Picnic Lightning.
How do you differ from most other artists?
These days I think what differentiates us from our peers is that we all have full time jobs outside of music. Most of us work in creative fields, but after trying to grind for years without breaking through, we had to ensure we could provide for our families. When we get together to write, practice, and perform we truly appreciate the opportunity. We'd love to put all of our time and energy into Picnic Lightning, so please listen to our music and come see us when we're in town!
Where are you from and do you have a stable home or do you prefer travelling?
We're all based in Fort Worth, Texas and most of us have been in the area the majority of our lives. Each of us is passionate about travelling and exploring the world, in fact, Cole is in Boston with his wife right now. I think it's safe to say our homes are stable; we're all in committed relationships and John has three kids including a newborn daughter.
How would you describe the music that you typically create?
When we started the band, we had one agreement: let no one suffer. We strive to create music that is unique but also palatable to the average listener. We all have varied influences, some more avant garde than others, but we really try to craft songs in this band that don't require work on the listeners part. In some of our previous bands, we would often take a good three minute song and add so many bridges, interludes, or extended verses that it would end up pushing six minutes. We're not opposed to a long song at all, but we're not interested in adding more parts or more complexity just for the sake of it. Our songs aren't all necessarily simple, but we try to edit out the moments that aren't absolutely necessary to create music with more immediacy. Our first EP was very raw with more of a punk hue and one of the songs clocked in at 1:35. These days, we let the songs breathe a bit more, but we stand by the initial agreement we made to let no one suffer.
How do you nurture your own creativity?
Each of us are artists and creatives in and outside of the band. Cole is a graphic designer and is constantly illustrating and selling his artwork. Thomas is a published poet and spends much of his time writing and reading. John has a little less free time with the three kids, but he has a near obsession with listening to and ranking every new album he listens to. It dates back to his days managing his college's radio station and hasn't been able to kick the habit. Cameron is a mindfulness teacher, podcast producer, and licensed social worker. All of us watch a ton of film and television, read, and listen to podcasts - then we discuss in our group text on a daily basis.
If you could go open a show for any artist who would it be?
I think the first answer would be Radiohead because they have been such a huge influence on us since we first started playing music. They were one of the first contemporary bands that felt important and would stand the test of time. As far as newer artists go, it would be cool to open for Bartees Strange or Alvvays.
Who's your ideal musician to collaborate with and why?
This is a tough question because so many artists immediately come to mind. I'm not sure we'd all agree on one musician, but I think David Byrne would get the nod if we had secret ballots. His work has been so influential not just to us but to so many of our favorite bands. We would love to just hang out and create with him for a day to experience how he works.
What are your plans for the future?
We will continue to write, record, and release tracks. We hope people enjoy the music and we want to continue to play as many shows as we can. We don't often set too many specific expectations because we want the future to be what it needs to be. We hope to get our music in front of as many people as we possibly can and develop relationships with listeners. It would be great to build a community around the band and have more two-way engagement.