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My name is Ned Brower. I am the drummer and back up vocals for the band Rooney.
I know you just finished up your last Monday at the Roxy. How was the fans reaction to the new music? Were you nervous at all performing the new stuff?
It’s been really great. We have never down a residency before so we decided to try it out. It’s been awhile since we played a bit shows so I was kind of nervous of playing 4 shows in a row. It worked out great and the fans loved it. We got to debut the new material and we would do two covers every night with special guests.
I know that Andy Dick hosted the show.
Andy Dick was the host and he did little comedy bits in between the acts which was a lot of fun. We are big fans of his from his old sketch comedy days. Musically, we had Susanna Hoff from the bangles do “Walk like an Egyptian” with us which was a highlight for us. The Donnas did a Billy Idol the first week. We had Alex from Phantom Planet last night so it was really cool.
I know your album is coming out July 17th. How did you decide on the album title “Calling the World”?
“Calling the World” is actually a track on the album. It’s the first song on the album. It’s a song Robert brought in and he wasn’t about the song because he thought it was a little silly. He felt it was sort of like a commercial or something. So we heard it and of course we loved it and recorded the song. We were trying to think of titles and I’m not sure who threw it out there, but right away were like “that’s perfect”. It represents the record and has a lot of meanings to us. It’s like a shout out to let everyone know we are back.
Well I got a chance to listen to a few of your new songs and “Calling the World” is my favorite so far. What is your favorite and why?
My favorite song…It’s tough. I think a lot of our songs have different faces and different personalities so it kind of depends on my day. There is a song called “I should have been after you” that I’m really proud of. It almost has 3 acts to it. It’s definitely a pop song, but it goes in all these different directions at different points. There is almost a country type song called “What For” that I love the production of. I am proud of the whole record because we went in different types of directions.
How long did it take for you to put it together? I heard you recorded over 60 songs.
It’s a really funny and long story, but the basic gist of it is we really made 3 studio albums since our full album came out. Three different albums with three different producers. “Calling the world” will be our second release, but really our fourth studio record which was made in twenty-one days to record, mix, and master. It’s sort of amazing that we worked for two years and in three weeks made an album. I guess all the stars aligned from the producer relationship to us getting a new manager and working with some new people at the record label. It all just came together at the right time and it was really easy.
I know your MySpace says that you will be doing a few songs overseas next month. Any plans for a U.S. Tour soon?
We are going to Europe for five dates and then we come straight back to a U.S. tour that I don’t believe I’m allowed to tell you. The dates will be up on the website and MySpace in the next couple of weeks because the tour starts at the end of May. I know they are all giveaway tickets so I think it’s a special promotional tour so that will be interesting.
Describe a day with Rooney.
A day with Rooney…we kind of all like to hangout together. We live in Southern California and I’m actually on my hammock in my garden which is amazingly beautiful. Everything is in bloom.
Are you guys from Orange County?
We are actually from Los Angeles City so we are actually all around city. We have a good relationship with Orange County though, but it’s definitely a different city. We love Orange County and it’s fun that they come down to visit us even when we play here. We like to eat together and drink wine today. We have a lot of house parties and barbeques.
Well I talked to one of your biggest fans. Her name is Josie and she wants to know what the one song you wish you wrote is?
That’s a really hard questions. There is this band in Paris called Phoenix that has this song called “Everything is Everything.” It puts me in the best mood so that’s one of those types of songs where I had that feeling.
Now on to the hard questions….Orange Chicken or Beef with Broccoli?
You know when you order a combo. I get Orange Chicken and Beef with Broccoli.
So do I! Okay, Almost Famous or School of Rock?
Almost Famous.
MAC or PC?
Mac, but I am getting to the end of my rope. My computer is in the shop right now and it’s only a year old. It’s probably going to cost more to fix it. I’m still loyal though because their stuff is cool.
And it looks prettier than a PC. Okay, Recording or Touring?
I’m going to have to revert to the Orange Chicken/Beef with Broccoli question. I love them both. Two different sides of a coin.
Peanut Butter or Jelly?
Two sides of a coin.
Man, you are getting off easy here. Okay Guitars or Drums? It’s obvious what you’re going to pick.
Drums of course.
Well we get a lot of unsigned bands coming to BandNation.com. What advice would you give them about the music industry?
It’s very difficult and challenging, but if you are passionate about it and you want to make your music—you should make it. I definitely think you should get in a gang of close friends that can pick you up when you get the crap kicked out of you. Get in it for the long haul. If you keep doing your thing for a really long time, no one can mess with you. The proof is in the pudding.
What message do you want to give to all your fans listening to this?
I want to thank all of our fans for being patient while we’ve been making this album for however many years. We can’t wait to see everyone when we come back and it’s really happening this time. It’s right around the corner.
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