Interview by Marisa Whitaker
Editor’s intro: Sid Simons may not be your garden variety Brooklynite-by-way-of-Portland-via-Sydney-via-New-York-City-via-Shanghai singer-songwriter but then who is (?!?) and even if this were a more common trajectory we doubt the other Sids would sound anything like our Sid cuz besides Brooklyn/Sydney/Shanghai our Sid could just as easily be from Hawthorne, California or Dallas, Texas or Manchester, England if you were only judging by the music what with his proclivity for dishing up highly quality-controlled slices of…
…everything from sunshine pop (ex: Sid’s biggest hit to date, “Wendy,” is about a malfunctioning GPS that nearly sent him into a lake not to mention much of 2024’s Beneath the Brightest Smiles) to Baroquely arranged jangly folk-rock (ex: the title track of Sid’s latest EP, The Last American Valentine) to down ‘n’ dirty bluesy boogie with a touch of Madchester strut thrown into the mix for good measure (ex: “The Lie,” the leadoff track to Valentine), fits the bill perfectly with its Stones-ey swagger whether of the Rolling or the Roses variety)…
…but if you wanna virtually travel the world without leaving the calm confines of NYC’s Times Square we recommend paying a visit to Sony Hall later this month, yes, that Sony Hall, to head Sid Simons play live on Tue. August 26th as part of All My Friends, Vol. 1 (—->TIXX HERE<—-), the new concert series co-presented by yours truly, the Deli, featuring Sid plus three other acts more used to playing more intimate venues appearing at a nearly century-old Grand Hall holding up to 1,000 dedicated fans who’ll be expecting some serious showboating on that big stage we expect (no pressure, guys!) and considering the high stakes who in their right mind would even consider missing such a thing…
…and speaking of series, with no further ado here’s the second in our series of interviews featuring the four musical acts soon to be featured at All My Friends, Vol. 1 (8/26!) sharing in graphic detail the sordid details of their deepest, darkest desires and until-now secret misdeeds so take it away Marisa & Sid…
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Marisa Whitaker: I’m so excited. This sounds like so much fun. What was your first reaction to getting asked to play at such a venue as Sony Hall?
Sid Simons: It’s kind of new ground. It’s been around forever, but I think they’ve just started having rock bands play there now, right?
MW: I saw The Thing there a few months ago.
SS: Exactly, yeah. I did a fashion show there. I modeled and walked down the aisle.
MW: Ok, model…
DISCLAIMER: Number of boss-ass bitches in attendance at AMF, Vol. 1 may be lower than as pictured above, or higher…
MW: How long ago was the Sony catwalk gig? [growls softly]
SS: Like two years ago. That’s the only time I’ve been there. But I was looking at the website recently, and I saw all these photos from the ’50s and ’40s, and it looked fucking awesome. I’m pretty excited. I was asking the boys in The Thing, I was like, “How is it? Should I say yes to this? What do you guys think?” And they were all like, “It’s fucking awesome. You gotta say yes.” So I’m down. I’m into it. I kind of know the other guys that are on the bill, but not really, which is kind of a good thing. I like just getting thrown into something a bit more random. I feel like every bill I’ve been on for the last two years is very curated to what I want. Whereas with this show, someone else was putting this bill together. I thought it was cool, and I was interested. I know of all these bands, but I’ve never seen them perform, so I’m excited to play with them.
MW: I love it. And speaking of the model walk, I was here in 2021, living with a couple of my friends. We didn’t know anyone, so we’d go out and meet people at events through promoters. Quintessential NYC intern experience. One night, we went to this crazy event at Sony Hall with all these influencers. They had that runway down the middle of the audience. There was a guy–I can’t make this shit up–wearing a Pink Panther costume walking up and down the runway while the Pink Panther theme song was playing. It’s a very versatile venue, to say the least.
SS: That’s so sick.
MW: You’ve played Bowery Ballroom, Irving Plaza, Mercury Lounge, etc. What is exciting about getting to perform in a different kind of space? One that’s a non-traditional rock venue? What do you think it offers to performers and the local scene audience alike?
SS: I think it’s cool to play in a completely different area in the city. The scene and its people all live in and hang around downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn. Maybe it’ll bring a different kind of crowd. And it’ll get people trekking to somewhere new. It’s definitely a beautiful space. I don’t think us crusty, fucking musicians are used to it, so it’s gonna be cool to be in a nice venue.
MW: We were just talking. You just got off the road from Europa. This is your homecoming show at Sony Hall. Do you feel like you’ve gotten your 10,000 hours in? Are you gonna do something different? It’s not only a huge show for you and all of the other bands, but also for all the kids who are gonna come and watch y’all. What does it mean to you to have such a great homecoming show?
SS: Playing on the road every single night for 20 shows in a row has changed the way I see a set list now. I think what kept it interesting for us on the road was throwing random little things out there, like mid-set, that will keep us all on our toes, the whole band and me. It was something that I started doing around halfway through the tour. Mid-set, I would just start playing a random song, and then the band would just have to figure it out and get on it. Sometimes it would work, and sometimes it would completely fall apart, but that was really interesting for me. I’d never done that before. I started doing it out of just wanting to disrupt the setting every night. Not wanting to stick to the repetitiveness of it, you know? I want to bring that more into the one-off shows that we’re doing in New York as well, and at Sony Hall.
MW: You always put on such a show. The last time I talked to you, we were talking about your most recent Bowery show. You wanted to provide this theater-like experience to everybody there. You had these theatrics of the paper boys throwing out newspapers over the rafters, and you had this whole theme of the newspaper in your promo. Then the lights and the piano and you being center stage. Are you bringing any of that to Sony Hall?
SS: Yeah. I always want to make every single show, especially in New York, like a homecoming show. Something pretty unique and different every single time. I don’t want to show you the same thing you’ve seen already. There will definitely be something new that you haven’t seen for the Sony Hall show. I’m not gonna spill the tea, but something’s coming.
MW: What do you think of this bill? It’s four very different bands. Everybody has a unique sound.
SS: I’m not super familiar with any of them, to be honest with you. I’m going in a bit blind, but I’ve heard really good things about all of them. I think it’s going to be a great bill.
MW: What did you miss most about New York while you were away?
SS: I was excited to come back to New York to record and write music. You can work on things here and there when you’re on the road, but you can’t really finish anything. Right before I went on tour, I was getting bogged down. It was a good perspective shift for me to go on tour. I have so much more clarity now about what I want. It’s literally just fucking writing songs and recording them. That is the only thing that’s important right now.
MW: I can’t wait to hear the new stuff. This is the first of the All My Friends series of shows at Sony Hall. How do you hope to leave your mark?
SS: I feel honored that they want me to perform. And to be able to be one of the first to take the stage. I hope it’s remembered. You can hate or love a show, but I think the most important part is being able to walk away from a show and remember it.
MW: We all go to rock shows all the time, and they’re great and fun. But then, there are those really special nights, like for me, when we did the first Lipps Service concert at The Bitter End. You, Jackson, Torture, Calvin, Kenzo, and everyone spontaneously hopped up on stage with Telescreens and covered “Psycho Killer.” Some of the most talented people around, all together singing. There was something so special in the air that night.
SS: I think it goes back to what I was saying before about the spontaneity. I will always remember a show when there’s something that feels like it wasn’t planned, and it was a bit random. Or it could be the opposite. It could be very planned, but something a little different. That’s what I will always remember. With the “Psycho Killer” moment, none of us knew that that was gonna happen. I don’t even think Jackson knew. It’s all about being in the moment.
MW: I’m so excited for the show. Thanks for chatting with me again, Sid.
SS: Hell yeah, dude. It’s gonna be fucking sick. *click*