Cheers Elephant is Bringing Their Charm to 5280

Jenn Cohen | April 1, 2013 | 0 Comments

by Harrison Welshimer

photo courtesy of band Facebook page

Earlier this month Jordan Del Rosario, lead guitarist for the Philadelphia band, Cheers Elephant, contacted me. They’re going to be playing three dates across the Front Range as part of their nationwide tour, including March 29 at the Buffalo Rose, March 30 at the GNU Space in Fort Collins, and March 31 at the Walnut Room.

A funky band with the hair to boot, Cheers Elephant has been dubbed, “Chew it up, Spit it out, Rock and Roll.” And their live shows are described as, “something close to the devil, God, or cocaine.”

If you’ve never heard of them, you’re becoming one of the few. This past May, Cheers released their 3rd album, Like Wind Blows Fire in Philadelphia’s Apple Store. That’s nothing to sniff at. Also, the track “Leaves” hit #4 on Hype Machine and was featured on We Are Hunted, NPR, Ex.FM, Good Music All Day, USA Today and Spotify. Cheers has shared the stage with acts like Mayer Hawthorne, Rubblebucket, the Go! Team, and the Walkmen, to name a few. The following is our interview with Del Rosario:

HW: For the ever-smaller number of people who don’t know you guys, how’d Cheers Elephant come into being?

JR: Derek, Travelin Mat, and King all went to high school together. They played music in many different incarnations (DK Sunshine, Instant Breakfast), before forming Cheers Elephant right before college. The band wasn’t really playing shows yet when I joined in 2005. I had just moved from upstate NY to Philadelphia, living with Travelin Mat, who happens to be my cousin. Soon after, Cheers Elephant was gigging and we haven’t stopped.

HW: Getting discovered is the most difficult aspect of being a musician. How was Cheers found by some major publicists in NPR, USA Today, and Philadelphia Weekly?

JR: We have been fortunate. Some comes from these publications reaching out to us because they saw a YouTube video or something like that. Others come from our PR team getting our name and music out there. Our manager extraordinaire, Andrew Leib, also has a lot to do with our media presence.

HW: There’s a ton of music in the Mile High City on any given night. What are you guys going to bring that we should come out for?

JR: Well, you can expect a show, that is for sure; a high-energy musical spectacular. You can expect to think, “Man, that singer is hopping around like a madman,” or, “Tell you what, that drummer is crazy!” All that, and good songs that will be stuck in your head for the next couple of days.

HW: I’m sold! What are some of the tour spots you’re really excited about?

JR: Everybody is really excited for SXSW this year. It’s the first time we will have an official festival showcase. It also the first time Cheers Elephant will be in California. Derek is really stoked for San Francisco, Seattle, and all of our Colorado stops, of course, for obvious reasons. Salt Lake City should be interesting.

HW: I want to talk about “Leaves” from your most recent album, Like Wind Blows Fire which reached #4 on Hype Machine, in addition to featured spots on Spotify and Ex.FM. Take us on the journey from the birth of this song to its current popularity.

JR: “Leaves” was one of the first songs from the album to make it to the live set. Derek had written and recorded a finished demo with drum loops and harmonies all mapped out, and brought it to us pretty much a finished song. It was one of the first recorded for the album and really set the tone for how the rest of the album should sound. After that, we sent it out to various publications and music blogs it blew up. Which is kind of funny because we never made a music video for it. It’s just that good.

HW: Apple isn’t the most generous to its artists, taking .30 for every dollar sold before any deductions are made by distributors and a record label. Yet the band debuted Like Wind Blows Fire in Apple’s Philly store. What’s your take on Apple’s business model? Where’s most of your dough come from?

JR: Apple’s cut is still better than say Spotify or Pandora, but yes, we do not really financially benefit from streaming and downloads. We make the most from physical album sales, merchandise, and playing shows.

HW: If you had to narrow it down, what’s been the best moment so far for the band/ what’s been the lowest moment? How do you keep an even keel on the roller coaster that is being a performing band?

JR: For me, the worst moments are the best moments. We’ve had a van break down once. Left us stranded for days and scrambling for money to get it fixed. But we managed to play a few impromptu shows in that time, made new friends, and looking back now it was a good experience. We’ve been threatened by vagrants over a parking spot and had our merch stolen by an elderly woman on a hoveround. I guess it’s things like that that keep us on an even keel, or at least keep us entertained.

HW: After the tour, what’s next for Cheers Elephant?

JR: After this tour we will be focusing on finishing the next album. A lot of new songs have been materializing, some of which we will be incorporating into the set list each night, so it’s about that time that we hunker down and start the next chapter. We will be back in the Front Range before you know it, but you can always keep tabs on us through Facebook, Twitter, instagram, or what have you. Or just the ol’ fashioned web site www.cheerselephant.com.