Better Than Ezra’s Kevin Griffin Talks New Album Ahead of New Orleans Shows

Since the ‘90s Better Than Ezra has been a favorite of Gen X and Millennials alike. Though holding steady since their inception in the ‘80s at Louisiana State University, it’s been 10 years since the bands last full-length album. I caught up with lead singer and accomplished songwriter Kevin Griffin to talk about the band’s new album and their upcoming shows in New Orleans. 

Listen to the full interview in an upcoming episode of the new podcast “Beyond the Page” from New Orleans Magazine

This is your first full-length album in a minute, how does it feel to be back?

At some point, we just kind of looked up from what we were doing or normal routine like, ‘wait a second, it’s been?’ Well, at the time, it’s been eight years since we put out an album. You know, and we would put out singles, and we’ve always been touring and being out there. But, if you look at most bands, most artists earlier in their career, there’s album on album almost every year, and then as they go along, there’s more space. And I think it’s just because we’re doing different things, you know, Ezra was always going to be our main thing, but I do a lot of different things in music, and so does Tom our bass player, and so does everybody in the band. But so, you know, the role of new music for maybe a veteran band is, it’s different than it was earlier in the days where it was about getting those albums out there in the glory of a platinum album and stuff are in that old model, but now it’s a streaming model. And, so the impetus that the potential financial reward from putting out new music really is different. It’s not what it used to be. So you really have to shift your gears and say, ‘Okay, well, then why am I doing it.’ For us, we’re like, we’re doing it because it’s for our fans, it’s new music is for our fans. It gives us a reason to go on tour, new music for the people who support our band and love our band, and then also new music for us to play. And, and so I think, now that we’ve kind of taken 10 years to come to that conclusion, and you know, t’s an old familiar friend that we’ve missed, putting out new music out, you know, putting an album out so we’re excited about it, we couldn’t be more thrilled.

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Looking back to that first album to this new one, is it the same Ezra sound or can we expect something new from this album?

I think with this album there’s a lot of songs that feel super familiar. As much as you want to think you’re doing a complete 180 as an artist, it’s the same guys making the music and I’m the same writer, the same singers who’s gonna sound like Better Than Ezra and that’s awesome. That’s why people like our band. So there’s that songs we already released, like “Mystified” and, you know, sounds like kind of classic. It’s got riffs. It’s kind of anthemic, and there’s a narrative, there’s a story told, and that’s what I loved writing. But there’s also there’s also a lot of new sounds and new production ideas and us taking in things that we like, whether it’s a song, like “Live a Little,” or a song like “Sensation” that kind of goes back into the ‘80s and feels very in excess. So we’ve always not been afraid to show what our influence is and what we’re currently into. And this sound isn’t any exception, but we made a point to do some songs that felt like old school as well.

You’ll be here this weekend at the House of Blues. How does it feel when y’all come back? Especially with the buzz of Jazz Fest in the air.

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We’ve done this now like three or four years. And we love being down in New Orleans around Jazz Fest, and I think we kind of prefer doing our own shows at night. If it’s an either/or you get you can play middle of the day at Jazz Fest, which is awesome, or you can have your own headline shows on a Friday and Saturday night. I think we’d rather do it House of Blues, and because all our friends and family are in town, you know. And so it just feels really good to be having new music to play and the city just electric that you know, there’s just amazing. People are jumping in and hopping on stage with different people. So it’s just an amazing time.

Lagniappe

First album you had or remember buying: Elton John “Yellow Brick Road”

Who are you listening to right now (besides the new Better Than Ezra album): Royel Otis, a young band from Australia

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Bars and restaurants you have to hit while you’re in town: Sylvain, Clancy’s and Cafe du Monde

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