Matt Connarton Unleashed: Dave Strong discusses new holiday single

0:00 Speaker 1: I love it this time of year. That is Dave

0:03 Speaker 1: Strong featuring Soda. By the way, if you happen to

0:06 Speaker 1: be watching online, I'm wearing my Soda shirt so ot

0:08 Speaker 1: ah if you're not sure how to spell it. And

0:11 Speaker 1: I believe, I believe we have is this Dave Strong

0:16 Speaker 1: on the line Strong, Hey, Dave, welcome back to the show,

0:20 Speaker 1: my friend. I love that this time of year. Dave

0:24 Speaker 1: Strong featuring Soda. Well done, my friend, well done.

0:28 Speaker 2: Thank you so much. Yeah, it's awesome.

0:31 Speaker 3: You know, it's been a long time coming. I wanted

0:34 Speaker 3: to do a Christmas song for a really long time

0:35 Speaker 3: and as far as I can remember, this Mighty Money

0:38 Speaker 3: Bostones one.

0:38 Speaker 2: Is like my favorite. So yeah, all came together very well.

0:42 Speaker 3: Yeah.

0:42 Speaker 1: Absolutely, And by the way too, I love the video

0:44 Speaker 1: and I notice at the end that's actually directed by

0:48 Speaker 1: Casey Darren of Soda and he's in the video with

0:51 Speaker 1: you and really cool. Was that just shot around various

0:54 Speaker 1: locations around Boston or where did you film that?

0:58 Speaker 3: We've actually filled it in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Oh, just downtown.

1:03 Speaker 4: Oh, I'll be damned. I didn't realize. Oh, right in Portsmouth.

1:05 Speaker 4: All fantastic.

1:06 Speaker 1: I don't know I guess in the back of my

1:07 Speaker 1: mind I figured Boston because of the Bostones, but uh no,

1:11 Speaker 1: that's really although in some ways Portsmouth does look.

1:14 Speaker 4: Like Boston released parts of it too, but uh no,

1:16 Speaker 4: that's very cool, very cool. How long did it take?

1:19 Speaker 4: Was that one day just filming in different places or

1:21 Speaker 4: what went into that it?

1:25 Speaker 3: Yeah, well, we originally were gonna do it for at

1:28 Speaker 3: like like eleven or one or something like that, but

1:31 Speaker 3: it ended up raining that day.

1:34 Speaker 2: So we cut it back a little earlier. But we went.

1:38 Speaker 2: So we showed up in Portsmouth.

1:39 Speaker 3: We started at the parking garage on the top floor.

1:43 Speaker 3: That's how we got like a nice shot of like

1:46 Speaker 3: the whole downtown and the top of the North Church

1:48 Speaker 3: and everything. And then we went to the streets, you know,

1:53 Speaker 3: like Congress Street and I think I think Daniel Street.

1:58 Speaker 2: Maybe we went to Daniel Street.

2:00 Speaker 3: But we went to this cool little toy store called

2:03 Speaker 3: g Willickers shout out to g Willickers Booking Toy in Portsmouth. Yeah,

2:07 Speaker 3: and we played with some trains in there and stuff.

2:10 Speaker 2: They were really nice.

2:11 Speaker 3: It's actually where the original Slackers was like in the day,

2:16 Speaker 3: that old that old skateboard shop.

2:18 Speaker 4: Okay, okay by the.

2:20 Speaker 3: Same person, I guess. I mean, we found out a

2:22 Speaker 3: lot of cool stuff. They they came out and danced

2:24 Speaker 3: and they said we could use their shop, and we

2:27 Speaker 3: ended up in Prescott Park, you know, we tried to

2:30 Speaker 3: get all the all the Fox, you know, yeah.

2:33 Speaker 2: Up in Portsmouth. I love Portsmouth. I didn't even know

2:35 Speaker 2: we were doing it at Portsmouth.

2:37 Speaker 3: But like everything about this whole song in video is

2:42 Speaker 3: like a holiday miracle come true. You know.

2:45 Speaker 1: Well That's what I'm curious about too, to ask you, So,

2:47 Speaker 1: how did this come about? You and Casey Darren of

2:51 Speaker 1: Soda collaborating on this and doing a Bostones cover?

2:54 Speaker 3: What?

2:54 Speaker 1: Like?

2:54 Speaker 4: What what went into that? How did this happen?

2:58 Speaker 3: So he's on tour with The Defiant right now. He

3:01 Speaker 3: works with them. That's Dicky from the Mighty Bosstones other

3:05 Speaker 3: band now And I I just when when I want

3:11 Speaker 3: to say, like, cause we were talking about this the

3:13 Speaker 3: other day, I was like, how the hell did we

3:14 Speaker 3: kind of get together? How did we end up talking?

3:17 Speaker 3: It was definitely through Instagram and I was checking out

3:22 Speaker 3: The Defiant and I think I think maybe I reached

3:29 Speaker 3: out through there or like we had maybe gone through like.

3:32 Speaker 2: A post Or. We had both been from.

3:34 Speaker 3: New Hampshire, both hardworking musicians from the area, both kind

3:40 Speaker 3: of like trying to work our way up, and we

3:44 Speaker 3: just we just started talking through DMS. You know, That's

3:46 Speaker 3: how it happened.

3:47 Speaker 2: And you know, I.

3:48 Speaker 3: Actually the Defiant played with the They played with me

3:52 Speaker 3: first in the Gimme Gimmes in Portland and Casey was

3:56 Speaker 3: the tour manager for that and he did the merch

3:59 Speaker 3: does everything for them, I believe. And I got to

4:03 Speaker 3: meet him, and you know, I handed on one of

4:06 Speaker 3: my records and you know, we've just been talking. It's

4:10 Speaker 3: been almost a year we've been talking, but after I

4:13 Speaker 3: met him, we've been talking more. And I was just like,

4:16 Speaker 3: you know what, I want to do a Christmas song.

4:17 Speaker 3: I didn't have like solid plans to do this song.

4:21 Speaker 3: I just I was going up to North Conway where

4:23 Speaker 3: I am now. Actually I was coming up to North

4:27 Speaker 3: Conway to my friend Sean and Ryan studio by to

4:29 Speaker 3: push records and we and I just was like, you

4:33 Speaker 3: know what, I was going to do two songs. I

4:36 Speaker 3: was like, I'm going to do a Christmas song too,

4:38 Speaker 3: and the Mighty Bosstones one is my favorite Christmas song.

4:41 Speaker 3: It always is the first on my Christmas playlist ever

4:45 Speaker 3: since it came out. It's just like my kids love it.

4:50 Speaker 3: I tried. I just tried it in the studio. I

4:52 Speaker 3: did a scratch track of it, and I was like, hey, Casey,

4:56 Speaker 3: you know, do you want to play the home gun?

4:59 Speaker 3: He said absolutely, So I pretty much just did the

5:03 Speaker 3: guitar drums. I left all the background vocals empty. I

5:08 Speaker 3: left the horns all empty, and Casey did that cool

5:11 Speaker 3: solo in it too, So it was really a collaborative thing,

5:14 Speaker 3: you know. I recorded my part, I sent it to him,

5:18 Speaker 3: like I'd sayed, like three weekends ago. I recorded my part,

5:22 Speaker 3: sent it to him on the Monday. He had it

5:24 Speaker 3: done by Wednesday, sent it to my buddy Josh to

5:28 Speaker 3: mix it and master it, and it was done by

5:32 Speaker 3: the following Friday. So it really just fell together, piece

5:35 Speaker 3: by piece by piece perfectly. Yeah.

5:37 Speaker 1: No, that's fantastic, and especially too, whereas you know, you

5:40 Speaker 1: kind of, you know, getting it out pretty close to

5:44 Speaker 1: the holiday, so you know, obviously the clock was ticking

5:48 Speaker 1: on that. So good for you for being able to

5:49 Speaker 1: get it done and get it out and it sounds great,

5:51 Speaker 1: and like I said, I love the video too.

5:53 Speaker 4: Do you know if Dicky Barrett has heard it?

5:58 Speaker 3: I personally having talked to Dicky in my brain, like

6:04 Speaker 3: in my mind, like my dream world, he has heard

6:07 Speaker 3: it and he loves it.

6:08 Speaker 2: But I do love I don't know.

6:09 Speaker 3: The Mighty boss Stones have reposted it a couple of times.

6:12 Speaker 4: Oh okay, that's good. Then they then they they must

6:15 Speaker 4: like it. Then that's good.

6:18 Speaker 3: I'm guessing he heard it. I'm hoping that he likes it.

6:20 Speaker 3: I'm hoping that it's all it's all good and they

6:25 Speaker 3: they love it, you know, yeah, it's it really was

6:28 Speaker 3: an honor to do the song, and I just I

6:31 Speaker 3: hope I did it justice and you know, yeah, that's

6:35 Speaker 3: what it is. I'm it's all fairly like Holiday chair,

6:38 Speaker 3: you know. I'm just really stoked that.

6:40 Speaker 2: I got to do it. But I think he did.

6:41 Speaker 2: I think he has heard it.

6:43 Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, and in my dream world he loved it.

6:46 Speaker 4: No, I'm sure he does. I'm sure he does.

6:47 Speaker 1: Uh have you been able to have you had a

6:49 Speaker 1: chance to play this live or or I don't know

6:52 Speaker 1: if I don't know if you intend.

6:53 Speaker 3: To or I have not got to play it live yet,

6:58 Speaker 3: but I am playing on the twentieth and Lowell at

7:03 Speaker 3: Codo and I'm playing the twenty second at O'Brien's in Austin,

7:07 Speaker 3: mass And those are my last two shows of twenty

7:10 Speaker 3: twenty four before I go to Germany in twenty twenty five,

7:14 Speaker 3: and we're gonna we're gonna put it in the set.

7:16 Speaker 3: I'm gonna add it into the set. I don't think

7:18 Speaker 3: Case is gonna come out and play the horn. Yeah, maybe,

7:22 Speaker 3: I don't know.

7:22 Speaker 4: That'd be fantastic. Yeah.

7:24 Speaker 3: Uh.

7:25 Speaker 1: You mentioned Germany, So are you are you going to

7:27 Speaker 1: abby touring over there?

7:30 Speaker 3: I am. I think like January fourteenth, we're gonna fly

7:35 Speaker 3: out and we're gonna play four shows that lead out

7:39 Speaker 3: to the school festival called puke Fest.

7:42 Speaker 2: We're gonna start out in Hamburg.

7:44 Speaker 3: We're gonna end up in Munster and we're gonna play

7:46 Speaker 3: every day to it, and then Pukefest is actually sold

7:50 Speaker 3: out already, two hundred tickets.

7:52 Speaker 2: It's pretty crazy.

7:53 Speaker 3: So it's small tour. It's like a week yeah, and

7:58 Speaker 3: it's it's me Lee and j We're coming as a

8:01 Speaker 3: three piece. But it's my first time solo overseas and

8:07 Speaker 3: I'm very excited about it. It's going to be a

8:09 Speaker 3: real fun time.

8:09 Speaker 4: Yeah, no doubt that festival is It's called puke Fest.

8:14 Speaker 2: Yeah, puke Fest.

8:15 Speaker 3: Okay, a lot of pop punk bands.

8:20 Speaker 2: Yeah.

8:21 Speaker 3: My buddy, my buddy actually from Wisconsin, is in a

8:24 Speaker 3: band called Jagger Hawley. He lives in Australia half the time.

8:28 Speaker 3: But so I don't know if they're considered the American band.

8:32 Speaker 3: I think I'm the only American band full fledged on

8:35 Speaker 3: this tour. But but yeah, we have a nice place

8:38 Speaker 3: to stay every night, you know, food every night. Yeah,

8:43 Speaker 3: it's gonna be a really cool time. You know, I'm

8:44 Speaker 3: really excited.

8:45 Speaker 4: You've have you been there before? You have toured in

8:48 Speaker 4: Europe before? Right?

8:50 Speaker 3: I have been to Spain and I have been to

8:55 Speaker 3: I have been to the Netherlands before. I played Rotterdam

8:57 Speaker 3: and Amsterdam and Lyon and d Yeah, but I played

9:01 Speaker 3: with my friend Jeff Palmer's band. Uh so I've never

9:04 Speaker 3: done the Day of Strong band by myself yet.

9:08 Speaker 1: Oh okay, okay, very good, very good. Well that's awesome.

9:12 Speaker 3: This is very special to me because I get to

9:13 Speaker 3: play my songs over there.

9:15 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, no, that's that's fantastic. Congratulations on that. Have

9:21 Speaker 1: you been have you been playing a lot of shows here.

9:23 Speaker 4: Have you been not?

9:24 Speaker 1: Have you been busy since uh, since we had you

9:26 Speaker 1: on last Yeah, yeah, I've been.

9:29 Speaker 2: Doing a lot.

9:29 Speaker 3: I've been doing a lot of recording and I'm working

9:32 Speaker 3: on getting my second record out. I have been playing

9:34 Speaker 3: some shows here and there. I also play with my

9:37 Speaker 3: friend Brad's band. We're playing with Marky Romone next weekend

9:41 Speaker 3: and would soock New York. So yeah, I mean, I'm

9:46 Speaker 3: I'm I'm also playing with the River City Rebels. You know,

9:50 Speaker 3: a show just sold out at O'Brien's.

9:52 Speaker 2: With Big D and the Kids Table in April.

9:54 Speaker 3: So I'm keeping my my punk rock schedule pretty full.

10:00 Speaker 4: You are, Yeah, you got a lot going on. Oh

10:02 Speaker 4: that's uh, that's excellent. That's excellent.

10:05 Speaker 1: Um So, now, so after Germany, are you are you coming?

10:09 Speaker 1: Because you said you're working on your second record, right,

10:11 Speaker 1: so are you gonna finish that or your second record

10:15 Speaker 1: as Dave Strongband?

10:16 Speaker 4: Is that? Is that what it is?

10:18 Speaker 2: Yep? It's all recorded.

10:20 Speaker 4: Oh it's recorded.

10:21 Speaker 3: Okay, got to button it up, you know, do some

10:23 Speaker 3: do some cover ard and it'll be out on Sameless Records,

10:27 Speaker 3: the same label that put up.

10:28 Speaker 2: My first full length.

10:30 Speaker 3: Oh cool, yeah, I'm.

10:32 Speaker 2: Really excited about it. He's I think.

10:35 Speaker 3: I mean, I don't know exactly the details. It's definitely

10:37 Speaker 3: gonna happen. It is probably gonna be like one of

10:39 Speaker 3: the first releases of twenty twenty five.

10:42 Speaker 2: So okay, yeah, that's you.

10:44 Speaker 3: Know, Germany in twenty twenty five, my full length second

10:48 Speaker 3: release in twenty twenty five, and you know, the future is.

10:54 Speaker 2: Possibilities are endless.

10:56 Speaker 1: I suppose yes, yes, absolutely no, it sounds like it's

10:59 Speaker 1: gonna be a big year off to a great start. Outstanding, outstanding.

11:03 Speaker 2: I'm excited.

11:04 Speaker 4: Well, Dave, I appreciate.

11:06 Speaker 1: Your calling in today, and like I said, it's wonderful

11:09 Speaker 1: to be able to play that track this time of year.

11:13 Speaker 1: And then where should people go online to keep up

11:16 Speaker 1: with everything that you're doing?

11:19 Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean my Instagram is put your Man Dave

11:23 Speaker 3: twenty twenty.

11:25 Speaker 2: Most of it is music.

11:26 Speaker 3: Now. I do post some family stuff. I don't have

11:28 Speaker 3: like a band page. I do have a Facebook. It's

11:32 Speaker 3: like Dave Strong Music. Sometimes there's another Dave Strong that

11:36 Speaker 3: I actually have become friends with, oh really, that lives

11:39 Speaker 3: in North Carolina. Sometimes when you tag Dave Strong, it

11:43 Speaker 3: goes to his Sometimes when I tag it goes to

11:45 Speaker 3: his too. But he's bought my records and stuff too.

11:48 Speaker 3: That's a whole nother story. It's really cool.

11:49 Speaker 4: Oh that's cool.

11:50 Speaker 3: Dave Strong on Facebook, you know, Spotify, I'm on Apple Music,

11:56 Speaker 3: I'm on Amazon YouTube, all that good stuff, you know.

12:00 Speaker 3: So yeah, pretty easy to find, just Dave Strong. I'm

12:05 Speaker 3: out there.

12:06 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, absolutely absolutely, Dave. I was thinking about ending

12:09 Speaker 1: the conversation with Nights in Jail. I really I really

12:13 Speaker 1: love this song. What do you think is that a

12:14 Speaker 1: good one to wrap up with?

12:16 Speaker 2: Oh?

12:17 Speaker 3: Yeah, I love that song.

12:18 Speaker 2: That's one of my favorite ones I've ever written.

12:21 Speaker 4: No, I like that one a lot. I like all

12:22 Speaker 4: of them, but I really like that one a lot. Dave.

12:25 Speaker 1: Congratulations again on the collaboration with Soda the Great Casey

12:30 Speaker 1: Darren on that track This Time of Year the Boss

12:32 Speaker 1: Stones cover. Absolutely fantastic, and and congratulations on everything that

12:37 Speaker 1: you're doing, of course, the new record that's going to

12:39 Speaker 1: be coming out, and of course the tour in Germany

12:42 Speaker 1: and puke Fest and all of it. You got a

12:44 Speaker 1: lot going on, my friend.

12:45 Speaker 4: It's great to see really love your music.

12:48 Speaker 1: And uh, and we'll let you go. But if if

12:50 Speaker 1: we don't talk before. Have a great have a great

12:53 Speaker 1: rest of the holidays, and a great Christmas.

12:55 Speaker 3: Yeah, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays. I'll talk to you soon, all.

12:58 Speaker 4: Right, Dave, thank you for the call. Take care. Bye

13:00 Speaker 4: bye