Headstash

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

Almost one year after a near-death experience and missing The Disco Biscuits’ annual New Year’s Eve run, drummer Allen Aucoin has bounced back stronger than ever and is about to embark on a “mini-tour” with his solo side-project, Dr. Fameus.

Aucoin will bring his unique brand of drum and bass, drumstep and other heavy electronic beats to his home state of Georgia and much of the North East, closing out in New York City just before The Biscuits start their NYE run.

Headstash Magazine caught up with Aucoin to talk about the origins of the side-project, why touring on his own is akin to playing golf and what the immediate (and distant) future holds for his usual band.

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Headstash Magazine: I know that a lot of people up here in Boston are really excited to have you back playing as Dr. Fameus. How does it feel to be on the road doing your own thing?

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

Allen Aucoin: It’s a pretty cool experience. I’ve played a few shows as Dr. Fameus here and there over the years, but I’ve never put a string of shows together and played a little mini-tour, so I’m really excited.

HM: How does doing your own tour differ from touring with a huge production like the IDentity Festival and The Biscuits? Which do you prefer?

AA: The IDentity tour was different than any other tour I’ve ever done with The Biscuits because we only played for an hour, usually. I went to places all over the United States I hadn’t been before like Las Vegas and Albuquerque, NM. In San Francisco, we played at this place that looked like a “steal-your-face” from the sky, and we played The Gorge.

All the tours have been great with The Biscuits, but the last tour, for me, was exceptional. It just seemed like even though we weren’t playing “real” Biscuits shows everywhere, we still stepped things up to prove ourselves as one of the only non-DJs on the bill.

[FIND a complete list of Dr. Fameus tour dates on JamBase.]

But, you know, there are a lot of people on the road and we’re all on one bus. There are many different personalities and it’s kind of like golf. When you look at a golfer, it’s up to him if he has a good day or a bad day. So, by going out on my own as Dr. Fameus, I leave it up to myself to determine if it’s going to be a good show or a bad show.

If there’s a mistake made, it’s going to be made by me. Therefore, I have to be the one to make sure I don’t make those mistakes, whereas if you’re on tour with a production like The Disco Biscuits, not only do you have the four guys and you have a crew of guys that are working for you. So there’s going to be some mistakes here and there

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

HM: Explain the concept behind Dr. Fameus.

AA: Actually I got the name when I was living in Boston a few years ago, like 1996 or 1997. I was going to school at Berkley and I was playing in a band with a friend. Everything was “famous” to him. Instead of saying “of course” he’d be like, “oh, famous.”

Whenever I would show up late, he’d be like “oh, famous you’re late,” and I wound up being so late that he just started calling me The Doctor. Eventually he put them together.

But the idea behind it was I started writing stuff on my computer like 2002 when I was playing in Skydog Gypsy and we were on a little break. I was alone in a room with my drums and e-drums and I started writing stuff.

[FOLLOW Dr. Fameus on Facebook.]

I was able to get closer to what I was striving for, which was electronic music. It was something that was really exciting and I spent a lot of time on it. My buddy Eduardo took me under his wing and showed me as much as I could absorb about electronic music.

It gives me a chance to create what’s in my head and try to sculpt something that’s in the electronic realm. Playing in a band like The Biscuits, we play electronic music but we’re also lumped into the jam band realm, so doing this Dr. Fameus thing allows me to appeal to the jam band crowd but definitely step into a little of the electronic realm, which is really what I’m going for.

HM: So how does your drumming style as Dr. Fameus differ from your style with The Biscuits?

AA: Well as Dr. Fameus, I play some jungle and drum and bass and I’ll play a little bit of trance. I’ve gotten into some more dubstep these days, too. I try to make the whole Dr. Fameus thing funky – I’m a real big funk music fan.

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

Still, drum and bass has always been my favorite type of music, so I try to put that sound into my music, too. But lately, and because of my buddy Eduardo, I’ve gotten into drumstep and I think I may have found a new favorite style of music.

Drumstep, from what I understand, is a mixture of drum and bass and dubstep. It’s like you get the best of both worlds.

HM: What kind of things can we expect from you on this tour?

AA: Actually, I’m working on a couple of new songs. I’ll have at least two, if not three, for my run coming up this week. And in December, I hope to have a few more.

HM: What other kinds of projects do you have coming up?

AA: I really want to focus on putting together like a four-song EP or something that features me in the studio playing drums on top of the Dr. Fameus material. 

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

I’m hoping to hit the road soon. We’re going to have a tour and we’re talking about playing California and the Southeast. I’m from Georgia and a lot of my friends have never heard the Dr. Fameus project so I’m really looking forward to seeing what they think about it. I’m hoping to maybe pick up some festivals for later on in 2012.

[FOLLOW Headstash on Facebook.]

I’m playing a couple shows with Skydog Gypsy next year, so that’s pretty exciting, too.

HM: Switching gears a bit, it’s great to see that you will be back behind the kit for The Biscuits’ New Year’s Run after missing last year’s shows. How does it feel to be able to ring in the New Year again with your regular band?

AA: Oh yeah, I’m very excited. Missing last year was just . . . not normal. It felt weird to not be playing on a New Year’s show. Plus the fact that I was sick and almost died in the hospital made it even worse.

But, I’m really looking forward to playing with them. We’re not playing any shows right now and we don’t have too many lined up next year. So yeah, I’m really looking forward to it.

HM: So what do you think the future holds for The Disco Biscuits?

AA: The future of The Disco Biscuits? Good question. I ask myself the same question, unfortunately. And I don’t know what the answer to that question is. I don’t have the answer to that question – I can tell you that. There is someone who has the answer but not me.

Photo Credit: Holly O'Connor

HM: Fair enough. Getting back to New Year’s, you guys have some really exciting opening acts and late-nights planned for the run with Tipper, Abakus, Orchard Lounge and a few others. Who are you most excited to see?

AA: Well I’ve always been a big fan of Orchard Lounge, and I’m a big fan of EOTO. I’m actually secretly a huge fan of theirs – they’re awesome. I’ve seen them grow over the past few years and what they are doing is just amazing.

[NEWS NUG - The Disco Biscuits' New Year's Eve 2011-2012 run.]

I’m looking forward to seeing Brothers Past and Tipper and Future Rock – all of them. I think we did really well filling those slots. We couldn’t have done any better.

HM: We’ll get you out on this one – who is playing on your iPod right now?

AA: [Laughs.] Well, actually, I’ve been checking out Urban Assault who is a drum and bass DJ. Now you may not know what I’m saying here, but it feels to me he is responsible for the drumstep genre. He had the idea a couple years before everyone else latched on to it.

HM: Thanks, Allen. Looking forward to catching you on tour.

AA: Thanks a lot.

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Catch Dr. Fameus as he kicks off his 2011 mini-tour Wednesday, November 16  at the River Street Jazz Cafe in Wilkes Barre, PA. For a complete list of tour dates visit JamBase.