In just five short years, Long Island natives, Baked Shrimp have made their way in the jam scene, emerging as one of the most talked about area bands this summer! The band's guitarist Jared Cowan recently answered a few questions about the dynamic trio, their headlining debut at Garcia's, and hosting the annual LonCon Festival!

 

1. Having toured consistently throughout the northeast for the past few years, Baked Shrimp is definitely becoming a well-known band in the jam scene, how would you say playing all of these shows has helped you grow as a band?

Something that we always remind ourselves of at band practice is that we can never practice or prepare for the "real thing" , the on-stage live crowd setting no matter what. At practice we can work on songs, compositions, improvisational exercises, etc., so we feel more confident about the material in live settings, but there is no "exercise" for the on-stage energy. So performing all of these shows this summer and throughout this past year has allowed us to become more well adjusted to live settings as a band. We've learned each other's subtle movements on stage and have gotten really good at communicating during these high-energy live performances.

 

2. Your most recent album, Pork Etiquette, features a lot of different instruments including clavinet, organ, pianos, violin, horns, among others. What sort of difficulties have you come across when trying to recreate that sound as a live 3-piece?

We've always looked at the studio and a live performance as two entirely different formats and settings of Baked Shrimp. In the studio we had so much at our disposal including a very talented studio engineer (Mike Rufolo) and very talented session musician (Nick Rufolo) who was able to pick up just about any instrument and play it. We used this opportunity to explore these songs with different instrumentation and bring out a sound that wouldn't easily be recreated live, which was what made Pork Etiquette, as well as Conscious so special. All of these songs in a live setting are entirely different beasts. There is more room for improvisation and the energy of the music is naturally higher. Both styles of Baked Shrimp, studio and live, are so unique in their own ways.

 

3. Baked Shrimp has played at Garcia’s a few times, most recently a month ago for a Pre-Show before Pink Talking Fish. What differences will you be bringing to this show as a headliner as opposed to supporting another band?

We are incredibly stoked to be back at Garcia's and especially with JEDD. No matter the show we go out there and have one goal in mind, make it the best show we've ever played. It is always exciting to be featured as a headliner, but our intentions remain the same, which is to have more and more people head home as happy new Baked Shrimp fans.

4. The second annual LonCon is taking place at the end of summer. You’re playing with a stacked lineup of great regional bands, including JEDD. What does it mean for you and your team to keep LonCon going every year?

This is going to be such a special year for LonCon. We feel incredibly lucky and thrilled that this event is on the path of being held annually. The festival is named in honor of the great Lon "Conscious" Gellman and we know he would be proud and thrilled to see the incredible scene we are building with LonCon. There is so much incredible talent all across the board on this year's lineup including members of major bands within the jam scene. When all of these people end up in one place for a weekend you never know what crazy collaborations you might see. I certainly can't wait!

 

5. Is there anything special you want Garcia’s fans to know about what to expect on THU, JUL 14?

Expect an amazing Thursday night of dancing, good times, and live music! Everyone who buys tickets in advance also is entered to win a pair of VIP LonCon tickets, and we'll also be raffling off a pair of GA LonCon tickets at the show. So you never know if you don't go!