Chris Staples is a native Floridian turned Seattle transplant. He has had many incarnations in a short span with bands Twothirtyeight, Discover America and Telekinesis. Solo, Staples coined the subgenre "breakfast music" to encompass his style of original songcraft delivered with the quirky sincerity of a Wes Anderson film. Some call it nostalgia, but we hear rock & roll moments captured and rearranged with a certain ease. His songs require listeners to pause. And when they do, his music will forever have a place in their collections.
With his second full-length release on Barsuk Records, Staples brings the Pacific Northwest-chilled songs of Golden Age back to his former home state, opening for Rocky Votolato. In the first leg of a five-week U.S. tour, Orlando Weekly spoke with Chris prior to his tour stop in Minneapolis about the new record and upcoming Florida dates.
Orlando Weekly: On social media you have described your music as "breakfast music." Where did you get the idea?
Chris Staples: I used to go to this coffee shop by my house and they would play Leonard Cohen, and some days it would be Skinny Puppy. Skinny Puppy isn't breakfast music. My music is the kind you can wake up to and not be too offended to have a cup of coffee. I feel if you make up your own genre, there aren't a lot of connotations about your music before people have a chance to hear it.
How did the album Golden Age come together?
I wasn't intentional with the sound of the record. I wanted to have fun and see where it went. Working with friends and collaborating, it evolved. Seattle is one of those great cities for music – so many talented people in a small scene. It's a great place to realize creative projects. Making music in Florida was more of a solitary experience.
How has the Golden Age tour been unlike previous tours?
There is a new crowd of fans, a wider audience than I've had with previous projects. I want to make music for everyone. We added a new merch item for this tour through our website: For $100, we will write and perform an original song about anything you want. Only one request per city. We've had some pretty funny results so far. It helps to pass the time in the van too. I am excited for the Florida shows. Rocky's band has been killing each night. It should be a good time.
Being back in your home state, do you have plans to catch up with family or friends?
This has been a different style of tour. We aren't doing house shows with time to have adventures. Club tours have a tighter schedule. We did go swimming in Idaho, and we plan to pay our respects at Paisley Park. I do have some time planned to spend with my grandparents and my sister. A friend of mine recently bought a house on a lake outside of Orlando. We are going to find time to visit and film a fishing video.
Will it be anything like John Laurie's Fishing With John? Any luck getting Willem Dafoe to join you?
No big celebrities lined up yet. Maybe we could get a player from the Miami Dolphins or something.
