Check out the new video for “Money On It” by Together Pangea. The LA-based rock band is releasing Bulls and Roosters on August 25th, but it’s been a long road to get to this point. The new album’s been in the can for quite a while, during which time Danny Bengston, bassist and one of the driving forces in the band, managed to get sober and dive into becoming a full-fledged biker. We caught up with Danny about “Money On It,” his new hobby, and how he manages to still have fun at music festivals without getting shwasted.
What’s new?I just bought a motorcycle
You got a helmet?Yeah, I have a helmet, and leathers, and gloves, and all the necessities.
Wuss. how you been?I’ve been good, just ready for this record to come out, and get on the road, ya know?
Are you still sober? How’s that going?Yeah. It’s great!
I imagine that any music festival is hard to be sober at. Do you have any tips for fellow teetotalerS on how to be sober at a music festival and still have fun?Just figure out something that you can drink. My favorite thing if I can is Club-Mate, which is that German drink. Our merch company, The HYV, imports it and distributes it to bands on the cheap, so…shout outs to Club-Mate west coast, baby!
What about non-alcoholic beer?Oh yeah, that’s the other one! A lot of times festivals will be sponsored by Heineken, or whoever the fuck, so a lot of times they won’t have that kind of stuff out in the crowd, but yeah, I do the non-alcoholic beer or I just do sparkling water, or if I can, Club-Mate, or some light energy or sparkling beverage.
That helps you cope with everyone raising drinks to their faces constantly? Are your bandmates supportive and all that?Yeah, yeah. And nobody’s trying to shove a shot in my face or anything like that.
Do they try and make you the designated driver?Fuck no! That’s why we pay a tour manager [laughs]. But ya know, I will if the TM wants to drink or something, I never have a problem driving.
How did “Money On It” come about?William [Keegan, singer/guitarist] wrote the words and melody. It started with that repetitive riff, the intro and all that, we were just jamming it, and I was like “This needs a bridge,” so I wrote the bridge. That was a group effort.
Cool story. The video is awesome! Your BUDDY Brandon Schwartzel from FIDLAR made it. Why him?Brandon does all the FIDLAR stuff—all the Instagram clips, and all the different videos, he does all these little things for them. He’s a great friend and he’s got a cool vision, he gets shit done and he’s always got good ideas.
[SPOILER ALERT] I love how you think they’re gonna meet up the whole time and find each other, and then they see each other and are like “Fuck off!” That’s awesome.Yeah, then…nope!
You can find a plethora of pre-order options for Bulls and Roosters here, including a Pledge Music campaign with all sorts of cool shit. Together Pangea plays Bottom Lounge in Chicago on October 6th. And Riot Fest is sponsored by Heineken.
The Related Rabbit Hole
