Key to the Highway: Briscoe

Briscoe – Key to the Highways

Americana Highways’ Key to the Highway series

Fans always clamor to learn more about their favorite, most beloved musicians and those who travel with them. There’s such an allure to the road, with its serendipity, inevitable surprises, and sometimes unexpected discomforts. This interview series is a set of questions we are asking some of our favorite roots rock Americana artists to get to know more about them and what they’ve learned and experienced on the road for music. We are sure they have key insights to share and stories to tell. Here’s one from Truett Heintzelman and Philip Lupton of Briscoe.

Americana Highways: How do you like your coffee or other morning wake-up beverage?

Briscoe: We’re nice and simple when it comes to coffee. We both take a cup of black coffee straight up in the morning. Closer to noon though, Philip’s been known to drink a cold brew and Truett’s been venturing into iced lattes.

AH: What’s the most interesting or strangest motel/hotel or place you have stayed (while on the road for music?)

Briscoe: Honestly our motel/hotel experience thus far has been rock solid. Some are nicer than others, but the real characters are AirBnBs. Perhaps the strangest one was a jungle themed house in Tampa, Florida. I’m talking lots of plants, animals painted on the wall, all sorts of jungle designs. Weird vibe.

AH: If one CD is stuck in the player in the van for the entire tour, what do you hope it is? And why?

Briscoe: If one CD was stuck in the van we’re hoping it would be Hotel California by the Eagles. Obviously we’re thinking through the best records of all time if we only have one CD, but it’s also important here to consider what the collective group would be interested in. Everybody loves the Eagles, and if you don’t then you haven’t actually listened to them.

AH: What’s one personal item you must have with you on your road trip?

Briscoe: Our Bibles. Road life is a blast but it can also be a lot. Reading our bible helps us continue to dive into our faith and stay grounded in the Lord. The nature of touring is traveling all over the place, so to have consistency is huge.

AH: What is your relationship with food? How do you handle this on the road, and what’s your favorite dish on the road, (or restaurant, and what do you order there)?

Briscoe: Early on we found food being a tough thing for us with 5 different opinions and where and what we should eat. However, we’ve found our groove with diners all across the country. A diner has an extremely diverse menu with breakfast, lunch, or dinner options. People can get anything from a salad to a chicken fried steak depending on how healthy you want to eat. It’s a win for everyone and there’s nothing cozier than a nice diner.

AH: If you could pause your life for a few weeks and spend some time living in a place you only have passed through, which would you choose, and why?

Briscoe: There’s already been a bunch of places that we’ve loved getting to see and pass through, but perhaps the nicest was Amagansett, NY. It’s way up on Long Island, just past the Hamptons, with some of the most beautiful beaches we’ve ever seen. Fun little town that would be wonderful for taking it easy. Realistically we couldn’t afford to live in Amagansett for more than a few weeks anyway, so it’s perfect.

AH: What quote or piece of advice have you gotten from someone on the road that has really stuck with you?

The best piece of advice we’ve gotten on the road was from Scott Avett of the Avett Brothers who told us, “It doesn’t matter if you’re playing to 50 people, a thousand people, or 50,000 people, play every show like it’s the Super Bowl.” We’re huge fans of the Avett Brothers and like to remind ourselves of this quote before every show to make sure we’re bringing all the energy we can to put on the best show possible.

Find more information and tour dates for these guys here: https://www.briscoetheband.com/

See other Key to the Highway interviews here: https://americanahighways.org/category/interviews/key-to-the-highway-series/ (click here for: Vince Herman Jimmy Smith Ben Nichols Bruce Cockburn Charlie Musselwhite Nicki Bluhm Jim White Danny Barnes Patterson Hood Jerry Joseph BJ Barham Rodney Crowell Todd Snider Elizabeth Cook Tommy Womack Eric Ambel, Dan Baird, Robbie Fulks, Malcolm Holcombe Jon Langford Steve Poltz, Lilly Hiatt Sarah Shook & the Disarmers Sadler Vaden )