The Mowgli’s are coming to Carrboro and they’re really happy about that
Upbeat, anthemic songs have been the Mowgli’s calling card since the Los Angeles band formed a decade ago.
“It’s funny because we grew up during the ‘90s and you know how that went musically,” vocalist-guitarist Josh Hogan says while calling from his Los Angeles home. “The music back then was so sad. Nirvana, Silverchair and Green Day wrote such sad songs but it was such a happy time. I loved growing up during that era. It’s a little darker these days but we’ve been lightening things up with our music.”
Mowgli’s fans should prepare for another side of the band with the release of its forthcoming album, “American Feelings,” which will drop March 1. The initial single, “Norman Rockwell,” is a darker, more rhythmic track than most Mowgli’s songs.
“Norman Rockwell’ is a song about a person painting himself out of the world,” Hogan says. “It’ll be interesting how fans react to ‘Norman Rockwell’ since it’s pretty sad. Our fans look at us as such a happy band. And we do have some up songs [on ‘American Feelings’]. But we’re trying to challenge ourselves and move in a different direction. We don’t want to grow stagnant. We worked with a new producer, Robert Elmore, who aded some new production elements. We’re evolving. Our taste is changing as a band. You’ll see that when we come back to Carrboro, which is one of our favorite cities.”
The members of the Mowgli’s, which also includes Hogan’s wife vocalist-percussionist Katie Earl, vocalist-guitarist Colin Dieden, bassist Matthew Di Panni, keyboardist Dave Appelbaum and drummer Andy Warren, recall playing the Cat’s Cradle in 2016 after passage of the so-called “bathroom bill,” state legislation that required transgender people to use the bathrooms in government and public buildings that corresponds with the gender on their birth certificate.
“We couldn’t believe that people could be told what bathroom to use but everywhere we went to in Carrboro, people were allowed to use whatever bathroom they wanted to use,” Hogan recalls. “We realized what a cool place it is over there. The other thing is that the fans there have always been so into our music. Whenever we come in behind an album, they know the songs.”
But don’t expect the Mowgli’s to visit while showcasing albums. “American Feelings,” like 2018’s “I Was Starting to Wonder” is an EP.
“There are so many reasons that we’re embracing the EP format,” Hogan explains. “We can put so much more energy into four songs, as opposed to 10 songs. We believe fans will know those couple of songs up and down and inside out. Compare that to an album which might have a dozen songs on it. I’m guilty of not knowing the last couple of songs on albums that I really like. It just makes sense for us to move in this direction.”
There have been some changes in Mowgli’s lineup, but Hogan believes the current configuration will be stable for quite awhile. “What we have now works,” Hogan says. “No one in this group is going anywhere. We’re all best friends.”
That especially goes for Hogan and his wife. “Katie and I are really solid,” Hogan says. “It’s Valentine’s Day today and we’re just going to chill, hang out and get ready for this tour. The fun is about to begin for us since there is nothing Katie and I enjoy more than playing live. It’s a bonus whenever we visit a town we really like, such as Carrboro. Maybe we’ll have a chance to hit a restaurant and hang out a little.”
Details
Who: Mowgli with Jukebox the Ghost
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro.
Cost: $22 in advance; $25 day of show.
Info: 919-967-9053, www.catscradle.com
This story was originally published February 21, 2019 at 2:00 PM.