NOTICE
( ) ( ) ( )
Q&A // KATIE EULISS OF TRUCKSTOP HONEYMOON
> Because we have questions. Celebrities have answers.
Katie Euliss is a musician in the band Truckstop Honeymoon, which she fronts with her husband, Mike West. The bluegrass duo established a home base in New Orleans, but Hurricane Katrina flooded their home in the Lower 9th Ward and forced them to move. Whenever they're not touring, Lawrence is home. The band will be performing in Colorado, Oklahoma and Manhattan, Kan., through February and will be back in Lawrence in time for the Mardi Gras Parade, a tradition that they started.
Katie smoke with Javplay about "hillbilly-soul," touring the world and real-life inspirations.
Truckstop Honeymoon — that's quite a name. Is there a story behind it?
Oh yes, there is a story. Mike and I got married in Louisiana on Valentine's Day at the city court and then we went to a gig that night, unceremoniously. On our way back from the gig we were too tired and we stopped at the Tiger Truck Stop, where there were real, live tigers, pacing in cages, and slept for a few hours parked in our car. That was our honeymoon night. It was very romantic.
How would you describe your music?
It's a really eclectic mix. It's kind of a bluegrass- y, country, and hillbilly kind of combination. Like hillbilly-soul, how about that?
I like that. So how did you get into this type of music?
I used to be a busker on the streets of New Orleans. Mike is from England and he was in bands over there. Then he got into country music more when he immigrated to the States. Then we got together and it was a really good combination of backgrounds.
You guys have toured all over the world, traveling throughout the United States, Europe and Australia. What has been the most memorable place?
There are memorable places everywhere we go.
We have been to some amazing places. I think the south island of New Zealand was the most beautiful place that we've been. But we've had some funny times, you know, strange, sleepless times playing on boats, on ferries crossing waters in different places. We've played at some festivals in other countries that blow our minds
What motivates you to go to such far-away places?
even, New Zealand, I always wanted to go there, since I was a kid. With the nature of our work, the magic of it is I can just go, "OK, who are the people that we know who are musicians that have ever been there." There's work for musicians almost everywhere. You just start digging around and suddenly we have a whole bunch of gigs down there we can do. You make friends and fans, and then you've got this great network of people everywhere you go. And Australia, what an awesome place full of amazing musicians. The counterculture is thriving; it's so good.
What do you think of the college atmosphere here?
It seems to be a good diverse scene and it seems very supportive of music and arts, which makes me very happy. As far as that goes, we're raising our kids here, so for them to walk downtown and to be surrounded by things that have been created and sort of catered to a very artistic, intellectual community is a really good thing. I like that there are like 84 coffee shops and five ice cream parliors and plenty of bookstores. And record stores, we've got plenty of those, too.
How do you juggle family life with making music and touring?
You don't sleep much. The kids go with us everywhere. They definitely are our main priority and we do everything as a family. When we tour, they're right there with us. Their well being is always first on our list. We just go from there. It's been a great adventure so far. We're having a good time with it. We have four kids and they go to a school in town when we're in town.
Who are your musical influences?
We love our old country stuff. I love, and Mike does too, really old R&B stuff. We're kind of all over the map with what we like. When somebody is just playing from the soul, usually their stuff is pretty appealing. We're not big fans of new country or top 40 crap or anything like that. We like old jazz, and there are definitely some golden eras of good music. We have some good disco records.
What inspires you to write songs? I think your songs are so original and funny; I get a kick out
Contributed Photo
Family Act: Musicians and married couple Katie Euliss and Mike West take their act on the road, or across the sea, as often as they can, and their kids are along for the ride. They find inspiration for their songs from real-life experiences that would normally go unnoticed.
of them.
Real life. You have to provide your own comic relief sometimes. Sometimes stuff just needs to be said. Sometimes stuff just needs to be made into a song. Otherwise, it goes by unnoticed or too ordinary or something. Or something may seem so outlandish or unbelievable but it's so common you don't realize how many other people have certain experiences in common. Then you put those experiences in a song and you build a bridge between people. It's fun. Our kids inspire us, the world around us and traveling. People and what they're going through are really inspiring.
What can Jayplay readers expect from your most recent album Homemade Haircut?
It's sort of full of love songs and it's sort of full of rebellious reflection. There's a lot of great music on that record. There's a really awesome local piano player named Harry Miller; he's a great musician. We've got some horns on there. It's a pretty soulful record for a hillbilly duo. It's pretty good. We've had nothing but great feedback on it, so I'm proud of it.
What advice do you have for college kids in Lawrence who are in local bands?
Don't stop playing. Being sober is really helpful. You can be a legend for a long time in your mind if you're intoxicated. But the sobering truth of where you're really at is an important thing to look at.I can definitely say with a sober life you get a lot more done,and your music and your writing changes and everything.
// MOLLY MARTIN
to
TRUNK
san.com
facing on rates an ever budget, Grayum and use the our journal that will new day Kansas," State of thursday litorium book of horizon, hallengate we sheing the and dates are association it these line in 'vance diversi need way." apped to ener environ easing would certain pre situ ment.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
travel to Washington;
D.C., to honor Robinson's
mother. See Kansan.com
for watch the video from
the funeral.
Sophomore forward Thomas Robinson and his seven-year-old sister Jayla arrive at funeral services for their mother, Lisa Robinson, Thursday at Antioch Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.
scholarships are one of our
Thomas and Jayla gain support of thousands throughout Jayhawk nation
BY ANDY MARSO editor@kansan.com
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Thomas Robinson got out of a black limousine and immediately went to comfort his seven-year-old sister Jayla, who was waiting outside Antioch Baptist Church Thursday morning.
Jayla's hair was done up in meticulous braids with blue beads at the tips. She clung to her brother's waist and scrunched down against the fur lining of her parka's collar.
It was the third funeral in less than a month for Robinson, a sophomore forward on the University of Kansas men's
By the end of the day Robinson's pain would bring together the people from this neighborhood on the east side of Washington, D.C., and the entire Kansas men's basketball team. Together, in a modest red-brick church, they remembered Lisa Robinson and sought to comfort Thomas, Jayla and their brother Jamah.
Robinson's family and friends arrived throughout the morning, driving through half-plowed
basketball team. Robinson's grandmother died in late December and his grandfather died less than three weeks later. Then, last Friday, the most shocking blow — his mother, Lisa Robinson, died from an apparent heart attack at age 43.
Javorn Farrell played with Robinson at Riverdale Baptist High School in Maryland. Now a sophomore guard at the University of Massachusetts, he had a game Wednesday at St. Bonaventure University, but caught the first flight out of Buffalo, N. Y., Thursday morning to attend the funeral.
"When I got the news, I was heartbroken," Farrell said. "Thomas is like a brother to me."
Just before noon, Robinson's current basketball brothers
SEE ROBINSON ON PAGE 5A
streets after a storm dumped several inches of snow on the District the night before.
Members of the basketball team stop to console teammate Thomas Robinson, left seated, during funeral services for his mother, Lisa Robinson, Thursday at Antioch Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Classifieds...11A
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...3A
Sports...12A
Sudoku...4A
INDEX
WEATHER
TODAY
56 26
Meet the Sunny
Mostly Sunny
SATURDAY 43 22
Partly Cloudy
SATURDAY
Partly Cloudy
SATURDAY
37 18
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
Partly Cloudy
SIMIEN|12A
No.23 jersey to be retired during game tomorrow
Watch Saturday's halftime as Wayne Simien's jersey is ceremoniously raised.
winter can be a dark time — for the skies and the mind. Read about how to lighten up and defeat Seasonal Affective Disorder.
DEPRESSION | 9A
Former Associate Athletics Director Blubaugh admits to involvement in the athletics ticket scandal and now faces prison time.
Learn how to beat those blues
.
Ticket defendant pleads guilty
14.
SCANDAL | 9A
SEE SPEECH ON PAGE 5A
CELEBRATION
History brought alive for Kansas Day
BY ANGELIQUE MCNAUGHTON amcnaughton@kansan.com
After nearly a decade of fighting and debates regarding slavery, Kansas had become known as "bleeding Kansas."
志
At the height of those battles and in the midst of the uncertainty that faced the nation, President James Buchanan signed the bill admitting Kansas, a free state, as the 34th state in the Union.
The year was 1861 and a tumultuous year it was.
Kansas Day on Jan. 29 will mark the sesquicentennial, Kansas' 150th birthday, as well as the 134th observed celebration of Kansas' statehood. Events and activities statewide will help commemorate the day.
"Kansas Day is a good opportunity to raise awareness of our state and make people proud to be a Kansan," said Mary Madden, the director of education and outreach for the Kansas State Historical Society and lecturer in the Museum Studies program at the University of Kansas.
Madden, who is originally from Cleveland, but came to Kansas to
SEE TRIBUTE ON PAGE 9A
6
---