Introduction
What a difference a year makes.
When the Cherry Poppin' Daddies released "Zoot Suit Riot" last summer, the album arrived with minimal fanfare and managed to fly under the radar of the masses for many of the months that followed.
Now, after the unlikely mainstream success of all things swing-flavored, a heralded turn on this summer's Vans Warped Tour, and a breakthrough video that earned the band an MTV Video Music Award nomination, the Daddies are in the catbird seat. This week, just as the band finished its run on the Warped Tour, "Zoot Suit Riot" finally cracked the Billboard top 20.
The Daddies have been doing the voodoo that they do for a decade, and like many artists who suddenly see the form they love go mainstream, they are quick to point out what's been lost in the translation (they don't play swing, they play jump blues). However, they aren't getting territorial either. As frontman Steve Perry and guitarist Jason Moss explained when MTV News Online's Robert Mancini caught up with them during a recent Warped Tour stop, as far as the Daddies are concerned, the more the merrier.
Perry and Moss also talked about hooking up with noted porn director Gregory Dark for their first video, teaming with Jamie Caliri for a more surreal second video, and where swing needs to go to become more than a passing fancy.
Here, you'll find all that and much more.
Enjoy.