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Nine years ago, the Walkmen broke up.
Or they went on anextreme hiatus.Or they just disappeared for a bit.
It depends on whom you ask.
People had been making offers for a Walkmen reunion for years.
I just didnt want to do that.
I cant speak for anyone else.
I was doing my own records, and I was touring a lot anyhow.
If we wanted to play in the Walkmen, we wouldnt have walked away in the first place.
But this was the first time it sounded fun.
Everybody else was onboard.
It was obviously a big moment in my life.
I dont know if that has anything to do with it.
It took something that big to bring us all together.
Youve announced the shows at Webster Hall and at Shaky Knees festival.
Im sure everyones wondering: Are there plans for new music?No, no.
We havent discussed that.
Im working on so much stuff.
I dont see that happening right now.
I wouldnt be against it in the future I really love writing with those guys.
Maybe after we play together well be interested in that, but not right now.
Were not going to turn into the Pixies or something like that.
Nobody wants to do that.
We just wanted to do what was fun.
Now we just dont need to.
Were doing only the stuff we want to do, and thats a great feeling.
Some of the guys were like, Lets do it.
That sounds so weird.
We dont have a new record to promote.
Ill promote our band.
I love our band and our catalogue.
I love playing live.
I dont want to literally redo something.
But weve never talked about it.
And Im really happy doing what Im doing right now, and Im really busy.
I dont see that changing for me anytime soon.
Are you working on another solo record right now?I am.
Then lets have that conversation.
Youve all kept busy in various ways over the years.
When I go on tour now Im, like, the boss.
I never wanted to be the boss.
It was never my ambition.
I dont make a good boss.
you’re able to ask the guys in the Walkmen.
I dont have that control or need …
I dont know what the word is alpha male.
So do you feel like the gangs back together?I dont know.
I havent seen the guys in person.
You havent rehearsed yet?Fuck no.
We got some stubborn mules in our group, let me tell you.
You dont think people will have moved on in the last ten years?I dont know.
I dont have that big power instrument.
To play with Paul and Matt and Walt and Pete, it becomes this wall, this force.
We did work for a very long time to come up with that sound.
I just didnt want to play those big rock songs.
When I startedBlack Hours, I wanted to do an album that was all symphonic.
I added some rock and roll in there, but Ive been very wary of doing huge reverb-y guitars.
During the time away from the Walkmen, did you go back to the music often?
I was wondering if your perspective on it wouldve changed.
It wasnt conscious, but it was sort of a perfect bookend.
Nobody was thinking about it like that then; it really just felt like wed run our course.
It wasnt any animosity.
When you start something like that, it doesnt matter if youve done all this other stuff.
The history doesnt mean anything.
Looking atAre we going to do this again?, we didnt see a direction for it.
You thought at some point that the Walkmen might never play together again.Yeah.
Its so hard to imagine in the beginning.
You tell yourself youre on your own path now.
In time, I got pretty far away.
I was doing all the same festivals we used to do.
I played the same clubs we used to play.
It set in that it was my new life.
I have my own thing, and its not going anywhere.
I dont feel that way at all.
I feel like something is there, and its ours, and we built that.
We put a lot of fucking work into that.
Before he said that, what was the plan?
I wouldnt say there was a plan.
From my perspective, Id been wanting to do a record away from the Walkmen for a while.
Everyone had thought about that.
If you looked at our contemporaries, everyone had a side project.
I think some were surprised.
I wouldve liked to have not told anybody.
I wouldve liked to have done a solo record and toured.
Telling the world we were breaking up was a huge mistake because it became such a bigger story.
It was a little bit frustrating.
We knew it was going to change.
I only ever wanted to do a solo record.
I never wanted to tell anyone we were breaking up.
I used to use weird language.
Extreme hiatus.No, thats Petes words.
That followed me around for so many years.
They were comparing me to Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin.
I was like, Fuck you, dude.
I didnt say this.
I have no idea what that means.
Id just like to see my friends.
We could play a different set every night, which Id hope to do thatll be a fight.
Itll be fun to have some of the old fights.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
