“Stay the course. Keep on trying.” So sings Glenn Mercer on the Feelies’ In Between, their sixth album and second since rebooting in 2008. Last year, the Haledon, N.J., band founded by guitarists Mercer and Bill Million celebrated its 40th anniversary. Crazy Rhythms, their frenetic, classic debut, arrived in 1980, but they waited six years for their second, the comparatively sedate The Good Earth. That was the first Feelies album with the band’s current lineup of Mercer, Million, bassist Brenda Sauter, drummer Stan Demeski and percussionist Dave Weckerman. After the (relatively) quick run of three albums between 1986 and 1991, the band retired until Sonic Youth coaxed a reunion in 2008 that led to sporadic touring and to 2011’s Here Before. The Feelies will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our new feature on them.
Demeski: When I was about to turn 27, my then future wife and I had been together for about a year and a half. I had been talking about getting a vintage drum set for awhile. She asked me if I wanted one for my birthday. So this was my 27th birthday gift from her. I’m not sure how to date these drums, but it’s probably from the early ’60s. I use it as a four piece, although I got two small toms with it. It’s my favorite out of my five drum sets. I’ve used it at live shows on special occasions, on about half of the sessions for the third Luna record (including the two-song demo I did with Tom Verlaine during those sessions) and on all the songs on the new Feelies LP except for two.
