Reese Van Riper is no stranger to anything strange or musical. Van Riper has been in the industry for a good portion of his life. From playing shows up and down the United States to planning a gig right here at Factory Records in New Jersey; he’s ready to make it all worth the wait.
The legend behind Reese Van Riper is plentiful. His music is an amazing cascade of sounds covered in gooey and yummy lyrical ballads that tell of the good times as well as the bad. Reese’s fanbase is truly something to discuss. There are not many bands who do what Reese Van Riper does – even more, not many bands, especially within the scene, have as much pull and love that Van Riper has. This, is not only a nod to what the band are capable of, but what the singer can do.
I recently sat with the lead singer of the band, David Thompson. The interview was a great look inside of the mind of the man behind the band that loves to love their fans. I could tell that David was influenced by a lot of bands and artists, so that’s where we started.
I asked: “There have been an incredible amount of rock and roll personas over the years. Gene Simmons, Alice
Cooper to more modern examples like Ghost. Who is influencing Reese Van Riper?”
Thompson: “I listen to so much music. I have so many influences…Dave Mathews when I first started, then the more blues artists as time went on.” He would then name such acts as Bruce Springsteen and Nick Cave being huge to the sound of Reese Van Riper.
What may be the most intriguing part of the interview was learning about Andy Dick. I’m a huge Dick fan and this was truly and incredible story because Thompson was able to work with Andy Dick on a song. It all started when a friend of Thompson’s was sent a Cameo by Andy Dick. His friend would as Andy Dick how to get him onto a song and Dick would go back and forth with the two until there was something to be done. Alas, the song, ‘My Best Friend’ by Gene Wilder’s Vacation was born.
I then asked Thompson about the current vinyl revival going on, which, we at Factory love. I asked: ” Speaking of the music industry as a whole, while the so-called vinyl revival is seemingly at full force, did you ever envision a time where physical media would be so prevalent in the age of Spotify and other streaming services?”
He responded: “I pray for a time. I want the physical. I miss the physical. I love the vinyl. I’ve always had vinyl. I’ll be here every month, hopefully, to get something new. Did I envision a time where vinyl would come back and where CDs would come back? No. Unfortuneatly, there aren’t a lot of vinyl businesses. “
On March 25th, Factory Records will be holding a listening party for Saints, and before I ended the interview, I gave Thompson a few moments to address the people about what to expect from Reese Van Riper.
“People of Factory Records. People of Legion of Reese Van Riper, be prepared for an experience of your life. We’re gonna transform the space into Heaven. We’re going to have champagne. We’re going to have artists display their art. We’re going to have clown girls. Thank you for thinking of coming. Thank you for eventually coming to March 25th at Factory Records.”
