[piano intro] - "Shaped by Sound" is a co-production of PBS North Carolina and the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The series is presented by Come Hear North Carolina.

- I'm James Mieczkowski, and this is "Shaped by Sound."

Logan Chaucer and Sam Baker love surfing, classic rock, and being in a band.

Together, they're the Blue Footed Boobies, a psychedelic blues rock duo from Wilmington, North Carolina.

Their music is raw, it's filled with energy, and wrapped in a tie-dye nostalgia.

Today, on "Shaped by Sound," performing within a set inspired by a hazy house party, and in conversation with me, this is the Blue Footed Boobies.

[guitar thrums] [energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ Well I've been around the world a time or two ♪ ♪ But I ain't never seen another woman like you, hey ♪ ♪ Well I've been around with girl or eighty ♪ ♪ But ain't none of them quite as fine as you, baby, uh ♪ ♪ Well I need your love every night and day ♪ ♪ Won't you please send some of your love my way ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm high off your love, babe ♪ ♪ I'm hooked on you ♪ ♪ Well tell me, baby, what's your name ♪ ♪ The way you move your hips, you're driving me insane ♪ ♪ Well I need your love every night and day ♪ ♪ Won't you please send some of your love my way ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm high off your love, babe ♪ ♪ I'm hooked on you ♪ [energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] - We have the Blue Footed Boobies.

Thanks for being in on the show.

- Thanks for having us man, - Yeah.

I'm stoked.

- So wanted to start out with, so, Logan, you're from Wilmington, is that right, yeah?

- I am, yeah.

- And Sam, you're from Kernersville?

- Kernersville, translated to Wilmington in high school, yeah.

- Right on.

What was it like sort of growing up in Wilmington?

- When I was younger, it was a lot smaller than it is now You know it's, like, really blown up 'cause it's such a cool, like, beach town, you know.

It's a college town, so you got a lot of, like, young people.

It's a really good, it's got a really good music scene, still, to this day.

It's a hard place to leave, you know?

- Yeah.

- I always remembered growing up, I always sounded like this kinda like, "Yeah, bro," you know, that Wilmington surfer sound, so all my friends that grew up hunting and everything, they'd always make fun of me because of my accent, so when I moved to Wilmington, I'm like, "Wow, other people sound exactly like me."

I was, like, "This is my place, you know, [energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ You tell me that you love me ♪ ♪ But you just won't let me live ♪ ♪ I gave you all my love ♪ ♪ And I ain't got none left to give ♪ ♪ You tell me that you love me ♪ ♪ But you just won't let me live ♪ ♪ You tell me that you need me ♪ ♪ And you just can't let me go ♪ ♪ Our time is running short ♪ ♪ And I can see in your eyes you know ♪ ♪ You tell me that you need me ♪ ♪ And you just can't let me go ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ You tell me that you love me ♪ ♪ But you just won't let me live ♪ ♪ I gave you all my love ♪ ♪ And I ain't got none left to give ♪ ♪ You tell me that you love me ♪ ♪ But you just won't let me live ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] - In, like, 2015, I broke my leg really bad and couldn't walk.

I picked up the guitar, started teaching myself that, and then I started hanging out with musicians, met Logan, and he was looking for a drummer at the time, and he was, like, "Dude, you should play the drums.

You know, you should play the drums and be on this show I have in two weeks, too."

And I was, like, "I don't know any of your songs.

I don't know really how to play anything other than, like, "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

[laughs] And I just said, "Yeah."

I mean, I think it took a few beers for him to convince me, but yeah, eventually [chuckles], he broke me down and we did it.

And I remember sitting in your Honda Civic that night, after the show, and you were, like, "Hey, dude, you want to do this?"

- Yeah.

- I was, like, "Yeah!"

So the next week, I bought $120 drum kit off Craigslist, - Yeah.

- and started teaching myself on YouTube, and listening to Nirvana, and Dave Grohl drum, and just, like, wanted to kinda mimic what people looked like when they drummed - Okay.

- And not just, like, the complexity of it all, 'cause I knew I was not good at drumming 'cause I had just started [chuckles], so I was, like, I gotta make up for it by being animated, you know, so I would just, like, study a lot of videos and learn that way.

- That's so interesting that you were looking at the way, like, the way that people looked versus what they were actually doing.

Do you feel like that's still, are you still studying that kind of stuff?

- Definitely, I think I, like, playing with Logan, he had already built a fan base, so, you know, playing a live show, going from, like, not really playing to playing a live show in front of 250 people, so I, like, immediately had to think of it from a performance perspective.

- Yeah.

- So yeah, that always was definitely really, really heavy.

Like, what I've thought about a lot is just the performance aspect of it.

And I think that's how Logan probably feels too, is like we're performers first and foremost, and musicians also.

[energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ Sometimes this world never seems to change.

♪ ♪ It's like every day is the same old thing ♪ ♪ I walk down the street, people pass me by ♪ ♪ But lord knows, I'm just biding my time ♪ ♪ 'Til it's my time to fly ♪ ♪ Fly from this town of mine ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ I got dark clouds hanging over me ♪ ♪ I can't get away, so I hide beneath my tree ♪ ♪ I'm a songbird, but I can't fly ♪ ♪ 'Cause if I could, all my songs would be free ♪ ♪ You can't take that from me, no ♪ ♪ Take me high into the sky ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] - I think "My Tree" I wrote, like, kind of at a low point, but to me, it's like a very, like, hopeful song dealing with what's going on in your life, you know?

I wrote that song at at a point in life where I was kinda lonely, you know, but I really do feel like some of the best material, I feel like a lot of songwriters and musicians can relate to this.

Like, a lot of the best art, a lot of the best music, best lyrics, whatever, kinda come to you at a point where, like, you're not necessarily depressed, but, like, maybe you're not at your, like, best, you're not at your, you're kind of at a lower point, you know.

- You've thrown out some of your best music post-breakup.

I mean, [chuckles] like, anytime Logan's, like, "Oh, man, this is not really working out for me," I'm, "Dude, - Write a song.

- this is about to be awesome.

[all laugh] - I mean, it's true, you know, like, when you're going through stuff- - This man's about to go off, [all laugh] let him cook, keep this boy in the kitchen.

[Logan laughs] - Like, when you're dealing with something like that, you know, like, a lot of times, like, there's a lot of emotions in you, like, there's a lot of stuff happening, like, I've always just tried to, like, harness that, and, like, make it something, like, beautiful, you know what I mean?

Like, make it into a really killer song, or, you know, songs like "Take Me Away," or like "Sky is Falling," you know, like, about, like, going through a breakup, or someone leaving you, or whatever, It's like, when you sing it, like, out loud, to, like, you know, at a performance, it's, like, in such a more, like, optimistic light, because, like, people hear it, and they're like, "Yeah," like, "we're in this together," like "I feel that same way," you know what I mean?

We're like that's happening to me, you know, [energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ Now the sky, the sky is falling down ♪ ♪ The sky, the sky is falling down ♪ ♪ I can't seem to find my baby ♪ ♪ And now I'm thinkin' that she skipped town ♪ ♪ The sun, the sun is turning red ♪ ♪ The sun, the sun is turning red ♪ ♪ I can't seem to find my baby ♪ ♪ And now I can't get her out of my head ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [drums beating] [energetic instrumental music continues] [drums beating] [energetic instrumental music continues] [drums beating] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ The sea, yeah, the sea has come ashore ♪ ♪ The sea, yeah, the sea has come ashore ♪ ♪ And if I can't find my baby ♪ ♪ Then I don't need her love no more ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] - The first time I saw y'all was, I guess, 2022, maybe, just after the pandemic.

- Yeah, yeah.

- A friend of mine, a family friend of of mine, it's actually kind of a tough story, but they had recently passed away, and they were, like, a massive Beatles fan, but we were gonna get together, like, all of us were gonna get together in Topsoil, and kind of get together, have a little memorial, and then just, like, you know, do the ashes into the ocean thing, and again, yeah, his name is Billy, who passed away, and Billy's a massive Beatles fan.

We're all sort of like feeling it, you know, we're coming together from all across the interstate and the country, and just kinda hanging out together and being sort of sad, and we were meeting at this restaurant, and you all, the stage for Ocean Fest, I think it was called, was - Ocean Fest, yeah, - literally next to this restaurant - Oh, yeah.

- And it was you two, and I swear, like, as we were all showing up and saying hello, and, like, kinda getting together, y'all went into "Don't Let Me Down" by The Beatles, and I've never felt, like, more, like, connected to a place and time, via music, than that, and it just kind of all sent us, we all started crying, we were just, like, "Oh, my gosh," like, "What are the chances of this?"

And then after that, a friend of mine, his name's Thomas, he lives in in Wilmington, I think he met you at a bar once - Yeah.

- and told you this story.

- I totally, I totally remember, yeah.

[James laughs] - And you were, like, "Well, we'll play that again sometime, man.

We'll play it for you, I guess."

And I think the next time we saw you was in Beaufort, and that was, like, a year later or so, and y'all played that song and gave Tom a shout-out.

- Yeah.

- And I remember being like, "Man, these guys are just incredible, like, truly!"

So, like, thank you so much for for being here and doing what y'all do, because you do connect with people on a level that is, in some ways, just, like, really incredible and transcendent, so thank you.

- Man, thank you so much.

- Yeah.

- That really means a lot, - Thank you.

- you know.

- It does mean a lot.

- That's such a huge part of why we do it is, like, just, like, connecting with people, you know, like, music is just something that brings people together, and, like, everybody just comes out just to, you know, to see us, but I feel like even more so, it's just, like, to see everybody that you know, and, like, as time goes by, those connections are kinda more few and far between.

- For sure.

- Yeah, I know we're extremely grateful to you guys for this opportunity to come here.

- Oh.

- I don't know if we told you how excited we were, but we have been, - So log.

- I mean for months.

- Thank you so much for being here and being on the show.

- Thank you guys for having us.

- Yeah, of course.

- It's been awesome, man.

It's been a dream, it's been super cool.

[energetic instrumental music] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] ♪ Just call it out ♪ ♪ And watch the way you change as you throw the dice ♪ ♪ Can't get enough ♪ ♪ To see you throw your troubles into the skies ♪ ♪ Fade away ♪ ♪ Please don't fade away now ♪ ♪ Fade away ♪ ♪ Please don't fade away ♪ [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] [energetic instrumental music continues] - [James] Thanks for joining us on "Shaped by Sound."

If you'd like to hear more of our discussion from today, you can find it over on our website at pbsnc.org/ShapedbySound, or you can find them on our PBS North Carolina YouTube channel.

♪ When I see your face I think ♪ ♪ When I see your face I think ♪ ♪ Of nights that we had like this ♪ ♪ The bottle I'm drinking from is deep ♪ ♪ It seems with medicine so sweet ♪ ♪ When I hear your voice I think ♪ ♪ Of nights that we had like this ♪ ♪ I said so pour me anther round ♪ ♪ I'm wasted ♪ ♪ How do I feel tonight ♪ ♪ I can't feel my face ♪ - [Announcer] "Shaped by Sound" is a co-production of PBS North Carolina and the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The series is presented by Come Hear North Carolina.