The Grand Rapids post-hardcore band brings its national tour back home with a show Saturday at GLC Live at 20 Monroe. The Local Spins interview with this iconic Michigan group.
Telling Stories, Reveling in Band Camaraderie: La Dispute (Photo/Martin)
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On the outskirts of town, there’s a nondescript, two-story building that sits a few feet off a main drag. Traffic races by — cars, motorbikes, city buses.
Inside, there’s a few rehearsal spaces, an auto garage and some bare-bones rooms that are little more than drywall.
La Dispute has just concluded their final rehearsal before their national headlining tour, in support of their latest record, “No One Was Driving the Car.” (Scroll down to view the video.)
Out back, in a fenced-off parking lot, a tour bus idles, hardly blending in with the industrial surroundings. Glossy black windows. Turquoise-painted chassis.
They’re leaving tonight. Road cases are seen being rolled out of the garage and into the trailer. Band and crew members circle up outside in the sunshine, talking shop or just talking.
“Keeping friendships alive is crucial. That’s the biggest thing, I think. If it was hard to be around each other 24/7, which is what touring is, then this would be impossible. But thankfully, even so many years later, we’re all still friends and it’s still fun to be around each other,” says bassist Adam Vass.
La Dispute makes its homecoming stop on the tour at GLC Live at 20 Monroe in Grand Rapids, along with From Indian Lakes, on Saturday (May 9). Tickets start at $42.50 and are available online here. (Some $30 tickets are available through Live Nation’s “Summer of Live” promotion through Tuesday, May 5.) Doors open at 6:30 p.m.; the show starts at 7:30p.m.
The current lineup includes vocalist Jordan Dreyer, drummer Brad Vander Lugt, guitarist Chad Morgan-Sterenberg, guitarist Corey Stroffolino and bass guitarist Adam Vass.
Originally founded in Grand Rapids in 2004, the post-hardcore band became known for their heavy instrumentation, accentuated by poetic lyrics and vivid storytelling.
La Dispute at The Pyramid Scheme: ‘The impulse to create keeps us going.’ (Photo/Veronica Ann Dearborn)
“I’m a terribly verbose person. I’ve always been bad at self editing. Which kind of works in favor of the style of writing I do,” says vocalist Jordan Dreyer.
“I like to tell stories. A big part of that is having a canvas on which to tell said story. There’s a lot of back and forth within the band. A lot of tweaking the sonic structure. For me, ultimately my appreciation for writing is an ascetic one. I like the look of words on a page.”
Their early days were forged by sweaty house shows and packed DIY spaces like The DAAC. Now five albums deep, a number of European, U.K. and Australian tours under their belt, the band has garnered a following of diehard fans around the world. Still, they strive for the same sense of community at shows.
“I feel like hardcore shows and punk shows are pretty dependent on interacting with people who are there to see something that is less of a band performing and more of people experiencing something together,” says Dreyer.
Another sure component lending itself to the longevity of the band is the innate urge to make things. With the lockdown that came as a result of a global pandemic in 2020, the tour bus wheels came grinding to a halt. With that a new reality set in.
“The impulse to create keeps us going. Especially after COVID shut down the industry for three years,” says Dreyer.
“It was the first time in over 20 years that we weren’t able to do this. During that forced time away, I think everyone arrived at the same conclusion, which is that this band is essential to our character at this point – to make music together and be a part of the community around it.”
VIDEO: La Dispute, “No One Was Driving the Car”
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