Ambulette Hits a Speed Bump
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“We’re constantly paranoid about getting our stuff ripped off,” says Rapsys. His kit has been stolen before, while he was on tour with Azita in Toronto in 2004. “So after we played in Philly, we made a point to drive 20 or 25 minutes out of town and stayed at this really nice Extended Stay America. We woke up at like eight the next morning and our van had been opened up and almost everything was gone.”
The band estimates that nearly $20,000 worth of gear was taken, including several vintage amps and guitars, among them Clark’s prized 1959 Fender Jazzmaster. “Fortunately we had the foresight to get insurance before we really hit the road with this band, because we knew at some point or another if you’re on the road, your shit’s gonna get ripped off,” says Rapsys. “So we went to State Farm and bought gear insurance.”
After replacing their equipment, the band headed to Los Angeles in late June to start rehearsing and meet with producer Dave Schiffman, who’s worked frequently with Rick Rubin and whose clients include everyone from Johnny Cash and Liz Phair to Anti-Flag and System of a Down.
De Nova, produced by the usually reliable Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, Beck), was a disappointing-sounding album, without much muscle or a real sonic personality, and this time the Redwalls are hoping they’ve found a producer who’ll play better to their strengths. The contract isn’t signed yet, but barring a last-minute disaster they’ll be recording with Swedish producer Tore Johansson, who made his name in the mid-90s working with the Cardigans. He also produced Franz Ferdinand’s self-titled 2004 album and, more pertinently from Capitol’s point of view, did a bang-up job with Oh No, the sophomore album from OK Go–another young Chicago pop band that needed to establish a mature identity.
