Brian Shram is not one to sit around. When he’s not in the studio, he’s on the road touring…during his spare time? Oh, he has another career as a professional fisherman.  LiveScope.co phoned in with Brian from his home in Michigan to catch up on what the next move is for Shram and the new material the guys are writing.

LiveScope.co: How was touring the country with Cruefest?

Brian: Fantastic! The first things you think about jumping on such a major tour is “Where will the stage be placed”, “How many people will be showing up”, “How are the other bands going to be?”. But it was a very pleasant surprise and Monster did a great job day in and out with a great staff. Of course, some shows were better then others, but we made great friends and got close with the guys in Cavo.

LiveScope.co: What’s in store next? Can we expect more tour dates?

Brian: We are open to anything at this point. Our main focus right now is to get back into the studio and lay down some new material and try to find that smash hit that will get a reaction and get on the radio. After that, we will follow it up with a major tour. We got to meet a lot of great people on the road, band and industry people alike.

LiveScope.co: What’s the recording process like with Shram?

Brian: I try to make the process as much of a collaboration as possible. I do bring most of the material to the table being that I have my own home studio. Most of the time I will get an idea at three or four in the morning and bring it to the studio. The next day at rehearsal I’ll have the guys listen to it and put their own personal touches into the song. The cool thing about the band is that we are all on the same page and have that common goal of what we are trying to achieve which not all bands can say.

LiveScope.co: How did you link up with Dave and Jason?

Brian: They each have separate stories as to when they were part of the Shram band. After I got done touring with Uncle Kracker I went through a lot of musicians, some that were great players and others who simply weren’t. Dave was prepped into joining the band and brings so much talent to the table both on and off the stage. That situation turned out better then I thought it would, it’s great. Dave also new Jason from some projects they had worked on previously and he had done some work with Shram too. Years later, we were in a bind playing a gig in Milwaukee opening for Les Claypool and didn’t have a drummer. Jason knew all of the tracks from start to finish and came through big for us. He’s been with us ever since.

LiveScope.co: Let’s hear a crazy road story to finish things off…it can be as PG or X Rated as you want it to be.

Brian: I’ll have to go with the most recent incident we had for the last stop of the tour in Buffalo, NY. The turbo on our tour bus went, which essentially means the bus can’t go faster then 10 miles per hour. I flagged down a few cars and eventually found a big bronco that agreed to bring myself and as much equipment that would fit in the truck for $150. After the two hour ride we finally got to Buffalo and he demanded $200 for the gas and tolls he incurred. The bands gear and I were held for randsom! It turned into an ordeal and there were a few shouting matches, but at the end of the day we made it to the last gig of the tour…the only band to accomplish that feat.