Boston Market & The Misfits: Phil From Accounting On Their Single, “High Waist Jeans”
Photo Courtesy of Cassie Doyle
It’s a chilly Saturday night and Phil From Accounting is about to take the stage at East Williamsburg venue Pet Rescue. Bassist Amanda Webster has a cold, guitarist Eric Sturm is explaining why moth memes are worthy of the hype, and drummer Jamie Williams is pleasantly surprised that someone also has his Hawaiian shirt adorned with lobsters. Just before showtime, the three members meet by the elevator to ask each other the following questions about life, love, celebrity ballroom dancing, and their new single “High Waist Jeans.”
What TV characters would you love to form a band?
Jamie: I always imagined the Stranger Things kids forming a band where they play songs by the Misfits with Mike and Lucas on guitars, Dustin on bass, Eleven on Drums, and Will singing like Glenn Danzig.
Amanda: Ooo! Eleanor Shellstrop (The Good Place) on Guitar, Jane (Jane the Virgin) on Bass/ Vox, Willow (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) on Drums, then Frankie (Grace & Frankie) as Band Mom/ Manager with Scooby Doo as their sidekick. I wish we had a talking dog sidekick.
Eric: Agent Cooper (Twin Peaks) on bass, Gene (Bob’s Burgers) on keys, Nathan Fielder (Nathan For You) on smoke detector, and Log Lady (Twin Peaks) on log.
Favorite chain restaurant?
Jamie: TGI Fridays. I’m a sucker for potato skins and random shit on the walls.
Amanda: Boston Market! Everyday is Thanksgiving when you’re in a Boston Market.
Eric: The Cheesecake Factory.
How did you come up with “High Waist Jeans”?
Amanda: I had been playing around with the riff for awhile—I wanted a Tina Weymouth like riff and I used those lyrics initially as just a joke about being dropped off from a party in high school (I have a notoriously small bladder). Then I showed it to Jamie and he threw the chorus in there and something just clicked! Why not!
Jamie: It’s true. I can write choruses, it’s just the rest of the song I always have trouble with. But it worked out in this case!
If you had to put “High Waist Jeans” in an ad, what would it be?
Amanda: I think a Depends ad of a bunch of cute old people on a bus.
Jamie: On a similar note, those LifeAlert emergency buttons. I want the song’s chorus “I can’t make it that far” to replace “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”
Eric: Jeans.
Celebrity you’d like to learn ballroom dancing with.
Jamie: Edie McClurg from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
Amanda: Paddington Bear.
Eric: Timothée Chalamet.
Favorite album cover?
Amanda: The Gregory Crewdson cover for Yo La Tengo’s “And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out”. It feels like an entire movie in a single image.
Jamie: I wouldn’t say I have a favorite, but ones that come to mind are The Go-Go’s “Vacation” or A Tribe Called Quest’s “The Low End Theory.” I’m a big fan of album covers that look like what the record sounds like.
Eric: Pavement’s “Brighten The Corners”, Sleater-Kinney’s “Dig Me Out”, or R.E.M.’s “Document.”
What’s your favorite quiche?
Eric: Spinach, sun-dried tomato, and goat cheese.
Jamie: Bacon and goat cheese. It’s a niche quiche.
Amanda: I’m just in it for the crust.
What’s your favorite smell?
Eric: Wood fire on a cold day.
Jamie: Dry erase markers.
Amanda: Fresh laundry.
Ideal touring transportation?
Jamie: The Ultimate Behemoth from The Simpsons.
Amanda: The Millennium Falcon. It made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs. Do you have any idea how quick we could get around the state of Texas?
Eric: b44SBS or 2006 Honda Odyssey.
It’s Halloween and you’re planning a cover show. What band is playing, who are they covering, and what are you wearing to the show?
Eric: Jay Som as The Smiths and I’m dressed as Oscar Wilde.
Jamie: LCD Soundsystem as the Star Wars Cantina band and I’m dressed as a Walmart Greedo, if only to see the look on people’s face when I make that pun.
Amanda: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band playing the Monster Mash and I’m dressed as Mrs. Doubtfire.