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Paddy: if you have a story that hovers in and around Duluth to not have trampled in that story

Dave: We would be personally offended

Paddy: Yeah, totally. That's like not mentioning hot dish if you're talking about Minnesota. Do you guys feel like that? Do you feel like trampled is as ubiquitous as like a Juicy Lucy or a tater tot hot dish

Dave: I will say in my, in my day-to-day life, no, I don't think that, but people do say things like that to me sometimes, and I don't listen to our band. So for me, like I, I've lived here almost my whole life and it's not part of my soundtrack at all.

Paddy: You know, like how professional athletes will watch game film? You won't like, you know what, I need to go revisit that album from 2003.

Dave: I have no interest in improving at all.

MUSIC IN THE CLEAR

PADDY INTRO VO:

In 1941, Swiss engineer George de Mestral was hunting in the Alps with his dog, when he noticed something peculiar. Burrs. They were everywhere. Stuck to his jacket, pants, hat, his pup was riddled with [00:01:00] them. So he did the obvious: de Mestral picked the burrs off his clothes and pooch, examined them under a microscope where he discovered their stickiness was due to teeeeeny hooks and loops, which then inspired a question, "Hmmm, can I possibly recreate this?" And that question dominated the next decade of de Mestral's life as he burrowed his creativity and intellect into every conceivable combination of natural and synthetic materials and sewing processes until one magical day, presto chango, the world has Velcro.

This is probaby the most famous example of Biomimicry, the imitation of nature's stategies to solve human design challenges. Now, a less well-known example but a much more intriguing one - sorry, de Mestral - is the life and music of Dave Simonett, founder and lead singer of Trampled By Turtles.

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Dave grew up in Mankato, Minnesota, about 80 miles southwest of the Twin Cities at [00:02:00] the conflunece of the Minnesota and Blue Earth rivers. Like the rest of the state, winters there are bitterly cold, summers are often hot and muggy. And as is ever the Minnesotan way, Dave spent his youth loving that weather. No matter Mother Nature's temmperment, Dave was in the woods. When he formed Trampled By Turtles in Duluth in 2003, Dave's lifelong connection to nature - hiking, skiing, fishing - combined in his music with other influences, his love of the in-your-face tempo of punk and grunge bands and the songwriting of legendary fellow Minnesotan, Bob Dylan.

Today, Dave doesn't just hike, fish, ski, and hunt--he's an active conservationist for Minnesota's spectacular Boundary Waters. And that, along with inspiration drawn from the spacious and stark woods of Northern Minnesota, is as integral to his music as his guitar. Don't believe us? Hear for yourself on June 1st, when Trampled by Turtles plays [00:03:00] the second annual �����ԹϺ��� Festival in downtown Denver, Colorado.

Dave's songwriting is a celebration of Minnesota, a state that's not always top of mind for those seeking outdoor adventure, but should be. Minnesota is beautiful and humble in a way that can softly influence a life with a striking impact. Maybe it's no Velcro, but after you hear Dave talk about his favorite Minnesotan locales, his music will stick with ya all the same.

MUSIC

Paddy: first things first, burnt toast.

What is your last humbling and or hilarious moment outside?

Dave: Uh, well, it wasn't very hilarious to me at the time, but, um, the two, two years ago, uh, my son and actually a lot of our band and crew went to the boundary waters together for a little bonding, and on the way out it was pouring rain, miserable paddle, you know, and, and we were almost done. And we get all the way back to where all the trucks are. It had been a hell of a day. We're hugging every, you know, we made it. [00:04:00] And, uh, come to find out I left a bag, , back at a Portage two lakes ago. I mean, I almost left it there, but my son, who was , 11 at the time, told me to stop being a baby and let's just get back in the boat and paddle back there and go get it. And honestly, one of the most proud moments I've had as a father, and it ended up being a blast.

Sometimes things out there get so ridiculous that you just gotta laugh. And we were just getting dumped on and, you know, it was like 30 mile an hour winds on open water on in this little light canoe and just getting blown all over hell. And, , we got back out of that and, I think he and I ended up.

Being a lot closer after that little paddle. But I was not a happy character at the beginning of that man.

Paddy: Did you immediately take him to like the toy store or like, go buy a, a steak dinner or something? it.

Dave: We did, we did go out to eat. Yeah. But we, we also had like a seven hour drive home, so

you know, pile that on the day. But we learn a lot, don't we?

Paddy: Alright, let's get into it.

MUSIC IN THE CLEAR FOR A BEAT

If somebody stopped you on the street and [00:05:00] said like, Hey, who are you? What do you like to do? Would you say outdoorsman? Would you say, , conservationist? Would you say, hunter?

Dave: Yeah, I'd probably start with those to

Paddy: Oh, before musician.

Dave: well, depends on what point in life I guess I'd be asked. I think right now at, at this point, even though music, you know, it still takes up more of my time than anything else. My passions are split a little bit more equally nowadays. Uh, I mean, conservation.

It's more of like a life's work, I feel like, with the people that I know that are in it. Less of a hobby than, than a lifestyle, and the older I get, the more I see the value in it, uh, in the philosophy involved in it.

Even just in my day to day, like earlier before we were talking, I was hiking my dogs in this little patch of woods near my house. , and just watching Spring happen, you know, and it's kind of my daily meditation to do something like that. Really appreciating those little spaces that we have allowed to remain that way.

And, realizing that it's not out of the goodness of. the hearts of the government or whatever, that they're there. There's a lot of really passionate people that work for these things

Paddy: you [00:06:00] are an outdoorsy guy. You were a scout as a kid. You grew up in Minnesota, which though incredibly maligned like the rest of the Midwest, what I know from my time living in Minnesota is that it is double stuffed with frothing outdoor folks and adventures.

Duluth, where you formed trampled by Turtles is one of the most kick ass outdoorsy towns in the country, albeit very much under the radar. In a classic kind of unassuming, Minnesotan way, what makes outdoor adventure in Minnesota unique and inspiring? You know, like for example, I think here in the Rockies, right?

You could say the Rockies are all about the opportunity to stand on top of the country at 14,000 feet, so , what's Minnesota all about?

Dave: Well, the natural beauty here is, not as obvious. And it's, it's, it's a little, you, I like to say humble, but I, it's not like it's of its own volition. It's just the way the land is, when I think of the outdoors here, and we do have several different landscapes, like you know, any [00:07:00] state larger than, you know, probably Rhode Island or whatever, but, we have our prairies and our hardwood forest in the southern part of the state, and then the northern parts boreal and, , a lot of pine birch, kind of reminiscent of maybe what people would think of as Maine,

so there's a lot of different ways to experience all of these things, you know, but it's not right, it's not as obvious as, driving to Aspen and looking out the door and just being slack jaw all day. , it's a little more subtle than that,

Paddy: The maroon bells are really showy.

Dave: What people think of here is, is lakes. And that that's something we have a lot of. , you know, boundary waters, canoe area, wilderness, that's probably our crown jewel of an example of that landscape that's, , still left to be a wild place.

It's pretty far out and I'd put a sunrise there up against any sunrise anywhere

Paddy: , I think a lot of people when they think of the Midwest, they think of like corn fields, flat corn fields, , and Minnesota, , to me is like rolling woods,

Dave: yeah. It's not sparse.

Paddy: right. The rust belt runs through that northern part of, the Midwest, [00:08:00] and there's some crazy looking terrain

so do you think , the unique thing about Minnesota or adventures in Minnesota is like. The surprising nature , of what people might think the Midwest is.

Dave: Yeah, , I do think that, I mean, I still get surprised by it sometimes. , I remember, and this isn't Minnesota, but I remember the, actually the first time that our band, I mean, 25 years ago played in Iowa and we played in this little northern Iowa town called Decora, and it was my first exposure To what's considered the Driftless area, if you've ever heard of that. And Minnesota has a chunk of that. The Driftless is , in reference to the glacial drift.

The glaciers didn't make it into that area for whatever reason. So there's no glacial drift. So the landscape is kind of steep and there's a lot of trout streams, hidden valleys it almost looks like a small mountain range. And so anyway, , there's a lot of surprising landscapes here.

You know how it is. You only have so much time, especially as an adult. you go to explore what you can. And in my last decade or so, , I've been just trying to branch out more, [00:09:00] you know, within a hundred miles of my house or something. And I still find such cool stuff everywhere. And I think there's a, a quality of being able to appreciate landscapes wherever you are. And, , I try to, you know, the old saying, bloom where you planted kind of, I, I, I enjoy looking for it.

Paddy: , the grass is green, not on the other side, but

Dave: Yeah. Everywhere

Paddy: grass. The grass is green. Where you water, you know?

Dave: Yep.

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I love it here, but I love to explore, you know, that illness or whatever gets cured by touring. I really enjoyed coming back from all those places to here. To clear my mind from all the busyness of a tour that's about as, as much, humanity as I can take. Uh, you know what I mean? Like, if I had to come back from a tour and then go to my house in the middle of la I might lose my mind. I love la I'll go out there for a weekend anytime. But, , I needed some space. I don't like to boomerang between you know, super urban and then super rural. I kind of like to, to be able to move in between the two any day I [00:10:00] want. And I have that, here. I live kind of right outside, right next to Minneapolis, which is, even Minneapolis is a bigger city that I probably choose to live in , you know, if I was independently wealthy.

I like winter. . , which I really, I mean, I, half the stuff I like to do outside is when it's snowing. So, , it has that, it's a great place to raise a family. I could go on and on really, but, another life and another circumstance, I might have ended up somewhere else and who knows.

But for this one, this has been great.

Paddy: Well, I am glad that you said that you love winter. I love winter too. Um, winter in Minnesota is a different animal altogether.

Dave: it's a good time to write songs as they

Paddy: well that's what I wanna ask you about. 'cause you've said that Minnesota specifically, I think Northern Minnesota winters have inspired your music, , , and the Midwest in its unfair poo-pooed ness from people outside of the Midwest.

I think the bitter cold winters has a lot to do with that what do you think is the most unappreciated [00:11:00] part of Minnesota winters?

Dave: Like unappreciated from an outside point of view.

Paddy: Yes. What do you think is unappreciated from the outside? And then what do you appreciate about it? Like, I have done the Minnesota thing of like, um, you know, you boil the water and you throw it up in the air and it turns into, , vapor. I've also done that with coffee and it's just like this brown cloud, like it works with hot coffee.

It kind of looks like a turd cloud. It is like floating,

Dave: It's like a visualization of a fart.

Paddy: Yes, exactly. It works though,

Dave: I'll try it. I'll try it next winter.

you know, it gets dark at four 30 here and, I crave my little writing studio and a guitar.

, and that's, when my, psyche wants to do it the most. And I try to honor that, you know, I mean, there's lots I want to do outside in the winter too, but, , it's kind of a time like, where you kind of give yourself the leniency to look inside and, try to make something.

That's what I've always used that time for. And I, that is maybe the thing I look forward. You know, I like to go ice [00:12:00] fishing, but the thing I look forward to most about winter is writing.

Not that long ago here when winter was a, time where every, everything just kind of stopped. You know what I mean? People just kind of tried to survive through the winter.

And you probably didn't see anybody, what we would call hunker down. That's less the case now, but there's still that, , vibe. There's a kind of a quiet for a lot of reasons, , nature's just quieter when it's cold, it feels a little bit of a slower pace. conversely here, summertime is so hectic. Not just because of my job, but everybody kind of squeezes a lot of stuff into three months or four months. . And, you know, I'm always ready for it to be done when it's time for it to be done.

But the pace of winter. , you know, in say January, , is something that I, I've kind of become a little bit romantic about. And I think that's probably underappreciated, , for who knows why, but I mean, yeah, it's cold, but, people, I complain about being cold in the winter. I mean, just go inside . It's not that big of a deal. , I get it. Like I, I mean, if you want palm trees every day, I love 'em.

I'm about to go see 'em this week actually. , but for me, I [00:13:00] love the little windows of, , creativity

Paddy: do you think that because of that, you are writing more like slower laments or are you like writing dancier, more uptempo tunes like, oh, I wish I kind

Dave: overcorrect.

Paddy: Yeah.

Dave: I mean, it's hard to say, but I think that kind of stuff is more phase of life for me, or, you know, reactions to, creative whims. I think the weather in the wintertime will give me a space to do it,

but I don't know if that's, as necessarily like, oh, I'm gonna write sad songs 'cause it's cold outside or. That being said, I mean, look at reggae music and where that comes from. That's a lot of, lot of happy stuff. So maybe I'm completely wrong about that. Yeah.

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I love locality in art like that, like, can you listen to, , oh man, this, this band I really like called, I use these guys as an example.

'cause I think it's kind of obvious, but there's this band Calexico, right? And they're old buddies of ours and they're from the southwest or from, uh, Arizona. And you listen to that band, you're like, [00:14:00] that, it sounds like the desert,

I'm a real believer in, the natural world around you fully affecting your art and, I hope to never lose that and I. Sometimes I, I get worried about that, like, getting used to it too much and , not letting it affect me. , you know, the first time you see something is like, whoa. And then the millionth time you see it, you, you can start to take things for granted. I hope that I can be some kind of a, channel for whatever this area sounds like, you know?

Paddy: Well, how do you make sure then that you are staying fresh eyed on the terrain around you is there a practice that you do? Are you intentional around that?

Dave:  Yeah, I am intentional around that. Like the, place I was just hiking today, I've been, I don't know how many, hundreds of times. And this is like a little, you know, five acre, 10 acre place, maybe, you know, I was still in there looking around and. Maybe it's something to do with just my personality. I don't know. But I, I do think that I could probably take a, like square mile and explore that for the rest of my life.

you look, there's so much going on everywhere. , I [00:15:00] love to get out , and explore new places but , there is something to becoming very familiar with a spot which, , is a slow pace, you know?

That kind of mindset, I use it in, you know, try to use it in music too and not let it, blow past me so fast and go and explore little sections of stuff that maybe I overlook., and so I think you can, it is up to you really how, how much you wanna find in something.

It's almost an infinite well,

Paddy: Does taking your kids out help that,

Dave: oh yeah. Absolutely. That's, that's my favorite.

We took our whole family up to the boundary waters back when, I don't remember how old the kids were. 7, 6, 7, 8 back in that area. When you go do anything outside with kids fishing, we've done a lot of that together too.

If you take your kids fishing when they're four, you don't, it's not like you're going fishing, you know what I mean?

Paddy: You're doing like hook management

Dave: and Yeah. You're like, just, I mean, it's so active as

Paddy: Yeah.

Dave: not, you're not sitting on the boat and just relaxing in the sunshine and catching a couple fish or whatever.

It's like, it's a different [00:16:00] gear but , there's something about, , watching a kid, see a fish for their first time on their hook or, , paddle across a lake where, they don't see anybody for four days or something like that. And seeing them connect with the natural world in their own head space. I, I remember that as a kid. It's still very powerful for me. And, you know, I think all of us wanna pass something along and once you have kids, it's kind of your natural instinct, I don't know if my daughter's Gonna do back country trips when she is an adult. I have no idea. But she will know how to, and she will also have had that, quiet space in the natural world as part of her upbringing.

Paddy: Is there a specific trip that you guys went on where you were like, oh man, this is like, my kids are little Buddhas.

Dave: I wouldn't go that far. Um, I'll say that that first boundary waters trip had a lot of challenges, right? First of all, it rained the entire time. We were there for four days and it never stopped raining. and the kids are little, you know, , with that rain came a incredible wind.

And I don't know if you've, anybody [00:17:00] out there who's paddled Kevlar canoes that weigh about 30 pounds, you know, , on open water with a lot of wind and your, the other person in your boat is paddling, is seven years old. Uh, this is a hell of a day, you know? Um, yeah. Yeah. And I mean, to the point where it kind of wondering if it were going to go home,

Paddy: Yeah,

Dave: uh, but we didn't, and.

We got to a campsite and we set up, I tried to have as much fun with the weather as possible. I knew it was gonna be a rough weather, whatever. So we brought a bunch of extra tarps and stuff. We made this big, you know, indoor quote unquote kitchen. And they were just in their rain gear all day and they were getting muddy and playing in the woods and they had an amazing time. I guess what I was scared of is that they were gonna not like it and then they were never gonna like it,

Paddy: Oh yeah, for sure. Especially 'cause it's like camping in the rain sucks.

Dave: the next time, and the next time camping, it does. And next time camping comes up, they're like, ah, I didn't have that [00:18:00] much

Paddy: wet and cold and sad. Why would I wanna go camping again? Dad?

Dave: I didn't have to worry about it. They just, they didn't, it's like they didn't even notice it was raining. And uh, We like to give our kids a lot of leeway, especially out in the woods. Like, go off, have fun, check in every once in a while. Like, I don't need to be hovering over you.

And so they, they enjoy a, a level of independence in a place like that, which I think they really like. 'cause it's not as easy sometimes to do that in a city, that was a really inspiring as far as like, watching kids out there. , it made me remember that it's just weather, you know what I mean?

They're not made of sugar and they, you know, they still like to be out there.

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Paddy: for the members of our listening audience who, , have not been, , exposed to the beauty of the boundary waters, gimme your 30-second elevator pitch on, on the bo on the boundary waters to those who, who might be like, Ahhhh, Minnesota, c'mon!.

Dave: Right. It sounds buggy, which

Paddy: Well, the mosquito, the mosquito is the state bird of Minnesota.

I, I do know that

Dave: you [00:19:00] won't, you won't find any more of them then in the Boundary waters if you go at a certain time of year. But it, boundary Waters is a little over a million acres of woods and mainly lakes.

Thousands, , interconnected by portages. it's part of the Superior National Forest. It's, , it's named the boundary waters because it's on the boundary of Minnesota and Canada. You get a couple lakes into that wilderness.

And you might as well, you know, you might as well be in 1849 or something. It's pretty, it gets pretty far out and you can, you know, you can go deep as you want. .

There's moose, there's loons. , . I'll say this without recommending it because I do know people that have gotten sick doing it, but, , when I was young, a little bit of an initiation in that place was to paddle out to the middle of a lake and dip your cup in the lake and take, you know, drink the cup of water nine times outta 10.

It's fine, but , just as an example of , what a bastion of clean water and so I've, I've, I do a lot of work now, , on that place. if I'm gonna spend my time involved in something, that this is where I get the most meaning is in the, in these [00:20:00] places. I'm gonna work on, protecting that. ,

PADDY VO:

It's clear that Dave Simonett loves Minnesota and the outdoors, but how exactly does that deep connection show up in his music. That story, after the break.

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Paddy: Well, I know that you don't like labeling your music or boxing it into a specific genre, but

Dave: But what is it?

Paddy: but I, but I will say, you know, roots Music, bluegrass Americana, which trampled by turtles could fall under if someone were to box you guys in. Uh,

Dave: Yeah, if you wanted to limit us.

Paddy: If you wanted to limit the band, you could, but, those genres very often present a frenetic dancey pace.

They create a dirt footed hootenanny. Um, you know, like for instance, wait so long and codeine. Those tunes of yours are incredibly frenetic and aggressive and [00:21:00] overflowing with energy. Where does that edge come from and does your time outside inspire it? Ease it. Do both.

Dave: I don't know. You know, both those songs, you, mentioned codeine and wait so long, um, wait so long is the newer one of those and it's, 15 years old. When I was younger, I still, I mean, I had a lot of like punk rock left over

which when I was a teenager, that's kind of what I was into. you know, And then it was a young man, you know, it was like I had a lot of energy. I had like,

Paddy: Oh, angry man music. Yeah,

Dave: and like, you know, uh, you feel things real big and loud and I, I did anyway.

Paddy: Yes.

Dave: Um, so it's, it, I mean, it's been a while since I've written a song like that, to be honest with you. I'm really trying, especially in music, but generally in life for sure. Music. And as a husband, as a father, to grow older gracefully and not

Paddy: Does that mean softer?

Dave: I think it just means being true to where you are at the time. , if I were to try to write a song like codeine now, I would be [00:22:00] lying I think it would be me trying to reach for something that I. That's not there.

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Paddy: , on the other end of the tempo spectrum, right, is a song like On My Way Back Home, which is a slow melodic lament or a tune from your solo work, like by the light of the moon.

Like that song is just like a slow dance special. You put that thing on and you're like, I need to grab my gal and go to the middle of the dance floor, and we are going navel to navel and swaying

Dave: Yeah.

Paddy: Or a song like Lutsen from Dead Man Winter, the indie rock band that you're in that's nearly a 10 minute beautiful and very mellow instrumental.

So where does that energy come from?

Dave: That's easier for me to point at. I think. , I mean especially that instrumental thing. 'cause that was, n is a, a little ski town in northern Minnesota on a

Paddy: First place I skied in Minnesota where I

Dave: No kidding.

Paddy: hear my turn. Love Lutsen. Love Lutsen.

Dave: as close as we get to, uh, [00:23:00] mountain skiing in the Midwest. I think maybe besides the U.P. Of Michigan too. But, anyway, I'd been spending a lot of time up there, and, I mean it's, it's incredibly beautiful I'd ski, so I was doing some skiing, but also just the area, you know, it's the Lake Superior is, incredible. It's kind of our, our version of an ocean up there, , with the same kind of gravitational pull on the people around it. , and it's cold and, it's harsh and, I was up there in January or something like that, that I spent a lot of time up there that winter.

And so you go down to the lake and it's like. A nightmare sometimes is it's like if you could, turn a nightmare into water, I mean, so many ships have sank in that nasty body of water. It reminds you real fast about where you are, you know, in the pecking order of things out there and at the same time, you might wake up the next morning and it's glass, and the sun's coming up and it's 20 below now that Lutsen song was like that, that's what I was trying to kind of capture is kind of comprehending where I was.

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Paddy: you sit on the board of sportsmen for the boundary waters, Because of [00:24:00] your love of this place, you are very active in your activism To protect it, and in 2024, in a blog post for the org you wrote, I. We talked a lot around the campfire about how unique and special the place is, and on a broader scale, how important wilderness areas are to the general wellbeing of all of us.

There is an undeniable connection enjoyed in a place untroubled by concrete, indoor plumbing, and wifi. It may take a day or two, but once you settle into the rhythm of camp, time, as we know it, segmented and worshiped, blends easily into itself and the movement of the stars eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired.

This simplicity, once taken for granted is now a luxury that is becoming even harder to find. It is the rhythm of the animal that resides in every one of us. First of all, holy shit, that is goddamn beautiful.

Dave: Thanks, Paddy.

Paddy: That's What is the [00:25:00] rhythm of the outdoors,

Dave: my wife and I have a, a funny kind of ongoing conversation about time there's two kinds of people when it comes to time. Either a clock time person or an event time person. The clock time person likes to be on time, you know, in our, in our way of understanding time.

Punctual, uh, their day is kind of ruled by the clock. And that's a lot of times that's me here. Like when I'm on my normal day, Chloe is an event time person. When this thing is done, I'll move on to the next thing. And whether or not that's exactly at 1:00 PM that's, you know, it's not really, I can't really control that to me.

The rhythm of camp, or the rhythm of being outdoors is fully event time. And maybe that's part of the reason why I like it so much, because I think there's a part of me that wants to be that way, but I, god damnit, I was like raised to, to like being late's, like the worst thing you can do to somebody.

You know what I mean? So I can't,

Paddy: A very Midwestern trait is like, you gotta show up on time.

Dave: I for me, that's, [00:26:00] that's the transition that I undergo when I go into the boundary waters, for instance, I'll leave my phone in the truck. I don't care. I use the paper map.

I don't wanna see a clock the whole time I'm there. you wake up when it gets sunny and you just kind of go by. . What your body wants to do. If you're hungry, you eat, you know, if you're tired, you go to, you don't care what time it is.

Like it's not, well, it's too early to go to bed. There's none of that shit, you know? , and I get so comfortable in that. , and I have a really hard time coming back from it, to be honest

Paddy: so then how does the rhythm of camp, or the rhythm of nature, show up in your music?

Dave: On a technical music side of things, when you're talking about rhythm, when music is syncopated, right? This, it's, uh, 1, 2, 3, 4, or sometimes 1, 2, 3. But I don't get too much farther out than that.

Generally, you know, there are people that do, but for me, I feel like when we're relegating something to counting in our, so our brains can kind of make sense of it. A tree doesn't count to four before it drops, its leaves or whatever.

They don't drop rhythmically. , to me, if you look at it from the larger picture of a natural [00:27:00] area, all of the little things and the little processes and little births and deaths and rain and whatever, there's a rhythm in that. , and it's much more abstract than anything I could probably ever write.

But I think if you spend enough time out in places like that, um, you know, that rhythm is not as simple as counting off a song. It's the cycle in that, that's what a song ultimately is. , rhythm cycles through a song. And that's what we can dance to, you know?

'cause the repetition of it and that kind of stuff exists out there all the time. But it's all, there's a million of them happening at the same time. And they're not all, they didn't all start at the same time. So it can be a little chaotic. It might be more of like a Vivaldi than trampled by turtles, you know?

But I like to think that a lot of my writing especially is \ influenced by that, and probably my search for finding a deeper understanding of it. I'm less, much less concerned with, , dinner reservations and, , gallery openings these days , than I am about like finding a new trout fishing spot, you know?

Paddy: You go [00:28:00] on to write in that piece. I believe we humans need wilderness. We need to know there's an edge out there that once crossed you can be fully out. If you're like me, the city chases you there.

Can you tell me a time outside when you felt that feeling of being fully out,

Dave: Most of my experiences, we, we keep circling back to the boundary waters, and I swear to God, I have been other places than that. But, uh, it's, it's such a,

Paddy: that's a, that's okay. It's, yeah. If you're drawn to a place, you're drawn to a place.

Dave: Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I, I mean, these days, dude, I don't get a lot of, lot of, lot of blocks of time to do a lot of recreational travel.

I'll say that. Uh, so I, I could, I guess I think about a couple something different than the boundary waters. I, was, pheasant hunting out in South Dakota a couple years ago. there's A lot of South Dakota that gets pretty far away from, human civilization.

I was kind of on my own for a couple days and camping out and, and hunting. I mean, I might [00:29:00] as well have been in the Yukon, you know, how I was feeling. And so that was one. And last, fall,

I have a little piece of land in Northern Minnesota that's just like a. Chunk of woods and a few friends of mine and I went up, uh, and kind of did a grouse camp there and just stayed for most of a week and, you know, lived it outta tents and we were just wandering the Superior National Forest every day. That's pretty far out up there actually. There's a lot of woods, like, as far as you want to go, man. Uh, and so that, like, the experiences like that, I mean, it's like, it's almost like a reset for me. And I think for a lot of people, man, I mean, almost everybody I know that likes to go out and do whatever out there, whether you're bird hunting or rock climbing or whatever it is, it's, it's seen as like a, I mean, I hate to say it, but it's like a break, you know?

Uh, and it's not like it's easy. You go out out there and a lot of the times you're, it's hard, , something that a lot of our lives lack is that physical kind of. Challenge in living, you know, some, like, something that where you like, man, you're tired by 7:00 PM 'cause you had such a day.

You know? , the lifestyle's a lot harder [00:30:00] than our, like a city lifestyle physically. , and you're also much more exposed to weather and all these other physical dangers. Whereas in comparison, you know, like from our ancestors to where I'm sitting right now, this is easy living, you know?

Paddy: Right.

Dave: But for some reason we all, for some reason, all we wanna do is run away from it all the time. ,

Paddy: How does that inform your songwriting?

Dave: I spent a lot of my earlier years like, having to leave, civilization kind of to go, write. Like I would rent, cabins in Northern Minnesota or. Camping trips or whatever. That's what I would use as writing, you know, like a writing retreats kind of thing.

'cause I, I feel like I couldn't get anything done with the, with the noise but I'll say the older I've gotten, well, first of all, the harder it is to kind of get away to do that, especially with kids around, you know, we all know I'm already gone half the time anyway, you know, but I've adapted more to writing anywhere.

I actually love writing at the airport now, which you can find a noisier place than that.

Paddy: That is wild to me.

Dave: I love it. Yeah, I can, I can actually just like sit there and maybe, you know, we all grow and change and especially [00:31:00] artistically. If I was writing songs in the same way as I was 20 years ago, I think I'd be disappointed in myself.

I might not go to the woods to write as much, but I feel like it now features maybe more prominently in my writing, like that space. And maybe that's because I'm not immersed in it while I'm making a song. You know what I mean?

Paddy: it like the yearning for it or is it, yeah. Okay. Yeah.

Dave: I don't have a very easy time writing literally in songs that much. So for me, it's a lot of imagery that I, that I kind of conjure. , but so much of my mental state is determined I think by natural landscapes. , those scenes and, , experiences in them, , are where I kind of find my spirituality, so to speak. And so they become maybe outsized in importance, for not only just my livelihood, but for writing. I kind of wouldn't have it any other way,

PAUSE PAUSE PAUSE

Paddy: In regard to your time outside , your conservation efforts where and how you grew up in Minnesota, how you live there now, how you're raising your family there. , If you were to take [00:32:00] one of those things away, would it be like the Jenga tower? Like, , oh, I'm gonna take the time outside away. Could you still write and perform the way that you do?

Dave: it's hard for me because I'm not really an objective observer, you know what I mean? I'm in here. , so for me, it's just all makes sense. , it doesn't always make sense to everybody else, it sounds kinda like self-important or something, but to me it's just little different parts of who I am, And

I would just say that it would be probably different because I think that we're all a product of space and time right now, right? Like I'm a product of where I live, , what's going on with me at this moment, 10 years ago my product was a little different.

And so you'd have to put me in somewhere real hard to escape for me not to find my space outdoors. So when we were, when we were going out for weeks at a time when we were younger, I would make time for that. We'd take days off.

Uh, obviously let everybody recoup a little bit in the middle of a run or something. And I'd go fishing or I'd, find a place that's not that far out of whatever little town we were staying in and find a place to go for a walk and that, and make that a priority, you know, [00:33:00] um, nowadays.

I actually kind of, I mean, I sometimes use touring to find new places to hunt and fish, which has been great. Last summer and , the year before that we went out to Montana. And both of those times I ended up on some really great fly fishing days with some buddies out there. When I'm home I wouldn't pop out to Montana and go fly fishing sadly. 'cause it's hard for me to get away. But I can use, you know, the band's already booked flights to, to like, um, see what's around. And so I've been trying to get a little

Paddy: work boondoggle of all time is like, here's the big, here's the big deal out there, trampled fans, is that.

Dave: I'm just

Paddy: It's, it just, yeah, it's not, listen, the music is whatever, but really what I'm trying to do is, is land a giant rainbow?

Dave: Yeah.

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Paddy: When you step on stage, what do you hope you give the audience?

What do you hope they feel in their time with you? And then what do you hope they feel when they [00:34:00] leave and go back home?

Dave: Oh, man, that's a, that's a

Paddy: is a real softball for you, Dave.

Dave: Lob it in there. Uh.

I think, I think for me, I really just hope an audience feels like we, did the best we could. And I, don't mean that in, a terribly self depreciating manner, when you buy a concert ticket, for me, that as a performer and as a concert goer, all that really guarantees you is you get entrance into the, building. so I would like people to know that, that we, we feel like it's an important thing , the best performance that we can muddle up that day. , now as far as when they go home, I hope they thought that their time was well spent.

Paddy: Do you think in part that you're giving a piece of you to the audience?

Dave: not if I can help it help it, you know? Depends how close they are to the stage, I guess.

PAUSE PAUSE PAUSE

I can write a hundred songs in this room and, uh, never play 'em for anybody.

Um, and they'd still be songs and they'd still be mine, you know. But there's a interesting relationship that happens when, you kind of [00:35:00] open that up to the world and, and I try to remain. , kind of mystified by that. It's scary and beautiful,

for instance, our band's in the studio, we're making the, making a song. , it's our thing and it's our thing. We mix it, still ours master it. And it's , this thing that didn't exist before and now it does and. We're really excited about it. And then everything changes when you put it out.

it's almost like you feel like you're gonna get sick or something. Uh, because it's, it is this peak into this. It's a private space for me anyway, writing songs. , why I choose to share it, I don't know. But I do enjoy that part of it.

And you know, I don't know if this, there's a, you know, there are tree falls in the forest kind of thing, whereas a song exists if nobody hears it. I don't know.

MUSIC IN THE CLEAR FOR A BEAT

Paddy: So the final ramble, one piece of gear you can't live without.

Dave: God. What I, I think I would say a, a knife. You're talking about outdoor gear. I'd take it because otherwise I'd probably say guitar.

Paddy: Yeah. Ooh, a knife and a

Dave: No, I'd think, I think knife is,

Paddy: Oh, aren't they the same [00:36:00] thing, Dave??

Best outdoor snack.

Dave: I mean boring and old fashioned, but beef jerky. I love it.

Paddy: You're not the only one to say that. Yeah. Dude. I love beef jerk. Do you do it yourself or do you have like a gas station brand that you always go to?

Dave: Neither. There's a meat market not far from my house , that I tried to get to, to get it.

Paddy: What a great Minnesotan answer. I got a jerky guy.

Dave: I do, I got a jerky guy. It's worth it. It's worth it. It's worth the trip, man. You bypass the gas station and get it from the source.

Paddy: what is your hottest outdoor hot take?

Dave: , public lands are there for us, kind of as long as we want them to be. Everybody should get involved. In the places that they love and, uh, don't stop being involved it's kind of a symbiotic relationship. That land gives so much to us and it's kind of our responsibility to give it back to them.

Paddy: That's not even like a hot day. That's just like a very nice thing. That's like a heartfelt thing. Dave, thank you.

MUSIC

OUTRO VO:

Dave Simonett is an avid outdoorsman and conservationist involved in many non profits including Phesants Forever and Sportsmen for [00:37:00] the Boundary Waters in Minnesota. He is also a verrry talented musician. I think you'll wanna groove to his solo work or his band Dead Man Winter, orrrr the band he's been leading since founding it in Duluth in 2003, Trampled By Turtles.

Aaaaand it just so happens that Trampled By Turtles is one of the headliners of this year's �����ԹϺ��� Fest, which is a-happenin' in Denver on May 31 and June 1. Check out the deets of the rad music lineup, stellar speakers, and all the outdoor fun, and buy your tickets at The �����ԹϺ��� Festival DOT com. I'll see ya there!

Hey, dear sweet audience memebers, do you like what you're hearing, have an idea for a guest, want to send us a digital hug? Well, you can. Email us guest nominations and your thoughts to �����ԹϺ��� Podcast At �����ԹϺ��� Inc Dot Com. We are making this show [00:38:00] for you and your ears, and we aim to please ya both.

The �����ԹϺ��� Podcast is hosted and produced by me, Paddy O'Connell. But you can call me PaddyO. Storytelling support provided by Micah "the Baker of Rhetorical Pretzels of Bavarian Proportions" Abrams. Music and Sound Design by Robbie Carver. And booking and research by Maren Larsen.

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I feel like there needs to be a bumper sticker that it's like Peak Minnesota. It's like Juicy Lucy tater tot hot dish trampled by turtles.

Not necessarily in that order.

Dave: It's a lot of responsibility too. I don't know, but it's a, we'll take it,