Wichita indie rockers Abandon Kansas scheduled to play ESU campus

Courtesy of Abandon Kansas

Brad Foster, Brian Scheideman and Jeremy Spring make up Abandon Kansas. The Wichita based band are scheduled to play on the Emporia State campus September 4.

Although they have the musical chops to do so, Wichita based indie rockers Abandon Kansas have no interest in living the stereotypical rock star lifestyle.

“People are so good at sensing hypocrisy and cheesiness these days because so many bands are doing it,” said Jeremy Spring, the band’s guitar player and lead vocalist. “We want to be real, we want to dance and have fun, and we want to change people's lives.”

Since first forming the band in early 2006, the members of Abandon Kansas have spent their time trying to get beyond the typical band/fan relationship and make genuine connections with people.

“The music that we write and play gives us an excuse to travel the country, meet incredible people, and minister to them through our lives,” Spring said. “I could honestly care less if people remember who Abandon Kansas is. But if they remember that Jeremy, Brad, or Brian took the time to serve them, pray with them, or just hang out with them then I think we have done some good.”

The band hopes to continue accomplish this with their music and on the road.

“I hope we can write high quality music that people will be interested in lyrically and artistically,” Spring said. “We're not going to be a one hit wonder kind of band. More than anything we want our individual passions for a life lived for God to come through our music in an effective way.”

Abandon Kansas’s September 4 show in Emporia, is just one stop on the band’s nation wide tour.

“We work just as hard or harder than any other band,” Spring said. “We've played nearly 200 shows in 2008 alone already. But we are not expecting payback for our hard work, because the opportunities we get along the way make it worth it. We'll never play the numbers game like other bands do. We'll never be worried about how many records we've sold or shows we've sold out.”

Through traveling across the country, Spring has found out a lot about himself.

“Personally, I have learned that a man finds out who he truly is when he leaves his family, his close friends, and support group behind to go on an adventure across the country,” Spring said. “We are faced with every kind of opportunity to do good or bad and there is no one there to pull us either direction. I have learned a ton about myself on this journey for sure.”

Although the band has recently went from a five piece to a trio, the band has found an interesting solution for their missing pieces. They have had six different bass players fill in during different legs of their tour.

“We have just found it easier to rotate one member of the band every few weeks,” Spring said. “Being on tour for as long as we are it's really been helpful to mix up the band vibe each leg of the tour. We've been lucky enough to take out six super legit guys who we had a blast with. They were all very different people and varied in styles of playing, but we enjoyed our time spent with each of them.”

Recently the band has posted a new song on their MySpage page, http://www.myspace.com/abandonkansas, titled “I wonder if it’s me.”

“The inspiration behind this song is my conversations with kids in every town,” Spring said. “Whether it be in the mountains, on the beach, small town, or huge metroplex. All of the kids want out of their current situation.”

Spring wrote the song to speak directly to the fans and to relate to them that many people feel the same way they do.

“It's hard to convince them that a change of scenery won't change their personality issues,” Spring said. “It’s also inspired by my personal life on the road. I drift from town to town and the same basic problems seem to follow me around. Eventually I have to stop blaming other people and wonder if it's me that's causing all the heart ache.”

The song will appear on the bands forthcoming concept album ‘The Isle of Man.’

“The concept comes from a mental image I get of the earth being an island made up of people,” Spring said. “We float here in space and are left to ourselves. We are completely alone without God.”

The band’s latest album ‘If You Build a Wall, I'll Build a Ladder’ has been out since late 2007 and the band has been consistently touring ever since.

“That record is a collection of the first two years of this band's song writing,” Spring said. “You can hear us grow as musicians and writers from the oldest to the newest track. Looking back, it's a solid record with songs that are easy relate to. But I think on this next record we want to offer more of a challenge rather than just identifying with people.”

During this time spent on tour, the band has learned that although they are independent artists, they are not alone.

“Collectively we have learned that although we’re independent from an industry standpoint, we are certainly not in this by ourselves,” Spring said. “We have some incredible friends in nearly every state in this beautiful country that keep us alive.”

Abandon Kansas is scheduled to play at 8 p.m. on September 4 on the Emporia State Campus by Wooster Lake with Greensboro, N. C.’s Jonas Sees In Color and Jacksonville, Ark.’s PMtoday.