If I gave you 30 seconds to name as many bands as you could think of that had been together for 30 years, how many could you name?
There are some obvious ones, sure, and at least a few not-so-obvious ones, but the chances are good that they’re all multi-million-selling career bands with a nice cushion of wealth and a separate tour bus for every member to guarantee that they don’t get too sick of one another.
What you probably wouldn’t come up, though, are with many hyper-indie, DIY rock acts that have weathered three decades together.
So it’s particularly special that OKC/Norman-based hard-rockers Traindodge are not only marking 30 whole years together this month, but are enjoying a long-overdue resurgence in popularity and guitar-driven power that they’ll be bringing to the Resonant Head stage in OKC for celebratory headlining spot July 11th.
But while the years have lifted up Traindodge as one of the longest-running and most willfully, excitedly uncompromising acts in the local scene, singer/guitarist/founder/leader Jason Smith says that longevity was never the goal, he just never felt like stopping.
“I feel it for sure, but I also just don’t know what else to do,” Smith said. “But it’s also something I carry around sometimes, because I am constantly aware of, like, ‘oh you’re the guys that have been playing forever,’ and people think ‘yeah those guys’ll be around next year, so I’ll go see them next time,’ and then like 15 years go by.”
Launched officially in 1996 and then fully galvanized by their debut album “About Tomorrow’s Mileage” in 1999, Traindodge burst into the post-grunge world of full-throated, full-volume hard-rock. But over the years, the sound has transitioned through everything from stoner-psych jams, heavy prog, synthy experimentalism, and more, all of which converges on their most recent LP, 2023’s “The Alley Parade.”
Smith feels like that refusal to be boxed in has been one of the keys to the band’s staying power.
“The further we go, the less rigid we are with self-imposed ‘rules’ or whatever,” he said. “The more free we can let ourselves be, the better, you know? Because when you’re young, you might be a lot more rigid about DIY or no overdubs or something, but you slowly start letting go of certain things. And now I just think, like, don’t ever tell yourself you can’t do something. It might be a waste of time, but go check it out, because something really cool might come out of it.”
And all of those cool, unexpected sounds and sonic palettes are set to make appearances at the big 30 year celebration at Resonant Head, with a special set – and a rare long-form headlining slot – built from the full scope and scale of Traindodge history, both past and future.
“We’re going to cover the catalog, pretty much, because we know we’ve got people traveling in just to be there, so we want to make it really cool for fans,” Smith said. “But one of my first thoughts was also that I would love to play some new songs, like some brand new songs, because even though we’re looking back right now, we’re going to make another record. We’re going to keep going.”
That’s the kind of forward momentum that’s kept the train rolling for three decades now, with Smith and the guys (including his brother, Rob, and bassist Chris Allen) largely keeping their eyes ahead and their minds on the music. So it’s an admittedly rare thing for Traindodge to be looking back and taking stock of the distance they’ve travelled.
But for at least one night, they’ll be casting off all the “underrated” and “underground” tags and standing tall, taking their rightful place on stage as kings of kickass rock n roll, long may they reign.
“I’ve already heard of people buying plane tickets for this show, so it’s just cool that anybody cares at all at this point,” Smith said, well-honed modesty intact. “I’m just thankful. We’re a tiny band, but it’s like we enjoy what we do, and that anybody cares or is willing to invest money and time into now is just a gift. It’s gorgeous. I love it.”
