‘We just feel really lucky’: Wheatus’ Brendan B Brown on their debut album and upcoming anniversary tour

Brendan B Brown is best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter of the New-York based rock band Wheatus. Their worldwide hit ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ is just one of the songs on their debut album that they will be performing on their world tour, kicking off right here in the UK. “We just feel really lucky” was his response to being asked how it felt to be touring the UK, one of the first places where Wheatus toured in 2001.

When asked about what it means to be able to tour their very first album again, Brown answered: “That first album means something to people that is sort of unique and identifies a certain time, prior to the internet.” This is certainly reflected in the recent viral TikTok trend using the song, showcasing users’ throwback pictures of their teenage years. Brown expresses gratitude for having a song that could “stick in people’s hearts the way it has, and be something that we can keep coming back to”.

I think that I evolved the sound of the band to accommodate more instrumentation, so keyboards and more percussion, and then eventually much more involved backing vocalists

Brendan B Brown

The relevance of their first album being eponymously titled is also worth noting – many artists choose to go this route with their debut albums, but Brown specified that the band was named to “sound like something you’ve heard before, but meant nothing”. Self titling the album was, he says, a way of introducing the nonsense of the word to people in a way they cannot avoid. This is, indeed, indicative of their eclectic and imaginative styles of writing and production.

Since the band’s release of their first album 25 years ago, Wheatus’s sound and performance has changed in several ways. The first ever recording of their lead single ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ was done using an Akai MPC 2000, building their own drum sounds rather than using a live drummer. Today, Brown says, “I think that I evolved the sound of the band to accommodate more instrumentation, so keyboards and more percussion, and then eventually much more involved backing vocalists.”

Their newer recordings contained stacks of sounds that he humorously described as “ludicrous”, including church bells and hammond organ synthesizers. On this tour, Wheatus are set to have eight performers on stage at a time – and according to Brown this is an opportunity to bring their recordings to reality. Brown’s initial partner and co-producer Phil Jimenez will also be returning to perform on a few of the shows.

As they plug in their instruments they get talking to the front rows of the audience, creating what’s sure to be a personalised experience

A unique aspect of Wheatus’s shows is that, unless doing an opening or festival slot, they do not adhere to a fixed setlist. According to Brown, this is not only “way more fun” but it is also their way of giving the audience what they actually want instead of what the band is imposing on them. “You don’t know what type of an audience you have in front of you until you’ve conversed a little bit. Maybe they’re in a bad mood… so you have to roll with that. And I think the best way is just to ask them what they want.” Brown also mentioned how he and the band themselves set everything up on stage before every show – as they plug in their instruments they get talking to the front rows of the audience, creating what’s sure to be a personalised experience.

This close relationship with their audiences and with their fans has been prominent since Wheatus’ early days, and it hasn’t changed in Brown’s presence on popular social media platform Tiktok. “I’ve always communicated with fans the way that I do on Tiktok… It’s always been sort of personal that way. So I haven’t changed my style, but there’s a lot more of it, I guess, like more opportunity to have a chat, or answer questions.”

Discussing Tiktok and its relationship to the music industry, Brown disagreed with the notion that it is inherently bad for music. “People who are inclined to find deeper meaning in music and art are going to find it… not everybody has to be an art critic.” He did, however, mention the pressure that comes with social media – to create more than you can create well. Nonetheless, it is clear that Wheatus’ debut album is successful even today, not only in its timelessness and storytelling, but also in its way of making a wide range of fans feel connected and included.

Whether you’ve been a long time fan, or you’ve only heard their hits online, they’re sure to create a performance that anyone would enjoy

That being said, it was significant to Wheatus’s career that when the now viral ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ first came out, it wasn’t as successful as it has become today – at least, not in the United States. According to Brown, this was a very valuable lesson to learn early on: “Just because people like a song doesn’t mean it’s gonna go and become a thing.”

‘Teenage Dirtbag’ also faced struggles with censorship and their use of the lyric “he brings a gun to school” – according to Brown, you could buy a gun in Walmart but they would not sell their CD that contained the word gun. During the time this song was written, attitudes about rock music in the United States were relatively conservative; it was often associated with violence and antisocial behaviour. Brown mentioned how the combination of capitalism and puritanical theocratic impulses can lead to ideals like this, specifying that this was a result of “not the system but the people in it”. While it may not be quite as common today for people to be apprehensive about certain genres of music, these views do still exist, and are often used as a way of deflecting responsibility – in Brown’s words, whether it’s from “bad parenting, corrupt school systems, or corrupt police”.

Tickets for Wheatus’s anniversary tour are now available here, and whether you’ve been a long time fan, or you’ve only heard their hits online, they’re sure to create a performance that anyone would enjoy.