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| Bo Koster at Dome, Marseille, 2006, photo by Pirlouiiiit - Concertandco .com |
On February 26th 2009 Rotoworld published an interview with Bo Koster, done by Steve Alexander. The original interview can be found here.
Keywords: Bo Koster and Carl Broemel join the band, Bo Koster
Where are you from and what were your teams growing up?
I'm from Cleveland Ohio, and I grew up a die-hard Cavs, Tribe, and Browns fan. I rooted for Ohio State a bit, mostly basketball though. I still follow all of them, but I'm only really invested in basketball at this point. I barely watch any football and baseball anymore, but I still read the Cleveland Plain Dealer sports page a lot. I definitely relate to the underdog. I'm not capable of rooting for a frontrunner, because of my Cleveland upbringing.
What got you interested in fantasy sports and joining our fantasy hoops league? Any interest in any other sports or are you an NBA guy?
I've been following the NBA pretty heavily for a long time now. I just love the game of basketball. I love the style and creative aspect to the game, the flow, the rhythm, the speed. Basketball has so much flavor, especially with the rise of international players now. I have a friend who has the NBA package and we watch a lot of games together, but I haven't had television in my home since 9/11, so that cuts into watching other sports. March Madness is my favorite sporting event, and then the World Cup is right behind that. I wish the WC were played every year.
How did you find out about the "Rock and Roll Hoops League" I was forming?
Well, I met you and you convinced me! Now we're old pals. Aren't we? I mean...it's cool. Call me bro. If you want to...I mean...whatever it's cool. Do you text?
Yes, I will text or call you tomorrow, no worries. I will try to find a way to make time for MMJ. Thanks for humoring me. So how would you sum up your rookie season thus far? Good picks, bad picks, things you've learned?
Typical rookie season. I showed some promise, but made way too many dumb mistakes. I drafted Greg Oden fairly early, and dropped him in January. I knew it was a gamble, but for some reason I thought he was going to have a solid year on that team (Portland). He has all the tools, but he also looks like he might be injury prone. Although, it seems like the whole NBA is at this point...I also drafted Gilbert Arenas, going against my pledge to not draft any injured players or players coming off an injury. I've learned a ton this year so far. I didn't know what the statistical categories were when I drafted my team! Also, watching the good teams in my league and how they run their teams has been a good learning experience. I did pick up Boris Diaw, which was a great waiver-wire snag. That's about all I've done well, is play the waiver wire. I think six out of my 12 guys right now are waiver wire pick-ups.
Did you draft with your head or your heart this year? In other words, did you crunch numbers or just go with guys you like?
Well, my whole plan was to draft young guys in their prime. So, my first four or five picks were Deron Williams, Brandon Roy, Andre Iguodala, Josh Howard and Richard Jefferson. I still like that approach. Unfortunately, Deron and Howard were hurt most of the first half, and Iggy started off slow...I overestimated guys who score a lot of points. I assume a lot of first timers do that. I tried not to, but I did anyway.
What have you learned for next year?
I think I've learned that I need to be more proactive with trades and so forth, and to act faster. My draft will be way better next year, and more balanced. I've also learned to not draft injured players. I'm going to consult a shaman or a tribal chief, and have them do some rituals next year to ensure my team is healthy. Seriously.
Any players you will never draft again? Any discoveries you made as a "must-have" player for next year?
I don't think I'll mess with guys who are halfway decent to mediocre in a couple categories like Jefferson. It's like he's decent in a few categories, so he's a must start, but most of the time, his equivalent is getting the better of him in rebounds and FG%. I want to look for guys who consistently produce in four or more categories. I won't over-estimate one player's ability to do one thing well. I've been really happy with Boris Diaw and Brandon Roy. I think Iguodala is going to become like a Danny Granger next year. The Sixers are his team now but I was a year too early with him. Rajon Rondo is going to be a stud. I traded for him a little too late this year. I always thought that Kevin Durant was going to be a lot like Donyell Marshall. I thought he would have a couple good scoring years, and then never reach the heights everyone thought he would. I'm pretty convinced I was wrong on that one.
Yeah, Durant is The Man. As far as the real NBA goes, who are some of your favorite players? I know you're a Cavs fan, so feel free to share any thoughts on the state of the team, the future of LeBron and whether or not he'll be wearing a ring at the start of next season. If not, who is going to win it all this year?
My take on the Lebron situation is that he'll stay in Cleveland. Cleveland will have the ability to offer him the one of the best packages. They've got a good team, good coach, solid owner and solid G.M. They also have a couple expiring contracts in 2010 as well, so it's very possible they'll be able to make an offer to a guy like Chris Bosh or another solid big man, as well as keep Lebron. They'll have a lot of leverage to lure potential free agents because they have Lebron. Look at what it has done for Mo Williams. The Knicks organization will always be cancerous because of their owner and the Nets won't have it together by then. Neither will Detroit. The Cavs might be coming off a championship at that point too. LeBron doesn't need more endorsements. He owns that world. He's like Tiger Woods. Nobody talks about where Tiger lives...Most of the talk seems to be generated by websites trying to get hits – ahem, Yahoo Sports! - and journalists who are NYC-centric.
I think that the Celtics are vulnerable. The Cavs know how to stop them, and they can more than hang with their physicality. James Posey might have been the difference last year, and P.J. Brown to a small extent. The Cavs still took them to seven games and totally blew Game 1. I'm not impressed with the Lakers either, even though everyone thinks they're the team to beat just because they won back-to-back games against the Cavs and Celtics on the road. The Cavs were really beat up, and Boston had an off night, and were a little beat up as well. I think the Lakers defense is still very vulnerable, especially on the interior, and I don't think Kobe is as dominant as he used to be. I think Lebron is the better player, has the edge in that match-up, and is the most dominant player in the league. His edge over Kobe is in his ability to impact on the defensive end, and the fact that his go-to move, which is a vicious penetration, is just more efficient than Kobe's jumper at this point.
I think in the NBA, usually the team with the best player and best defense wins. Right now, I think if the Cavs are healthy, they're that team. I'm trying to be objective, and not be a homer here, but maybe my vision is still clouded. But let's face it – any of those three teams could win it all.
My favorite player at this point is Chris Paul. He is such a pimp. I love when opposing guards get frustrated and try to get physical with him. And instead of getting chippy, he just schools them and walks away from confrontation and takes the high road. There's nothing not to like about him. Dwyane Wade is also amazing to watch on offense. I love how fearless he is going to the rack. I'm happy he's healthy and playing at a high level again.
What are some of your earliest NBA, NCAA or professional sports memory? Some of mine are Doug Flutie's TD pass for BC, Fred Brown to James Worthy, Bird vs. Magic in the NCAAs, Reggie Jackson's three homers in the World Series, watching the Braves on TBS in 1980, etc.
I remember Dwight Clark's catch for the 49'ers. Most of my memories are sad ones. The Fumble, The Shot, The Drive, Red Right 88 during the Brian Sipe cardiac kids era. Did you know that Cleveland is the only three-major sport city that hasn't won a championship since the 60's? Because of that, I kind of can't be a homer, ya know? Even Milwaukee got an NBA title with my main man, Lew Alcindor. I have vivid memories of John McEnroe vs. Bjorn Bjorg. Jack Nicklaus winning the Masters at the age of 46, which was really amazing. I'll never forget Sandy Alomar hitting an opposite-field home run off of Mariano Rivera to beat the Yankees. It was so insane, because Rivera was so sick at that point, nobody could touch him, and the ball Alomar hit was a chin-high, 97 mph 2 seam fastball that was tailing away from Alomar. I swear he closed his eyes and just guessed. That was big for Cleveland. Beating NY is always a good thing. We can never beat NY, or Pittsburgh, and now Boston. I used to love World B. Free too. He used to chuck it up from waaay out. He was the king of the heat-check.
What was the first record you owned? What was the first concert you attended?
First record is hard to remember, but it was either a Kiss record, Fleetwood Mac "Rumors", or The Who Live At Leeds. Although, I remember a Foreigner record too. The first concert I went to was the Dead Milkmen. I did a stage dive during Bitchin' Camaro - it was all down hill after that. I hate to sounds nostalgic, but people just don't get down like they used to. It seems like people are more concerned with taking photos and video to document the moment instead of being actively engaged in the moment.
When did you join My Morning Jacket and what kind of things were you doing before you got the call?
I joined with guitarist Carl Broemel a little over five years ago. Before that I was living in LA, where I worked in documentary television for a long time and played a lot of various gigs around town. I used to play in a lot of different situations. Various jazz stuff, including a Bossa Nova band, singer songwriter stuff, rock bands, and I wrote music and played with a live hip hop band from east LA for a while. A lot of soul/R&B gigs, at a place called the Temple Bar. I went on the road a couple of times as a sideman, with an artist called Kenna and a Texas blues band. Then I worked on a project headed up by Mike Garson and a bunch of great keyboardists for Yamaha pianos for two years. Basically we made music for their Disklavier, which is a piano that plays by itself. Befriending Mike Garson was an important step for me looking back. He's a really heavy, interesting guy, and some of the talks we had really helped me find direction. For people who don't know him, he's been David Bowie's keyboardist since the Spider's From Mars era, and he's a really gifted pianist and composer. Just listen to his famous solo on Aladdan Sane, and your mind will be blown. Bowie found him in New York during a time where avant-garde jazz was really big. It was a pretty forward-thinking move for Bowie at the time I think, and Mike really added a lot to his music over the years. He was a guy I could relate to because of the fact that we both had an interest in a lot of styles of music. A conversation with Mike can be pretty heavy and spiritual. He's explored a lot of things and has an interesting perspective on life. The talks we had really helped me find my path. I don't think it was a coincidence that I found MMJ very soon after that period. I always wanted to find a situation that was creatively inspiring, with people who loved and had a similar attitude about music that I had. After a long search and struggle I finally found that, and I feel very lucky for it.
What has been the biggest MMJ highlight for you? I know of New Year's Eve at the Garden, going to hang at Neil Young's ranch, Bonnaroo at 3 a.m. in a storm – I'm guessing those are some pretty cool/surreal things to have been a part of.
Yeah, the whole year has been surreal. It all goes by so fast, and you almost forget or don't have time to really take in all the moments. As much as I remember those things you mentioned, I also have really strong memories of just hanging out with the guys, laughing, or whatever. Sharing the stage with Erykah Badu was a huge highlight for all of us. Playing Saturday Night Live, Red Rocks, Radio City. We've been so lucky to share the stage with so many ghosts. It truly is humbling, almost overwhelmingly so. Every time I get the chance to play and hang out with the guys, I feel extraordinarily lucky. It's that feeling of being so fortunate that continually drives me and inspires me to keep working at it and keep growing and not take it for granted for one second.
Do you like being the keyboardist as opposed to the lead singer? I'm guessing hanging out in the background has its advantages?
Yeah, I like being the keyboardist. It's a cool role, because you can be a color guy by adding some frosting on top of the cake, but you can also be part of the drum and bass section. I secretly wish I was a drummer or a bass player. Sometimes I really wish I could jump around and be mobile too and lose my mind a little bit more.
What music are you listening to these days? Name some of your favorite bands of all time.
I've never really done any pop stuff. I've kind of been a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. I've been listening to a lot of different stuff lately, and been trying to explore more of my creative side. I've been listening to some really cool movie soundtrack stuff by Henry Mancini, and I've been really getting into Allen Toussaint. I've been digging the new Animal Collective record...It would be hard to mention any one band as a favorite. Keith Jarrett, "Koln concert", Genesis, "Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" from the Peter Gabriel era, and Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" were some of the first records I really connected to when I was 13 or 14. I grew up listening to a lot of the typical classic rock stuff, and then I got heavily into jazz and soul music in high school. There was a moment there where I listened to Miles, Coltrane, Bill Evans, and Keith Jarrett almost exclusively.
Did touring with the band cause you any problems as far as setting a lineup or making transactions?
No, it's pretty easy to get an internet connection in all the clubs. I did miss one line-up change when I was on a plane all day.
Who are some of your favorite bands to tour with?
I have a lot of fond memories of touring with M. Ward, Dr. Dog, Everest (who I've had the pleasure of playing with lately), and Andrew Bird. Playing "It Makes No Difference" and "A Quick One While He's Away" with Eddie Vedder was really special. The Pearl Jam guys really know how to treat an opening act. Ed would come out and sing with us to encourage people to arrive early to see us. That's a really generous thing to do and really sweet, and it meant a lot to us. Opening for Neil Young was mind-blowing. Watching Neil play music and channel that energy never gets old. I could probably watch Neil play every day for the rest of my life and never get bored.
What's next in the pipeline for MMJ after the success of Evil Urges and the huge tours?
Not sure really. We're going to take it as it comes.
Now that your rookie season is almost in the books, any advice for someone getting ready to start their fantasy sports career?
Ahh, not really. I don't think I'm ready to start giving advice! I would just say jump in and have fun. I'm hoping to join a couple leagues next year. That's how much fun I had this year. I want more!
(Rotoworld interview, February 2009)
