In December, Sarah got on Zoom with Sarah Greenwell of Gymshorts and Greensleeves. They talked about dream race car designs, puzzle accomplishments, and childhood activities.
You released a 7-inch called “I’m the Jeff Gordon of Our Generation.” What does the racecar of your dreams look like?
Gymshorts: That’s a good question. I guess probably like Jeff Gordon’s, like the rainbow and blue, red and yellow. Number twenty-four.
Sarah: Pretty solid.
Have your neighbors ever done anything crazy to retaliate against your loud rehearsals?
Gymshorts: Actually, we don’t really rehearse very much. Two of the current members live in Philly and one is in Maine, for the most part. So usually, we’ll just rehearse really quickly before a tour or something. So no, not really.
You described an early version of Gymshorts as “punk music for elementary schoolers.” What were your favorite things to do at recess or on playdates as a kid?
Gymshorts: Okay, I guess this is a weird one. I used to dress chairs. I’d put a little stuffed animal on the top of the chair and then I’d put clothes on the chair so it looked like a little person.
Sarah: That’s a unique one.
When you’re on tour, what’s your go-to gas station order?
Gymshorts: Hmm. Gas. Pretty much, I try and eat really healthy on tour which is really hard. I don’t get much at the gas stations. Sometimes I get candy, I like candy.
Sarah: What kind of candy do you like?
Gymshorts: I like chocolate, but that’s not really candy. I like Twizzlers, even though everyone thinks they’re gross.
What was in your Spotify Wrapped?
Gymshorts: I haven’t checked it yet.
Sarah: What are your guesses?
Gymshorts: Maybe Broncho, I love Broncho. Probably Jeff Owens, or The Donnas.
What are your non-musical influences, like books or movies?
Gymshorts: I love the movie What About Bob? Big inspiration. Bill Murray? Great guy. Have you seen it?
Sarah: I haven’t.
Gymshorts: Oh, you should watch it. I love George Saunders and Amy Bender, they’re both writers. They wrote some of my favorite books. I guess those are my top few.
What are some weird habits you’ve picked up now that we’re in quarantine and you don’t have to act social acceptable all the time?
Gymshorts: I don’t know, I guess I haven’t acted that differently. Except maybe a little more germophobic than I already was. I started playing Pickleball, that’s become a daily habit. Like an obsession. I play for hours every day.
Sarah: I’ve never heard of Pickleball, can you give a rundown?
Gymshorts: It’s kind of a mix of tennis and ping pong. You play it on a court that’s about 1/3 the size of a tennis court. It’s played with like a little wiffle ball, it’s awesome. It’s mostly played among senior citizens, so I have a lot of new old friends.
Sarah: That’s really cute.
What was your favorite music in middle school?
Gymshorts: Good Charlotte for sure. I love Good Charlotte. If they’re listening and they wanna take us on tour, that would be sick.
You’ve posted on Instagram that you like puzzles. What puzzle are you most proud of, and what hobbies do you have besides puzzles and Pickleball?
Gymshorts: I did a puzzle this weekend that was really tough. I wanted to throw it in the fireplace but I didn’t. It was just a lot of trees and colors. It was brutal, a lot of shifting each piece around and just guesing where it goes.
Sarah: How many pieces was it?
Gymshorts: It was only a thousand.
Sarah: That’s pretty impressive.
Gymshorts: I don’t know if I’ve done one more than a thousand. I really want to make the Gymshorts Knock-Knock into a custom puzzle and do it. [GYMSHORTS did accomplish this goal! You can check it here.]
Sarah: That’d be so cool.
My last question is, any upcoming plans?
Gymshorts: [Laughs] Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh. It’s just, I don’t know. There’s no plans right now. It’s kind of sad. I guess just waiting to see what this new world looks like. I’ve been recording my solo project. So that’ll be cool. It’s called Greensleeves. It’s way different than Gymshorts, though. That’s exciting, but other than that I guess it’s just waiting to see if touring comes back. I hope it does.
The end
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