Chris Koza on where to find a good pick-up game
Darin Back
Don't let the outfit fool you. Chris Koza knows how to throw down.
Chris Koza is a songwriter who crafts gentle folk-pop and recently began a project to release an album about every season, starting with spring. What, too twee? How about this: Chris Koza is a baller who regularly hits the court to bring the pain on any fool who dares accept his challenge. The real Koza is probably—okay, definitely—a bit closer to the former than the latter. His new band Rogue Valley takes the stage at the Fitzgerald Theater on Saturday to unveil Crater Lake, an album partly inspired by the pastoral scenery taken in during a 2008 West Coast tour, though he's quick to point out, "It’s not that I only associate springtime with Seattle, Washington or something." Despite his Portland upbringing, he now considers Minneapolis his base of operation, whether he’s collaborating with other local musicians or schooling them on the court. With that in mind, The A.V. Club asked where we might find him enjoying the spring weather.
AVC: What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a Twin Cities spring?
CK: The sheer hunger that everybody has for spring to be here. It’s like people get rabid for it. They just wanna rip off their coats and all their winter clothes. Like, you’ll see people in their shorts when its 42 degrees outside.
AVC: That seems like a distinctly Midwestern phenomenon, which you might have realized during your time on the coasts.
CK: People in New York have so many degrees of fashion sensibility. There’s a perfect look for every temperature, even the in-between seasons. Here, it’s like, “I’ve got heavy clothes, or I’ve got no clothes.” ... Spring here is so perfect even though it’s pretty short. I don’t know how Minnesotans do it. Minnesotans are funny. They’re very adaptable but they’re very particular. Like, things need to be a certain way for it to really count.
AVC: It’s 65 degrees and sunny on a Saturday in April. What do you do?
CK: I get a little sun, maybe play a little roundball over at 25th and Bryant at Mueller Park. It seems to be where all the hottest games are. [Laughs.] I don’t know, it’s four blocks from my house. But we get the pick-up games going over there. There’s a lot of people from the neighborhood who play there. Sometimes I see other random musicians there. A lot of them are in totally different genres of music than I usually go and see. But I play basketball with Alexei Casselle from Roma Di Luna. And [A.V. Club assistant editor and Big Trouble guitarist] Steve [McPherson] and [Heiruspecs bassist] Sean McPherson, and [Heiruspecs guitarist] Josh Peterson. In the summer we play at 280 and Como by Lutheran Seminary. We usually challenge a bunch of monks to some basketball, but the monks never come out.
AVC: Among the local musicians, who's most likely to win?
CK: I feel like everyone holds their own. I don’t want to start some controversy. I don’t want to go out to the courts next time and get a dirty foul, a Karl Malone elbow to the cheekbone. I don’t want one of those. Alexei’s really good. I think he’s the best.
AVC: How are your own personal standings?
CK: I feel like I’m kinda streaky. I can play really well for a couple games and then I just disappear. I think it has to do with the late nights.
AVC: You’re blaming your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
CK: I know; it’s a trade-off.
