Where are we right now?

We’re in St. Louis, Missouri at the brewery I used to work at. I left about six months ago because I wasn’t skating as much. My day was depending on how everybody else’s day at the brewery was going. If a brewer was having a bad day, I was having a late night. I had a bunch of stuff I had to do, but everyone was cool and understood that I just wanted to skate more.

What are the three best things about St. Louis?

I’d say the number one thing to tell people about is the City Museum. If they’ve never been before they’ll seriously never find anything else like it. That shit is so crazy, it’s pretty much an adult playground. Number two is School for the Blind. If you’ve never been to St. Louis to skate I’d say it’s the best ledge spot. It’s such a fun spot. Third, I’d say Imo’s Pizza. I like it a lot, I’ve been stoked on Imo’s for a long time.

Do you feel like you’re more productive filming with your brother Gabe?

My brother Gabe made St. Losers and Comb. He’s one of the hardest working people. If he’s really stoked on what you’re doing then the camera is out. But if he’s not feeling it, because it doesn’t fit his vision for the video, he’s kinda going to make you ask for it. I don’t like doing that. Filming with Gabe is good, I’m definitely more comfortable filming with him than someone else.

How’d you guys find some of the spots that were in Comb?

In the winter time, when we’re not skating as much, I drive around in and out of alleys looking for spots. Seeing if there’s anything that could potentially be a spot.

How many front porches or driveways do you think you’ve skated through the years?

That’s a really good question. I don’t even know if I can answer that. A ton.

Any crazy encounters with people being bummed on it?

I’ve been pretty lucky for the most part. There was one time where I was looking around for spots and someone came out with a shotgun. That was in South City, which is surprising. It wasn’t even a house, it was a little industrial area. That was scary. There’s also this spot we call the paintball ledge up in north St. Louis. In North City the crime rate is really fucking heavy. Up there, there’s this ledge to drop in between these two really run down houses. It’s really sick. So everyone’s trying to skate this spot, and Gabe says he turned around and this dude is wearing a mask and pointing a gun at him. This dude had walked up with a paintball gun and Gabe had mistaken it for a real gun. This dude started lighting everybody up. I’m pretty sure it’s in the bonus footage of one of Will Rosenstock’s videos. That dude was ruthless. 

How’d you first link up with the Bust Crew guys?

I think it happened when Gabe put St. Losers on YouTube. Max Matoon and Will Rosenstock were talking to each other through the comments. So Gabe asked me the following week if I wanted to go to Richmond. We went there and everyone was super hospitable. We stayed at the notorious Dust House. It was a good time and we all kept in touch from then on. It could’ve gone either way since we didn’t know them and they didn’t know us. But they were super welcoming. I don’t really have any intentions of moving out of St. Louis, but if I did, I’d probably go to Richmond. It’s welcoming. It’s a good scene.

Do you feel like St. Louis gets slept on by people coming through the Midwest on trips?

Yeah, I’d say both for skateboarders and musicians. Actually, after Comb premiered we had people in town every weekend for over a year. For the most part it was a lot of friends coming through town. The WKND dudes just left town a couple weeks ago. We had like 11 dudes sleeping at our house and it was a total shitshow, but that’s more fun. I’d still say it’s slept on. But at the same time, I kind of like it that way.

What’s up with Deby and Sons?

Deby and Sons is Preston Harper’s little clothing company. His mom passed away from cancer a while back, so he wanted to do a brand that was related to her in a way. Her name was Deby. He made a team that are a bunch of friends. He’s making t-shirts, I think a lot of it is nostalgic memories that remind him of his mom. It’s sick. That’s why there are graphics with bunnies and wicker furniture. 20% of all the funds go towards cancer research. Preston himself just got cancer removed from his body. When he told us he had it, it hit us really hard. Even though his mom had passed away from cancer, the doctors said it wasn’t a genetic thing at all. They said it was like being struck by lightning. It sucked. As of right now there is no cancer in his body. It was removed.

Any shout outs or last words?

Shout out to everyone at Send Help. Bust Crew and Deep Dish dudes. Anyone that has let us crash at their house. All the WKND guys, they were really good people. All the small brands out there. Jason at Infinity, Gabe Kehoe, Jackie Grucela, Worful, Preston Harper, Randy Ploesser, Joe Herbert, 4Hands Brewing Co, Skate Jawn, and all of my other friends and family.