The Toadies Reclaim Their "Kingdom" at Manic NYC Show

"Everything feels even better this time around — except the hangovers," says Vaden Todd Lewis, frontman for post-grunge comeback kids the Toadies, during an early-morning conversation. "Those still feel the same." He's jokingly referring to his band's reunited form, which has spawned a sold-out tour and a new album No Deliverance due in August. The group, most notorious for its hit "Possum Kingdom," splintered several years ago after a struggle with their label over their second album and the departure of bass player Lisa Umbarger. After the occasional reunion show, Lewis finally got the band back together after the departure of two of the members of his other band Burden Brothers. "They just got burnt out," Lewis explains. "So did I, really. I started to write songs that I realized were Toadies songs, and the other guys were into it, so we had to do it."

The group also got a load of support from their rabid Internet fan base — impressive considering the band broke before the Internet age really kicked in. They also aren't nervous about making their return in such a complicated era for the business. "For selfish reasons, I'm excited to see what happens to the majors," says Lewis, referencing their tumultuous end at Interscope. "We're on a small label now and doing exactly what we want to be doing."

They're also doing exactly what their fans want them to be doing if last night's sold-out show at New York's Bowery Ballroom is any indication. The band delivered a healthy mix of old favorites and new songs, and they sounded as though they'd been playing the fresh stuff (especially single "No Deliverance," a bold mix of post-grunge aggression and spicy Texas roadhouse flair) as though they'd been skillfull executing the riffs for a decade. "The songs feel good," says Lewis. "And in the end, it's all about feeling good."

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Song Stories

“Baby Got Back”

Sir Mix-a-Lot | 1992

While watching a Budweiser commercial during the Super Bowl, Sir Mix-a-Lot thought the skinny female models in the ad didn’t represent reality. So he wrote this ode to ample bottoms, featuring its famous to-the-point lyric: “I like big butts and I cannot lie.” MTV banished the video, featuring shaking booties and sexually suggestive fruit, to 9 p.m. or later. “I thought my career was over,” he told Rolling Stone. “Then I called Rick Rubin, and I told him the video was banned, and he was like, 'Great!' We sold another 2 million records.”

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