Eric Church on Drunk Defense and Lumberjack Therapy
Eric Church talks a good game with boozy songs like “Drink in My Hand” and “Jack Daniels,” but the North Carolina native also walks the walk. The “Mr. Misunderstood” singer-songwriter offers up practical advice for battling hangovers, getting out of trouble and activities that effectively clear one’s brain in a new interview with Men’s Journal.
For starters, Church says inebriation can be a solid defense for misdeeds, even if the aftermath of a long night is ugly.
“Well, the great thing about screwing up when you’re drunk is you can blame it on being drunk,” he says. “Whatever you do, it’s just, ‘Honey, I was drunk.’ Blame it on the booze. Even if you’re not that drunk, blame it on the booze.”
Even so, Church realizes he can’t live exactly the same way he did nearly 20 years ago when his youthful metabolism could handle whatever he threw at it. Now he has to pay a little more attention to his health.
“I think 21-year-old Eric would tell me as I approach 40 not to eat so much late-night pizza and a 12-pack of beer before you go crawl into bed and [expect it to] turn into muscle,” he jokes.
While whiskey and weed are still a part of the Church regimen, a potentially more lethal activity helps him clear the cobwebs out of his brain. Like an amateur lumberjack, he loves to break out the chainsaw and fell some timber on his property.
“When I’m cutting a tree, if I’m thinking about anything other than that 40-foot oak tree… I’m a dead man,” says Church. “It’s a therapy thing for me.”
He’ll have to find other means of centering himself come January, when his 60-city Holdin’ My Own tour kicks off in Lincoln, Nebraska. This time out, Church will forgo opening acts and play three-hour shows comprised of two sets and an intermission.
Read the full interview with Men’s Journal here.