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Toadies broke up six years ago, shattering the hearts of tweeny-somethings everywhere who had either made out to “Possum Kingdom,” sang a drunken version of “Tyler” in a karaoke bar, or quite possibly, both.

Toadies have done a few one-off dates from time to time, but why was now the time to put together a larger-scale tour?

I like to work a lot, and I like to stay busy. Burden Brothers (Lewis' current band) had a couple of members take off a couple of months ago, and that kind of left us in a situation where we couldn't tour for a while ..... Being home for a few days, I was ready to go. I called the guys in Toadies and thought, “Why not go do some shows?” Everyone was up for it.

There is rumored to be a new Toadies album coming out in 2008. Any truth to the rumor?

That is definitely a rumor, and it's a good one. I like that rumor.

Will Toadies ever exist again as a full-time band?

I've learned to never say never, but that's not our intention right now. I still have a lot of ground to explore with Burden Brothers, and we all have a lot of things going on.

Did you ever imagine Toadies would still be relevant, more than a decade after hitting it big?

I never figured we'd last. Early on, I figured we had a great opportunity to make a record, then get put on tour with the record. Then I thought, “I'll get dropped (from the label) because that's the way it goes. I'll go back to working in a record store.” All of a sudden, it's 14 months later, and we're selling places out.

If Toadies ever did reunite full time, are you concerned people would constantly remember the band as it was, rather than what it could be in the future?

I know that's the way people think. If you'd have asked me that six years ago, I probably would have said yes. But it doesn't matter to me. I've come to realize my job is to be an entertainer. I like to entertain people, but it's not up to me to dictate what (fans) like. I play music I like, some of which I happen to have written 17 years ago. If people want to hear it again, fine.

Were you ever worried that Burden Brothers wouldn't be able to establish an identity outside of “Toadies side project?”

Yeah, I guess so. But the music was so different, that I didn't see it as a big problem. We definitely went out and forged our own way.

You previously went by Todd Lewis. So that we're straight, you're officially going by Vaden these days?

That's my first name. My wife (Beth Clardy) started calling me that in 1996 when we started to get serious. Then, my friends started calling me that, and it became a thing. It's a cool name, and it was my grandfather's name. It means a lot ..... Coming up as a kid and even in my 20s, try going as Vaden, and people give you s**t. After awhile, you don't care. It's a good name, so I don't give a s**t.

Did you ever envision the day when “Tyler” would become the unofficial anthem of the drunken karaoke singer?

That's hilarious, and I've even gotten footage of that. Honestly, I don't know, and I don't really know what the deal is with any of my songs, whether people like them or not ..... (“Tyler”) seems to connect with people, and it makes them want to jump around.

If you knew then what you know now, would you have handled anything differently during Toadies' heyday?

Well, I couldn't have done more drugs. That would be impossible. I couldn't have had more sex. I don't know. Seriously, I'm a pretty damn levelheaded guy. I save my money and try to be wary of what's going on around me. Learning more early on is always good.

When did you figure it was time to settle down?

(My wife) and I started getting serious in '96 or so, and we'd just kind of lived. Everyone is entitled to breathe and be an idiot as long as they feel necessary. I'm way cool with that. If you never want to settle down, more power to you. We don't need more kids. By the same token, if it isn't what makes you happy, then it's time to start looking around. That's what I did, and that's what she did.

CLINT HALE | 210SA