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His indie rock band has played Coachella, Lollapalooza and “The Late Show with David Letterman,” drawn praise from various media outlets and will play to thousands of adoring fans at the upcoming South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin.

Yet, Tapes ‘n Tapes frontman Josh Grier has yet to quit his day job as a data analyst. He gave the specific reason for holding on to his job, and talked about various other aspects of life and music, in a chat with 210SA.

210: So you still have a day job?

JG: I haven't quit it yet . . . and my job is really good about letting me go if we need to go on tour. They've really helped me in keeping my job.

210: Think you'll quit anytime soon?

JG: Until I can get health insurance somewhere else, I don't think so.

210: The fans who really dig Tapes ‘n Tapes swear by your band. How have you been able to build such a religious following?

JG: For the most part, all we ever wanted to do was just let the music speak for itself. Without sounding too hokey, we make a record, and if they like them, they like them. We're not going to shove it down everyone's throat. We try to be personable. I run our MySpace page (myspace.com/tapesntapes) and our Web site (tapesntapes.com) and keep in touch with people that write us. Other than that, I don't know.

210: It seems like being a buzz band can be a curse in that you're getting recognition, but people might have unrealistic expectations. Do you see both sides of it?

JG: I always try to see it like, if people like our music, that's cool. If they don't, that's fine, too. All we can ever do is make things we like. If people want to label us as a buzz band or whatever, there's nothing we can do about it. We have no control over those things, and the only thing we can control is the music. That's all I ever really try to focus on.

210: Did you ever think you'd get compared to bands like Pavement and the Pixies?

JG: Definitely not. I really think when we started the band, I really wanted to play music and anything after that was just gravy. I don't think we ever had any crazy expectations that we would get compared to really good bands at that point in time.

210: Having played SXSW before, what did you learn from the experience?

JG: That you've really got to haul ass. South by Southwest is definitely a different type of thing. You set up and play and move on and play again. Everyone is running around, and it's crazy. Understanding how crazy it is is definitely an advantage this time around, being mentally prepared.

210: With your buzz at its peak, do you ever feel the pressure to deliver on people's expectations of the band?

JG: It's a little bit weird. On the last record (2005's The Loon), we recorded it and assumed the only people we were really making it for were ourselves. We didn't expect anybody to hear it much other than friends or other people in town. With this recording (Walk It Off, due in April), we had a few more people at least expecting something. For the most part, we just tried to block all that out. What matters at the end of the day is whether we like it, and that was the main focus of everything, to make a record we like. Everybody else could love it or hate it, but if we don't like it, none of that matters. I'm the one who's going to have to live with it.

210: With the surge in the Web, it's opened the door for anyone to get their music out there. Do you see the good and bad of that?

JG: I'm all for more bands and anybody being able to find music online. It makes the process way more democratic. I think sometimes there is oversaturation, and some bands get overlooked so much, but it's way better than having somebody at the label or a magazine deciding what's good and what people will hear. If you want to find music you like, it's out there, and that's awesome. If that means oversaturation . . . so be it. It's a good payoff.

CLINT HALE | 210SA