Mike Calabrese, drummer and founding member of Lake Street Dive, is no stranger to the Green Mountain State. Originally from Pennsylvania, Calabrese now calls the Upper Valley his home, where he lives with his wife, Greta, a Rutland native, and their two young children.
Since 2004, his band has steadily built a reputation for reliably soulful melodies and jazzy grooves. Along the way, the group has produced catchy earworms like “Hypotheticals” and “Good Kisser,” as well as the theme song for the Netflix series “Somebody Feed Fill,” for which they earned an Emmy nomination.
On Sunday, the band will be up for its first Grammy Award, after earning a nomination in the Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album category for its latest album, “Good Together.”
Weekend Magazine chatted recently with Calabrese, who is currently on tour in Europe and the United Kingdom, to discuss life on the road and his love of Vermont. (Responses have been edited for clarity.)
Weekend Magazine: Where are you from originally?
Mike Calabrese: The Philadelphia suburbs, a town called Broomall. Both parents are from the Philly area and met in a local rock band in the ’70s called Just Friends. They soon became more-than, and the band dissolved shortly after, ha!
WM: How did you end up in Vermont?
MC: So, obviously, Greta’s from Rutland (her family owned and operated Thomas Dairy until 2020), and at a certain point it seemed appropriate to live near family because, as we say, the only true parenting hack that exists is being near grandparents. We had been living in Boston for seven years or so, and it’s not too bad of a drive to get to Rutland, but especially as the pandemic started to wind down we were excited to get out of the city.
It’s nice living up here because you can just kick (the kids) out the door and let nature entertain them for a while. The only big thing we had to add to our routine after moving from the city was tick checks.
WM: How do you balance being on the road and being home? Does the family ever join you on tour?
MC: At this point in our touring career, the band has some control over how much time we spend on the road, which of these days is anywhere around 90 to 100 days. When I’m gone, I’m completely gone, but when I’m home I’m completely home and coming back to the woods after so much time on the road is very refreshing. Also, Greta is very adventurous. Thankfully, she brings both kids out on the road, usually in the middle of most tours we do, and we get to hang for a couple days. Between that and FaceTime, we make it work.
WM: What do you like to do when you’re back in Vermont?
MC: Usually, there’s a lot of catching up with friends, dinner hangs and running around with the kids as much as possible. I also have a little studio set up in the basement that I like to tinker around in. And being amongst the trees! It sucks the built-up stress of tour right out of me. Also, it’s standard issue to buy a chainsaw when you move here. I trim up the dead and dying stuff on my property and try to stack it like a Scandinavian farmer. It’s fun.
WM: What has the band been up to this past year?
MC: This year was the first big push for touring on our latest release, “Good Together.” The real exciting concert was headlining Madison Square Garden (in New York City), which was a first. We also had the chance to tour with a full horn section and percussionist some of the time.
WM: This is Lake Street Dive’s first Grammy nomination. How does it feel?
MC: The big feeling is one of surprise because we had no idea that this was gonna happen and, of course, we’re blown away by the recognition and support we’ve received. When you’re as busy as we are, it’s one of those things that rarely crosses your mind so that kind of makes it extra special.
WM: What does the band have coming up in 2025?
After Europe, we’re headed to Australia, which we also haven’t been to in a long time, and we also have another busy summer featuring more festivals. There’s definitely a writing retreat in my basement at some point, which is what we did for “Good Together,” and we’ll see what comes out of that, but who knows … we might try something weird and different like write a musical.
WM: Is there anything else you’d like to share?
MC: I just feel proud and grateful for the band I’m in and the team we have, which makes this life possible. Everybody is kind and hard-working and it seems to have worked out for us so far.
