Kellen Asebroek of Fruition Talks About Keeping Hydrated and the Fluidity of the Show

Tell us about your tour vehicle. Any notable breakdown stories?

We bought a used 2015 Sprinter 2500 a couple of years ago after driving our third tour vehicle as much as it could possibly drive. We drive an absolute shit ton of miles – man we put these rigs to the test – so naturally they all breakdown periodically and to varying extents.

I remember a time, about two vans ago, we broke down in the middle of nowhere and had to get a flatbed tow truck to come out from fifty miles away. We put the van full of people up on the flatbed, towed our trailer behind his truck, and rode to the town of the next show, un-phased by the ridiculousness of the situation due to the countless similar situations that’d happened over the years. They happen less now, but you just never know.

We do all the driving ourselves too, so we are very extremely super in touch with the highways of the USA.

How do you eat cheaply and/or healthy while on tour?

I just try and eat like, REAL food whenever it’s possible. And then when I eat shitty food, I at least go for the really good kinds.

How many strings do you break in a typical year? How much does it cost to replace them?

I used to break a string or more every show without fail. Not cool. Not good for the fluidity of the show, needlessly intense in the moment and not to mention embarrassing. Then I started changing the full set every other show and the breakage ceased to happen. Worth every penny.

Where do you rehearse?

We are so constantly on the move that our rehearsal space is as well. We practice wherever we can whether it’s one of our basement spaces, a studio somewhere on the road, friend’s garages, hotel rooms and, of course, the van. We rehearse primarily before a demo session or studio session, or before a big tour. Otherwise we are gigging so much that those become our rehearsals.

What was the title and a sample lyric from the first song that you wrote?

The first song I ever really finished was an ode to Britney Spears when I was in the 9th grade. It was a good song man. I mean check out these lyrics:

I remember my English teacher reading it and being like “well, it rhymes!”

Describe your first gig.

My guitar teacher (who was a total trip, a dude in Vista, CA named John Pramas who spent half the lesson teaching me basics and the other half talking about crazy shit that he did on the road when he was younger. 12 year old me was bewildered) used to do these ensembles with the local drum shop students. So me and a couple other kids got booked to play at a back to school night or something at a local elementary school.

We played (I played guitar and sang) a Papa Roach song and a Three Doors Down song for a couple of 9 year olds and their parents. I’m sure it was amazing.

What was your last day job? What was your favorite day job?

I used to think I wanted to be a firefighter or a paramedic, so I got certified in all kinds of first aid/emergency response type things and became started out as a lifeguard. Classic SoCal dude guy job. I taught swim lessons and coached teams, trained guards and ended up being a supervisor at a YMCA aquatic place. It was a solid gig. I think I made more money when I was 19 than I do now.

But paramedics and firefighters have to deal with some intensely fucked up shit and I am NOT cut out for that. I had one serious rescue when I was a guard, a 5 year old kid who was suddenly floating passive/unresponsive in a crowded outdoor pool. I got him out and positioned him in a manner that would open his airway (he wasn’t breathing) and he coughed up water and came back around. All in all it was a fairly simple incident but it really got to me for a long while. I wanted to help people but it turned out that I didn’t really wanna do it like that.

How has your music-related income changed over the past 5-10 years? What do you expect it to look like 5-10 years from now?

In that timespan I transitioned from needing other work and needing loans, to music being the sole source of my income. I’ve even *started* paying off some debts. Ultimately I’d like to be out of debt, and to be able to provide for a family – even if it’s just me and a couple of dogs.

What one thing do you know now that you had wished you knew when you started your career in music?

Be as professional as you possibly can, within your means, both gear wise and communication wise. Be easy to work with, be a good listener, be on time, and be a genuine person. Developing meaningful connections within the industry, with crews and promoters, with fans and fans-to-be, is such a big part of it all. Those real connections don’t happen if you are a phony or an asshole.

Also- drink water, like all day.