Sparta’s Matt Miller

On a rare off day on the road, Sparta’s Matt Miller talked with NUVO about the band and their current tour with Incubus (which stops at Verizon Wireless Music Center on Wednesday, July 21; 239-5151 gets you to Ticketmaster).

NUVO: I know that opening acts get less than stellar treatment from the main act’s fans. How have Incubus’ fans treated you guys?

Miller: They’ve been really receptive. They have a really nice, polite crowd who wants to enjoy the concert. Very warm. We’ve been lucky. When we toured with weezer and Pearl Jam, those fans were really awesome, too.

NUVO: What kind of set can people expect from Sparta?

Miller: I try to think of it as a hard hit to the chest. You don’t have a full set, so we just try to hit you guys as hard as we can.

NUVO: What was it like to join a band that formed out of a very well-known band [At the Drive-In]?

Miller: My only hesitation was that it was a big shadow to try and overcome. They got popular very fast at the end. I felt like it was going to be a little bit of an uphill battle.

NUVO: So has this been a really fun gig for you? You guys are getting good press and seem to be building up a big fan base.

Miller: I don’t even think of it as a gig. We’re a full-on band. We toured the last album for 18 months. I don’t know how many times we crisscrossed the country. When we recorded this album, we rented a house in Joshua Tree to put everything together. This is a full-on band and I’m really happy.