Being A Stoner-Rock Legend Is Pretty Low On John Garcia's List Of Priorities

This year marks 25 years since singer John Garcia first toured Australia while fronting desert generator party-starting stoner-rock progenitors Kyuss, who were here supporting Metallica. The vocalist has fond memories. "The environment, the people, the food - all of the above. It just was absolutely phenomenal. I'm an animal person; I have a full-time job running Palm Springs Animal Hospital. So it automatically resonated with me, because I've always loved being around animals. And Australia's such a unique place that I automatically fell in love with it."

It's among the highlights of a three-decade career, whereby Garcia, a founding member of Kyuss, as well as being involved in projects such as Vista Chino, Unida, Slo Burn and Hermano and his solo outings, has exuded a presence cooler than the other side of the pillow.

A loyal army of rock fans may view the Californian vocalist in such a fashion, but evidently, his children don't. The singer maintains that his 15-year-old daughter and eight-year-old son are less than enamoured with their father's musical endeavours. "They know that Dad's a singer, and all of his spare time is devoted to music and whatnot, but they don't really care. And I don't think that they're very impressed at all. Nor should they be; I'm their dad, so I've got to be their dad, so it's not always fun and games in the Garcia household. I run a very strict household, and I care immensely about their education. So it's important for me to keep my eye on the ball... It's not me touring; it's me being a father, a husband. Making sure they're healthy, have food on the table, that they have a college fund and a good education. That's very important in my life, and takes priority over anything."

Striking that work-family-creative balance includes Garcia working alongside his wife at the animal hospital, which he says helps him maintain a sense of regularity. "I want my kids to go to college, go to good schools. So that takes bread, and unfortunately, music; it doesn't bring that type of bread for me. Sometimes the music environment is not the healthiest for me to be in, just because of my personality... Being in that environment on a nightly basis can be dangerous, for me at least. Having some normality in my life, being in surgery on a daily basis and being around people and my clients and all the little critters that come in - that's a very healthy environment. I'm blessed. [Booking a tour] has to make sense in every single aspect; not only financially, but scheduling-wise, work-wise and family-wise. So the moons have to align just right for me to do this."

That was clearly the case for Garcia's upcoming maiden acoustic tour of Australia, where he'll be performing with guitarist Ehren Groban. The vocalist says they'll be playing Kyuss songs (he name-checks El Rodeo, Green Machine and Gardenia), but also cuts from his electric and acoustic solo records, and a new Garcia electric record that's nearing completion.

"Some songs translated well acoustically, some of them didn't work so much," he offers. "So we cherry-picked throughout the Kyuss catalogue. After a hard day's work, come on down, have yourself a cold beer, sit on the couch and listen to some acoustic jams."

He suggests a couple of Vista Chino songs may also be in the mix. The Kyuss off-shoot, initially formed by several former members as Kyuss Lives! before legal action facilitated a moniker change, released one album, Peace, in 2013. Does he envision there being another Vista Chino record at some point? "I don't think it's on the cards, to be quite honest. I think that ship has sailed. I love Brant Bjork, Nick [Oliveri], Mike Dean and Bruno Fevery, and I wish those guys nothing but the best. They're all busy with their own projects right now, but that was a quick little one-off. I'm very happy with the path that I'm on right now. It's very liberating and I'm just stoked to be doing it.

"I like where I'm at in my life. A lot of my former bands, they've asked me to come back and do another record - Slo Burn and Hermano - and I'm just really happy with where I'm at right now. There's an incredible amount of freedom in regard to doing a song the way I want, how I want, whenever I want. There's not too many cooks in the kitchen if you get my drift."