Dia Frampton, 23, lead singer and keyboardist of the indie pop-rock band Meg & Dia, said that touring weighs heavily on her personal life before the band’s Nov. 13 set at Jerry’s Pizza in downtown Bakersfield.

“I’m never home. I don’t get to see my family or friends very often. If I do get into a relationship, it’s always long-distance. I use iChat, Skype and telephone.”

She added, “It’s affected all my personal relationships dramatically. It’s impossible to have good relationships when you’re away – it’s very, very hard.”

She added that having her sister Meg Frampton helps on the road, but has its hardships. “We’re really good friends. We fight a lot sometimes, but most of the time we hang out. It’s nice to have another girl in the group.”

“Touring itself is an opportunity – we’ve gone out with some really good bands. Going out with Angels & Airwaves was really crazy.”

“I’ve met some of my best friends on tour,” she said as she noted The Rocket Summer as good friends, who they opened up for at Jerry’s Pizza.

Meg (rhythm guitar/vocals) and Dia Frampton founded the band as a duo in 2004, which grew into a five-piece band consisting of bassist Jonathan Snyder, drummer Nick Price and lead guitarist Carlo Gimenez.

The Utah band has released three full-length albums and four extended plays. In July, Meg & Dia were dropped from Warner Bros. Records. They had been with Warner Bros. since 2007.

Frampton explained how the transition from major label artist to independent went.

“I don’t feel like a lot has changed for us. We’re still doing the same thing we do – we tour, we do recordings. We don’t have a big budget behind us, but that still hasn’t affected us making music.”

When asked about the current music scene, Frampton quickly replied, “It’s dramatically changing. I think all major labels are going to close down except for a few. The economy has effected touring as well, it’s harder to survive.”

She added, “There’s also positive things going on – different kinds of artists have a bigger chance of getting their music out because of so much technology. There are so many ups and downs right now.”

When Frampton was asked how music is judged currently, either by quality or quantity, she said after hesitating, “I think quantity, but with everything there’s always really great and really awful.”

Frampton said that she enjoys new music, but relies on older music more.

“I’ve found some great new artists I love to listen to and I continue to find them. I also listen to old music like Tom Petty and Boston. They never change, and they’re always there for you when you can’t find a good artist.”

Frampton said that she has played Bakersfield before with Meg & Dia but could not recall the last time.

“It’s cool. I like this area – it’s very random,” said Frampton. She mentioned about the people, “They’re all really nice.”

Frampton’s influences varied, as she said, “I really like Modest Mouse, literature and Tom Petty is my favorite artist.”

She added that most of her lyrics come from “mostly literature and people I meet and relationships and family.”

Frampton said her hobbies include cooking, writing, yoga and kickboxing. She pointed out two bands that treated Meg & Dia on the road well.

“The band that probably treated us the best was Angels & Airwaves or Plain White T’s.”

Meg & Dia released an EP titled “It’s Always Sunny In Tillamook” Nov. 2 independently.

Frampton said about the recording process of the EP, “It was just good to write again. It was like whatever came. It wasn’t any kind of pathway – we weren’t on a major label, we weren’t trying to write a radio hit.”

She added, “There were no expectations, so there was no stress. It was really free-flowing.”

Meg & Dia’s fourth full-length album is currently untitled according to Frampton.

Frampton said that none of the songs on their latest EP would appear again on their new album, due for release “probably February or March of next year,” said Frampton.

Frampton said that the band’s future plans are “Really nothing – holidays with the family and then we’ll see how this takes us.”

Frampton said that she isn’t sure if she will be touring in ten years.

“I really don’t know. I would like to be [touring], but I’d also like to move out of my parents’ house and afford rent.”

She added, “I definitely want to always be involved with music, or I think I’d have a very difficult time with life.”

Meg & Dia are currently doing a national tour in support for their latest EP, which ends Dec. 7 in Denver at Soiled Dove Underground.