Ellen Kempner, of the band Palehound, is a 19 year old songwriter. Their 90's-inspired (part Breeders, part Liz Phair, part something totally new) debut EP, Bent Nail, is available on bandcamp. We talked a bit about songwriting after their set at the CMJ showcase for Exploding In Sound Records at Silent Barn. Palehound has a show this Saturday in Pleasantville, NY. If you're in the tri-state area, you should really make the scene. How do you feel?
I feel slightly, just like, I’m just really on edge slash kind of embarrassed just because like all of my favorite musicians are in that room and just, I have these super high expectations that I made for the show and I don’t know whether or not I met them, it’s just like a really uneasy feeling where it’s like “Oh, shit, everyone I respect is in that room.” And it’s...I don’t know what’s goin’ on.
How do you approach songwriting?
Normally I don’t voluntarily approach it, it’s just kind of like, I’ll be in the middle of a pretty inconvenient situation like in a class or like riding my bike or something, and I’ll just kind of think up a melody with some kind of lyric attached to it, and the next chance I’ll get I’ll sit with a guitar and think up chords and more lyrics and more melodies, and just kind of branch off that. But my phone is full of like a million voice recordings of me just like “ladada”, stuff like that.
How and when did you start writing music?
I started writing music when I was ten. I don’t remember how. My dad wrote songs when I was growing up and I was like, “Oh man, my dad’s so cool! I wanna be as cool as my dad!” So then I started writing songs that were really bad about like school and like, boys. I have a whole binder full of them. Pretty bad.
Do your influences just show up in your writing or are you intentionally inspired by bands?
It depends. It depends on what I’m listening to. It depends on how serious I am about a band that I love. There are some bands that I definitely admit to like, ripping off. Not directly, but I’ll listen to a certain part of a song and be like “Fuck, like, I need to make that happen.” or something. But mainly it’s just from listening to the same bands over and over and over, and making that kind of my taste, and writing inspired by them, but not like completely ripping off.
Do you have any advice for young artists?
Yeah, I think following music can be really disheartening sometimes just because it’s such a competitive field and you end up playing these bum shows sometimes and your friends will come but no one else will. But it’s really worth sticking with because the longer you go with it, the more you practice and the more you perform, the better it gets, the better the experience of performing live and writing music is.
Gio is the frontman of Brooklyn rock band The N'ere Dowells. I've gone to more shows of theirs than I have any other band, and I feel very lucky to have attended some of their first ones. Their first full-length album, Are You Still Down, will be released in June. I interviewed Gio over e-mail about high school and his musical escapades. Hear them at their record release party June 7th!
What are some of the best memories of high school you can recall, now that you're nearly finished with it?
I
think most of my best high school memories have nothing to do with high
school. I mean the actual building itself has never really fostered any
kind of significant moments for me except maybe tiny things, like there
was this week where in lunch, this girl and I would come up with some
crazy food inventions, just putting together everything that anyone had
at the table. That was sweet and kind of gross, but the girl was hot and
wore the coolest dresses. Most of my best memories are really outside
of school seeing as all of my closest friends, including the dubs [the N'ere Dowells], go to
other high schools. There was this one time we played a set in a high school gym. It was an
art show and we only agreed to play because there were free tacos and I
felt like it was some straight Nirvana shit and so we played. It sounded
like shit, we overestimated the sound of a gym and they ended up
cutting our mics, but we kept playing and apparently we ruined the art
show. Everyone left, but we got paid and got to see some sweet art.
After that we did some more sus stuff, but I think that's something that
sticks out especially since it was in someone else's high school
building. Makes me wonder if it's someone else that I don't know's high
school memory.
Did you enjoy your high school experience?
I'm
not really sure anymore. While I wake up dreading to go to school (i'm
typical), I've acknowledged that as shitty of a time that I've had here,
I know I'm gonna miss it. It's really bringing me down lately to be
totally honest. I've met a fair amount of sweet people here and it's a
little sad knowing you might never see em again ya know.
Was there a specific moment you knew you wanted begin the N'ere Dowells?
I
think there was twice. The first time, in middle school, wasn't much of
a moment. Jack just asked if I played an instrument and I told him
drums. Jack had been a good friend of mine throughout middle school from
hanging at the park and stuff. He later asked Dexter, who I had only
known very little because we were in the same gym class. Dexter played
guitar as well and I never really thought about being in a band before
that. I'd like to say that music was always a passion, but it wasn't. I
had played in like kids jazz groups growing up, but that was as far as
my music endeavors went. We went to guitar center to see how quickly we
could get kicked out. Jack played us Smells like Teen Spirit and this
was the peak of my Minor Threat phase so I think then it really clicked.
We were actually a punk band named 'SHANSHAN' for a while. It was
crazy, but if we ever get big there's some google bait shit for Nardwuar
or somethin.
The second time was after I took a long break from like
a social life. I had been going through some stuff and just staying
home, leaving Jack and Dex to play without me. Jack made me these mixes
to make me feel better and one of them was a compilations of like 40
songs he had written for when I was ready and at that point Dexter
picked up drums just because I wasn't there. In that time I also started
recording just shitty little piano tunes that I wrote, trying to be
Daniel Johnston, and all that kinda formulated to make what we are now.
When I returned, they were like hey man we really like your voice, you
should sing. I was really against it at first cus I thought singing was
just really lame and girly. I eventually agreed because I wanted to try
screaming like Avey Tare.
Has living in Brooklyn affected your writing?
I'm
not sure if it's affected our writing as much as it's affected our
attitudes, which I guess in turn affects our writing. We're all really
prideful of Brooklyn. Not in the way like 'oh shit, we're from Brooklyn,
gotta be tough', but more like just defensive of it because of all the
bullshit that's been going on. Besides the obvious gentrification to
complain about, the music scene gets to us. Just all these yuppie ass
guys moving in and saying they're Brooklyn based, like that's supposed
to mean something to me. It's all drowned in reverb and exactly like
everything else right now. Like na, and the fact that they all sing
about the beach and being chill and summer and all this shit that has
nothing to do with Brooklyn. I'm all about not burning bridges, but I
think we wanna put Brooklyn on the map for our demographic the way that
Biggie did. Like you think Brooklyn bands, you think of Grizzly Bear, Tv
on the Radio, MGMT, The National, etc, all these Brooklyn based band,
none of them actually from Brooklyn. These bands are all mostly all
great, not knocking any of them, but nothing says Brooklyn to me besides
their bio. The whole thing I think contributes to the harder side of
us.
Were you influenced by the NYC teen rock bands that came before you, such as Fiasco and Banzai? ha,
totally man. I'm a little shocked you know them, I always thought they
were kind of enclosed within this Park Slope circle scene that was going
on, but yeah. Fiasco and Banzai were literally my favorite bands in
middle school. They were really the reason I wanted to start a band in
someways because they were doing it so right. I went to so many of those
shows and they were straight up idols to me so knowing them made it all
the more stimulating as we were trying to come up. I still see some of
them around from time to time and it ain't the same, but that stuff will
always have a place in my heart. I'd still call Fiasco one of my
favorite bands. I can play pretty much all of God Loves Fiasco and while
we never got a chance to play with them, I'm still hopeful.
Do the N'ere Dowells' music or lyrics emerge first?
The
music. We're constantly writing, but I wouldn't call myself a poet or
lyricist of any kind. Melodies are usually worked out very early, but
lyrics don't come til we finally decide to sit down and get them done.
Like on the album, I had a bunch of words I had been saying for a good
portion of the songs, but I didn't actually get it down until it came
time to recording.
I've noticed a 60's doo-wop influence in your music. Was this intentional?
We
love all of that stuff, it's really sweet when people are accurate
about your influences. We're really huge on 60's doo-wop, especially on
the r&b side of the genre, but I don't think any influences are ever
intentionally inserted into songs. I mean we never write a song saying,
I want this to sound like Marvin Gaye or Blowfly or Curtis, I think it
naturally happens. Always reminds me of Act Naturally by the Beatles.
Getting prestige and having people like you for doing things
unpretentiously.
Do you enjoy performing, recording, or creating music most?
Creating
without a doubt. I think I can speak for the band when I say that we
hate recording. It's so strenuous and time consuming. We've definitely
gotten much better at the process, but we always end up mad at each
other. It still sucks. Playing live rules too, but there's always such an
expectation to it. Sometimes we play to less people then we'd like to
and more recently it's started to not affect us, but still we get bummed
out and mess around. Also just the idea of showmanship and working that
out. Sometimes I just don't feel like talking. Writing the actual songs
is gratifying. We mess around a lot, but it still works out
What do you consider playing a good show?
Having
people come up to us after and actually tell us that they liked us.
Preferably a large crowd, but even when that's not accessible, as long
as people are into it, it's good to us. We aim to please live. We like
to play like we're playing to a crowd of all women.
Do you prefer playing all ages shows? How does it feel playing in a
venue you are not yet allowed to attend as an audience member?
I
think I only prefer it because all our friends can come. It's a strange
thing to me. I mean, the 21+ DIY places aren't necessarily nicer so
while I used to feel a sense of accomplishment getting 21+ shows, at
this point it doesn't even matter to me. The whole 21+ thing just sucks.
I mean it's not that we have a problem getting shows there because I'd
say we've built up somewhat of a rep around the circuit. The thing
that's worse to me is that we look inadequate due to a lack of a large
draw. But what's the difference between an 18-19 fan base vs. a 21+? I
get the whole alcohol deal, but my real issue is how is a band supposed
to build a 21+ fanbase in order to play these places if they aren't
given a chance to play there in the first place? It feels like a bummer,
but I think it's definitely gotten better somewhat
How have your parents dealt with your musical endeavors?
I guess well. They're all really supportive and actual
music fans so they don't make it seem like just a pipedream. Being 17
though, I'm sure they get suspicious what we do, ya know da roxstar lyf
~~ sex !! drugz %% all dat, but they're behind us completely. Still,
it's awkward as shit when they come to shows and there's drunk teenagers
and all that going on.
In my opinion, you led a New York City teen rock band scene, playing so many shows to a bunch of the same kids and inspiring them to create bands. But now lots of the kids are away in college and the all ages shows are less frequent, and that scene has kind of dissolved. How does that feel? For
me, it fell apart as quickly as it came together. The real downfall of
it besides some of us moving on was when people started getting their
drinks taken away, but I suppose I'm humble about the whole thing. It
feels so ephemeral now. Maybe the novelty of it makes it mean all the
more. But I'll forever miss all da ~~druunk l@diez~~~ r.i.p.
If you could time travel, what decade would you escape to?
I'm
never sure about this question. A few years ago I would've said 60's,
but that also omits every band and thing after that decade that I
enjoy. I like now. I mean, there's nothing really super great, world
shattering, life changing shit being put out, but right now there's just
so much to discover and I have the internet to find it. I have
everything I could want right there, and while I'm all about putting
down the technology for a while, it's still crazy to me. I think if
anything I'd probably choose the 90's. I'm already familiar with
it and though I can't remember all that well, the Knicks ruled, Pavement
and Smashing Pumpkins were still breathing to fight, and The Breeders
were on the radio.
Do you have any advice for young artists?
Bug
the shit out of people. I don't understand why, but people get annoyed
all the time when you send them something. Just keep pushing it and
annoy people until they like it. Get your art out anyway you can and
don't take yourself too goddam seriously. piss people off if you have to
What can we expect to hear on your forthcoming album, Are You Still Down?
We're working on getting the "Parental Advisory" logo on it cus that's
totally badass, but it might not work out. It's us. It's loud, but we
got some sexy joints. People call it
garage, which I'm cool with, but I wouldn't know what I would call it.
It's a tiny piece of all of us and a tiny piece of Brooklyn and a tiny
piece of our friends and our parents and their parents and everywhere we
hang out and everything we know. it's a pretty big deal to us so we
hope people can just luuv it and get it out. i ain't gonna talk about
influences or compare it to anybody else cus i never really liked
comparisons, but i also want to hear what other people think we're in to
after listening. It sounds exactly how we wanted it to sound. It's our
first lp and we're getting CDs pressed, vinyls made, and the whole
nine. we're tryna make it hard for these other wackass bands to
function. word is bond, it'll be worth the time.
Jeffrey Lewis is an anti-folk icon and visual artist based in New York City. All his art forms can be experienced on his website. After I purchased a zine he created ("Sonnet Youth"- a collection of sonnets and drawings inspired by Sonic Youth's Goo), we chatted over the merch table following his set at the Music Hall of Williamsburg during that February blizzard.
How are you?
Very well. I warmed up nicely even though it’s very cold and
wintery out. Being on stage is a good way to warm up.
Was there a specific
moment that you can recall in which you knew you wanted to play an instrument
or write a song?
You know, I’ve never considered myself a musician. I went to
LaGuardia as an art major and I’ve always been into drawing and making comic
books and I started playing at open mics because it was a good way to draw a
lot of people. Because I would just hang out for hours at the open mic and draw
a lot of different performers and my sketchbooks filled up with drawings of
musicians and then it was sort of like, well, I can make up a couple of songs a
week and just play the open mic also while hanging out drawing people, too. So
I sort of just started like that. And then, somewhat to my chagrin, the music
just started developing and having a…I sort of started ending up having a
career in music rather than a career in drawing, without really having any
experience or much ability in music. But in a certain way, I think that that maybe
made people more interested in my music. Because like everybody else knew what
they were doing and I was kind of like the guy who didn’t know what he was
doing, which maybe made me sort of stand out more among the crowd, whereas
perhaps with the artwork, maybe, a lot of people know how to draw. I don’t
know. So anyway, I, yeah, I feel like I never really decided “I’m going to
become a musician” or a songwriter. But I didn’t fight against it either. I was
just like, alright. This is working out. Let’s just keep doing this.
Is ignorance bliss?
Oh, definitely. Absolutely. I’m so glad I’m stupid.
How has growing up in
New York City affected your art?
I think growing up in New York City has been really
important for me in so many ways, and I never understand it when people are
like “Oh, I could never have kids in New York.” Or “I wanna move out of the
city before I start a family”. Because I think it’s such a wonderful experience
to grow up with so many different kinds of people, so many different kinds of
food, different kinds of music…I always was just a product of public schools
and you know, that exposure to different people, I think, you know it sort of
can’t help but inform your art in some way. I think the most important things
are the things that you don’t even realize, like the things you take for
granted about what you do, but once you start traveling the world, you realize
that other people think what you do is like, “Oh, you’re so New York!” or
you’re so whatever the hell it is. You know, you’re so Jewish or you’re so
white or you’re so short or you’re so…whatever the heck it is. And you’re just
like, I don’t know, I’m just me. I’m not any of these things. I’m just being
myself. But once you are in a context where suddenly people make you feel like
that is something rare and special that, you know, New York City is so small,
and while we’re here, it’s our entire universe. When you go out into the rest
of the world, you realize that it’s such a different universe than the rest of
the world and it’s more special than we have to give it credit for while we’re here
in the midst of it.
How important is
individuality?
Well, I don’t know. That’s a tough one. Like, everybody’s an
individual so in some ways, I feel like individuality just alienates you, and
the more individual you are, the harder it is just to hang out with people, and
you sort of have to learn to compromise yourself just for the sake of being a
human being. And I feel like that’s sort of the toss-up that we all deal with
in our lives is how much are you willing to compromise what you wanna do in
order to be part of a group of other people or to have a relationship with
somebody, or to have a band with somebody, or to be friends with somebody. And,
you know, if everybody was just a total individual and just did anything they
wanted to do, everybody would just be a baby. I feel like part of growing up is
maybe not being so individual, but kind of learning where you fit in to this
community with other people. So it’s sort of like…I don’t know. It’s a tough
thing. I feel like people place so much emphasis on being an individual but
everyone is an individual. If they just kind of relax, maybe their
individuality would come out more? But maybe that’s just easy for me to say
because, I don’t know. It’s hard to say. It’s a weird question. It’s a good
question. It’s actually an excellent question because I’m going to be thinking
about it for a while.
Do you have any
advice for young artists?
Well, let’s see. One thing I’ve learned is that it’s very
easy to make art because all you need to do is spend a lot of time at it. I
didn’t realize that until I was about eighteen. I had been drawing all my life
but it wasn’t until then that I realized there was a very simple equation: draw
more, you get better at it. That’s it. You don’t need to go to school for
anything. No matter what you do, if you do it for four hours, you’re much
better than if you just did it for two hours. And that’s it. That’s the whole
equation of anything. But it’s so hard to do one thing a lot, and not be
distracted by other things. But other than that, pretty much anything is just
that easy. If, you know, if you wanna be an artist as your job, well, if you
can actually make art for forty hours a week, like a day job, 9-5, you’re gonna
get so good, that like, you will be able to make a living at it. It’s just
like, can you actually make art for forty hours or more every week? That’s the
challenge. But getting good at it is actually kind of easy. Just do it a lot,
no matter what it is.
What is the meaning
of life?
Probably, it’s probably totally meaningless, meaningless,
like no meaning, just complete meaninglessness, but that can be a good thing,
because otherwise you’d be really stressed out all the time. That you’re like,
screwing everything up, ‘cause of course you’re going to screw everything up
because it’s always your first time doing everything in life, you have no experience
in anything because it’s your first time being alive, but if it actually
mattered and it meant something, then you’d really be stressed out all the
time. But luckily, it’s all totally like, you know, whatever, we’re all just
gonna die and it doesn’t matter at all. But that doesn’t have to be a
depressing thing. That can actually be pretty cool. It’s like okay, so what? Like, alright. That’s cool. That takes the
pressure off.
I am perplexed by the current popularity of electronic cigarettes. Is there smoke? Are they better for you than real cigarettes? But most importantly, can they be recycled?
I don't know the answers but I do know this NJOY electronic cigarette commercial is amazing. It features the rocking, rebelling, frequently erring, and always inspiring Courtney Love. She is juxtaposed with haughty bourgeoisie ladies tsk tsking her bad seed ways.
(I hope I'm not subconsciously encouraging smoking. Don't do it, kids.)
Yeah. They do, as evidenced
by the recent news concerning my favorite band: Neutral Milk Hotel. One
of the only bands to receive a perfect 10.0 on Pitchfork released a
reunion tour announcement today on their website. Only five dates in
North Carolina (with Daniel Johnston!), Georgia, and Japan and Taiwan
have been posted thus far, but there are "more to come".
What a beautiful dream/that could flash on the screen.
Richard Hell is the creator of the punk look. Well, the original
punk look- spiky hair, ripped jeans and shirts held together by safety
pins; the look that the Sex Pistols across the pond copied and
exaggerated to the nth degree. Hell isn't bitter about this, but he is
bitter about a lot of other things he mentions in his new
autobiography, I Dreamed I Was A Very Clean Tramp.
The bassist, singer and songwriter of Television, the Voidoids, and
other influential early punk bands is quite candid in his new book. He
calls Patti Smith's band generic and calculated, speaks of his rivalry
with his best friend and collaborator, Tom Verlaine, and even calls
himself a "slut". But Hell also remarks on his respect for Smith and
Verlaine, and eventually reaches some form of humility when he quits
heroin at the close of the story.
Hell's autobiography has received rave reviews from
the New York Times and other publications. He will appear tomorrow at 6:30 at the NYU Fales Library to read aloud from his autobiography.
P.S.- on the topic of the beginning of punk- my favorite book ever (besides The Perks Of Being A Wallflower) is Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil. It is the definition of a page-turner. I highly recommend it.
Lindsay Baker is the
frontwoman of Brooklyn rock band Radical Dads. Their next album, Mountain Town, will be released in May. The single is available on their bandcamp. Over coffee, she spoke to me about her most prominent musical experiences. Catch them at Cake Shop tonight.
What was your high
school experience like?
I went to a private, all-girls school in Columbus, Ohio.
I spent a lot of time at my local record store and hanging out with musicians
and music people in Columbus,
and learning how to play guitar and doing that sort of on my own. I begged my
mom for a 4-track, a cassette 4-track- this was a long time ago [laughs]. I think it was Christmas when
I was 17 or 18. I don't think she got it for me but I ended up saving enough
money so I could buy a 4-track and started recording a little bit on my own. It
was all in isolation, because I didn't really...by the time I was a senior I
started to make friends with some of the musicians in Columbus but there was
still the divide of being 18 versus being, you know, in your twenties. Luckily,
the bar policies in Columbus
were very loose and so I could often get into shows. I went to a lot of shows,
and I was just like a music nerd, you know, like really into listening to new
music and reading [about it]. I mean, back then, there was no internet, so it
was all like reading magazines and I would mail a way for record labels'
discographies and catalogs and stuff to order stuff. So a lot of digging
through record bins and I also did a lot of painting and drawing. That was sort
of another thing I was into.
Did you like your
teachers as a high school student?
Yes. I loved them.
Was there a specific
moment in which you knew you wanted to play music?
Yeah, I don't know the exact moment but I started listening
to music...actually, well, maybe there is a specific moment. So I was like
going to all these record stores in Columbus,
I mean not, there were like, two of them that I would frequent. One of the guys
that worked at one of the record stores said to me, or asked me if I played any
instrument, and at the time, you know, I'd taken piano as a kid but didn't
really pursue it beyond eighth grade and the guy said, you know, (in lower,
imitating voice) "You should play an instrument. You listen to good music,
'cause all the people that listen to good music should start bands." I
mean it sounds, you know, like a little corny, but I was like, "Oh! He
thinks I should play an instrument! Maybe I should!" And I got excited
about playing music and emulating my heroes, so that's when I started.
What was the first
song you played on guitar? Do you remember?
I'm trying to remember the very first one. I don't know, I
had this guitar teacher, that I would just like bring in a list of songs that I
liked and then he would teach me how to play them. But the thing was many of
them were, you know, like songs that were just traditional Beatles songs. And
he would always get very frustrated and be like "This is the dumbest
chord!" Because they weren't musician-y type chords where like, I don't
know...indie rock bands as opposed to like the Eagles. He wanted to teach me
"Hotel California" and stuff like that. I think I did learn that.
That was probably one of the first ones. Maybe some other Beatles songs that he
was trying to shove down my throat.
Growing up in Ohio, did that affect
the music you write and or did it affect who you are as a person?
Definitely. Yes. 100%. I mean all the people that were
playing music in Columbus
while I was growing there are people I really admired and when I was in high
school was when it was right before Guided By Voices signed with Matador and so
they were out on a local label. Their cassette was in the local music section
so the whole Ohio music thing was very influential to me, and just that sort of
lo-fi, DIY kind of sound that was still...the thing I love about Guided By
Voices is that it's still pop music, it's just really weird [laughs]. There's something off about it
as well. And then there were a bunch of bands in Columbus that were...it wasn't
that they all sound the same or played the same genre of music but just sort of
that grubby, dirty thing. I can't explain it except that there were like rats
in the records store. It was actually filthy [laughs].
Do Radical Dads'
songs emerge out of spontaneity or from a more careful, time-consuming
approach?
I think it's like a mix, actually. Some of them happen at
practice and some of them...I'll bring in a guitar part. But it all starts with
the music part and the lyrics come later. And for most of the songs, I sorta do
that in isolation a little bit, but my bandmates will sometimes propose an idea
for a topic for a song.
How would you
describe Radical Dads' music?
I don't know. It's just sort of what happens when the three
of us get together to play music because we're all really good friends as well
so I think it's that dynamic that creates the music. It's very influenced by
the other bands we love, but I think it's just a different variation of that. It's
really hard to put that into words. I don't know...rock music? When the people
I work with ask me what kind of music I play, I say, "It's like rock
music. It's pretty loud." And they're usually satisfied with that.
You said that you guys have all been good friends. Is it difficult managing friendships and
managing business relationships?
No, because we all work together really well so it works out
nicely and we all sort of take on different roles. Robbie sort of is the
architect of the band, he's the drummer, and Chris and I will bring in guitar
parts and he'll shape them and say "Oh no, play that part three more
times!" or "Don't play that part there, play it at the end."
It's nice. Chris and I just come in with parts and it works out well. Chris and
Robbie do more of the business-y type stuff and I spend more time writing
lyrics and writing songs. But it works out really well. It's not a problem at
all.
What do you consider
playing a good show?
It would probably be a good show if we're playing with other
bands that we either are friends with and love or are musicians we admire and
if it just sort of...it's just like a feeling between the three of us in sync
with each other and having fun. I think that's more important because hearing
yourself is always a variable and the audience is always a big variable. You
might be playing to two people or you might be playing to a packed room. You
want to have fun no matter what and you want it to be worth your while to be there
and it usually is. Good vibes are also very important which is just...how do
you quantify that? That usually just comes from having a bill where there are
other like-minded bands with people that we're friends with.
What are you
listening to right now?
The new Sea and Cake record, Runner. It's really good. I just got this really great Albert Ayler
record. He's like a free jazz guy called Vibrations.
I've been on a real Sea and Cake kick. I just saw them at Littlefield's the
other day and they were amazing. That was like my favorite band in high school.
Some things never change. I'm going to see Metz tonight. They're pretty good.
If you could time
travel, what decade would you escape to?
Ooh...that's a good question. I should keep thinking about
these things; my time travel options! As a musician, I sort of wish I was a
little bit older than I am. Not now, I don't wish I was older, but when I was
in high school. If I had a been more a part of when indie music was more of...I
feel like now indie rock is a whole different thing from when I was a kid. So,
you know, the early 90's. That would be a good time. So that means I would have
had to have been born earlier in the 70's instead of the late 70's. It's not
very far back.
Do you have any
advice for young artists?
Don't worry about where you're going to end up, just keep
doing the things you love doing because that's what's going to take you some
place, if you're going to go some place, you know what I mean? If you're going
to get recognized, you're going to get recognized for doing the things you love
doing. So you may as well keep doing them and not really worry where that's
going to take you. The thing I always loved doing and never needed any coaxing
to do was playing music and writing songs but I didn't think for some reasons
that that was something I should really cling to and keep going with. It just
seemed like this little side-thing for a long time, but now I'm like "No!
This is what I love! I gotta keep doing it!" When we started the band, it
was just out of wanting to play music together and my goal was to play a show,
and it just sort of grew from there. So
I think as long as you're having fun and doing those things, then you're
already winning, you know? You're already fulfilling your dreams because you're
doing what you love to do. Sometimes, you have to fill out the other logistics
of that, money or whatever, but all that stuff can be figured out. It's just
important to keep doing whatever it is that you love.
