Tag: interview
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SXSW 2017: Lukr x Vinyl Mag
“There will always be this kid inside of me that’s in the rock and roll band that’s trying to write the song to get the girl. That’s always going to be a part of who I am.”
When I picked up the phone to chat with Lukr, I didn’t expect to get a recipe for vegan queso or hear an anecdote about what it means to be a hypocrite. The self-proclaimed conversationalist was engaging, genuine and ready to share the love he has for his craft. Before long, it was clear that his down-to-earth lyrics emanate from the same place as his conversations–authenticity. Luke Foley is a man committed to using his honesty and creativity to connect with his fellow human beings.
After touring with the band he started at 17, Farewell Flight, Lukr settled down in Nashville where songwriting became his partner in crime. His debut single as a solo artist, “Fucked Up Summer,” has been deemed a viral hit on Spotify and surpassed a million streams in a mere 12 weeks. He followed that success with “Scarecrow” which also gave a stellar streaming performance. When asked what he thinks made those songs so successful, Lukr went back to the word “authenticity.” Whether fans are responding to his genuine lyrics or the catchy melodies, clearly he’s doing something right.
On February 10 of this year, he released the first installment of his mixtape series entitled Heartbreak Mixtape Vol. 1, featuring the style he describes as “neon grunge alternative pop.” Fans will get a chance to hear those new songs at his set at The Nashville House at this year’s SXSW. To find out if he prefers songwriting or performing and to hear the story behind his name, keep on reading. Plus, you just might get a restaurant recommendation for vegan tacos.
Vinyl Mag: What brought you to Nashville?
Lukr: I moved here after I had a band for a little while and did a lot of DIY, kind of blue collar touring basically. We toured a good bit around the US, but it was all self-booked. We did it for a little while, and then I thought maybe we should try a music town. I thought we’d all move to Nashville, and we’d be signed to a major deal in like a weekend of handshaking. But actually what I had to do was learn how to write a song. Before I came here, I was very protective about songwriting. I wouldn’t co-write with anybody. I think I had this need to be this creative genius that just goes off by myself in my cabin and makes a record. But I wasn’t learning anything, and it’s kind of hard to learn anything about your craft when you don’t take any kind of input from anybody else.
So, when I moved to Nashville, I just started co-writing because that’s what everybody was doing, and it just seemed to kind of make sense. Once I started doing that, I just started writing for stuff that wasn’t for me so I wasn’t afraid to take chances and do something that I would normally think was cheesy or stupid. Or, I would write styles of music that I used to just not like on principle. I still had my band but it had kind of run its course, and everybody was starting to move on and do different things here in town.
VM: What made you decide to start a solo project?
Lukr: I was always so afraid to think of myself as a solo artist just because I didn’t think I was a good enough singer or maybe I’m not a pretty guy. I mean, I think I’m okay-looking, but I’m not pretty. Or, I’m not a phenomenal dancer, and to be a solo artist you have to have this amazing range. Part of having a band for me justified that. I’m not the greatest singer in the world, but I’m the songwriter, and also I play guitar so combined that gives me enough credit to be here, right? It was an insecurity thing; I was afraid to believe in myself.
I didn’t even like the word artist because I thought it was so pretentious. I thought, I’m not an artist—I’m just a guy who does music or whatever. I was afraid to think of myself as an artist. I remember I was writing with a guy and he was talking to me one day, and I was telling him that my idea was once my band made it I would maybe start a side project for myself. And he just asked this kind of really poignant question and said, “Why do you think of yourself as a side project and your band as your main thing? You are not your own side project. You are your main project. When you do your band, that’s just you as an artist in that band.” I wept on this dude’s porch, just cried like a baby because somebody told me I was good enough.
VM: How did you get the name Lukr?
Lukr: I love nicknames. I’m always trying to get nicknames going for people. I kind of had this realization that there was this nickname I had gotten from people throughout my life totally autonomous of one another. Everybody that called me “Luker” thought they coined that nickname. My middle initial is R for Robert, which is my grandfather’s name, so my name reads like, “Luke R Foley.” I’d always wanted a nickname, and I just didn’t realize that it was right in front of me like a girl from a romantic comedy. So, that’s how I got the name Lukr. I dropped the “e” because I thought it looked a little cooler. Now, looking back, I think maybe that was kind of cheesy–it looks kind of like Tumblr or Flickr or something–but it’s too late and it’s just a name so who cares.
VM: How do you feel like your time with Farewell Flight shaped your music today?
Lukr: I think it had an influence in ways that I don’t mean it to… I think a lot of my lyrics are almost emo in a way. I think I appeal to a lot of millennials that are mid-twenties because it feels like Taking Back Sunday in a way. So, I think it still has that influence on me. There will always be this kid inside of me that’s in the rock and roll band that’s trying to write the song to get the girl. That’s always going to be a part of who I am.
VM: I definitely noticed the emo/grunge lyrics but also the pop melodies that are catchy enough to remember. How do you blend those two genres together?
Lukr: I just want to write songs that appeal to human beings where there’s no “you have to be this cool to ride this ride” kind of thing. I try to write things in a way that’s honest and real for me. Like, for me, “Fucked Up Summer” is about this experience and this person. One of the lines is “Baby, I can be your backseat lover and you can be my fucked up summer.” I picture a specific car, a specific backseat, a specific driveway. For other people, they might picture a totally different car in a parking lot—they have a different story. But there’s a way to write something that doesn’t exclude people that can still have the details in it.
VM: Do you write more about your own experiences or make up stories and then write from there?
Lukr: As of now, I just write a lot of my own experience just because it’s what I know. This is going to sound really pretentious, but I want to be the Springsteen of the millennial generation. I was born in ’85 so I wasn’t the first millennial, but I’m near the top and I feel like I’ve had the experience of what it is to be a twenty-something and what it means to go from teenager to adult and then adult to grown-up, and it’s the weirdest transition. It’s just a weird place to be, and it’s something I feel like I’m still going through, but I’m just half a block ahead of people in their twenties. I’m able to look back and kind of look at it in context and understand it better, and I don’t feel like I’ve got the sand in my eyes as much.
So, I’ll just write about, like, what it’s like to be in love with somebody and then you break up and then they get engaged to somebody else. That’s just a weird, grown-up feeling! It’s more than somebody just moving on–it’s somebody moving on in a semi-permanent way, and you’re like, “Whoa, we’re all just kids still.”
VM: Do you think that style of writing is part of the reason why your songs have done so well on Spotify?
Lukr: Honestly, I feel like it’s just the right place at the right time. Or maybe I was just in the right place all the time, and then the right time just came, so to speak. I mean, nobody had any idea who I was, and I just picked the first song I fell in love with. When the right song came along, it was “Fucked Up Summer,” and I picked it because it scared me. First of all, it has the word “fucked” in the title, and I’ve got in-laws, I’ve got a grandmother and grandfather, I’ve got a mom, I’ve got nieces and nephews–my family is not going to listen to this song. That kind of scared me, but it’s real and authentic and comes from a real place! I think I released that one because it scared me so much. It’s kind of like my rule that if something scares you, then that means you’re probably supposed to be doing it.
VM: On the flip side of songwriting, do you like performing more or less than writing?
Lukr: I mean, songwriting is still my first love, and it’s something that sort of naturally came to me and I’ve spent so much time developing. Creating the art, to me that’s the most satisfying feeling. And then performing it live is kind of like the celebration; it’s like the wedding reception. So, I like them both. I’d say if you’d asked me that question even six months ago I would’ve said, “Oh, songwriting by far is the more fulfilling thing for me.” But I’ve just recently met this amazing girl, and her name is live performance, and I’ve re-fallen back in love with her. It’s like an old flame, and it’s really exciting.
VM: That’s perfect timing since you’ll be taking the stage at SXSW soon!
Lukr: Yeah, I’m excited! This is the first time I’m ever getting to go, and it’s kind of a long-time coming fulfillment for me, but there’s also a lot of pressure on that. Recently, though, I’ve felt that anxiety just melt away, and I’ve felt the excitement. I think confidence is not cockiness—it’s just awareness of your own capabilities. We were rehearsing, and I feel so good about my band, and all of a sudden I just realized, “Oh my god, I’m playing SXSW.” I’m just excited to get out there and do it. I don’t know, I’m feeling very, very fired up about it.
VM: What shows are you playing at SXSW?
Lukr: I’m playing some SX takeover stuff on the way, but at SX I’m just doing this one showcase at Tellers Upstairs [on Tuesday, March 14]. It’s put on by Nashville pop and pop/rock artists, and it’s called The Nashville House. From what I’ve heard, it’s the very first time there’s ever been a representation of Nashville pop at SX. There’s this kind of emerging, really, really, really cool scene coming out of Nashville that’s just all pop stuff, and I think it’s one of the first times the outside world is really going to get exposed to that. I’m honestly just thrilled that they even contacted me to be a part of it!
VM: Is there a certain artist that you’re looking forward to seeing?
Lukr: NAWAS—he’s from Nashville, and I think he’s one of the most exciting things going on that I’ve heard. So, I’m super excited about him, and then obviously there’s a bunch of other awesome artists at The Nashville House.
VM: And, one last question we always have to ask is: barbecue or tacos?
Lukr: Man, that’s a tough question. I used to make a crazy barbecue that I thought was pretty good…but now, I actually eat a pretty much plant-based diet, so I don’t really eat meat anymore. I love to cook, and I love food. Food is my love language…I’d say out of those two, I’d probably go with tacos as my official answer just because I’ve had some amazing vegan tacos. There’s a place in LA called Gracias Madre, and they have these BLT tacos but it’s totally plant-based. They use this coconut bacon, and it’s amazing.
VM: Since you said you love to cook, do you have a signature dish that you love to make for people?
Lukr: I’ve got this thing that I make called “tater queso” [recipe below]. It’s kind of a recipe I got from a friend that I’ve adapted.
Tater Queso
Ingredients:
2 cups potatoes, peeled and chopped (about 2 med taters)
1/2 cup carrots, peeled and chopped
2/3 cup onion, peeled and chopped (about half an onion)
2 cups water
1/2 cup raw cashews (soaked)
2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp garlic, minced (or garlic powder)
3 TBSP Earth Balance or Coconut oil (I half this one but it’s better with)
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp paprika
¼ tsp cumin
2 tbsp of Nooch*
Note:
*Nutritional Yeast (or “Nooch”) is this flaky deactivated yeast that looks and tastes kinda like Cheeto dust. It’s low fat, gluten free (if that’s your thing), and packed with nutrition (B-vitamins, folic acid, selenium, zinc, and protein). Find it at Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Kroger (in the hippie aisle) or just order it from Amazon Prime like my lazy ass does.
Directions:
1. Start by soaking those cashews in water. If you can get a few hours on them in the fridge dope, if not, still dope. Just cover ‘em up so your cat doesn’t F with them, you’ll need ‘em later.
2. In a covered saucepan, put that H20 on til it starts to boil, then reduce to a simmer. Keep a lid on this the whole time cause you you don’t want that water to reduce, we’re gonna use all of it.
3. While that wawa is heating up, start peeling them taters up, and chop em along with the carrots and onion. I like to chop em pretty fine cause they cook faster. Start throwing them in as you finish chopping and measuring.
4. Toss in the rest of that stuff as you measure it out (ending with the drained cashews). Keep that lid on! Let it simmer for a few minutes, but by the time you’re adding the last ingredient, it should be almost done. Give it 15 min or as long as you feel like it.
5. Pour the whole ding dang thing (including the water) into a blender or food processor. Blend that sumbish for longer than you’d think. Like, 5-10 min or until it’s a creamy texture, depending on your blender/processor. Pour it over some cooked pasta, or steamed veggies, or dip unsalted blue corn chips, or just drank it out of the blender like I do.
SXSW 2017: Mise en Scene x Vinyl Mag
With SXSW’s seemingly endless lists of performers all incredible in their own right, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle. Mise en Scene, however, is one act you definitely do not want to miss. The Canadian quartet effortlessly combines beautiful, heartfelt lyrics with rock instrumentation, giving everyone something to enjoy. Their first full-length album, Desire’s Despair, involved producers Howard Redekopp (Tegan & Sara), Howard Bilerman (Arcade Fire) and Tony Berg (Beck) and gave the band quite an entry onto the scene in 2012. Not only did it have a 16-week run on Canada’s Top 50 national charts, but it also received a 2014 Sirius XM Indies Award nomination. The foursome rode that success all over the world with performances in Barcelona, downtown Paris, Berlin and more.
Stefanie Blondal Johnson (vocals/guitar) and Jodi Dunlop (drums) first founded the Manitoba-based band after bonding in art school over painting. These days, they’ve added friends Corey D Hykawy and Dave Gagnon on bass and lead guitar, respectively. Bringing in the two new members to the group allowed room to create songs with more dimension and sounds, which even further enhances the experience of their on stage performances. Mise en Scene knows how to have fun at their own live shows, and according to Do512, their performances are “soaked with emotion.”
Just a few weeks ago, the team graced our ears with a new release courtesy of Light Organ Records. The song “Show Me You’re Real” is the first single off their upcoming sophomore album, Still Life On Fire and embodies the band’s signature marriage of garage pop and indie rock. Huffington Post calls their sound a combination of “’60s pop with strokes of garage rock” and hears a “beachy vibe, reminiscent of the Dum Dum Girls.” The new album will be released Summer 2017, but until then, fans can sink their teeth into the single as well as their performances at SXSW.
To get us all pumped up for their SXSW sets, we chatted with bassist Corey Hykawy about pre-show band rituals, emotional space and French fries. Check out the interview below.
Vinyl Mag: Tell me a little bit about your musical background.
Corey Hykawy: I played in a couple high school bands—nothing serious—and then I was living in Toronto after college, and I came back to Gimli [Manitoba] for a summer and ended up joining a friend’s band. I ended up staying in Gimli instead of moving back to Toronto and played in Winnipeg, played in a bunch of bands and then eventually joined Mise en Scene. That was about two and a half to three years ago now, and I’ve just been playing with them ever since.
VM: What made you want to jump on board with this band?
CH: I’d known the drummer, Jodi, since we were in high school. She had a high school band, and I remember being like, “if you ever need a bass player I’d love to play with you guys,” but it never worked out. And then I’d seen them play all over Winnipeg, we played shows together, and I always really enjoyed the music, I really liked the songs. They both have connections to Gimli, the small town we’re from, and we’re all just friends so it seemed like a good fit. So when they were looking for a bass player, I threw my name in there, and then it all worked out.
VM: What’s the dynamic like between the four of you?
CH: When we’re writing, it’s very collaborative. But we’re also pretty goofy people, so there’s lots of joking and lots of trash talking and stuff like that… a lot of back and forth joking around and wine-drinking.
VM: I’m sure that relationship makes being on stage together more fun.
CH: Yeah, we all get along so well as friends, and we spend a lot of time together whether we’re practicing or just hanging out. I think that helps a lot—just being close friends and being on stage, and you look over across the stage and you see a good friend, and it’s just like you’re there having fun. It doesn’t feel like work, doesn’t feel like any pressure or anything like that.
VM: You did some touring back in the Fall—what was the most fun part about that?
CH: That’s tough, because there are so many different parts of it that all come together. I love touring, but honestly one of my favorite parts is driving in the van from one city to the next and just talking about the show the night before, or talking about the show coming up that night and how we can make it better, or just listening to tunes on the road and talking. And that’s completely ignoring the whole side of playing while you’re on tour, which is also amazing and fun. It’s hard to narrow it down to just one thing.
VM: What about the most challenging part?
CH: Definitely learning what makes each other tick and when to give someone space and knowing how much emotional space you’re taking up as an individual. Just being aware of everyone’s state of mind…asking someone how they’re doing if they need it. I think it’s just learning to juggle the emotions of four passionate people in such tight quarters when things can be so manic–one day things are going so well, and then the next day you’re stuck on the side of the road with a flat tire.
VM: Do you have a favorite venue you’ve played?
CH: Since I’ve been in the band, we played one in Berlin called Privatclub, and we really liked that venue a lot. I think my favorite would be in Paris when we played the Mécanique Ondulatoire. It was this basement venue, and it looked like The Cavern [Club] that the Beatles used to play in. It had this brick wall, and it was just this really cool, small, dingy basement. It felt like a little punk bar or something like that.
VM: You’ve played a lot of festivals—do you prefer those over more traditional gigs?
CH: We really like playing festivals, because we’re all music fans as well, so you get the best side of music with that. You have your set in the afternoon or evening, and then you have the whole day to watch other bands. Being anywhere where it’s sunny outside in the summer watching music is just the best thing ever.
VM: Do you have any pre-show band rituals?
CH: Not really; we just kind of look at each other. I always try to make eye contact with everyone and give them a little wink or something like that, or just a wink and a smile to let them know like, “hey, let’s do this.” Just hugs and things like that, some high fives, nothing too crazy.
VM: As a performer, what’s your personal mindset when you step on stage?
CH: I don’t really think that much about it, because when I was younger, I kind of got stage fright, so I tried to not acknowledge the fact that I was in front of people. So I guess my approach is just like, we’re in the jam space having fun and not in front of a hundred or two hundred people.
VM: You recently released the single “Show Me You’re Real” off the upcoming album. How does it reflect the rest of the record?
CH: That song is almost the best summation for the album in the sense that it’s a very dynamic song–it’s loud, it’s quiet, it’s fast, it’s slow. I think that that’s a big part of the album. I didn’t write the lyrics, but Stef’s lyrics on the album, that song sums up what she’s going for in all the other songs. It really takes everything and puts it together.
VM: What was the creative process like in making that song?
CH: In the studio when we’re trying out different instruments and different parts, when we have the bass track and the drums down and we’re just messing around with guitar and vocal ideas, that was a lot of fun. The writing process for it was pretty quick. It was one of those songs where they had it written when I joined the band, and then I came in and we didn’t agonize over anything; it just kind of came together. All the parts just naturally fit into place. I find when I’m writing a song that the first thing I play is always the best. I’ll try different ideas or different parts, but it always comes back to that first idea that you play naturally because it’s almost just a reaction to what you’re hearing.
VM: So, for South by Southwest, what shows are you guys playing?
CH: We’re doing the Halifax Pop Explosion showcase at the Swan Dive Patio on March 16. I think that’s also Canada House, which it’s always awesome being around other Canadian bands. And then we’re at Esther’s Follies on March 18 for a showcase.
VM: If a new listener sees your band name on the schedule, how would you sum up what they’re going to hear?
CH: They’re going to hear loud, jangly guitars, some distortion, some reverb. They’re going to hear some sultry vocals from Stef, some infectious melodies coming out of the guitar, and a driving rhythm section with Jodi and I. Just an all around fun time–we try and have as much fun as possible!
VM: Who are you most looking forward to seeing at SXSW?
CH: It’s insane how many bands are there, it blows my mind. Every year that we go, I’ll go through all the bands that are playing and scroll through, and then either based on a town that they’re from or a genre or the name, I’ll just randomly click on the band and listen to a song. I was doing that this year and found this band called Aero Flynn from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and I listened to their record and it blew me away. So, I’m really excited to see them. Eric Slick, who’s the drummer from Dr. Dog, is releasing an album and he’s playing there. I really want to see him. He’s a fantastic drummer, and I’m not sure what to expect from his solo music.
VM: Now, our last question that we always have to ask is: do you prefer barbecue or tacos?
CH: I’m definitely a barbecue guy. You know, a burger on the barbecue prepared any way is never a disappointment for me—a burger is just the food for me. You put some fries next to it, and I’m the happiest guy ever. Jodi, our drummer, she and I both love, love French fries, and that’s probably our main meal on tour.
David Barbe Talks February Residency at The World Famous
Leave it to David Barbe, Athens local and University of Georgia professor, to schedule a show on a Super Bowl Sunday.
Beginning a month-long series of intimate sets at the World Famous with his band David Barbe and the Quick Hooks, Barbe played a solo set Sunday, Feb. 5th to a pleasant crowd, which is saying something due to an unpleasant end to a Georgia sporting event (shocker).
Barbe says he didn’t realize his show was scheduled during the game at first, but decided to keep the date once he knew. No one else in his band wanted to play that date, but Barbe liked that it was a strange thing to do, so he decided to play a solo set for his first performance.
“Now I can say I played the Super Bowl,” he jokes.
He began this series of performances with a stripped down, raw compilation of recently written originals. The small venue made for an intimate, cozy atmosphere. Listeners sat either at tables in front of the stage or at the bar, drinking and eating snacks, and chatting quietly while listening to the moving set.
Barbe performed new compositions, one of which he stated was more of a poem than a song, while interacting and speaking with the crowd. His abstract performance created a unique and enjoyable experience for the listeners.
Barbe played four weeks straight at World Famous, with every show delivering a different sound. He was accompanied by various versions of his band The Quick Hooks, as well as other special guests.
The main group that appeared includes Frank McDonald and Joe Row of The Glands, John Mills of Blood Kin, John Neff and Jay Gonzalez of Drive By Truckers, and Kyle Spence, drummer for Kurt Vile.
Some of the openers include Juan de Fuca, Jay Gonzalez and T. Hardy Morris.
Barbe stated that every show would contain a different combination of players on different instruments with a different setlist. During the show on the 12th, the ensemble didn’t have a drummer, so Barbe jumped on the kit himself while continuing to sing.
Every show contained a lot of freedom for the musicians to change up the setlist and improv. Barbe said he was expecting a lot of creativity and connection from these shows, promising “a lot of creation on the spot.”
Barbe prefers this type of show to a typical, outlined performance. He enjoys freedom to change his sound and be connected to his music in the moment. He stated that he is wary of falling into a routine, as it may dampen creativity.
“When you do something for a long time, you can get into a rut. I don’t like that. I play music for the way it makes me feel. I’m not concerned with being bound by a setlist.”
Barbe is known for shifting from ensemble to ensemble—he says this is healthier for his creativity and forces him to constantly rethink his sound.
Constantly playing with different musicians seems to be a catalyst for his ingenuity. This unique series of shows is definitely a testament to that.
Barbe describes the feel of these performances as “quiet, weird, tripped out and unpredictable.” And they were indeed that.
Some reincarnation of the Quick Hooks has played each Sunday in February. Catch Barbe’s last show of this series tonight, February 26, along with T. Hardy Morris opening.
Morris will begin at 8 p.m. and Barbe’s set will begin at 9.
David Barbe is also in the process of recording a solo album, due to be released this summer.
PerDiem x Vinyl Mag: The Future of Music
Over the last decade, the music industry has struggled to provide a reliable way to successfully support independent artists. The traditional method of saving money to make a record, playing a ton of shows and hoping that people buy your music just isn’t working. Now more than ever, the market is so saturated with great music that artists often struggle to break even, which is ironic because music is more accessible now than it has ever been. How can an independent artist “make it” in the digital age without signing a long term record deal?
Generally speaking we’ve stopped pirating our favorite music in favor of subscription based streaming services, only to learn that a small fraction of what we pay for these services is actually returned to the artists. As fans, we have loads of great music at our fingertips but very few ways to support the bands we love. Certainly the resurgence of vintage music mediums like vinyl and cassette tapes have opened new financial avenues for the independent artist, but what if there were a way for fans and artists to be more intimately connected?
Enter PerDiem, a crowdfunded music investment platform that is looking to breathe new life into the music industry.
Quite simply, PerDiem is an online platform that allows fans to act as record producers. By purchasing shares, PerDiem allows the public to invest in the success of their favorite artists.
Here’s how it works:
An artist determines how much money they need for their new project, i.e. making a new record or going on tour. Then the artist chooses a percentage of the money raised to give back to their investors. Finally, the artist asks fans to help them reach their financial goal by purchasing shares. As revenue from the project grows, the percentage set by the artist is returned to the project’s investors based on how many shares they’ve purchased.
In this model, an artist’s success is directly tied to the fan’s ability to promote their music. The more an investor promotes an artist, the more money that artist makes, meaning more money finds its way into the pockets of its investors. This model creates incentive for people to put their money into music while bringing fans closer than ever before to their favorite musicians, making PerDiem a potential game changer for independent artists.
Ahead of their Athens launch party last Friday, we got to ask founder Brandon Nelson a few questions about his vision.
Vinyl Mag: What made you want to start PerDiem?
Brandon Nelson: I was working in the music industry and saw bands having to work full time jobs and move in with their parents so they could simply afford to live. I watched bands not be able to release songs they loved because they wouldn’t sell or make it on the radio. I decided to leave the music industry because it was sad to see this happening. A few months later I was floating this idea of investing in music to a few friends and people started getting excited about it. Before I knew, I had people wanting to build out the platform and artists wanting to launch their music on it. It was like people were sort of forcing me to make it happen. Every time I would tell artists about the idea they would tell me “you have to do this”. Seeing how much of an impact music can have on people’s lives and the potential for this to make a difference, I knew that I had to do it.
VM: How is PerDiem different from other crowdfunding platforms?
BN: If an artist raises money on a traditional crowdfunding platform, the people are either “donating to” or “pre-ordering” their music. With PerDiem, you are actually investing in the music. So when revenue is generated from that music, part of the sales go back to the people who invested in it. We are able to do this by distributing the music and managing all of the technical stuff for the artists. This way artists can focus on just making the music and having a team of people who have a vested interest in making that music successful.
VM: Is PerDiem open and available to every band or artist, or are there criteria for gaining approval to start a campaign? Would PerDiem ever deny a band’s request to start a campaign?
BN: We welcome any artists to the platform! We work with the artists to make sure they fully understand the platform and are set up for success. It’s still early on so we are determining the best way to go about adding artists to it so that investors are protected, but we will never deny an artist based on genre or style.
VM: Is there a certain amount an artist must raise in order for the campaign to move to the next stage?
BN: Yes, an artist sets how much they are raising and must reach that goal in order to receive the funds.
VM: So my band wants to fund a record or raise money for our upcoming tour. What is the process for starting a PerDiem campaign?
BN: Go to the website (www.perdiem.rocks) and submit your information! We will reach out and get to know you a little better and walk you through everything.
VM: Like any good independent band, we have an entrepreneurial spirit. Can we use PerDiem to buy merchandise, fix our van, or get a new tattoo?
BN: Totally. There has to be an incentive for people to invest money into your band, so that would be tied to a song or album that you are creating. For example, you want to raise $20k to produce an album, you can use that money to fix your van, get a tattoo, and buy some merchandise – as long as you are able to produce the record with the money that you raised.
VM: What if the record doesn’t get made, or never gets distributed? What happens to the money that was pledged?
BN: There is always a risk when investing in anything. There is a chance that something could happen where they use the money and are unable to produce a record at all. As an investor, you are giving your money to an artist that you believe in to give them a shot at their dream. That is why it’s important to only invest in artists that you truly believe in. We try to make this very clear in our “Trust & Safety” part of the site.
VM: A band I love is on PerDiem and I want to help them make a record. How do I get involved?
BN: If you want to invest in a band you simply go to the artists page, select how many shares you want, and buy them. All of the information on how much they are raising, what they are raising it for, and how much they are giving back is all hosted on their page.
VM: The band is going to pay me a percentage of revenue from record sales?! Cool! So… how do I get my money?
BN: When a fan wants to “cash out”, we’ll deposit the value of those shares into your bank account. We are building out a much more comprehensive platform so this process may change a bit in the future to make it easier and more streamlined.
VM: This could be a game changer for the music industry. I see it not only as a way for fans to fund their favorite bands, but also as an opportunity for a fan or group of fans to essentially become an independent record producer. Have you thought about that at all?
BN: Absolutely. The amazing part of the platform is that it turns your fans into your marketing team. I see investors wanting to use their resources and talents to help the bands they are invested in. For example, a videographer could film a music video for a band they invested in, or someone with a recording studio could offer studio time to artists they have invested in as well. It creates an entire new industry of opportunity around music. I always have this dream of an inner city kid taking his $10 and investing it into an artist that he believes in. Then that $10 turns into $20, then $100, etc.. Next thing you know, he is a music curator that people look at to find new bands and he is making a living by finding good music. The possibilities are exciting!
VM: Why stop at records, tours, and merch? In theory, PerDiem could be used to fund things like festivals, benefits, or even music venues where a percentage of proceeds from the events are returned to its investors. Would you want your platform to be used in such a way?
BN: We actually get that question a lot and it’s definitely something that we are interested in. Right now we are focused on fixing what we believe is the biggest problem in the music industry, then using what we have learned to expand into other areas where there is a demand for it. We have a pretty big vision for PerDiem so I wouldn’t be surprised to see it expanding into other areas in the future.
VM: When is it going live and how many artists do you have lined up?
We did a test run with a couple artists to see how people would interact with the concept. In just a few days an artist named Nico Blue raised $1,000 to produce his first original single. So we know that people are willing to invest in music and use the platform. We’ve got some exciting artists in the pipeline and an incredible group of people supporting us. We’re planning to add more artists over the next couple of weeks and continue to build it into a platform that can support the next generation of music.
To find out more about PerDiem, type “perdiem.rocks” into your preferred search field, and stay up to date with their soon to be launched Twitter feed @perdiemmusic.
Superbody x Vinyl Mag
Robert McCurry and Caleb Dills of Superbody recently released their first album, Hades Land. With a deep and dreamy synth pop style, the boys from Chattanooga have made multiple appearances in Athens, Georgia. McCurry and Dills briefly talk about their fateful history and possible upcoming albums with an air of modest humor.
VM: Superbody is a relatively new project for you two and also pretty successful. What are the challenges, if any, of beginning this new duo?
Robert: Hearing the words “success” and “Superbody” in the same sentence makes my head hurt. I would rather not expand upon the details of the achievements or disappointments of this project at this time.
VM: You guys have a lot of help with your music videos from various friends. What is the creative process like when working with other people to get your vision across? “Wings 4 Two” and “Call Me That” really coincide with your experimental style.
Caleb: Yes, the multimedia undertakings of Superbody have so far been aided by extraordinary acquaintances who happen to share our same vision. If I could afford a video camera you would not be asking me this question.
VM: How did you two get together to form Superbody? And how did you come into your own style?
C: We’ve said it once, and we’ll say it again. We started making music at Ricky’s Crab House on 5th and Broad. Robert had a tune. I had a beat. The end.
VM: Although you two are from Chattanooga, you play a lot in Athens. Is there a difference between the audience’s responses in the two cities? Is there any particular reason you like to play in Athens, as opposed to Chattanooga?
R: I love my children here in Athens, Georgia. I’ve developed a paternal relationship with the youth of Athens in the past few months. They give. I take.
VM: I noticed at your show in Athens that you were selling tapes of Hades Land? Why that medium? Do you also sell CD’s?
C: One crisp autumn morning, the type that you could take a bite out of if you really wanted, the cassette tapes for Hades Land appeared on our doorstep. I will gladly sell anything with our faces on it for pure profit, especially if that product is a gift. If you have any gifts for us that bear our likeness please do not hesitate to reach us by electronic mail at superbodymusic@gmail.com
VM: You recently released your first full-length album, Hades Land, any talk of upcoming releases and new material?
C: If the stars align and we don’t get drafted into the war, you can expect some new media sometime in the future.
VM: Based on your experience with your first album, is there anything you’d like to improve or change for your next album?
R: First off, we’d like to get this stray pack of dogs out of our studio! If you listen to Hades Land very closely you’ll hear ‘em! Those damned things are a headache and a half!
Saint Pé x Vinyl Mag: “Eat, Shit, Sleep, Breathe Rock ‘n’ Roll”
“The wheel ain’t broken. You don’t need to fix it, just trying to put some new rims on it.”
At CMJ this year, the first band on my must-interview list was Saint Pé, the newest project formed by Black Lips alum and current Diamond Rugs guitarist/vocalist Ian Saint Pé.
Backstory
As a not-born-but-bred Georgian, I’ve been a Black Lips fan since I switched Jack Rogers for Converse and mini skirts for skinny jeans back in the 9th grade. And then came college and post-college life in Athens, Georgia, where I was introduced to part-local supergroup Diamond Rugs. Dudes. This band is my joint, and I have been helplessly addicted since the release of their latest album Cosmetics back in February. Yes, that is nine full months that I have had D.Rugs in my constant rotation, and I’m nowhere near over it.
That being said, if Ian Saint Pé is involved with a band, I’m an instant convert. So when word reached my ears that he was forming a new band under his name, I was all kinds of psyched. And when I found out that the band was coming to CMJ, I snagged myself an interview with them so I could let my fan flag fly.
The Interview
We all sat down on the rooftop of Our Wicked Lady in Brooklyn before the band’s last of three shows at the fest, and as soon as the mic was on, Ian dove in, intro’ing us with our new slogan: “Vinyl Mag CMJ 2015. Pro gear, pro attitudes.” This turned out to be the first of countless ad-libbed one-liners throughout the interview, which he attributed to having a “lot of time in a van to think about things.”
When asked about his new direction away from the band that had built his career and on to a new self-titled project, Ian explained to me that sometimes, even the bands you love get a little stale (my nine-month Diamond Rugs binge might indicate that I have a higher tolerance than most for this phenomenon), and that after 10 years in the same band, things inevitably get a little redundant.
“I’d say after 10 years … honestly, The Rolling Stones—that’s my favorite band, and there’s a good reason why—but I don’t even want to hear them for more than an hour, you know? And that’s a super good band. I mean, ’cause how much more can you say in that amount of time? So with that statement, I’m gonna move it on to records. I did seven records in 10 years. What more can I say? It was time to change it up. Love the guys, but I got more to say. I love them, and I love the records, but I’m ready to birth new children with new people.”
And so, Saint Pé was born. The band came together the way all bands do, through the local music scene—in this case, the scene of Atlanta, mainly. Most of the band members are based and/or met in A-Town, with the exception of “ivory tickler” (a.k.a. keyboardist) Paul Wierdak, who is based in Chicago. Ian, who had lived in Atlanta for 15 years, credits the bulk of his musical career to the city, saying, “It ain’t New York, but it was my New York. And no regrets, because unlike New York and L.A., I could have half a job and spend all my time playing music–and did it–rather than having to have three jobs and maybe play music … if you have a fall back plan, you’ll fall back.”
So what does Saint Pé have to say that hasn’t been said in any of Ian’s other projects?
“It’s always been eat, shit, sleep, breathe rock and roll,” Ian told me. “The wheel ain’t broken. You don’t need to fix it, just trying to put some new rims on it.”
The rims are fresh indeed. Though it was Saint Pé’s oh-so-familiar moniker that originally grabbed my attention, it was the refreshingly upbeat track “Street Lights” that made me a believer in the band. Premiered via Noisey back in April, “Street Lights” is one of four tracks off the band’s debut Secular Music EP.
“It’s just my story of never worrying about what could have been, because I always knew what was,” Ian said of the song. “And that was to play music. ‘Street Lights’ is basically the adaptation of my novel I haven’t written and the movie that hasn’t been made yet … because late at night, with the white line fever, the only thing that comes to your head is the lights, physically. That’s powerful to the eye, the light … basically about being on the road and getting something. [The line] ‘Got a country house, quiet as a mouse’—you know, I was able to get everything I wanted … that’s what ‘Street Lights’ is about. Just everything I was striving for, I got–which wasn’t much, but just to be happy and do artistic shit on my terms.”
Sounds good to me.
“Nothing’s changed,” Ian clarified. “I’m 38, still bleed 17. I want to continue to play music with friends of mine. The other Black Lips guys are still my friends, but I just want to change it up … I had to take two steps back to go five steps forward, and I have a bunch of my friends from Atlanta and Chicago that are participating in this project. I’ve got nothing but great expectations. I did six continents, but I haven’t done seven. This band will do seven.”
The Future
Saint Pé is Ian Saint Pé (vocalist/guitarist), Matt McCalvin (bassist), Ian “Mickey D” McDonald (guitarist), Paul Weirdak (keyboardist), and John Restivo Jr. (drums). They are currently on tour, set to play shows with Natural Child and T. Hardy Morris. Check out their tour dates below, and keep an eye out for more dates coming in January. These guys won’t be slowing down any time soon. Parting words from Ian: “Ain’t gonna stop ’til it’s broken, and I don’t plan on being broken.”
Tour Dates:
Thursday, November 12 – The Earl – Atlanta, GA w/ Natural Child
Saturday, November 14 – Georgia Theatre – Athens, GA w/ Natural Child
Saturday, December 5 – JJ’s Bohemia – Chattanooga, TN w/ T. Hardy Morris
Sunday, December 6 – The Basement – Nashville, TN w/ T. Hardy Morris
Thursday, December 10 – Isis Restaurant and Music Hall – Asheville, GA w/ T. Hardy Morris and Roadkill Ghost Choir
Friday, December 11 – The Earl – Atlanta, GA w/ T. Hardy Morris
Saturday, December 12 – Saturn – Birmingham, AL w/ T. Hardy Morris and Duquette Johnston
Marian Hill x Vinyl Mag
Marian Hill are a jazzy synthpop duo from Philly who introduced themselves to the world with their debut single “Whiskey” in 2013, leading up to the release of their excellent Sway EP earlier this year. Touring, writing, and recording all along the way, the band are picking up steam and readying their full-length for early 2016.
I sat down with Jeremy and Samantha after their 12:00pm set on Sunday at ACL Weekend 2 in the Austin summer heat (shaded area, thankfully) and talked about pros and cons of big festivals, their roots as a band, and how far they’ve come in such a short time.
Michelle King: Thanks for taking the time to talk; I know you guys probably have a busy schedule this weekend. I also know you weren’t here last weekend, but did you come straight in from Philly?
Jeremy Lloyd: We’re in the middle of a tour, so we played Dallas last night and we’re playing Phoenix in a couple days with ACL right in the middle.
Samantha Gongol: We had to drive straight here, so we only got like two hours of sleep.
MK: And then a daytime show after that, that’s gotta be tough for you guys.
JL: Yeah it’s been a crazy day.
MK: Have you gotten to see anything since you finished your set?
JL: No, haha. We went straight to a radio set and then to eat some lunch, and now we’re here.
MK: So staying busy then!
(both): Yeah.
MK: Are you planning on seeing anything else while you’re here?
JL: Yeah, I’m very excited for a few bands later today. We’re going to try and catch Chance the Rapper, alt-j, The Decemberists.
SG: I’d like to catch Halsey.
MK: So you’re on tour right now; have there been any stand out shows?
JL: I mean the stand out for me on tour is just that every show has been such big, excited crowds.
SG: We’re playing to bigger rooms.
JL: We’re selling merch for the first time, and we’re just having a lot more fan interaction than we’re used to. Every show we’re out there for an hour after meeting people, taking pictures, signing autographs.
MK: That’s awesome! So the reaction has been significantly better than it was last time you toured?
JL: Yeah, it’s been another level. It’s really had an escalation from the last tour which is really cool.
MK: And you just put out your first EP this year; what were you doing before that? When did you start touring as a band?
JL: We put out our first song ‘Whiskey” in July 2013, and at that point it was the only song we had written together. And then people got excited about it on the internet, and were like “great, so what else are you guys working with?” and then we were sort of building everything else up. We played our first live show in February 2014, we put out a little independent EP around the same time, and since then we’ve been playing one-offs and writing more and more and we signed and put out the official EP, the Sway EP. We’ve been touring and writing our album since, and now the album’s ready to go and we’re just waiting on the release and everything.
MK: About your first song “Whiskey,” I read that the way you introduced it to the world was emailing cold-emailing 60 blogs… what did that email say?
JL: Haha! Ohhh, I was actually pretty careful about it. I got the blogs because I went on Hype Machine and looked at songs like ours and looked at blogs that posted them and found the contact info and made a big spreadsheet. And then in each email I found a song that each blog had posted that I liked, and personalized the email saying “I found this artist through you guys, so I wanted to share this song with you” and then there’s a little blurb about Marian Hill and the track.
MK: That’s smart, you should be a publicist!
JL: Noooo, but it worked! We got picked up by three amazing blogs and the rest is history.
MK: Have you guys played Austin before?
SG: We did SXSW.
MK: How do you feel that ACL compares to SXSW? I know they’re completely different animals, but…
SG: I’d have to say, I mean SXSW has a lot of shows, a lot of smaller shows. You know, it’s a city festival and this feels very much like Firefly, you know, just bigger stages. It’s great.
MK: What are some of the best things about playing a bigger festival like this?
JL: I think the opportunity to see other bands, because as a band we’re always playing shows, we never get to go to shows. It’s really cool to be like “oh wow, Chance the Rapper is playing today, I’ve been wanting to see him, let’s just go!”
SG: And also for a band like us that are still sort of up-and-coming, the stages are bigger, the crowds are bigger.
JL: You get a lot of walk-ups, you get a lot of people that haven’t heard of you and we were the only band playing at noon so we have a lot of people walking over as they hear it, and those are new fans.
MK: Great exposure, yeah. What are some challenges of playing the bigger shows?
SG: The heat.
JL: Playing in the daytime is always freaking gross, not only because we have very night-time vibes but because my controller uses a lot of light and if there’s sun shining on it I can’t read it, so we have to construct shade so that I can see what’s going on. Festivals, book us at night!
MK: I heard that you met in middle school doing a play together. How did you reconnect after all that time?
JL: I mean we were always kind of connected, we were always in the same friend group, and we both started writing songs on our own around the same time and we were kind of aware of each other and sharing stuff and trading tips and stuff like that. When we would catch up over breaks, as you would do with old friends, and in college we would write stuff, and that’s how “Whiskey” came around.
MK: And how do you guys share songwriting duties?
SG: Jeremy handles production, and we write melody and lyrics together.
MK: What would you say inspires your music?
SG: I’d say relationships are a big thing.
JL: I mean definitely other artists, and music in general. I always think that I’m making the music I want to hear, and I’ll get into the slumps where “I don’t like anything!” and that’s a lot of where the impulses are coming from. I also love Drake, and he’s a huge inspiration.
SG: And I grew up on jazz so…
MK: Yeah I can definitely hear a lot of that in your music. And you have a live sax on stage!
JL: I grew up on hip-hop and she grew up on pop and you kind of bring the two together.
MK: So you pull a whole lot of elements into your music.
JL: Yeah, a lot of it’s about bringing old and new together. Making electronic music still feel live and human and exciting. Because it’s easy now that everything’s so electronic to make stuff that’s just completely canned.
SG: And the nice thing about “Whiskey” is just that sort of organic, really simple evolution. We didn’t have any designs, we didn’t set out to make the song in a particular style.
JL: We aren’t trying to be anyone else. So when “Whiskey” worked, we were just like “Woah, what is this? Let’s be like this.”
MK: And you said you’re putting together a full-length now?
JL: Yeah, it’s together! I’ve got it on my phone!
MK: How would you say it compares to Sway?
JL: I think it’s a greater expansion. It’s like Sway we were defining our sound and on the new album we’re totally fleshing it out. It’s a lot broader, we explored the different places we can go emotionally, musically, sonically.
MK: When’s it coming out?
JL: Early next year.
SG: Early 2016!
MK: And you guys are just going to keep touring and hustling in the meantime?
SG: Yes! We finish at the end of October, and then we’ll have a couple one-off dates. And from there we’ll see! During the holidays things kind of shut down and then after the new year we’re back!
MK: Looking forward to it! Is there anything else you guys want to add?
SG: First time at ACL and we loved it!
MK: Well we’re glad you’re here, it was an awesome show!
Cardiknox x Vinyl Mag
New York electro-pop duo Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton got their start in a pretty unusual way—they met while working on a musical. After dabbling with their sound in the studio on the side, they decided to really put all their effort into making music, and Cardiknox was born. We sat down with the duo as they returned to NYC to talk inspiration, songwriting and plans for the future.
Vinyl Mag: Tell us about your single, “Doors.” Where did you get the inspiration for this song?
Lonnie Angle: “Doors” actually started as a dream. All songwriters have had this happen. They wake up in the middle of the night after dreaming of what seems like the world’s greatest melody. They fumble for their iPhone and record a sleepy, mumbled version of the melody, and go back to sleep. Usually, though, when you listen back in the morning, it’s a horrible melody that makes no sense. Not with “Doors,” though!
The initial dream also saw the song as more of a hip-hop song. On the production side, Thomas is hugely inspired by the simplistic power carried by a Drake or Kanye beat. So we tried to keep the music really simple and anthemic. Lyrically, it’s all about perseverance. Not losing self-confidence in the face of adversity. Believing in the outcome.
VM: What is your greatest accomplishment as a band so far?
LA: We just finished a few weeks of touring in Europe, which was a dream come true. Belgium, Amsterdam, Paris, and all over England. We didn’t know quite was to expect, but the shows were incredible. The kids at these festivals go nuts! It was so fun to play for crowds who have so much energy. It makes the performance so easy, because you’re just feeding off them.
VM: How was playing a festival like CMJ different than playing small clubs on a regular night?
LA: CMJ is always a whirlwind. In the best possible way. As long as you go in knowing that everything is going to be a bit of a mess, then you’ll be fine! There’s always twice as many bands on the bills, and there isn’t always a strong connection in the overall sound of the lineup — it’s a bit more random. But unlike playing a normal show, the whole city feels alive and electric (even more than normal). There’s this buzzing in the air, and you’re running around from show to show, not getting any sleep. It’s the best! Though I’m glad it’s only a few days every year…
VM: What was your favorite moment of your CMJ week?
LA: We haven’t played NYC in a hot second, so seeing all the familiar faces and all our friends come out was pure joy for us. We got to play some of our favorite spots, too — Webster and Brooklyn Bowl. Mmm their fried chicken… so good. Honestly I don’t know if there’s one singular moment that sticks out. It was just so great to be back in NYC, in full swing. Such a magical place.
VM: Any upcoming releases?
LA: Yes! Our next single, “On My Way” … [released October 30!] We’re really excited about releasing this song. We’re shooting the music video for it in a few weeks, too. We’ve been putting a ton of work and energy into the video, so we’re really stoked for that as well.
VM: If you could play any venue in the world, where would it be?
LA: Well, a few months ago I would have said The Gorge, up in Washington, but we got to play there at Sasquatch Festival. On second thought, that’s definitely up there on our list of biggest accomplishments. Thomas and I grew up in Seattle, so playing The Gorge has always been a dream.
Other venues on our bucket list are Red Rocks and Madison Square Garden. Hopefully someday soon!
VM: What is your songwriting process like? Do you draw inspiration from any other artists?
LA: We normally start with a certain lyric or concept that we want to write about. That’s often the hook and we’ll build a simple progression around it on the guitar. From there, sometimes we write the verse or pre-chorus and create a full skeleton of the song. Once the song is written, Thomas builds a beat around it, and starts creating the soundscape. Obviously it’s not always that linear. You never know when or where inspiration is going to strike.
VM: Do you prefer to play live shows or be in the studio working on something new?
LA: I love performing. It makes me feel completely alive and uninhibited. There’s something magic that happens when I step on stage—all my fears and anxieties about the world … all of the noise and chaos just falls away and it’s a kind of bliss.
VM: What artist would you most like to collaborate with?
LA: Thomas would probably say Drake. I’m pretty obsessed with Christine and the Queens. I’d love to collab with her in some way.
VM: If you could describe your sound in a single catchphrase, what would it be?
LA: As addictive as truffle fries.
VM: Do you have any pre-show routines or rituals?
LA: I always have a whiskey and jump up and down for about five minutes to get the blood moving. Thomas gets quiet and introspective … mapping out the show in his head.
VM: What is next for Cardiknox?
LA: World domination. J
VM: Anything else you want Vinyl Mag readers to know?
LA: We <3 u!
CMJ 2015: Good Morning x Vinyl Mag
Upon first glance, you might think Good Morning hails from New York City, with Katz’s Delicatessen proudly displayed on Stefan Blair’s sweatshirt. But then they open their mouths, and their Australian heritage is obvious. Vinyl Mag spent a great afternoon bantering with Good Morning’s Stefan Blair and Liam Parsons, who met in high school but have only been collaborating as Good Morning for one year. It’s been a busy year for the band, with the release of their first EP, Shawcross, their first CMJ experience, and Liam’s first visit to NYC.
Vinyl Mag: What are the coolest things you’ve done in NYC this week? What else do you want to do while you’re here?
Liam Parsons: The city is good overwhelming. There’s so much going on.
Stefan Blair: We were on an amazing rooftop last night.
LP: Amazing view of uptown and downtown.
SB: We went to Best Pizza in Brooklyn the other night, that was pretty sweet. Katz’s was also awesome. Those are two highlights.
LP: I’ve really been enjoying the bagels.
VM: How long have you been together as Good Morning, and how did you name the band?
SB: About a year.
LP: This is the first thing we’ve decided to put out, and give it a name.
SB: We just play at home recording this stuff, because it’s interesting and fun to do, a good waste of your time. And then one day we had some songs, so we got a couple more friends to come; they play bass and drums when we play live.
LP: The name was meant to be a non-event, that makes you think of nothing at all. Just a common phrase. So that kind of worked, because now I’ve completely forgotten how we thought of it.
SB: There’s no terrific story behind it.
VM: When did you each get into music?
LP: I’ve been playing since I was a kid. I had a few bands in high school here and there. We were in another band in high school. It was pretty terrible.
SB: It was shit. I started playing piano when I was four.
LP: Your first song ever written was pretty good.
SB: I recorded a song, “Logic,” when I was six or seven years old. I still have the burned CD in my room, and it’s just basically a rip-off of Linkin Park’s “In the End.” It’s just me playing with a mini keyboard.
LP: Pretty forward-thinking for a child. It’s quite experimental.
SB: It’s just always been something we’ve messed around with, music and stuff.
VM: So, Linkin Park. Who else inspires you?
LP: Just anything, early 2000s.
SB: Baby Bash. I wasn’t so into “Numb/Encore.” That is where I began to lose interest in Linkin Park.
LP: I don’t know, we have heaps of influences. I don’t really know what we’d say would be the influence for this. I think most of our influences we don’t sound anything like.
VM: How do you describe your sound?
LP: I just call it pop music. Call it like rock ‘n roll. Every time we have like a cab driver ask us what type of music we play—
SB: They sort of stare at you with a look of confusion when you say ‘pop music’ though like, how can you make pop music with those guitars? I just call it pop music as well, but it’s sort of a vague term I suppose. It’s our idea of pop music.
VM: What’s the writing process like? How often do you get together to rock out?
LP: There’s not really any one set way. Some of them are like little one-minute ideas that either Stefan or I have thought up and bring back to the other person to work on together. Or some of it’s on the spot, we make stuff up. We don’t write as much as we should I suppose.
SB: It depends on the time of the year really. I’ve been working full-time at university, so I haven’t really had a chance to get days at a time when we can sit and do it and it’s nice to have that time to sit down and do it if you want to write and record stuff.
LP: It’s nice to isolate yourself sometimes.
SB: The last time we did that we recorded an EP down at Liam’s beach house in June or Julyish. We spent a week down there and just spent every day doing 13 hours of recording, and then you go home and forget about it, and it’s all done.
LP: We play shows most weeks. And we just hang out, I suppose.
VM: What are you working on right now?
SB: We just finished that EP, and there’s nothing really being worked on at the moment. There’s always like demos and stuff floating around, and sort of a backlog of ideas, which I suppose the plan is to go back and record an album over summer, see what happens.
LP: Winter’s not as fun to record in.
VM: Is this your first CMJ experience?
LP: It’s our first anything like this experience.
SB: We weren’t even playing shows at this time last year.
VM: What do you want to be doing a year from now with the band?
LP: Making records that I like. Something I’m proud of I suppose.
SB: Maybe have some more recording gear.
LP: As long as we can keep playing shows it’s worthwhile. I mean, it’s worthwhile because it’s fun. By this time next year, I don’t want to just fade away.
SB: We’ll keep doing as we usually do in Melbourne, just play shows. Record some music.
VM: If you weren’t a musician, what would you be?
LP: I always wanted to be a homicide detective. I don’t like cops, but I’d like to be a homicide detective.
SB: I don’t think I’ve ever referred to myself as a musician. I don’t really think of myself as a musician; I call myself a university student right now. That would technically probably be my employment. Or sandwich master. One of the two. If I wasn’t one of those things, I’d probably be much happier, because I don’t want to be either of those things, but music’s not the way to make any money or whatever so you have to do real life things, sadly.
VM: What are the coolest or craziest things that you’ve experienced as a band?
SB: Probably coming to NYC is definitely the coolest thing we’ve experienced.
LP: Yeah. This. And the dude that plays deputy Andy on Twin Peaks started following us on Twitter. That was pretty crazy.
SB: We had an Uber driver yesterday come back to the venue and return our bag whilst we were playing. He’s like, ‘You guys forgot your bag in the car!’ So that was pretty crazy, because I wouldn’t have expected somebody to do that, which is pretty nice. Maybe it’s a shame that we find that crazy, that somebody would be that nice.
VM: Is there anything you want the Vinyl Mag audience to know?
LP: I feel like I thought of a good answer to this the other day.
SB: I feel like I’ve never had a good answer to this.
LP: Don’t be a dick.
SB: Be nice to people.
VM: What advice would you give to young musicians trying to make a name for themselves?
LP: Think less about trying to make a name for yourself.
SB: Just do it if you enjoy it. If you don’t enjoy it, fuck it.
LP: It’s weird to watch people try to get famous and stuff. It sort of corrupts people.
SB: It defeats the purpose of playing music.
LP: Don’t feel like you have to do shit that other people do just because other people do it.
VM: If there’s one more tourist thing you could do in the city, what would you pick?
LP: Probably go to the top of the Empire State. I’m just addicted to views at the moment. Anything that can get me a good skyline.
SB: I’d like to ride a bike over the Brooklyn Bridge. That would be exciting.
LP: I haven’t been to Central Park yet.
SB: Museum of Natural History as well.
LP: I want to go to MOMA.
CMJ 2015: Violent Mae x Vinyl Mag
Becky Kessler and Floyd Kellogg didn’t meet with the intention of becoming a band, but with their first album release in 2013 and another coming up next month, we’re glad Violent Mae found one another. The duo, who live five hours apart from one another—Floyd on an island off the coast of Massachusetts and Becky on an organic farm in Connecticut—met up with Vinyl Mag at Muchmore’s in Brooklyn during their one day in New York City for the CMJ festival to talk about their off the cuff creation and what’s coming up next for the band.
Vinyl Mag: How did you two become a band, and where did the name “Violent Mae” come from?
Floyd Kellogg: Becky moved up from Outer Banks, and we met right away because of a mutual friend that I have a studio with. We met kinda casually through that.
Becky Kessler: I wanted to record tunes, because he has a recording studio, and I had no ambition for it to go anywhere—just wanted to record these tunes so I didn’t forget them but wanted to do it in a nice, good way. I actually didn’t expect it to be as cool as it was. When we were in the studio recording, I was like if you’re inspired, drums, bass, whatever—he did that. When it came to release it, it was like well, we want to be a band now.
FK: We were thinking of having other members, but we just played duo off the cuff one night and thought, ‘Well that kind of works,’ and just kept working on it from there. The name came kind of from—we had a crazy year while we were recording that music—there were a lot of happy and darkish times, so it reflects the dichotomy of that feeling.
BK: It’s kind of inherent in the music itself, because it was some pretty moments and some kind of junky, punky moments, and I really like the contrast.
VM: When did you each individually get into music? Where do you get your inspiration for your collaborations?
FK: My uncle was a gear, techy person, and he had a bass he was fixing. I was like 11 and used to just be drawn toward it. I thought it was a guitar, so I started playing it, and he was like, ‘No, it’s a bass!’ Then I started playing bass, and that was that. I picked up some other instruments along the way.
BK: My mom played guitar and sang, and my dad played piano. My dad actually wrote songs too, but neither one were learned, educated musicians. I started playing my dad’s piano when I was eight, but didn’t get very far with that. I started playing my mom’s guitar when I was 11 and just loved something about the guitar. We share a lot of influences, but we definitely have different ones. Both of us are really obsessed with Morphine; that’s a major influence of both of ours. I think we actually had different style stuff that just blended together really cool—or at least we like it.
FK: I think when you’re writing tunes, they were very intimate and quiet, and all my bands before were like jet-taking-off loud.
VM: How did you get involved with CMJ this year, and what other CMJ shows have you caught?
BK: We got on the CMJ charts with our last record.
FK: We were on the CMJ radio charts at 88 for a couple weeks, which was really nice, out of the blue. The record kind of stuck with them, so it seemed natural to come play the festival. We just caught a couple friends’ bands and a couple we don’t know.
BK: We caught Eternal Summers, and Terrible Roars, who are friends of ours. Then this other band that kind of blew us away, Toronto Weaves, and another band, Strange Kids.
VM: If you were in NYC for more time, what one thing would you want to do?
FK: I should be visiting friends. Hopefully I drag them out tonight; it would be nice to see them.
BK: I have one friend I haven’t seen in years coming tonight that I’m very excited about. I’m actually more nervous about that than playing the show. But I’d go see that new museum, The Whitney. I saw the building from the outside, and it looks really, really cool.
FK: I’ve never been to the Statue of Liberty. I’d really like to go.
VM: How do you handle the long-distance relationship?
BK: It’s tricky. This summer was hard, but we did alright. Every once in awhile it’s like, ‘We have to get massive amounts of stuff figured out and done in the next hour on the phone.’ And we do, usually.
FK: We have intense sessions of working on band music.
BK: When we’re not together, I’m always working on writing, like every day. When we get together, we work on making it better, tighter, with arrangements and how it’s going to go down performance-wise.
FK: Then we update social media.
VM: If you weren’t a musician, what would you do if you could be anything else?
FK: I would be a mountaineering guy or blast off avalanches. Something that has to do with being in the wilderness.
BK: I think I probably would actually be what I am some of the time—I work on an organic farm that my boyfriend and I have. I really get super attached to animals and love that part; I also love the growing part and learning more about it. It’s so hard, but I love watching the plants grow, and the animals are just amazing.
VM: What’s one of the most unexpected things that you’ve found in this process?
FK: Something that surprises me is when we’re recording or working really closely together on something, how much we don’t need to fully say to the other person, ‘That’s not working,’ and have a discussion about it. It seems like we’re in line with shit like that. We don’t do a load of talking.
BK: There’s not a lot of discussion. That’s right, that’s cool. And I was really stoked and surprised that Floyd wanted to make it a band and be in the band when he had a bunch of other stuff going on. That, and I’m also surprised how much more loud gear and guitar pedals I have. And I want a lot more. Floyd’s definitely been educating me on a lot of that stuff, and I’m really enjoying using it.
VM: Do you have a new album coming out this year? What is next for you guys and the band?
BK: It’s not technically released yet, but we have the actual physical thing. It releases November 20th. Right now you can hear “In the Sun.” We actually have a video coming out that this dude who lives here directed—it was such an awesome experience doing that. I think it’s really good, I really like it. We did a live video with the last record that is pretty cool.
FK: Big picture is playing more shows and making sure the album sees the light of day and people get to hear it. It’s fun to share music with people.
BK: I think both of us don’t think too much big picture too often. We just think what’s next, and things we want to do—like making more music videos is fun. And now it’s such a great way to share your music with people, because people have to be engaged in a million different ways. And playing more places; that’s what would be great if the music got known better it wouldn’t be so difficult finding shows in other places.
VM: Is there anything else you want the Vinyl Mag audience to know?
BK: We’re hoping to have vinyl of this album in 2016.
FK: We’re gonna be around for a minute. So stop by.