Interviews
Seattle based band Midnight Skies, releases music that is emotional and intricate as well as upbeat and energetic. Their latest EP, 'Disconnect' is a rollercoaster of musical genres and messages that are relatable and have this amazing connectivity factor. The band is currently signed to We Are Triumphant and is comprised of Sullivan, Kyle, and Kalevi.
Follow the band on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook Check out their music here
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The Wild & Free are a pop-rock band from St. Louis, Missouri that create catchy songs that embody different aspects of our lives. The band is comprised of Rachel, Mike, Dan, Zach and Marc. We are so excited to see them take the world by storm!
Follow the band on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook Check out their music here When you think of boybands you might think of music with catchy choruses and stories about love. We spoke to RoadTrip, a British boyband who is changing the game and making their own mark on the industry through a fresh vibe and a strong social media presence. As RoadTrip grows, those who may be finding out about them now can catch up on their journey by watching all of their previous YouTube videos on RoadTrip Vlogs and past covers on RoadTripTV. This personal connection with the different members of the band is also expressed in the upcoming documentary detailing the events leading up to their show at Shepherd’s Bush. Recently RoadTrip dropped their EP ‘White Label’ that helped to solidify the band’s status and showed listeners that there’s more to what we might think a boyband is. The band is comprised of Andy Fowler, Rye Beaumont, Brooklyn Wyatt, Sonny Robertson, and Harper Dark and managed by Blair Dreelan (formerly of East 17). We were fortunate enough to chat with Andy and learn more about him and the band so stay tuned WCBG: Hello! Hope all is well with you; can you please introduce yourself and tell me a fun fact about you? Andy: Hello, I am Andy Fowler from the British Boyband RoadTrip and I can speak conversationally fluent French. WCBG: We always love to know more about the person we are speaking to so what music are you currently listening to? Andy: Music-wise we just released our new EP, ‘White Label’, and I’ve been listening to it since I’m still getting used to the songs. Other than that, I spent a lot of time listening to acoustic covers on YouTube. Randy Coleman’s version of Bohemian Rhapsody is wicked. I try to find new artists through YouTube. WCBG: If you could change one thing about the music industry as it is today, what would it be and why? Andy: I would change the stereotype boybands receive. Everyone compares you to the band before. For example, One Direction I thought people would say we are the new One Direction, but we haven’t gotten that as much as I thought [we would]. A boyband is a collection of lads that get together and sing and are sometimes idiotic and chaotic. Boybands make people happy. The stigma related to the fact that they can’t sing and write or play an instrument is still common. I think over the past five years or so the industry has started to embrace social media people as well. The number on a page is a way to still look for potential talent and there’s already an audience to directly tap into. WCBG: We’ve noticed that you’re taking a different approach with your own social media. It was refreshing to see this honesty in this market. Andy: We made the accounts on February 15, 2019 and then we added our own personals, so you now have six different platforms to engage with. All I did for the first year was chapters and I noticed that the organized route went well. I wanted to break another barrier because the glamorized life portrayed on social media is inaccurate. I’m willing to lose a lot of followers and interaction to prove that my life isn’t glamorous all the time. This also helps to build a personal relationship. If you have a platform it is your responsibility to show good morals and have a positive attitude. You can influence perspectives. I am a musician and I accept everyone, and I would love it if everyone did as well. WCBG: You guys also post a lot of Vlogs and do covers as well. Andy: Rye and Blair early on came up with this idea to vlog the whole process from day one. When you have others join into the Roadie fandom you weren’t late, you can go back and watch everything and be up to date. It also adds a personal touch; social media is a powerful tool that gives people the option to get to know us. People might watch our vlog and then those number carry over to Spotify and then Instagram. WCBG: We noticed that you can writing credits on ‘White Label’ so congratulations for that. What is your writing process like? Andy: We have released five EPs in total and I’ve written on four of them. Our manger, Blair, knows I want to be in the music industry in whatever form I can be. On ‘White Label’ we wanted to branch out from the stereotypical cheesy boyband pop, we wanted something that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Spotify playlist. That’s also why there is no picture of us [on the cover of the EP], it’s just the word- ‘White Label’- and some artwork designed by Rye and some others. It was a good move for us, it’s not too far away from what is expected; it was a transition we needed. All of us had input on the record and our own influences. They would all sit with me and make suggestions like to change the key and give input on sound. Even though my name is listed, all of us had our own input on the record. WCBG: What is your favorite part of a song you’ve written? Andy: I would have to say it’s on the ‘Dynamite’ EP. The chorus for “Flashing Lights”, we actually recorded that in one take. I was playing around with some chords and Blair pulled out his phone and said record this right now. Off of ‘White Label’, the song “Understand”—we were working with Charlie and what we had wasn’t landing. I had this idea for a lyric that was stuck in my head: “when I’m loving from another land.” We were trying to figure out how to fit that line in. I would say it’s my favorite lyric I’ve written for RoadTrip. WCBG: You mentioned earlier in the interview that you play the guitar, how did you pick that as your respective instrument? Andy: I was about six years old, in primary school, and I loved the band Busted, I wanted to be like Charlie Simpson (the lead singer). The music teacher came in and asked if we wanted to learn a brass instrument and I said I wanted to play guitar. The teacher told me that it wasn’t a brass instrument and that we wouldn’t be able to learn that into secondary school [high school in America]. I asked if I could still learn the guitar and the teacher said okay, so I was six when I got my first acoustic guitar. I took lessons until I was 14 or 15 and I’ve been playing ever since. WCBG: Was there a moment where you were like this is what I want to do for the rest of my life? Andy: There were two. The first was when I was picking options for high school and I wanted to do triple science and math and history. I was stuck between acting and singing and my mom asked me what I wanted to do, and I told her I wanted to be a popstar. She told me to do singing in school and that I could take acting lessons on the side. The second moment—my mom and I were in Redding and we went to a pub where they had karaoke. She said to me that if you want to be a popstar, prove to me that you can do it. I ended up singing “Superstition” by Stevie Wonder and people started to gather around the stage. After that my mom said that I can actually do this now. WCBG: Describe RoadTrip’s sound in three words. Andy: Very nearly current. If you asked me six months ago, I would have said boyband with guitar. WCBG: I was thinking along the lines of power pop. Andy: I like power pop; I think a lot of our older stuff had that anthemic sound. So, the older stuff is definitely more power pop. For the new EP we worked back to front by creating a bass line and a beat first then the rhythm and melody. We wanted to do something different. Brooklyn and Sonny do this triplet spoke word part on “Understand.” We also write with performance in mind. Our new stuff brought out the best in members whose register is not as high, it’s more mid-range which showcases Harper, Brooklyn and Sonny. Rye and I have a higher register, so a lot of the older songs were written with a higher register in mind. They deserve to shine, they’re all great vocally. WCBG: We have a question that was asked at our freshman orientation that we ask everyone we interview. If you could be any item in the kitchen, what would you be and why? Andy: A spork. It’s useful for many things. I’d like to think that I’m a jack of all and master of none. Like you can use it to eat soup and ramen but it’s not good as a spoon or a fork and it looks ugly. It’s a useful tool. Sonny would be a spatula since he loves to eat bacon. Rye would be a sieve since he loves pasta. Harper, Harper would be a wok since he loves to eat chicken and use a wok. Brooklyn would be a bowl since he’s always holding things and he eats a lot of cereal. WCBG: Someone once told me that they would be a blender without the top on. Andy: Can we go back five minutes and ask the question again…I’d be a blender without the top on. WCBG: Okay, why? Andy: It’s a wicked answer, the imagery is great. Please draw the band as the kitchen items Andy said—we would love to see that. WCBG: You guys will be releasing your Documentary of your performance at Shepherd’s Bush on Sunday; can you tell me a little bit about that? Andy: A staggering amount of work went into making it. Our cinematographers, Alex, Conor, Calum and Robbie, who live with us, were there throughout the whole process. It was a solid six to eight weeks of work. They captured sound, were at our dance rehearsals, writing and recording sessions. I recently saw it and its insanely good. It’s a way to let the event not get wasted away. We didn’t really have the time to enjoy it and this allows us to relive it. It’s a way to immortalize the moment. I don’t want a photo-shopped event, I want something real. People will see us mess up, hit dud notes…the culmination of the work, it is a good climax. RoadTrip’s before the show documentary is dropping this Sunday (4/26), be sure to check it out! WCBG: Is there anything you would like to tell our listeners and your fans? Andy: I have not done the other boys justice enough during this interview. On a final note, they are still at the band house working away and creating awesome content for all of you. They are awesome friends, brothers, and colleagues. I cannot thank them enough: Harper Dark, Rye Beaumont, Sonny Robertson, Brooklyn Wyatt, Alex Millichamp, Conor Foley, Calum Morris and Robbie Beaumont. I am eternally grateful to all of you. Everyone stay home and stay safe! You can follow RoadTrip on Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube (RoadTripTV and RoadTrip Vlogs) Check out their music here 19 Miles Per Hour is a pop rock band comprised of Danny Iacopucci (rhythm guitar/lead vocals), Michael Iacopucci (drums/vocals), Brady Ellsworth (lead guitar/vocals) and Noah Lefgren (bass guitar). Their latest release, "Yellow Lines" is a total banger! The band is currently part of the campaign called #BeTheReason and it is aimed at focusing on reaching out to others and doing what we can to support one another throughout this time. You can follow 19 Miles Per Hour on Instagram & Facebook Merch and Music are also available on their website You can listen to their music here The Kelseys are an Ann Arbor based band made of friends from College. Their indie rock sound is definitely something that we should be jamming out to during quarantine. Take a listen to our interview with them and share the love for young artists make strides in the industry! Follow them on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter Check out their music here Holding Absence is a band that creates music that goes against the norms evident in Spotify culture. The creation of an album that reflects a journey for the listener is rare in this day and age. The culmination of emotion with a raw sound encompass music that reflects the yearning of the soul. Throughout this process the listener goes on an emotional rollercoaster that sets Holding Absence apart from other bands in this period. Hailing from Cardiff, Wales and comprised of Lucas Woodland (vocals), James Joseph (bass guitar), Scott Carey (guitar), and Ashley Green (drums)—the band is on an upward trajectory that we believe will only allow them to pursue bigger and better things in the coming decade. Their latest single, ‘Gravity’ only emphasizes the place Holding Absence has solidified for themselves. Currently signed to SharpTone Records, and soon to be releasing ‘Birdcage’; WCBG believes that the band is something special and we hope to share their message with all of you. In the words of Holding Absence “You Are Everything.” It was a pleasure to speak with Lucas and James about the band’s accomplishments so far and their goals for the future. WCBG: Thank you so much for speaking with us today, it’s an absolute pleasure. Can you please introduce yourselves and tell us a fun fact about you? Lucas: Hello, I am Lucas and I am the singer of Holding Absence. I have two lifelines on my palm instead of three, which is very rare. James: Hi I’m James, I play bass and I can whistle and hum at the same time. WCBG: If you could any item in the kitchen what would it be? Lucas: A pizza slicer James: A rubber spatula WCBG: What are you currently listening to? Lucas: During this quarantine, I’ve been listening to a lot of music. I’ve been going back to stuff I’ve been neglecting a bit. I’ve been listening to a lot of metalcore and Paramore as well. James: I subconsciously know that there won’t be any music festivals this summer, so I’ve been listening to a lot of those as background noise. Like the Reading Festival sets. WCBG: What is your favorite album in your personal collection? Lucas: Doolittle by the Pixies or In Rainbows by Radiohead. I’ve recently gotten into collecting vinyl and I have these two. They’re pretty much two of my favorite albums of all time, so I’m lucky to have them. James: My flatmate has Songs for the Death by Queens of the Stone Age in his car and we listen to that one all the time. WCBG: What musician(s) inspire you to be a better musician? Lucas: Thom Yorke. All the things I do, my interest in writing lyrics, enjoyment in playing the guitar and piano—he does all of those things to the max. I am inspired by his falsetto voice as well. For example, the way he plays the piano. James: I don’t like to look up to any person in particular—I’m more of a bands kind of guys. Playing bass there’s not that many [people]. WCBG: How did you pick your respective instruments? Lucas: Both me and James started on different instruments. When I was eleven, I played the drums in school and that was originally what I wanted to do as a musician. Later I realized I was better at singing. Being a boy in school, there weren’t many who could sing, and bands have male singers. I was fifteen or sixteen years old we all wanted to sing in a band and luckily, I could sing. James: The first local band I was aware of that I joined needed a bassist and I was a guitarist before. I was like oh I could probably play bass and I’ve stuck by it since then. Although, now I love playing guitar more than ever. WCBG: I feel like the instrument picks the person. It’s kind of like things happen for a reason. James: Look at how this band started. I think everything happens for a reason. The story is so intertwined, everybody knew everybody—it’s a faith kind of story. WCBG: What is your writing process like? Lucas: It depends, it differs a lot. We never have a clear-cut kind of way. As we mature as musicians we try to aim for a song underneath the production and find the right chorus or lyrics or melodies. First, we started out more with bedroom production. We tend to bounce off each other; it’s nice to have three other people in the band you trust a lot. James: When you’ve been in a band for ages you know when it is the right time to hand something off to another member. It gets to pass through three other sets of eyes. WCBG: What is your favorite part of a song you’ve written? Lucas: That’s really tough…I would have to say ‘Penance.’ It was the first song that I worked on with the band and it has such a cathartic ending. The closing lyric is “I deserve to be happy now.” It is such an epic moment; I like to think of it as a sonic epiphany. This was the first time I felt incredibly proud of something I’ve done. James: We are definitely guilty of overthinking music; there are times we have spent weeks on a little part of a song. I would have to say the bass line on our song ‘Everything,’ it was the first part where we were jamming in a room together and it’s been like that ever since. It was basically untouched—it’s a moment in time that now belongs to everyone else. WCBG: I loved your self-titled and I love the journey you go through as a listener. Can you tell me about your latest release, ‘Gravity’? Lucas: Thank you. We pride ourselves on creating a coherent sounding album. When the opportunity to write ‘Gravity’ came up, we knew it was going to be a single. Sometimes you have to have the humility to write something catchy—something to catch your ears—something cool and a little bit different. I remember when we were writing it, we came up with the drumbeat, and ironically our drummer was the only one not in the room. I don’t know where the idea came from, but we went with this rolling drum thing that shout out at you straight away. The rest of the song stemmed from that. For the chorus, we knew that was what the song was going to be about; it’s an epic kind of track. James: We always set out to be an album band, we listen to albums in full a lot and a lot of our favorite bands don’t necessarily have a lot of great singles but have amazing albums. Sometimes music from our favorite bands without context is a bit weird. It’s hard to find a way to fit the best part of your band into three minutes. That’s why we went with that drumbeat, we wanted it to be super bombastic. WCBG: What is your opinion of streaming services like Spotify? Lucas: That’s hard because I sit here with my Spotify account open. To be honest, it’s hard to deny the fact that streaming services are now part of our everyday life. It would be like someone who is forty denying having a smartphone. It’s just the way the world is now; it’s tough because as a musician you think a lot of that should be changed. My life has been saved by albums not singles. James: Spotify is amazing and allows people to put music out in the world very easily. It makes it accessible but at the same time the market is over-saturated. It makes music more of a commodity, I wish we lived in a time—the end of it was buying singles from a shop and you would only have that to listen to. Lucas: My dad always goes on about how when he was younger and I kind of wish it was like this now. He would buy a magazine and it would list your favorite band and next to your favorite band was some other band or an album. You would then go to your local record shop and buy that record. Sometimes if the album had good artwork you would get it and hope that the album was good as well. I think that’s why vinyl is making a comeback; people are sick of the streaming culture. I buy one album for every ten I would have back in the day. James: It’s also about retraining people’s attention spans. With a physical album you have to try and appreciate it as it is. WCBG: If you could change one thing about the music industry as it is today, what would it be and why? Lucas: Music is in the same category as celebrity as sports or film stars or any other profession with as much celebrity as ours. Footballers make millions and as a musician we don’t see that as much in that respect. James: I want to be a band that can operate and exist within the current industrial machine. WCBG: Describe your sound in three words. Lucas: Passionate, emotional rock. James: I was going to say cathartic but that’s similar to passionate. I do agree with what Lucas said. Lucas: I read somewhere that if you’re writing a book and you can’t sum it up within a sentence then you need to go back to the drawing board and it’s similar to this. WCBG: What’s the scene like in Cardiff? Lucas: It’s a lot of emo and metal-core There’s so much culture in the area and it bleeds through to bands and their music. James: Lucas and I have been super active in the local small music scene for years. It’s nice when your friends in other bands come see you in other places and so on. WCBG: What are your goals for 2020? Lucas: I want to be happy and successful. I want to make as much music as I can, meet as many people as I can and go to as many places as I can. James: Definitely more travelling. Like to read a little bit more about politics and things. And learn more about things that happened in the past that we didn’t learn about in school that would be good to know. Follow Holding Absence on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook Check out their music here Link to merch Meet Me @ The Altar is a phenomenal punk band that recently released their latest single, “May the Odds Be in Your Favor.” The band is a true definition of the digital age since their members come from three different states, and they have produced exceptional songs that are true power anthems. The band is comprised of Edith (Vocalist), Téa (Guitarist) & Ada (Drummer) and they hail from Georgia, Florida, and New Jersey respectively. Check out these lovely ladies and stay tuned for one hell of an interview. WCBG: Thank you so much for joining us! Can you please introduce yourselves and tell me a fun fact about you? Téa: Hello I’m Téa and a fun fact about me is that I can binge-watch an entire season in a lot less time than it should take. I’m from Florida. [Later on in the interview Téa mentioned that her fun fact should be that she wants to build a brickhouse from the ground up]. Edith: I’m Edith and I’m from Atlanta. I can hold my breath for three minutes. Ada: Hello, I am Ada, I’m from Jersey and I play RuneScape and Minecraft, I also like to take pictures with my camera. WCBG: If you could be any item in the kitchen what would you be and why? Ada: I would be a spatula—no a cheese grater Téa: A slotted spoon since it holds up what you want and lets out what you don’t want Edith: A whisk Téa: Edith, I think there’s something better for you than that. You’d be a blender. Edith: A blender without the top on Téa: It matches her chaos WCBG: What are you currently listening to? Edith: Belmont’s new EP, ‘Reflections.’ Téa: A lot of our stuff lately, I’ve had it on repeat Edith: After we release it, I never listen to it, it’s not my business anymore, it’s for the people now. Ada: Belmont’s EP and Harry Styles’ album. WCBG: How did you guys meet? Ada: I met Téa through YouTube; she was 14 and I was 16. I used to do a lot of covers and Téa saw one of them, I think it was ‘Holding On to You’ by Twenty One Pilots. She contacted me and we decided to start a band immediately. We knew we wanted to make music together. We held auditions and we met Edith in January 2017. We do everything online since we are in different states. WCBG: What is your writing process like? Edith: Téa will write a guitar part and send it in the group chat and if I like then I will write a melody for it. We will send everything back and forth. Téa: I tend to write the verses first then if they don’t like it we don’t continue with it. I would demo and record the guitar part and program the drums and we would put it together. In the beginning we used to self-record, now we go to a producer in Chicago. We all fly out and record—it’s the only time we record any of it together. WCBG: What is your favorite part of a song you’ve written? Edith: The lyrics I wrote for ‘Sane.’ “ I've learned that emotion is a sign of doing well A healthy heart to replace my gloom But I'm still stuck inside this fear of being frail Within this emptiness my doubt will bloom “ Also, the melody chant in ‘Tyranny’: “You think you're all that cause you're bigger than me?” Téa: The intro riff in ‘Tyranny.’ And also, this guitar part on an unreleased song we have that we’ve played live a couple of time. Our touring bassist said it reminds her of a horse galloping and now I can’t unhear it. Ada: The breakdown/bridge in ‘Sane.’ WCBG: Describe your sound in three words. MMATA: Bouncy, Badass, and Energetic WCBG: If you could change one thing about the music industry what would it be and why? MMATA: People tend to want money and not necessarily want to help the artist. But at the same time, we can appreciate the genuine people in the industry that way. Also, gender roles and race in the scene. A lot of people say to us “thanks for doing you.” A lot of people are mean out there and we wish everyone would feel accepted. We want to expand inclusivity but that also depends on bands and genuine management. WCBG: What musicians inspire you to be a better musician? Edith: Jon Bellion, he is so talented and plays every instrument on his record and he writes everything. Ada: Mike Shinoda from Lincoln Park. He writes and produces everything and does it all himself; he is so creative. Téa: I have a lot of influences and I can’t pick just one. WCBG: What are your goals for 2020? MMATA: To release new music, and lock in our first big tour. We are talking a 3,000 cap room. We had our year planned out but everything happens so a lot is undecided. Follow the band on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter Check out their music here Emily Moreno is a current senior at Wagner College majoring in theater performance. We were super excited to learn that she will be releasing her new EP, “Blue Ballerina” very soon and we cannot wait to hear the amazing tracks she has been working on. We are so proud of Emily and we cannot wait to see her grow throughout her musical career. Take a listen to our interview with her! Arrows in Action is an up and coming band whose music reflects pivotal moments that many of us experience in throughout our lives. Based out of Gainesville, FL, and comprised of Victor Viramontes-Pattison (Lead Vocals/Guitar), Jesse Frimmel (Drums/Vocals), Matt Fowler (Guitar), and Tony Farah (Bass), Arrows in Action is not your stereotypical power punk band. As Gainesville is known as a college town with musical influences that reflect the young crowd in the area, it is refreshing to see a band take numerous influences to create a sound reminiscent of that of the early 2000s but different enough to separate them from all the noise. Their latest releases “Close Enough” and “This Time” reflect a new era for the band and we cannot see what they accomplish in this decade. We were fortunate to speak to all of the members while we are in quarantine and discuss their music. WCBG: Thank you so much for speaking with us, we greatly appreciate it! Can you please introduce yourselves and tell us a fun fact about you? Jesse: Hello, I’m Jesse and I’m the drummer of Arrows in Action. My fun fact would be that I am the only original member of the band. Victor: Hi I’m Victor, I sing and play guitar in the band, and I have been in the band the second longest amount of time. Matt: I’m Matt, I play guitar, and a I make a damn good banana bread. Tony: I am Tony, I play bass, and I’m the newest member of Arrows in Action but I have been in more bands than the rest of them. WCBG: We have a question that was asked at our Freshman Orientation that we ask everyone. If you could be any utensil in the kitchen what would you be and why? Jesse: A fork—it’s the best one Tony: A corkscrew because a bottle of wine you can’t open is a damn shame. Victor: A pan because I like to make pancakes. Matt: A coffee grinder. Jesse: If any fans want to make fan art of us as kitchen utensils that would be great. WCBG: What are you currently listening to? Matt: Mac Miller’s latest release, Circles. My favorite band right now is White Reaper, so I’ve been listening to their album You Deserve Love all the time. Jesse: so am i. by Superwhatvr. Also, a lot of Bearings, Sleep On It, and Between You & Me since I recently saw them live; that show was rad. Victor: The newest Four Year Strong record, Bennee, and The Aces. Tony: Man or Astroman WCBG: If you could change one thing about the music industry as it is today, what would it be and why? Matt: People don’t buy physical copies of albums anymore, but at the same time the barrier of entry is lower so for us we don’t sell a lot of copies, but we can get a lot of streams. Tony: Bands shouldn’t have to play a battle of the bands to get on a festival show. It’s uncomfortable to compete with people we like because we want to win but we also want them to win too. Jesse: Diversity in the industry in terms of people not in terms of genres. The industry, especially our genre, is mostly male dominated but I think it’s starting to change for better. Victor: Also, the lack of people of color in the scene should be a relevant topic. WCBG: How did you pick your respective instrument? Tony: I was very young, and my dad took me to a music store where I saw a bass guitar; I plucked one of the strings on it and I was like I want that. MY dad instead got me an electric guitar that I never ended up playing. Years later I bought a bass and there was something appealing about the lower end and the way it shook you. Victor: I started playing the guitar in 5th grade. My family would go on camping trips and someone either brought or had a guitar. I started teaching myself to sing when I was 15 and I begged my mom for singing lessons. When that didn’t happen, I started to try to figure it out on my own and I’d practice every day. Jesse: I took piano lessons for a long time and I was in band at school. I was good at the classical stuff. And then I got really good at the game Rock Band on the drums. I thought I could make the switch, so I did. It just feels right. Matt: I’ve been playing guitar since I was 8 and I don’t remember a time before that when I didn’t want to play the guitar. This was about the time my brother started getting into music pretty seriously. WCBG: What is your favorite part of a song you’ve written? Tony: For ‘Close Enough,’ Victor showed me the melodies of the song, and I tweaked the chorus melody a bit—I pretty proud of that. Jesse: The intro to the second verse of ‘This Time’ where it starts out as acoustic and then the hits come in and then the full band. Victor: The verses for ‘This Time’ and ‘Close Enough.’ The choruses were the basic idea and the verses are the details of the story. I wrote these outside of our writing space since I was trying to work through things. It was cathartic for me. Matt: The guitar part on ‘This Time’—the solo in the outro, it is so complimentary. WCBG: What is your favorite album in your personal collection? Jesse: A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out by Panic! at the Disco Tony: Man or Astroman’s Defcon 5…4…3…2…1 Matt: I have, on vinyl, Black And White Night Live by Roy Orbinson. It has my favorite song, ‘In Dreams’, and favorite version of it on the record. Victor: I own zero physical copies and I have nowhere to play a CD or Vinyl. When I was younger, I would make mixtapes of random songs. If I had to pick an album I could have it would be Language & Perspective by Bad Suns. I used to have a CD of Put Up or Shut Up by All Time Low. WCBG: What musicians inspire you to be a better musician? Jesse: Brendon Urie. I’ve looked up to him for a long time. He’s so good at so many different instruments and he is probably one of the best vocalists in our genre. He encourages me to work hard and pick up the slack. Matt: I have bigger influences that I love and musicians that inspire me on a day to day; these are normally our friends. Like Nick Wheeler from The Forum, he has a fantastic ear for tone, and I love his playing. Also, Tony because he’s super creative and innovative as a guitar player. And our friend Nick Scout—he toured with Blue Man Group and was part of the crew. Victor: Awsten Knight of Waterparks. The band always challenges themselves on multiple fronts and they try different and fresh things. Currently there’s a trend with synth sounds and it’s good to stay well versed in what is popular. Waterparks transitioned so easily to becoming popstars and not just a pop-punk band on Hopeless Records. They take control of their art whether it be through directing music videos or creating album art. It helps to show what they want to get across. Tony: I would say my friends and peers, they make me want to get better. If I had to list some bigger name influences, I would say Tony Kanal from No Doubt, Scott Shiflet and Danny Elfman as a songwriter. WCBG: What are you goals for 2020? Arrows in Action: To get on the road and hopefully tour this fall. We are trying to reschedule as many dates as possible. Put out some more music and write as much as possible. And to stay active in this quarantine landscape. Follow Arrows in Action on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook Check out their music here! We spoke with emerging artist Frank Pascarella, who is known as Vertigo Child. He has been singing since he was five years old and when asked what inspired him to go into performing, he cited the movie Lilo & Stitch—specifically the scene where Elvis [Presley] is mentioned. Since being exposed to Elvis’ music Vertigo Child started listening to his music even more and realized that he wanted to pursue music as something more than a passion. WCBG asked Vertigo Child what musicians inspire him to be a better musician. He told us that Jonny Craig (who is featured on his debut single) and Tyler Carter both push him to explore the R & B and pop aspects of his singing. When speaking of his debut single, “If You Feel Lonely,” he told WCBG of the story that inspired the song. “While at work one day I needed some things to keep me busy. My band had called it a day back in May and I wanted to start a social project to remain creative. I had been reaching out to producers and I spoke with this guy, Mike the Mix who is based in LA—he sent me the beats for the track.” The song is a conversation between two people in an AB style. The chorus is in my point of view while the verses are in another persons’ view. “I love focusing on writing vocal melodies and lyrics at the same time.” When asked about his process, normally he is inspired by different beats and he writes about experiences he has had. For “If You Feel Lonely,” the song was written in about 15 minutes. When asked about his moniker, Vertigo Child told us that his name came about when he was travelling to St. Louis for work. A good friend of his has a song called “Vertigo Child” and he instantly asked her if he could use the name of the song as his moniker. She informed him that it was fitting and was honored to have her song inspire him to use it as his name. Vertigo Child’s unique sound and pleasant lyrics create a standout track from an artist we hope breaks through the noise. Go listen to his debut single and follow him on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter! |
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