Telltale Interview: Tim & Bryce

Telltale is an up and coming band from Virginia whose music is reinventing the normal pop-punk sound we grew up. Their music speaks to our generation and focuses on what it is like to grow up and experience so many emotions and thoughts. Telltale is a band that makes the listener reminisce their path to adulthood through their clever lyrics and catchy riffs. The music they have released paints an amazing picture through the deliberate placement of specific chords and lyrics. The band is comprised of John Carter (vocals), Bryce Marshall (guitar), Tim Fogg (bass), and Travis Slack (drums). We were lucky enough to talk to Tim and Bryce over the phone about the band! The band is currently signed to SharpTone Records.  

"Some days are grayscale and others are in pantone
Some days are a stormcloud and others are a rainbow"
-‘Bouquet’ by Telltale  

WCBG: How did you become a band?
Bryce: We met a couple of years ago when we were working on some other projects. The projects we were previously a part of started ending and faded away and we wanted to continue playing music since we were still into it. So, we met over the years through playing in other bands in the Richmond [Virginia] area.

WCBG: What’s the local scene like in Virginia?
Tim: Richmond’s local scene is a really poppin’ scene. There are a lot of house venues with a lot of DIY bands.

WCBG: I love bragging about my school, so you might know that the movie School of Rock was actually filmed here.
Tim: That movie came out around the time I started getting into music. I was watching the movie and I saw Jack Black—it really motivated me.

WCBG: How did you pick your respective instruments?
Tim: I play guitar mostly but there was a need for a bassist in this band, so I play bass now.
Bryce: I got into music because my dad played guitar when he was a teenager and we had one lying around the house. I picked it up and learned from him. I love rock driven music so it made sense.

WCBG: What are you currently listening to?
Tim: Pop-punk, some rap, some classic rock and 80’s metal
Bryce: It’s a kinda the same for a lot of us, we all listen to all sorts of stuff. I typically listen to like heavier stuff. More like punk or hard-core and metal. 

​A good song is a good song, it doesn’t really matter the genre classification.
-Bryce

WCBG: What’s your favorite riff or lyrics that you’ve created?
Bryce: ‘Timeless Youth’ is a pretty straightforward song. It was the last song I wrote while living in my college dorm. I like it out of sentiment and the personal memory I have attached to it. I remember sitting at the crappy college desk.
Tim: ‘What We Live For.’ I used to work in commercial real estate and when we got our first real US tour, I had to quit that job. The day I clocked out for the last time I wrote that song in the parking lot.

WCBG: Describe your writing process.
It’s very collaborative. Sometimes one of us will have a smaller idea, like a verse or a chorus or a riff, and we build it up together. A song can sometimes start as one thing and can turn into something completely different. A mellow track can turn into something like ‘Breathe’ and vice versa.

WCBG: What’s your favorite song to play live?
Tim & Bryce: ‘Rose’ it has the best crowd response. All of the songs are great.  

"All that you'll ever find within me is a tell tale heart
And I'll keep pounding at your brain from underneath the floorboards"
– ‘Rose’ by Telltale

WCBG: What’s your favorite venue that you’ve played in?
Tim & Bryce: The Garage in Minnesota. It has a big backstage area where bands can chill before their set. They have a basketball court, foosball, ping-pong, etc. The backwall [of the venue] has signatures of people what have played there, like Real Friends from 2011. The stage is also nice and giant.

WCBG: What’s your favorite state that you’ve been to?
Bryce: Arizona- there were so many rock formations. We drove down to New Mexico and I just liked the vibe.
Tim: California- We tried to go across the whole country. It was awesome thing to play so far away.  

WCBG: Describe your sound in 3 words.
Tim: Energetic Alt-Rock or Modern Pop-punk.

WCBG: What is one thing you would change about the music industry?
Bryce: It is ever growing and changing. I wish people would change their perception of the industry. A key factor to being famous is luck, it’s being in the right place at the right time. It’s not formulaic.
Tim: I wish there was less gatekeeping. People in the industry control who comes in and out for things like touring. It only takes a couple artists to recognize an up and coming band. 

Music that makes you think about something, not just the beat or the tempo, when the lyrics make you think outwardly is what I like listening to.
-Tim  

WCBG: What can we expect from Telltale in 2020?
Tim: We are writing a new record! We have a single recorded so that will drop sometime soon. We are also hoping to lock in some support runs.

We can’t wait to see what the band does in 2020 and we are hyped for their new album cycle! Connect with them here: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Website, Spotify