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"She won't come close to me, but she loves my drums,": Interview with Empire Grey at Rocklahoma

5/29/2015

Empire Grey

Courtesy of Empire Grey's Facebook Page

A fantastic progressive and alternative, yet Southern rock, Empire Grey puts on an impressive live performance. With a five-star drummer and a group of experienced musicians, you can’t beat seeing one of their concerts.

A good friend of mine at Rocklahoma went to high school with the drummer Eli Syed and bassist Jeremy Dodd, and told me a very funny (and maybe a little bit embarrassing) story about Syed when he was a gangly teen:
He would walk down the halls every day at school with his headphones in, air drumming, completely oblivious to those around him.
“I’m always trying to better myself,” defended Syed. “[I’m] very critical of my technique and how I approach the songs that we create…. I try to give every drum its own voice, make it musical, and just have fun with it.”

Not only is Syed dedicated to achieving perfection, he applies that to the band's sound as a whole.
“Every time we mess up, he gives us this serious look,” said guitarist and lead vocalist Tyler Lee. “Eyes are wide and he just stares at us any time we make a mistake…. It helps us because we know we’ll get ‘the look,’ even if we’re on stage, we know it’s there.”
Keyboardist Justin Harter adds, “But we never make mistakes on stage, so that’s okay.”

Empire Grey first formed in 2006, but broke up for five years, and just recently got back together this last August. As the cliché goes, if you love someone, set them free. If they come back, they’re yours; if they don’t, they never were, so I suppose it was meant to be.

One song they wrote when they were sixteen years old and just beginning they’re rock journey has a rather interesting story. “‘Journey of the Mind,’ is kind of our muse,” explained Syed. “We want to make it a three-parter, and make it a concept album of just that song but with different parts…. It’s just one of those songs that has stood the test of time. We keep wanting to work on it and improve it.”

Right now, with five songs recorded, Empire Grey is looking to hit the studio. They’re hoping for their debut record to come out “after Jurassic World and before Terminator Genisys,” said Lee. Look forward to that coming out by the end of the summer.

If you haven’t heard by now (and if you haven’t, your head must be stuck in the mud), Rocklahoma was insanely wet, windy, and muddy. Empire Grey was stuck in tents during the night of craziness when Linkin Park’s show was cancelled due to “inclement weather.”
“We were drowning in our tents, which blew away,” said Harter.

During the tormenting weather, the members of Empire Grey got together with the epic band Lovebettie (interview coming soon!) and played some impromptu acoustic music together, which I wish I had been there to hear.
Lee appreciated the experience as a way to network and continue to grow as a musician. “That’s how you learn the best, is from others,” he said.

Courtesy of Empire Grey's Facebook Page

All band members have an insane amount of work to do outside of their musical lives. Harter works the night shift at the ER as a nurse, and Lee is a stay-at-home dad. His daughter is already learning to appreciate music.
“She’s terrified of me,” said Syed. “She won’t come close to me, but she loves my drums.”
Lee added, “I’m out there, practicing by myself, and she’ll come out and grab his drumsticks and start banging.”
“She likes the really big floor tom, the sixteen inch,” laughed Syed.

Childhood memories of course came up when we began talking about children. Syed remembers seeing Porcupine Tree with Lee and Dodd, and it being a conversion experience for them.
“The three of us were just star-struck,” recalled Syed. “They just blew us away. They’re very precise, and that’s something that we crave. We want to have precision, we want to have the stamina to do what they do.”

Based out of Oklahoma City, Empire Grey will hopefully be heading out on a national tour this fall. If they do, and make it out to your area, I suggest going to their show. They have great energy, their music is fun, and talking to them afterward will be a blast.

Zoe Adler is a music journalist from Long Beach, California. Besides her website, which is her pride and joy, she works with the GRAMMY Foundation and the Long Beach Independent. Additionally, Ms. Adler is a musician, spending half of her time playing the flute, piccolo, trombone, and marching baritone. She has been with TeenView Music since the very start and hopes to make something of it in the future.

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"Our Next Thing is to Play a Rock Show as We're Diving Out of a Plane,": Interview with Fight the Fade at ROK15

5/28/2015

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Fight the Fade

Vocalist Zene Smith

Tulsa-based four-piece, Fight the Fade, writes rock music with beauty and soul, and performs with an indescribable passion. I think I have fallen in love.

Bands can claim that they write about real-life experiences, but it has never been truer than with FTF, whose raw emotion lies open to the listeners in every song. They still can bring it with a driving bass line and equally fierce drumming, but they aren’t afraid to expose themselves in their music.

Lead singer Zene Smith gave an example in their gorgeous song “Tomorrow.”
“I had somebody who was very close to me who passed away,” began Smith. “She had had gastric bypass surgery… The night that she was discharged, ready to send back home, she got home and she called me to get her VCR programmed, or something. I was tired, so I decided to ignore the call. I thought, ‘I’ll talk to her tomorrow. It’s not a big deal.’ And she passed away in her sleep that night. I never had the chance to tell her how much she meant to me.”

This event weighed heavily on Smith’s heart, and inspired the song “Tomorrow,” which stresses the importance of living each moment and not letting opportunities slide by.
“Life’s too short. We’re not guaranteed a tomorrow,” said Smith. “You need to make the most of the time you have on this earth because it’s short.”

For all of the members of FTF, inspiring or supporting or helping someone through their music is an uplifting experience, and something they strive for. Guitarist Tyler Simpson spoke of one time when a fan related deeply with “Tomorrow,” and he was touched by her own identification with the song.
“In our career choice, sometimes you need those uplifting emails or messages,” explained Simpson.
Smith adds, “Sometimes it’s hard to respond to, because…it’s such a personal song for me, that I don’t know how to communicate when it resounds so personally with somebody else, [but] it’s always such a huge blessing to know that our music has changed somebody’s perspective on life.”

Simpson runs a graphic design studio and his talents are on display in the fantastic lyric video for “Tomorrow.”

Guitarist Bryan Conway

I decided to ask about the members’ most memorable teenage experience in relation to music.

“When I was a teenager, I went to so many rock shows,” recalled Smith. “It’s just a blur, because it seemed like every weekend I was going to see a band. My first concert was actually a Relient K show. I think that was kind of a turning point for me, just seeing how much fun they were having on stage.” After seeing that show, he realized it was possible for him to make a career out of music as well.

Simpson remembers when he was first introduced to rock music after a sheltered childhood. “What’s funny is Linkin Park is here tonight, and they are one of the first bands that I had ever heard that was in the rock genre.”

Of course, with Linkin Park playing at the same festival as them, Simpson was more that psyched to be there. “They asked if we wanted to do it after they had already announced the lineup for the main stage, and so I was like, ‘Yes! Yes!’ It was definitely a bucket list thing,” exclaimed Simpson.

Smith continued, saying, “We played a date on Warped Tour last year, and that was another bucket list thing for a lot of us, so we’re just crossing things off left and right. Our next thing is to play a rock show as we’re diving out of a plane. It would just be an intro, it would be a very short set. I just feel worried for our drummer.”

Zene Smith, Me, and Tyler Simpson

This band is absolutely fantastic, and I suggest you check out their music on iTunes. I can’t wait to see them perform when they head out to California on their tour this summer!

Here is the video for another fantastic song called “Rise.”

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“If wrestlers played music, this is what it would sound like”: Interview with Diamond Lane at ROK15

5/27/2015

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Diamond Lane

Diamond Lane in the Media Tent after the interview

If there is one thing I never forget from this interview, it will be the impressive loudness of guitarist Jarret Reis. Nothing came out of his mouth under 97 decibels, which would have hurt the ears if he wasn’t so damn funny.

Due to the unfortunately crazy weather at Rocklahoma this year, I was unable to make it to Diamond Lane’s show, since they played after the headliner, in one of the last slots of the night, and I had a plane to catch. The constant rain had turned the entire festival grounds into a giant mud pit, and cars had to be towed out of their parking spots. Luckily, Diamond Lane is an LA-based band, so I’ll get to see them when they head home.

I can imagine that with the energy exuding from Reis and DL’s other members, vocalist Brandon Baumann, bassist Ray Zhang, guitarist Ian McClaron, and drummer Dave Vandigitty, their live shows must be top notch. My hypothesis is further supported by their intelligently funny remarks and evident companionship.

Reis was particularly excited to be playing Rocklahoma because Halestorm was playing. “I heard Lzzy has thing for me,” Reis gushes. “I can’t wait to give her a kiss on the lips.”

Diamond Lane + Me in the Media Tent. We look badass, right?

If you look up DL on Facebook, you will find the second guitarist listed as Frankie Lindia, but when Lindia left the band last minute, McClaron stepped in to save the day. “He learned a truckload of material,” said Reis. “He and I went into a room for three days straight, and even on the bus we were running it and running it, to make sure people get the experience they deserve.”

They’ve been touring for about three and a half weeks, with only two or three nights off due to bus problems. “That’s rock ‘n’ roll; you’ve got to be ready to roll with the variables,” explained Reis jocosely.

DL claims that touring is the best part of being in the band, but it still brings its challenges. Zhang elaborated, saying, “You see people at home eating steak, and you’ve got this peanut butter and jelly sandwich, [and] you’re like, ‘Man, this is not the life!’ But then when we hit the stage, it’s worth it.”

DL has been touring with their LA buddies Delta Rose, and they support each other every step of the way.
“It’s a black-and-blue type of situation,” Reis described. “It’s awesome because we’re covering every end of the spectrum for anyone who loves rock.”

When the tour ends, Diamond Lane is prepared to hit the studio (after sleeping for a few days) with their demo tracks to begin the construction of their next album. Reis excitedly announced, “We’re raising the bar for ourselves to deliver something more spectacular for the fans.”
Baumann adds, “It’s a wrestling match, but on stage. If wrestlers played music, this is what it would sound like.”

Zhang recalled one of his favorite times with the band, back when he had first joined. He was in his trailer, at the wheel, after (possibly) having drunk, and proclaimed to Reis that Baumann was, “in for the times of his life!” Zhang began to drive with reckless turns and at crazy speeds, bouncing and throwing Baumann all over the back of the van. “Those were the Hollywood days,” Zhang said wistfully.

Be sure to check out Diamond Lane’s music! Here’s their music video for their hard-hitting but groovy song “The Enemy.”

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Interview with The Funeral Portrait from Atlanta, Georgia

5/12/2015

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The Funeral Portrait

“Theater rock” band The Funeral Portrait from Atlanta, Georgia, performed at the Whisky A Go Go a few weeks ago, and I had the pleasure of speaking with the eccentric lead singer Lee Jennings and the most-definitely-not-intense (this will makes sense later) lead guitarist Juergie Landstrom.

Their set was absolutely outstanding, playing through their masterpiece EP For the Dearly Departed (click here to read review) song-by-song, detailing the intricate storyline weaved by the musicians.

The protagonist in the story, explains Landstrom, “has killed his significant other… The first song is that event, and then the following five songs represent…the five stages of grief, and each song is trying to embody that stage and you’re experiencing the emotions associated with this character through these songs.”

For reference, the five stages of grief are:
1.   Denial and Isolation- “A River in Egypt”
2.   Anger- “All My Circuits”
3.   Bargaining- “Marrow”
4.   Depression- “The Optimist”
5.   Acceptance- “Wax Romantic”

“That’s why we like to play the songs front to back on stage,” says Landstrom, because it wouldn’t make sense in a different order.

This plot to the EP definitely clarifies the dark—and often morbid—lyrics. Landstrom is the main lyricist in the band, so of course I had to ask him if he was a dark and morbid person.

“I’ve been told I’m an intense person, but I promise you I’m not,” claims Landstrom. “I don’t think I’m dark and moody and evil like the music might suggest. I’m pretty boring.”

In fact, Landstrom claimed he is so not intense that his favorite Instagram is “Percy Pig,” an account dedicated to “a movement that pigs in a blanket should be actual living pigs wrapped up in blankets,” says Landstrom.

However, Jennings has a different story: “This guy, he makes me terrified. That’s why when he entered the room I kind of silenced, because I’m like, ‘oh my god, Juergie’s here, I can’t talk.’”

Personally, I side more with Jennings because of Landstrom’s fiercely energetic stage presence. His raging screams and creative guitar-work is a recipe for a daunting aura, although he is laid-back in person.

If you ever have the privilege of seeing The Funeral Portrait live, you will appreciate the unique style and stage presence of Jennings. He is deeply theatrical, exhibiting a wide range of peculiar expressions and demonstrating intense emotion. His eyes stare directly into the crowd with such intensity and conviction that the audience is certain he really did murder his significant other.

No surprise here, but it turns out Jennings is trained in musical theater.

“Elementary school came around, I was always [the] freaking tall kid, chubby kid,” begins Jennings. “I always got picked on and everything. I needed something that I really loved, so I tried football, baseball, basketball, everything…[and] I hated it. It just wasn’t my thing. Music started becoming my thing because I found out that my elementary school music teacher, his name is Mr. Thai, he’s phenomenal. He was just super freaking rad… He made elementary school kids sing in Latin! … So that’s what turned me on to music and into the whole music theater realm.”

Jennings’ background in musical theater has deeply influenced his performance style and stage presence. He moves about the stage like a true actor.

Jennings describes his experience on stage, “I’ve never buried someone alive, I’ve never killed anybody, as you guys know of, but everybody, and I’m sure you eventually will find somebody that you want to bury alive, and you’ll kind of go through that every night. That’s what I get to do every night up on stage. I get to kill someone every night.”
“Without the consequences,” adds Landstrom.

The Funeral Portrait released For the Dearly Departed in late 2014, and is already planning on some releases for 2015.

Their first release of the year will be a single, which will hopefully be released in late summer, explains Landstrom. “[It] is going to be the entire plot of Twin Peaks... Recently we’ve been watching a whole lot of Twin Peaks, so the entire plot of that TV show—which is a lot to digest—exists within this one song.”

Later in 2015, around the fall or winter, The Funeral Portrait is preparing to release their first full-length, which is, according the Jennings, “on the shush-shush.”

“It wouldn’t be fair to anyone or myself to talk about the…concept, because we are a concept-driven band,” explains Landstrom. They expect the concept to evolve and change as they write the music, and don’t want anything set in stone until the music is completely recorded and on the computer in final form.

Jennings explains that they are “writing machines,” and would release music all the time if they could. Of course, they can’t because of record label contracts and the necessity to keep fans waiting.

I absolutely adore The Funeral Portrait’s music, and I highly suggest you check out their EP, available on iTunes. I also would encourage you all to go to the next live show of theirs in the area; their live performances top even their masterful recordings. And finally, go meet these guys. They are super friendly, super funny, and great musicians. There’s nothing about The Funeral Portrait that’s not to like.

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