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What inspired you to first start making music? And how did you come to be in your current incarnation? Or if you prefer, a brief bio about you.

I had piano lessons when I was 4 or 5 but never really advanced with them because I was too lazy to learn to read the music. Instead, I would just have the piano teacher play the part for me and let my ear do the work. That made my parents frustrated since I wasn’t actually learning to read music, so I dropped out. It wasn’t until a few years later when I was about 8 when I found my dad’s old guitar in the garage. I spent a few years screwing around with it and played mostly metal/rock songs since that was what I was exposed to the most. In sixth grade I picked up saxophone in the school band but grew extremely bored quite rapidly as you can only play Hot Cross Buns so many times before wanting to end it all. I was steadfast in my mindset that I wanted to quit band because it wasn’t challenging me to grow as a musician. However, the school district I was a part of hosted an all-level concert where music was showcased from the 6th grade level band all the way to the upper level high school ensembles. Obviously the elementary level concert that I was a part of at the time sounded like a flock of angry geese and didn’t really inspire me to stay with the program, but my parents convinced me to stay and listen to the pieces that the high school ensembles were performing. I was awestruck by the jazz band. Their performance alone made me realize that sticking with the program would be worth it to play such cool music one day. Jazz and other related genres of music found their way into my selection of music I regularly listened to. Eventually I joined that same jazz ensemble and was heavily involved in most of the music programs offered at my high school, which is really how the members of The Millennial Club met and became friends.

Provide us with some info about your latest release…

Our latest release, ‘She’s So Insane,’ is what I consider to be a collection of songs that establishes the foundation of our sonic profile. It features four of our previously released singles along with two new songs that evoke the same warmth, wistfulness, and undeniable emotion that have been previously attributed to us, and we sincerely hope you enjoy it.

Which ones would you consider your main influences both music-wise & non-music-wise?

We draw a lot of inspiration in my guitar playing from Tom Misch. I think that he is incredibly successful in blending elements of funk, jazz, and hip hop in his songs that can be enjoyed by pretty much anyone – from die-hard music theory nerds to the casual music listener. We also thoroughly enjoy the music created by The Japanese House (some of those vocal harmonies are nothing short of genius). I also really appreciate how she can seamlessly transition between slower, melody-driven guitar parts to grooves that almost make you want to just head-bang.

In what way does your sound differ from the rest genre-related artists/bands and why should we listen to your music? In other words, how would you describe your sound?

Our sound is truly a blend. While the content that we’ve released so far can be relatively easily classified as “dream pop,” I think a big aspect of this band that differentiates us is our ability to branch out and experiment with combining aspects of different genres. A lot of our unreleased music delves into very noticeably different sonic avenues while still maintaining our core vibe of nostalgic but energetic pop.

Please name your 3 desert islands albums, movies & books…

Albums
The Hanging Gardens of Beatenberg by Beatenberg
The Smiths by The Smiths
Channel Orange by Frank Ocean

Movies
Ratatoulli
Die Hard
The Big Lebowski (definitely)

Books: Physician’s Desk Reference… hollowed out, inside: waterproof matches, iodine tablets, beet seeds, protein bars, NASA blanket, and, in case I get bored, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. No, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Question: did my shoes come off in the plane crash?

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Do you prefer studio or performing live and why?

We’re kind of perfectionists when it comes to putting out music, so studio recording is essential to the creative process when you want to get that track sounding perfectly. I will say though that there’s an energy I feel when I’m performing live that really drives me to not hold back when I’m playing. I think a lot of really cool ideas get unearthed when we’re playing live that wouldn’t necessarily come to us just sitting in a studio, but the studio environment is definitely more useful for perfecting those ideas.

Is there any funny-unique story you would like to share with us, always in relation to your music ‘career’?

There was a gig we played at in LA during the summer on a really hot day. It was an outside gig and there was no tent or anything to shade us or our equipment from the sun, and as a result of that, halfway through our set I think a power generator overheated and all of our electronics went down. Microphones, amps, everything. So while the technicians were trying to figure out a way to get us back on, Tyler and I (Jake) just totally jammed acoustically for like 10 minutes straight – just saxophone and drums. It was an interesting change of pace for the concert but the audience enjoyed it, so that was fun. It’s either that or the time Jared forgot his bass before a show.

Which track of your own would you point out as the most unique and why?

In terms of music that we’ve already released, I think “love is so hard!” would be the most unique. It’s got such a solid groove that really pulls you in with the R&B inspired sound while creating an atmosphere of emotional struggle that comes together to form a really cool song. “MI” is also an extremely uniquely crafted song – especially with the different piano pauses as well as the sax solo (shout out to me, Jake).

Would you like to share with our readers your future plans?

The debut EP release is certainly a big step for us, but don’t think for a minute that we’re slowing down. We’re currently working on developing an album that will feature roughly 10–12 new original tracks that we’re extremely excited to share. I won’t lie, it’s pretty far from done, but with summer here we’ll be working dark and day to get these tracks to the quality that you all deserve. It’s likely we’ll be dropping a couple of singles before the album release as well. I know that music fans can become quite restless waiting for more content, but hopefully this new EP will quench that thirst until the next release. Who knows what will happen, amirite?

Free question!!! (Ask yourself a question) you wish to answer and haven’t been given the opportunity…

Question: What are some of your favorite things about being in this band?

Answer: First and foremost, we’re all best friends, and I’m entirely sure that we’d all be hanging out even if it wasn’t for this group. The band part just makes it better because we’re really making something of both our combined musical abilities and our friendships. Making music and working on songs is a pretty great excuse to hang out with the bros. Aside from that, I think one of my favorite parts of being in this group is seeing peoples’ reactions to our music. It’s an incredible feeling to look up from the stage you’re performing on and witnessing the crowd groove and genuinely enjoy the music you’ve created from basically your bedroom, it’s probably my favorite aspect of performing in general.

Curated by: Christos Doukakis

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