EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Electric Parlor

This is the most exciting post that I have done for my blog so far. I came across the band Electric Parlor whilst browsing for new music on YouTube and fell instantly in love with them. Their bluesy rock sounds combined with the lead singer’s raspy voice gives their music a really addictive quality. I could (and have) listened to them for hours. I have downloaded as many of their songs as I could and am eager to hear more of their music. Everyone that I have played this band to says that they sound like they’ve been going for years. Don’t be too surprised if they show up on the festival circuit sometime very soon!

Electric Parlor are formed of Monique Alvarez on vocals, Josh Fell on the bass, Kris Farr on guitar and Zachary Huling on drums. The band members derive from all across the US; with Josh from New Jersey, Kris from Texas, Zachary from the Midwest and Monique from LA. Though the band was formed in LA. Here’s the interview:

For the readers who haven't heard of you guys yet, who is Electric Parlor?

We’re a very bluesy, groove-based rock ‘n’ roll band.  There is some angst in our music, the emotion of a song, it’s very raw but 100% real.  In Sweden we are labelled as stoner rock, which was new to us, but hey as long as they dig it they can call it whatever they like.

Who are your inspirations and where do they fit into your music?

The great thing about us is that each member of the band kinda has their own personal influences, there is some common themes sure, but we all also have our own thing too.  The music we all pull to are bands like old Creedence Clearwater Revival, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Zeppelin, etc.  We take all of that and try to create our own interpretation of rock ‘n’ roll.  Which is what it’s all about.  We create our own thing, riff driven, heavy hittin’ and groove driven we would say is the style of what we write. 

The impression I get from reading more into you guys from what you’ve said on your site is that you really have a sense of where you have come from and staying true to your roots, how did you guys form?

When we say that we mean that we know we all come from the bottom, with humble beginnings and no real “in” to the music industry.  We’ve earned everything we have and so far have done everything on our own.  Kris, Monique, and Zach all met on Craigslist, and then Josh found them when they were looking for a bass player on Bandcamp.  We just clicked on so many different levels, we knew we were on to something good.

So where did the name Electric Parlor come from?

Well, picking a band name is over-rated, it’s hard, and it may just be the worst part of the whole thing.  Each word, or each combination of words can sound and mean so different to each member.  So getting everyone to agree on something can be difficult.  Monique, Kris, and Zach were standing outside a rehearsal studio a while back tossing out words, and we had “parlor” out there, Kris put “electric” in front of it.  We looked at each other and thought, well it doesn’t suck and that was that.

On your website you talk about the evolution of rock 'n' roll, where do you see this evolution heading?

We think really it’s more about just getting back to the basics, with heavy hitting, groove-based rock ‘n’ roll.  No real tricks or gimmicks, and translating it to the live setting.  Would love to see it get to the point where bands like Rival Sons are headlining some of the biggest festivals in the states.  And if you haven’t heard of those guys you are really missing out!

Recently one of your songs has been licensed by ESPN to be used in the promo video for the Barclays Premier League, how did that come about and what has it meant to the band's popularity?

It’s a hard thing to gauge the return on.  We just found it online and posted on our social media platforms so now anyone in the States can check it out.  It was a promo that only ran in international markets, so who knows maybe one day we play a gig in Brazil and a fan puts two and two together when they hear “Reckless.”  Hopefully since we’re in their system we can get a spot on Sports Centre ha!

I've noticed that within the last few months big movements have been made by the band such as the making of brand merchandise, and apparel range and the promo video with ESPN, how important are these to your future?

Huge, anything you can do, when you are a DIY band, makes a difference and we’re very happy to say that we have even more in store these next few months.  Our video for “Last Battle” will be edited and debuted soon. We are also in talks with some PR people to help push the video and album this summer.  Vinyl pressing is also on the horizon if we really bust our butts and push ELECTRIC PARLOR out there and grind.  So it’s exciting, just have to keep on pushin’ on.

What song means the most to yourselves and why?

It’s like picking a favourite child-yes we can do that! Haha.  “Reckless” obviously is a favourite since it was in the Barclays Premier League promo on ESPN. Also “Last Battle,” not just cause it will be the first music video we do for one of our songs but also because we just think that the sound, the aggression in the song, really speaks to who Electric Parlor is and where we’re gonna go as far as making raw, loud, rock ‘n’ roll.

What's the proudest moment of your career so far?

It would probably be getting the album done. Yeah some gigs were pretty memorable and great and we are very proud of accomplishing that but the album represents all the time, money, work, sweat and tears we’ve put into this project.  From the moment we all met to right now, it’s all there.  We did it with our personal drive, our family and friends, our vision of creating something unique and it’s all ours. 

If anyone wants to see you guys live, how would they go about it?

Follow us onTwitter and Instagram, like us on Facebook, all our news on shows, videos, etc. we have on there.  It’s the best way to stay up-to-date.

What does the future hold for you?

It’s exciting right now because, we feel like we are really starting to hit our stride.  We are really developing a sense of who we are as a band, an identity and knowing what our sound really is.  Future looks fucking amazing because we have the best yet to come.

Electric Parlor really are a band that will take off, I’m sure of it! They have such an incredible sound that appeals to a really broad spectrum of listeners. I massively recommend giving them a listen now!

Exclusive Interview: AMZY

This week I caught up with AMZY, an incredibly talented synth pop band from Colorado. AMZY offer a distinctive sound that I had to share with you.

Hi guys, so for those who haven’t heard of you before can you give us a brief introduction?

Nick: Hola, me llamo Nick! I slap-a-da bass in AMZY.

Sean: Sean! I play lead guitar and I sing sometimes in AMZY.

Wes: Wes here- the lesser evolved AMZY guy who beats stuff with sticks.

Brennan: Brennan here! I have melodic schizophrenia and I sing lead vocals and play around with synthesizers in AMZY.

So who is AMZY, what are you all about?

AMZY is an Indie rock project that started out with the idea of bridging various influences together to try and find something fun. Our music wraps a blend of vocals and synthesizers around elements of indie rock and pop with the goal of inducing a feeling or mindset specific to the listener. We released our first singles 'Time to Change' and '5 to midnight' in 2014 with both tracks receiving a good reaction in the local Denver music scene. In 2015 we released our first EP, 'We Don’t Walk...We Dance,' which features 5 tracks and a whole lotta fun.

How did the group form?

Brennan, Sean, and Nick were all friends in high school and shared a passion for music and video production. Everyone has been playing music since they were young, but had to back down when we all went to University. Brennan and Sean were working on multiple projects with other musicians, but came together in 2013 to start the project that later became AMZY. Nick joined to play Bass at the start of the 2014 Summer. Wes answered a craigslist ad that we posted and, on a completely unrelated note, also knew how to play the drums!

Where did the name Amzy come from?

When we were in High School we would stay up late almost every night experimenting musically in a shed in the backyard of Sean’s parent’s house. 90% of this experimentation was more or less “noise” and Sean’s mother always had to come out and tell us to shut up. Being the kids that we still are, we never stopped after her warning and only slightly turned down the volume to try and get away with more music. After years of this game she had pretty much given up on trying to get us to stay quiet, but we made her a deal that if she let us continue being noisy we will name a band after her. Her name is Amzie! We understand that we probably come off as "Momma’s boys,” but AMZY helps us remember the fun and excitement we had making music and how the people around us truly shape who we become. We always ask people what they think AMZY stands for because everybody has their own idea. On one occasion we asked fans what they think AMZY stands for and they gave us our alter-egos  “Andrew, Michael, Zachary, and Yusef.” So that works too.

Where do you guys find your inspirations and how do those inspirations fit into your music?

A lot of the inspiration for the sound comes from the music we listened to when we were young and the evolution of the genres we love. The goal is to then try to bridge these different styles together. For example, Sean is influenced by a variety of rock formats like roots rock, Blues, classic, folk, and indie with a slice of electro-rock. On the other side, Brennan likes electronic, synth-pop, and modern alternative. We look at these elements and then start building! However, we try to refrain from putting ourselves in a box because we never truly know where the song could take us. Holding a broad pool of influences and styles gives us more to experiment with and ultimately strengthens the emotion of the song. Half of the time we don’t know what that emotion is until we are halfway through the formation of the song so we just go with it and see how many variations we can make before selecting the best version based on what it instils in us. The lyrics are a projection of the various experiences and transitions we went through in our lives. Finding yourself in the dark after failure, heartbreak, or depression is something that many of us can relate to, but finding a grip on the brighter side and the struggle to pull yourself out has always been a transition that we like to emphasise.

Where do you see yourselves ‘fitting in’ to the modern music scene?

Actually, we kinda hope we don’t fit in. We just want to keep doing our thing and hope people like what they hear. The thing about living in Denver is it has a very diverse music scene and there’s always a place for artists and musicians regardless of what they do. We all help each other out so there’s a sense of community that doesn’t necessitate ‘fitting in’. Eventually everybody just wants to stand out in their own way and we couldn’t ask for anything more. On a broader scale, we want to be able to do this for a living (every musician’s dream) and contribute to modern music in a way that inspires younger musicians to pursue their passions. We are still kids at heart, anxiously waiting for a new album or leaving a show at 2:00am with hoarse voices and a ‘totally worth it’ mindset. It is our deepest wish to be able to instil that excitement with AMZY in the future.

Alphabetically, we would fit somewhere between All American Rejects and Angels & Airwaves.

What's been the proudest moment of your career so far?

Hearing our songs on the radio was fairly emotional for us. We were part of a radio contest that put our song '5 to Midnight' on regular rotation on the Radio. It normally would have been big deal, but it was an even bigger deal that it was played on a station that we started listening to around 4th grade. On top of that, the DJ that spun us (Nerf) has helped grow the Denver music scene from what some people might call a “fly over state” to the next hot spot for huge acts. He was a vital part of our desire to be musicians, as well as the station, and so hearing him and later meeting him was literally a dream come true. 

On top of that, we ended up winning the contest with KTCL in front of a great crowd.  It was quite a memorable show.

Of the songs that you’ve produced, what’s your favourite and why?

The whole ‘We Don’t Walk...We Dance’ EP was unforgettable because we recorded it in the span of a couple days in a house in the Rocky Mountains. If we had to pick a song, we’d go with ‘Feet On the Ground’ because it pulled a lot of diverse elements together and set it all to an energy that felt different, but right. The song started out as pretty much a synth line, some humming, and a verse but it became a testament of just how far we can explore the AMZY soundscape. Furthermore, there were a lot of events unfolding in 2014 that involved the powerful vs the powerless and we wanted to create a battle cry for those fighting against the various forms of oppression.

What does the future hold for AMZY?

We’re working on a full-length album as well as getting a tour planned in the next year or two. Our dream is to be performing with the bands we love while connecting and dancing with people! 

Where can people hear more of you? Have you got any live shows coming up?

You can find our music on most digital retailer sites like iTunes, Beats, Spotify, and Soundcloud.

We love performing so if you’re ever in Denver there’s a good chance you’ll find us! A couple of Colorado showcases coming up are: The Westword Music Showcase, Underground Music Festival, and Taste of Fort Collins where we’ll be opening for Atlas Genius. Additionally, we are putting together a live concert filming with a potential debut of new material at The Bluebird Theatre in Denver on August 14th 2015. We’d highly recommend following us on Facebook (or any other social media outlet) and stay in the loop for more shows, music, and videos!

This is a band which really have me hooked at the moment, their songs are so unique and go to places which you wouldn’t expect. You think you know AMZY when you’ve heard a song but then the next comes on and blows you in an entirely different direction. I would massively recommend checking them out!