Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Maybe Next Midnight Interview

Who is Maybe Next Midnight (names, instruments)
Josh Bell- Vocals
Kayla Wimert- Drums
Trey McKee- Bass
Mitch Mayes- Lead Guitar/Vocals
Travis Wonderly- Guitar/ Vocals

Where are you from?

(J): Fayetteville, North Carolina


How long has Maybe Next Midnight been a band?
(M): Maybe Next Midnight has been a band for about a year but we’ve gone through different member changes.

Where did the name Maybe Next Midnight come from?

(TM): We were previously under a different name but due to copyright issues, we were pressed to come up with another name right on the spot. So someone mentioned “ Maybe Next Midnight” and we just went with it.


How did Maybe Next Midnight become a band?

(K): Trey and  I were the original members of this band. We were actually just a 3-piece band with a totally different sound than we have now. Issues arose with our previous vocalist, So Trey and  I decided to start this band from scratch and actually play what we love, which is pop punk. We actually found Travis and Josh on Craiglist. Mitch actually just found us on Facebook and we went from there.


How would you describe yourselves as a band?

(TW): We don’t necessarily see ourselves as just a band, we see ourselves as best friends who like to write and play music together. 


Who are your influences/favorite bands growing up and/or currently?

(K): Hit The Lights, New Found Glory, We Are The In Crowd
(M): Nirvana, The Wonder Years, Taking Back Sunday
(J): Silverstein, Armor For Sleep, Basement
(TM): Blink 182, NOFX, Anti Flag
(TW): Rise Against, Anberlin, Brand New

Tell us about your single  “Trenches”

(M): I actually wrote a lot of the song “Trenches” about a year ago and have just kept changing it over and over again. At that point it was just an idea floating around in my head, and then I saw that MNM were looking for another guitarist. So after I joined I showed them what I had and we just went from there.  


What was it like release your first single and how have people responded to it?

(K): I’ve never been more proud of anything like I am with this single. It’s just rewarding to finally release something that you’ve been working so hard on.  The response  to this single has been very humbling. So many people have reached out to us telling us how much they love it. Some people have actually been spending 5 bucks for this one single. Its mind blowing because they really didn’t have to do that. So if you guys are reading this, Thank you so much. 


Any big plans or goals for 2015?

(J): We plan on releasing one more single and then an EP before summer. Then hopefully hitting the road for a summer tour. Maybe get our name out around the US and possibly a few other places.

Kickstand 72 Interview

Who is Kickstand 72 (names, instruments)

Jarek Mueller - Vocals/Guitar

Jason Capuzzi - Guitar

Brody Martin - Bass

BJ Foster - Drums
 

Where are you from?

We are from Minneapolis, Minnesota.


How long has Kickstand 72 been a band?

We've been under the name Kickstand 72 since December, but we've been playing our songs for a few years before that. 


Where did the name Kickstand 72 come from?

We wanted a name that was reminiscent of being a kid and having fun and growing up. Unless you're a motorcycle enthusiast or like to wear exceedingly tight clothing, I think that if you think of a kickstand it might take you back to being a kid, riding bikes around, chasing girls and peeing on strange things and people. -Jarek


How did Kickstand 72 become a band?

So Brody was a horse breeder back in the day, but he wasn't very good at it. Turns out it's illegal to breed a horse with yourself. We've all made THAT mistake. Who knew, right?
Anyways, I had a band that needed a drummer and Jason had a band that needed a drummer, so I drummed for Jason's band and the lead singer of that band played drums in mine. After a few years and member changes and a lot of ball fondling, we got the lineup we have today. We just recently changed the name from Zero. Because that was awful. Just fucking awful. -Jarek


How would you describe yourselves as a band?

As a band I'd say we're a bunch of fuck-ups that are obsessed with dick jokes. And somehow when we're not sticking our hands down each others pants or having a who-can-drink-the-most-left-over-jello-shots-from-last-weeks-halloween-party-without-puking-fucking-everywhere contest, we manage to write bad punk songs and play them poorly. -Brody

 
Who are your influences/favorite bands growing up and/or currently?

I'm the oldest member of the band by like, 5 years, so I think I grew up listening to some substantially different artists than the other guys. I actually grew up listening to old-school metal like Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Pantera, Slayer, and Metallica. I think the other guys, for the most part, grew up listening more along the lines to the music we play. Bands like The Offspring, Blink-182, Sum 41, Green Day and that nonsense. I didn't really get into that until I was a little older.

Nowadays, I think we're really influenced by those bands that the other dudes grew up with. Jarek came from an old-school hardcore/streetpunk background before this band, and he and Brody have been listening to skate-punk for a few years, so I think that bleeds into our sound quite a bit. Jason really likes the sound of The Wonder Years, so I think you'll definitely be able to pick up those influences in a few of our songs. I'm still really into the metal drumming with drummers like Dave Lombardo, Brann Dailor, and Chris Pennie. But I'm a huge fan of Travis Barker and Atom Willard and anything either of those fuckers do. They're amazing.

As far as our stage performance goes, I think we're heavily influenced by Blink-182, in a way. Our main goal is to have fun and move around on stage, so we like to jump around and tell stupid jokes and make fun of each other. It's not so much that we're trying to copy another bands performance style, we're just being ourselves and doing what we love, how we love to do it. -BJ


Tell us about your previous EP “You Got Your Punk in my Peanut Butter"?

Well, we've recorded the EP twice, and I've noticed our EP was a lot like having sex. The first time around it was really awkward and we didn't really know what we were doing. By the second time around we learned from our mistakes and kicked the girl out and Brody took her place. That made it so much better. But we will say, the EP itself is a surprisingly good Frizbee. We'll probably redo it 2-3 more times, just to be safe. -Jason


Going into this online interview, you have mentioned you are recording a new album. Could you tell us about that process?

The entire album is a gagglefuck of songs that we kinda wrote over the years. Some are good, but all of them suck. I deployed to the middle east after I finished my vocals and pretty much left the rest up to the other guys. I've given them about a year to record everything, and things are getting done. Slowly, but surely. We've also teamed up with Rise or Die Records and Promotions to put this sumbitch out. They put together compilations of unsigned bands and pass them out of big tours. They're also rad as fuck and you should check them out. Do it. Come on. I'll be your best friend.
So hopefully if all goes well, this album will gain us a few less fans than we lose. So, altogether it's a win-win.-Jarek

For the last few months I've been collecting rocks to throw at Brody while he plays bass. All kinds of rocks. Quartz, granite, big, small, black, grey, you name it. I've accumulated close to 130 pounds of rocks that I keep in my room. Everytime Brody fucks up I'm gonna throw a rock at him. You know what? Even when he plays something right I'll throw a rock at him. I don't want any of these rocks go to waste. Goddamn I can't wait until we start recording bass. -Jason


Any big plans or goals for 2015?

Brody is going to try to start an underground self-horse breeding ring.
BJ decided he's teaming up with his stepdad to make man on man on moose porn.
Mr. Capuzzi is getting back into his Korean heritage and wants to open a Mongolian BBQ palace.
Jarek is working to become the fattest man in the world.

Oh, and we're releasing our album in the summertime. So that'll be pretty cool I guess.