A Love Like Pi is an electronica rock band from New York city, and their singer, Lief sat down with Immortal Music to answer some questions. He gave many great answers that included negoiations with a dark, furry figure in his life, hard work, Animaniacs and much more! He also gave a beautiful explaination behind the band name.
This is a very interesting interview, so definitely read on to see what he had to say. 1. What inspired you do to synth pop/ electronica? I'm happy to finally be able to write songs by making noises with my mouth and then painstakingly recreate them on the computer. 2. You have a song called "Cats" and it sounds more like its about a friend. Is your friend a cat? Man, I've had very few friends that were also cats. I think part of what qualifies a friendship is mutual respect and I never really found that in a cat. The lines in the song are meant to be negotiations with a dark, malicious pack of evil cats, which I think is a much more realistic scenario. 3. What dirty work were you speaking of in "Dirty Work"? We spend a lot of time and effort ignoring ourselves. It's not the type of work that you gotta roll up your sleeves for, but it still leaves you feeling like you need a shower. 4. Name something you listen to that nobody would expect. Damn, this is where I'm supposed to coyly name some pop artist that everyone loves, right? I'm drawing a blank so I'll give you something I'm actually proud of: I can recite just about every lyric off of the Animaniacs CD. That includes "The Nations of the World" which is a great song if you're into hearing a list of all the countries in the world (circa 1993) to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance. 5. How would you describe your music to those who are only just discovering you? We try to take some elements of http://soundcloud.com/alovelikepi, blend them with https://play.spotify.com/artist/0BRqvQoxmmLexIg5tsOeBb and sprinkle some https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/jack-and-the-giant-e.p./id934422955 on top. 6. Can you explain the EP's title track, "Jack And The Giant"? Such as what exactly inspired it and what it means to you? Jack and the Giant is about the space that widens between you and your imagination as you grow old. The loss of innocence isn't always some dramatic moment of gravitas or a bitter parting of strangers. Sometimes your youth just suddenly feels like a dream, and we wanted to make a song that feels the same way. 7. Where in the world do you dream of performing? Whenever I dream of performing, it's this nightmare where we forget all of our instruments and have to play a set using only our mouths. 8. Where did you come up with your band name? Do you really like Pi? Pi is a number that has occupied this weird space within geometry as a never-ending, patternless, almost mystically crucial number. Love is the same way. It occupies a similarly irrational, eternal, and powerful space in our lives. Thank you so much, Lief for the insight! As he already plugged, be sure to check out A Love Like Pi on Soundcloud, Spotify and iTunes, and also know you can follow them on Facebook and Twitter as well.
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Highly Suspect is a progressive rock band that hails from Cape Cod, and they sat down to an interview with us after we were sent their latest single, "Lost." They had plenty to say, so we will let them speak for themselves now.
1. Hello there! How are you guys doing today? Wonderful thank you. 2. Can you tell a little bit about yourselves and your music for those who are just discovering you? Like how you came up with your name, who inspires you, ect? We're a three piece rock and roll band out of Brooklyn, New York. Rich (bass) and Ryan (drums) are twin brothers. My name is Johnny (guitar,vox) and I went to high school with them. We've been friends since 2004, but the band didn't start until 2009. We had a house together on Cape Cod and we would just jam in the basement for fun. One day it just kinda made sense to try and get some free beers at the local clubs in exchange for playing cover songs. That kind of grew into something bigger. After a few years of playing 5 nights a week, we just decided why not take a shot at chasing the dream? So we kinda did the typical 'move to New York' with nothing but our backpacks and some hope. Our song writing developed from so much cultural inspiration and I guess people started noticing. Kind of crazy to look back on the journey. We're still on it too, and everyday now things are getting crazier and crazier. As for the name, we knew we like the word "highly" because 6 years ago we were young and dumb. It was just sort of a way to throw in a weed reference. "suspect" from a computer band name generator and we thought it worked well, not because we see ourselves as such, but because you've gotta question life. Everything is "highly suspect". It's a weird world. Life is our biggest inspiration. Life and the world around us. 3. You're going to be releasing what appears to be your first full length album in July, what track are you most excited for people to hear? (And is it actually your first album, or is it just the only one on iTunes?) That's right. Mister Asylum comes out July 14 of this year on all major online retailers as well as CD and Vinyl. We made an album in 2011 by ourselves and we were kind of our own distribution. Then we had a couple E.P.'s up on iTunes, again though it was super DIY. A debut album is one that marks a bands first album as a signed act. Mister Asylum is that. Our first record that actually has people behind it and will be distributed globally by 300ent, a division of Atlantic. 4. We heard you played SXSW this year, how did that go for you? It was incredible. We played 8 shows in 5 days. It was a real hustle lugging all the gear around since they have all the road closures. We love Texas though, its always a blast when we are in Austin. The BBQ is pretty much half the reason why we go. 5. Your Facebook description says your influences are all that is good, and your interests are all things bad, care to elaborate on that? I think I wrote that when I was fucked up. I didn't know that it said that. Sounds pretty cool though (laughs). 6. Name something you listen to that nobody would expect you to listen to? Actually that would be almost everything we listen to. Banks, St.Vincent, Action Bronson, Little Dragon. We are a rock band but we actually don't really listen to a lot of rock. 7. What would your dream concert lineup be? (Both to be part of, and just see as a fan.) Highly Suspect, Slothrust, Whiskey Bitches, Angry Animals, QOTSA, Madonna (eighties Madonna), Charles Bradley, Boytoy, Tchaikovsky 8. Anything you would like to say before we wrap this up? Glad you're wrapping it up. Always smart to use protection. Be sure to check out Highly Suspect on Facebook, and pre-order their upcoming album, Mister Asylum on iTunes now. Deaf Rhino is a highly independent rock band from New Jersey, and on May 5 they will be releasing their brand new album, Dirt, Rust, Chaos on May 5. Their rhythm guitarist, Adam sat down with Immortal Music to answer some questions and gave plenty of insight to what its like to be in Deaf Rhino, and a crime fighter.
Curious now? Read on to learn more! 1. How did 'Deaf Rhino' get its name? Hot hand in a dice game. 2. How would you describe your music to those are just discovering it? Rock and roll, groovy, sexy, heavy and catchy. 3. On your upcoming album, Dirt, Rust, Chaos, which tracks are you most excited for people to hear and why? The entire album, it fucking rips. No gimmicks just people playing their instruments from the right places. 4. You've said you are the ultimate DIY band, what did you mean by that and what's the process been like for you? I wouldn't say were the ultimate DIY band but we do everything ourselves, booking, promotions, networking, paying for shit, putting out our own records all in the name of having our music and our thing heard. Make your own luck ya know? 5. Name something you listen to that nobody would expect. The crossfire board game theme song has been on a pretty steady rotation lately. 6. Have you had any interesting experiences yet as a musician? Tons....practices, shows, traveling, people you meet. The highs and lows. It takes a lot of love and hard work to be independent musicians especially rock and roll musicians. Believe you me it ain't easy trying to be heard in a world full of carbon copy robots constantly battling to win the arms race for who has the biggest megaphone. 7. Where in the world do you dream of performing? Anywhere and everywhere people want to lose themselves in rock and roll for a little while. 8. What would be your dream concert lineup? (Both to play and take part in.) I can only speak for myself (Adam) but we really want to play a major Euro festival. We would open the day and all of our favorite bands would play after so we could just party it up with pretty European rocker mami's. 9. Outside of music, what do you do? Vigilante crime fighting. 10. What does the near future hold for Deaf Rhino? Shows, mapping out some tours. Trying to get our music in the hands of rock and roll fans. 11. Anything you would like to add before we go? Thanks for you time and checking out our music. Be sure to check them out on all their social media and the review of Dirt, Rust, Chaos that Immortal Music did. Facebook/ Twitter/ Website / YouTube / Instagram To Write Love On Her Arms is a wonderful non profit organziation that is harbored out of Melbourne, Florida as of right now. They specialize in helping those who struggle with addiction, depression, self harm, and sucidial tendencies and help inspire people to realize there is always help and that they are never alone. They originally began in 2006, and have helped millions of people in many different ways over the years. Their music and events coordinator, Chad Moses sat down to speak with us about his adventures with TWLOHA, and gave quite a lot of insight. He, and everyone else involved with this organization has a goal of helping others and its a beautiful thing. Read on to find out what he said. 1. What would you say are the most challenging and rewarding aspects of helping TWLOHA?
This tends to change every time I get asked that question, which is in and of itself something that I love about my job. At this point, I would say the greatest challenge is also the greatest reward: the fact that I get to bring my heart to work. That serves as a beautiful and regular role of "checks and balances." My job encourages me to be emotionally honest so that we can inspire others to live more connected lives. This takes time and practice and discipline, but the challenge of living a connected life turns into it's own reward in time. 2. What sort of advice do you often find yourself giving to people in need? Most frequently I encourage people to seek wise voices that can be recurring characters in our lives. It is not rare for myself, or any other staffer, to be on the receiving end of some heavy stories. Often times, these people are sharing their stories for the first time. And so, I like to take some time to acknowledge the courage that sharing took. The next step is to push these people in the direction of consistent and intentional relationships where this story can continue to unfold, and in the midst of perspectives that we value. 3. Is there any particular quote you remind yourself and others of when the tough gets going? Lately, I've been returning again and again to a line from a poet named Rumi. He said "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." This quote reminds me that as people, we will always be more connected than we will be alone, we just don't always aware of that. The quote kind of goes back to the last question, in that the seeking Rumi refers to is only made easier and more beautiful when done so in the company of friends. 4. Music is everything. What songs do you personally love and why? (Which ones do you find highly inspiring?) Well...music is certainly a lot. I think music does a great job of pointing us in the direction of things that are Everything. Music reminds us that there are things in life worth singing about, worth screaming about, worth dancing about, and worth sharing with one another. A few songs that remind me of a sense of Everything and connection are "You Have My Attention" by Copeland, "In The Wake of Pigs" by Oh, Sleeper, and "Staralflur" by Sigur Ros. All of these songs have a way of transporting me back to moments that I felt cared for and safe and connected to others...that, to me, is everything. 5. Have you ever heard a story so touching that its stuck with you this whole time? Absolutely, and I tend to carry these stories with me wherever I go. It's hard to pinpoint a favorite, but for this particular interview my mind goes to a tour I did through Canada in 2011. On that tour in Calgary, I met a man named Roger. He didn't have a ton to say, but was there to accompany his friend Chelsea. We shared about 30 minutes and at the end of it, Roger shook my hand and transferred a medallion that signified his sobriety. That was cool. But a couple weeks later, Chelsea sent me an email and told me that the medallion Roger gave me was actually the first one he ever received upon graduating from his in-patient drug treatment program. Roger gave me his first mile marker of recovery. I still have that coin and I am still looking for the next person to pass it on to. 6. We recently started a project called the This Is Me Project, which encourages people to show the world who they are and how music has impacted their lives. So, we were wondering, who are you and what has deeply impacted your life? I am Chad and I am a direct product of the love that has been poured into me. I am who and what I am in spite of myself. I have learned that in life, you can choose who you love, but you cannot choose who loves you, and allowing that fact to sink in has made all the difference in my life. 7. What do you personally do for TWLOHA? I work in Music and Events for the organization. So while that takes on many forms, it is easiest described as being a physical manifestation of the organization and one of the people who plans and staffs events that TWLOHA is present at. 8. Other than stuff for TWLOHA, what do you do? I travel, I speak, I email, I make friends, I tour, I stage dive, I read, and I write. All of those things in excess. :) 9. What inspired you to get involved with TWLOHA in the first place? I sort of hit on this earlier, but I am on this planet and at this organization because I know first hand what it means to struggle with the issues we deal with. But my story doesn't end there. I also know the difference it can make to ask for help, submit to the process of growth, and stubbornly pursue hope. I am alive because people decided to walk along side me in an extremely vulnerable time, and I began working for TWLOHA in the hopes that the crap in my life could positively impact someone someday. 10. What sort of music are you into? Oh man, I listen to just about everything except Country Radio. I grew up on hardcore and metal, but I think I am most drawn to lyrics rather than genre. I love stories and layers. On my most played list, you'll see: - Oh, Sleeper - Copeland - Touche Amore - Further Seems Forever and recently I've been really digging Animals As Leaders and Sleepwave. 11. Is there anything you would like to add? The only thing I would like to add is for the reader: I want you to know that I am glad you are reading this. That we celebrate your life, and that your story is important. If you are curious about who we are, or what we do, or where you can find help for yourself or a loved one, then please visit TWLOHA.com or sent us an email at [email protected]. You are not alone, not now or ever. |
InformationThese are interview that I myself have done. They have not been found anywhere, they have not been done for me. They are my work. Archives
July 2016
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