Talking Punk & Advocacy: Fresh Finds Podcast Season 4 Episode 11 W/ Career Day

Fresh Hello, and welcome back to Season 4 of the Fresh Finds Podcast, the show about discovering new music with good people. I'm Ryan, and this episode I'm joined by Desmond of the New York pop-punk and emo band Career Day. How are you doing, dude? I'm good, I'm good. The EP came out a week ago. I don't know whenever people are listening to this, but the vibes have been good. Hockey season's about to start. We're about to play F.E.S.T. for the first time. Life is good, man. Life's good. Hell yeah. So do you want to take a little bit of time to just introduce yourself, the band, give a little bit of background so that before we get into anything else, people kind of know who we're talking to? Sure, sure. Okay, so my name is Desmond. He, him pronouns. Career Day is a project that, while there is a 2018 demo, that's an entirely different lineup. Other than myself, so really kind of started with Jacob and I, our guitarist, linking up in 2019. Just, uh, he posted something on, like, I think it was a Facebook page, which is, you know, that really dates it. On a Long Island emo Facebook page, and it was just like, just graduated college, you know, just graduated college. These are my influences, blah, blah, blah. But, like, the main thing was, like, he was just, like, looking to write music with people, and I was like, awesome. Because I love writing songs with people, because I like writing lyrics, I like playing around melodies, but I can't play a damn thing. So, it's nice, and I like the energy of, like, creating with people. That was something I didn't even realize until I, like, started, like, stalking your Instagram a little bit, like, looking for background info. I, for some reason, thought that you played guitar as well as sang. I didn't realize that you were purely just a vocalist in this, in this project. Yeah, no, guitar, man, I, uh. If, you know, the, the, the pandemic, that was the time you were going to try things, and if, if they really didn't take, that was never going to happen, and, like, that was maybe the third time I tried, I tried with guitar, and I was like, all right, this is just a necklace for me. After about a week, I was like, this is just a necklace, a wooden, a big wooden necklace, but, uh. That's way too heavy. Yeah, so, and at the time, uh, at the time, I was working at the, uh, ACLU of New York in the Nassau County chapter on Long Island. So, it's the, uh, American Civil Liberties Union, a lot of civil, civil rights and civil liberties, like, uh, lobbying and rallies and things of that nature, and, uh, I very much, from, you know, working on the ground and, and making a lot of friends in advocacy spaces, I was very frustrated by the lack of any sort of social, dedicated social conscientiousness in, in the scene, um, at least within the type of music that I like the most, which is pop, punk, and emo, and. I, I very much wanted to, like, you know, my, in my head, I'm like, all right, man, it's hard, like, when you're, you know, playing in bands, when you're, like, in high school through, like, college, and even a little bit after college, it's easy, and then you, you, you stop, and then you're an adult, and, and then, uh, you know, uh, it, trying to make practice happen after your office job, and then, you know, before your second job. Yeah. And it's, like, one of those things where it's, like, it's not the same, but I was like, you know, I really want to, you know. Suddenly, everybody's busy, you can't practice in your parents' basement anymore, they're like, you're an adult, you can't be doing this anymore. Yeah, exactly, no, exactly, and, like, yeah, man, I'm, I'm, so, you know, but we start, we start jamming, our, our original bassist, Andrew, joins, and, uh, the, the drummer from the original version of Career Day, Brian, was, was, uh, in that iteration that, that's on the first EP, and recorded the, uh, first album, but, so we, we start jamming in late 2019, you know, uh, as, like, a four-piece, we're starting to, like, hit our stride, and, like, spring, we record an album. EP, but we're, like, we're, we're holding on it, onto it, because we need to, we want to play shows first, right, and then. Okay, sure. Okay, let's start, let's start playing shows, uh, March, March 2020, okay, it seems like this is a good time to start playing shows, and, and then, um. Unfortunate. The situation, uh, happened, the pandemic situation happened, and, uh, as a result, the band kind of just existed as a Twitter for a while, but, but we, we were, we were proud of the songs that we had. Put on the EP, and, and we had already started to write songs that were on the album, actually, no problem, and if, if only from where we've always been, was on the, uh, was something we demoed right before, no, demoed, like, not demoed, like, February 2020 practice, was like, oh, what's that idea, let's try it, and then, like, oh, okay, so we had that to come back to. You've been sitting on those songs for a while, then. We were, yeah, I know, and, but that was, like, dude, that, that, that stuff sounds good, let's push it, and, you know, I'm sure we'll get. I'm not sure if, uh, I don't want to atomize this more than it needs to, but, but, uh, you know, the pandemic, uh, as the pandemic slowly, you know, unfolds, uh, or as things start to open up a little bit, 2021, we dropped Pride Was Somewhere Else, we, uh, dropped, uh, Where We've Always Been back in 2022, and that was kind of the beginning of the band publicly existing, because I always feel live music is such a, it's such an integral part to. Creating the culture and projecting the heart of what a punk band is, like, any sort of subgenre of it. To me, that is such a, a, a key part, and, and, yeah, so it's just been, since, from dropping the album in, in 2022 to, to dropping this EP now, it's just been a lot of playing shows, uh, getting, touring as much as we can with, like, weekenders and, and, and having jobs, and, uh, things are, yeah, so, so I think, uh, I, I, I could go in, in deeper, but I was, like, realizing. As I was talking, I was, like, I don't want to atomize this too much, I don't want to just, like, uh, speak too long here, we have, we have a lot to, to dive into, I want to leave some meat. Yeah. Leave, leave some vegan meat on the bone. No, but, but I, I 100% agree with you that, like, for, like, a punk band, or, like, any sort of, like, emo or anything like that, recorded music is great, but there's something about the community aspect, and just all of that, that seeing a band live will make you a fan faster. Yeah. I think, than, like, just discovering their music over, like, Spotify or something like that. Sometimes you get a song that will absolutely just hook you right away, but, like, I feel like it's far more often to be, like, oh, yeah, this, this band's kind of cool, and then you, like, see them live, and you're, like, oh, shit, I, I, I didn't even realize you're, uh, you know, how, I, I wasn't familiar with your game. Yes, no, no, for sure, like, I, I feel like that tends to be the, the, the last gap that gets filled in for me to, like, fall in love with a band. Like, is, like, is the feeling of being in a room as they're playing music with other people singing along, like, that's just, and, like, seeing, seeing the people that, that are playing it, just, like, giving themselves to this, it's, it's, uh, that's the enthralling part, like, that's the, the thing that, like, uh, have you ever seen the documentary, uh, I think it's Bastards of Young? No, I'm not familiar with that. It's from, like, 2004, uh, I believe. And it's, like, of that, like, that big pop, like, big emo boom of that time, and, like, it has interviews with, like, Fox. Fall Out Boys, they're blowing up, uh, uh, Taking Back Sunday, right as Where You Wanna Be is dropping, and, like, uh, Jeff Rickley from Thursday, the way he talks about music, like, there, there are segments with him and segments with fans of, of, of, uh, of theirs, and it's just, uh, I think there's something he says about, like, the, the music is both of them coming together in that, in that moment, in that show, like, that's what the actual music is, that completes what, what, like, the band is, is that shared experience in real time. Well, and, I mean, I, I've even seen stuff, like, this is something that I've always found really interesting, was I saw a post a while back that was just kind of, like, an anecdotal thing, but I always kind of think about, like, how it's kind of a little bit deeper than it may seem on the surface level, but it was somebody talking about how, like, the first time they went to church, they felt so moved by this experience, and then they're like, I realized the big thing that I love. It wasn't necessarily religion, but it was a sense of community and doing something together, and they were talking about how, like, live music kind of, like, has that same impact on a lot of people, because you're all in the same room, breathing the same air, participating in this, uh, thing that feels larger than yourself for, you know, a couple hours. It's lived, I mean, it's lived cohesion, you know what I mean? Like, it's, like, cohesion, uh, like, actions. It's, like, cohesion in real time. Yeah, there, there's something about that community-building aspect of it, and that's something that I just love about, like, DIY punk, like, that type of music, is that there is so much of that community-building aspect to it. Yeah, no, no, it's, I mean, to me, there, there's a lot of baggage with Warped Tour, obviously, but I, so many of my memories of, like, the way you talk about, like, being at Warped Tour for the first time, like, 15 years old, and just, like, seeing, like, the starting line, and, like, and, and Motion City, see Motion City soundtrack, like, months after Commit This to Memory came out, like, um, like, a month and a half after Commit This to Memory came out. It's just, like, such a, like, on the small, small, like, Ernie Ball-sized stage, you know? Like, it's, like, such a, it's such a formative memory of, like, I don't even, I'm not even registering this as, uh, a, you know, small stage, I'm just, it's, like, it's, like, It's hitting me so deeply that I'm almost like, depersonalize you know what i mean like i'm just i'm i'm not uh it's it's not the out-of-body experience you know no 100 you you you just are so in tune with everything that's going on and what's happening that it almost almost doesn't feel real for a little bit yeah no no i uh so for me the live music was was uh and it's also like it's it's difficult another part of uh for us live music the part of it like the the one of the things we always talk about at our shows that we try our best to to keep up with is it's not like it's an opportunity obviously a lot of these songs you know are about racism and classism and imperialism and and heavy dense topics that that can make people feel angry but also feel helpless sometimes and for me one of the things like that we're able to do with our shows is i try to like research advocacy if i if i'm if i have like a qr code we had a qr code for a while at our merch table that was like i changed what what it would link to but it would always link to like a different either a document that had a bunch of different organizations in that locality or sometimes it would just be like to the instagram of of an advocacy group in that area that you can in real time like that you can be part of and and because to me it's like it's not just singing about it this is an opportunity to like really try to organize like again that like aclu feeling that i had like because i and i would table at like i would table at shows sometimes in brooklyn about different like uh police accountability which is very much an oxymoron uh bills and you know gender uh like like abortion protection bills things like that and uh it was one of those things for me where i was just like man i really hope people don't just sing about this stuff they're singing along to it here and then when they leave and it's hard a lot of the eps about that struggle of like it's hard enough just to get out the door and back again right but like if i can you know this project tries to put people on the track of being involved with stuff i've been very involved in like filipino human rights organizing and trying to decouple u.s tax dollars funding a lot of human rights violations that happens there which uh pretty pretty unsuccessful uh uh seemingly unfortunately spoiler spoiler i'm not sure if you've heard of this imperialism thing uh but uh it's uh it's not very groovy baby in austin austin power is parlance but uh yeah so for me like that's the other side of the live show is like the culture the songs themselves and the things they're about you get to like give to them in that half an hour you know like yeah for that half an hour set for me as a performer that's like all this stuff these are less about these are less about answers and more about questions and still i just feel so free up there like uh when i'm performing but it's also an opportunity for us to build beyond that you know because i i think at our core we're part of this not not just because we like the songs and we like the shirts you know and the and the fashion and all that stuff but we like the feeling of what this supposedly means it does does mean but you know i i just think it's easy for us to what what better time to get motivated than when you are feeling most most resonant with your with your like emotion self yeah i i think that that's beautiful because like music really is like a community but i like that you're using it as a way to advocate for doing things for your own community and like even just the thing of like changing the qr code at the merch table to be for that specific locale that you're playing at as opposed to like a specific thing because like that's i think something that kind of gets lost especially in a country as big as the u.s people look at things on a national scale so much but i think that there's something about like doing things locally that you see so much more change if you're able to participate in things that can directly affect the community that you are a part of no i mean absolutely and i think it's also like one on the federal level things are just that that's so far away and and there's so much that's that's i i always say there's so much that's baked into the pie that's not work like working in in any sort of equitable interest that like you shouldn't disengage entirely you should show up to rallies that have to do with you know national issues and international issues but the things that that are happening for bills and and and events and uh injustices where you live are the things that you have the most power to to be part of a community that can stand up to it and that's again something that has always been very evident in your music through like particularly through the album and this ep is kind of getting into all of these things and i think it's really interesting to me personally listening to the album and then the ep right after it they very much feel like like projects that were meant to go together because the album to me feels the scale feels very broad strokes as far as things go um talking just specifically about like you know things that are going on within the community and i think that's something that's really important to me community and um you know feeling the the levels of you know whether it's uh racism or classism or you know whatever that is being displayed and then it's interesting because the ep to me feels like simultaneously a zoom in to the personal level and how this is directly affecting you as a person but also a zoom out to almost like a more national and almost global level as well with like a couple different songs like um the the last track on the ep one bad day being like a very very national thing versus uh rumors of my wellness which is very personal yeah no i mean and that thank you and it's it's also really cool that you feel that way because uh the the ep is our is our first uh set of recordings with our drummer ryan and our bassist robbie so so we did have a line of change over the course of of the album and i think that's something that's really important between recordings and uh but but there was a desire to have a thematic type of now you see because it's one of those things like as as a songwriter um inherently it's going to be a sequel because my i have more life that has happened since since then you know so you know what i mean because very very much a lot of this is probably like you know at least in some way autobiographical because it's all about lived experience for sure for sure and and um but now that that's uh for me a lot of that comes from so i uh i got i got married uh back in may and uh uh actually we we got engaged i think a month before the album dropped so like kind of the the course of like this cycle was like okay as uh engaged and we got married two months after recording finished uh so like when it came to writing as we're writing the ep i'm simultaneously just thinking about the the long scope of my life and and what i want it to mean and and and who i want to be and uh it it lent itself towards like a big thing that i've wrestled with and big thing that i wrestled with between the album and the ep was how do you preserve yourself on a functional level and and doing dignity and justice to the people that you love and care about in your personal life how do you balance that with fighting all these just fights exist like existentially probably aren't going to materially resolve in your lifetime if ever they're like definitely not going to resolve in your lifetime if ever how do you not lose the passion to stay involved not get disheartened so disheartened by it that you lose your uh lose like essentially your life your what you give the life that you give and are supposed to be sharing and have and build with people so for me it that very much was like i had to take a little break from organizing as i did just because like we we groups i lobbied with got to the international bills lobbying to house foreign affairs you know uh representatives that are in new york that were debt like we're democrats so they're sympathetic but like they're all bought they're all you know sponsored by the by the military industrial complex and like being told directly that this bill the philippine human rights act that would call for an end to tax dollars that go to the philippines that get used on weaponry that is supposed to be for the war against china but then get used on poor filipino people on the streets there like being told that we're not gonna we're not even going to bring that to the floor for a discussion and just straight up we're not gonna stop there's nothing you can do about it well they said they said we're gonna you know pursue uh other other diplomatic means and it's like no no so that's what you've been doing and that's why this bill exists and that was very that's that was very dispiriting just because like okay i don't believe in in doing this anymore like i don't believe in spending my time on this what's that mean and i it was just exhausting like i got to such a bad place at one point i actually had a vocal hemorrhage back in 2022 and that i had to like i had to take a break because i was just so low i was like sleeping like three hours a night i was like just burning myself out and i spent that whole summer that uh it's crazy i had surgery six weeks before our first shows after the the album came out and it oh wow it worked it worked it worked out shout out dr sadogi at the sean parker institute in new york but uh i had so much time i think that was kind sucked be like having to spend the whole summer inside trying to do vocal rest it not working it was so difficult and and it made me think about like what are you going to do like what are you going to do to stand like to to stay involved but not ever be in a place like this where you you literally have been taken out of your your personal life because of you burnt you you burnt yourself to to like negative 100 and uh so the ep is very much about because like you know there's a lot of anger in the in the album that uh was about you know it's called where we've always been and you know all the people that in 2020 are paying attention and talking about after reflecting i can't believe what this country has become i can't believe i didn't notice this stuff in sports and it's like really you didn't notice this yeah you were actively like and it's one of those things where maybe you don't need to keep talking about how new this is for you and you should just keep like engaging it with it and you better not stop when things reopen and sure enough they do and there's part of me that that is upset about that um still is but like at the end of the day it is difficult it the fact that you cannot like you know uh elected officials have office hours only during the week during work hours so constituents can't lobby against them in a regular fashion unless they take off from work because everybody's got to be at work yeah exactly no it's it's built it's built inherently against that so it's like for me a lot of reflection on like okay so so what what do we do like what what do i do to get through and and and stay in it i actually had there's a friend of mine joe that that uh runs like a after-school program in in indiana um that's a wrestling program and it's like you know ruby red obviously it's you know you know indiana and he talks he talks about how like you know he does it just so that the kids know because you know and he says a lot of them you know will kind of have that like uh regressive you know views and and stuff like that but it's like so clear that like they're not well like they're not well and it's like oh your home life must be like cooked you must be like in a constant like negative environment that is like pressuring you all the time and he like does it so that like so that they he says that they know someone cares that's what he said to me okay and like he is also he's he's religious it's a secular program he's he's he himself is religious but he doesn't force it on people or anything and it's for him it's uh he's not the only one who's doing it he's not the only one who's the supply size jesus it's the it's the it's the so it's where the socialist jesus uh but it's one of those things i said to him once actually right before we started like writing the ep because we focus we did like a basic concentrated writing thing at the end of last year and i knew we were going to be taking a break from shows and writing was going to be the focus and i said to him like what do you what do you do i was like take god out of the equation what is it that makes you you know that the program that you work and the and the stressors that you have to fight with are such that it's going to be an uphill battle forever and you know that how do you cut yourself off from that fight yet not feel bad yet not be absent from your family you know from from from your life your people how do you it is interesting because that feels inherently paradoxical when you think about it because you're like it almost feels like going home and like clocking out from it almost feels disingenuous it feels like you're just doing it for you know this reason that reason the other thing but like there's also you can only focus so much energy on something outside of yourself before yourself starts to be neglected and what what i said to him when i asked what he said to me when i asked him that question he said well you know i could try to work every i could work seven days at this and i could be doing 16 hour days and and but if i'm not there if i'm not there for for my wife and kids am i really doing the mission am i really doing the mission i'm really doing the mission i'm really doing the you know carrying out the mission and that was very beautiful it was very succinct but for me in that moment i was like i don't i need to find that i need to find that for me like that that that comfort or that that acceptance that with the process and a lot of this album a lot of the ep like you said with zooming in and zooming out it's it's kind of about keeping yourself conscientious and aware of your own pain and ills and the things that you need to process and work through yet also zoom out such that like other people the things that are happening to you are connected to to bigger things that are happening to everybody some people significantly worse so don't don't lose sight of solidarity and and and don't lose sight of of the humanity of people that are struggling worse and i think that that makes a lot of sense given the nature of the album like i said that kind of like zooming in and zooming out of like paying attention to things on like a national or even global level versus like a personal level is definitely like that narrative makes sense when you think about that and like listen to the full project no no i'm yeah it's it's it feel like it it was such a therapeutic like it was such a therapeutic experience to write it it was very emotional but i mean it's very emotional time you know like it was the perfect headspace to write this ep and it was one of those things where for me for me i try to treat every everything i i write and record every show that we play as you never know what the last one might be and i don't mean that in in like a a morbid or cryptic way but just the reality is you never know and and that's why i i try to make sure that i am when when it comes to writing and recording it's like you have an opportunity to give to your give of yourself to your future self to people that may need it expressing yourself what it was for you to live in this at that time and what life in general is and what you're doing and what you're doing in your life and what you're at that time and like that is something that i i i really try to like i feel so grateful going back to the album the opening track used from 516 that is about like uh moderns hit the history of and modern segregation in the suburbs and like it's you know i touch on specific towns in it but that's because the suburbs are that everywhere you have you have immediate disparities that that happen just like that and for me like i have such a like that first line of it is uh driving through uh driving through garden city and hempstead and driving through garden city and hempstead easy to see who the state cares to invest in and that was literally every day when i worked at the aclu i would get off uh i would have to drive through garden city which is this very wealthy town in nasa county um long island 516 and uh the town is called garden city and it's a very wealthy town just over the the border from it is hempstead predominantly black and brown schools underfunded uh you know the the disparity in you know policing to social services spend like spending in those areas is just atrocious and that was the thing that i had to like watch every day literally as i'm driving through it and then go to that office and be the person that mans like the intake line like on people that were like experiencing the feeling that they were suffering injustice and it was just like so for me to get to speak to that on a big level and and for me that experience of what it was to drive through that and to like literally take in what has always been there was like something that was like that i was grateful for and that like i i just i like you said the zoom in zoom out i i do try to make the i try to make the writing navigate the headspace like or reflect the headspace and i i feel like i'm in those wars all the time or i'm in that push and pull all the time that makes a lot of sense is there anything like any specific things that you want to talk about about any of the songs off of the new ep because we've kind of gone into you know broad strokes what the band and these projects are all about but is there anything like any specific stories that you want to tell about any uh of the individual songs and kind of like what inspired them or like incited like sure thinking in that headspace so yeah i mean so with with uh the first track with team player i you know the that is a song that like the team player lyric like in the bridge and the feeling for the song came out of a meeting that i had at my job that i am by the time you're listening to it i'll i'll have uh finished my last day i put my two weeks in last friday oh boy and uh yeah i i was uh in a meeting and i was i was told there was some preposterous thing where because of some company conflict that was like several layers above me and beyond me i couldn't i couldn't me me and the rest of the department could not take off between christmas and new year's eve any any time we had could not it could not be used we were not granted rolling it over this was not deemed one of their like uh exceptions were like you know x amount of things won't roll over except for extenuating circumstances this didn't for some reason count as that and like when i brought that up and was just kind of like was told no i was told like you know maybe if if you're working like on on like the help desk for like 24 hours straight i can look into getting you an extra mental health day next year but for now like we just need you to be we just need you to be more of a team player and in my head i'm like i'm fucking done here and i'm using this i'm so fucking mad and insulted i'm using this and and that is a song that is about losing your sense of shame or or um refusing to let your employer shame you for anything because because you are exploited inherently and you're not even being returned truly comfortable living like even even working in an office you're still you're still paycheck to paycheck if you're if you're living in like a remotely built up area and and uh we're told that we have to work for all this yet our our money goes goes uh does not go as far and it's increasingly shrinking its reach yet the the military industrial complex rolls on and on and that's our taxpayer money everything that that could make our lives materially better and we're so we're stuck with these jobs and this is a song that's about losing uh resisting both your job shaming you and resisting the kind of isolating nihilistic feeling of not registering like this is happening to you and this sucks and owning that but also this this sucks because get even more mad about what is being given money uh even what's being prioritized over the people in your community or yourself or the people in your country so yeah and and it's like and it's like i feel like when you talk about that talking point sometimes people like no the problem is that it's inherently morally wrong and it's like yeah no i know that i know that that's part of why i'm mad about it i'm mad that it's wrong to do it all and the fact that like i'm being as if i don't see that the like because you're telling me that money is a given that money that goes to those forces is a given and it has to and and whereas we we have to just meagerly vote for the the smallest of breadcrumbs um but yeah that's that's that song i i i wanted to i guess shout out that particular line just because because i'm my last day is coming up that feels like i'm like i'm remembering how fucking mad i was i'm also noticing that this coming out at the very end of november is very poignant being everything that we're discussing right now and you know the all of the elections and everything being very early november like it's funny because i didn't even plan that but i'm realizing that this is such a poignant time for this episode to be coming out hell yeah um yeah no but uh i mean i i i feel like i've spoken about rumors of my my wellness uh a lot and i'm not against talking about it more but that it's just that that's a song that maybe i'll talk about i guess musically i just the the there's so much i motion city soundtrack like i mentioned before that's like one of my biggest justin pierre is such a big influence for me as a songwriter and a vocalist and that to me was like i was like i want to write a motion city like i am the movie commit this to memory type of of song that's about it's pretty it's it's very dark but i want it to be the catchiest song or like arguably the catchiest song like the most single feeling this is a single feeling song that that like i could write the sing-along there's something that like everybody can attach to like right away yeah and and uh and it's so funny too because like i think uh the first time no so we played that for the first time back in january of this year before it came out that was so fun and then we played it for the first time and then we played it for the first time and then we played it one more time before recording at the last show that we played before we stopped for we stopped for recording and i was like i i'm taking a break from band stuff for like two months leading up to the wedding and like you know i can record you know a month and a half before because that's set in stone like we can do that and it's done that's not an ongoing planning thing i'm not involved there's no practices and i'm like i need a month after and um sure we play so we play this acoustic it was supposed to be a full band show but ryan was sick so we played acoustically and because of that you know like you're able to hear the music and you're able to hear things a bit more and when we played when we played that when we played that acoustic uh we play rumors acoustic i'll like the second the second we like we're finished with it someone in the crowd like in the front row or like someone in the crowd just says ouch and i go okay that's really good that's a really good sign here that's a really good sign that's what i'm going for yeah okay cool cool um but that was like uh that was like okay cool i think i think we're nailing that um and i i think for last last thread last thread like something that when i was showing a friend of mine um like a that moved actually just like one neighborhood over so it was like when you get older um you'll find that that it's an almost impossible to hang out with your friends ever um it takes like it takes and it usually takes someone living close to you and uh to make that happen and them happening to be home and had had a night like that recently and as i was showing them the ep it was like it was like it was like it was like it was like it dawned on me when like last thread came on like last thread is such like a midwest emo tribute song in in a lot of ways like it is it has so much of that in it and like as i was listening to going from team player to to rumors to last thread that's where i like i was like whoa this what feels really cool about this musically for me one these things feel cohesive together yet each song feels like a little bit of like a love letter the dynamics of each song are different like vocally musically and they feel like a love letter to different kind of subsects of this type of music you know like the like team players like the the dead on pop punk song you know it has it has that beat in the second verse you know it has like the the crossing vocals in the outro chorus yeah uh but then you know rumors having that kind of like big single feeling and then like last thread being like the no milking milking the mood like uh of a side of this music like braid like uh like both old and new like transit is like such a the it kicking in with the drums and and that guitar part is just like so transit uh tributey and then and then one bad day like to me yeah that is the intense that's the intense song that's where the zoom in and the zoom out is is is it's most intense and that's that's about that that national story that happened in new york about um jordan neely the the unhoused uh man that was uh strangled to death by an ex-marine on the subway i'm not sure did you do you remember that story at all was it did i get national particularly remember that interesting no interesting um and that that's not to say it didn't go national i just don't have recollection there's just so much that because there's so much horror that's going on exactly there's so many things it's like you know unless something happens about it sometimes it can be hard to remember like the details of those things and it's easier here being here in new york but like for me that so much of that story so many parts of it is the zoom in and zoom out happening you know what i mean this is yeah this is uh the fit like the failure of of our of our you know social security net just the the the inevitable end of of pride like privatization of mental health services of the housing industry you know the military industrial complex you know making this guy uh like the making the the uh the killer people having to witness this on the subway on the way to work and like yeah like go about their day and yeah you're just expected to not think anything about it you're like this is just this was just a normal day on the subway and you're like what regularly here in new york uh you'll have you'll you know you're waiting for the train you're waiting for the subway it's like okay now it's like 10 minutes still no subway and you're like okay something's going on and then you hear an announcement like sorry uh due to uh the individual hit by car we like we like we have like delays in both directions on this train and you're just like standing there you're just standing there and having to like text your boss that you're running late because someone got hit by a train like because someone threw themselves in front of a train but you'll be you'll be there half an hour later you know like it's one of those it's the mundanity meeting like the the horror of it at the same time and like the weird disconnect there and i get that and and about not losing the sight of like you know you are so much closer to being impoverished than you than you are to have a posh lifestyle to ever climb up what's what's the exact line there uh in the second in the second uh in the second verse yeah find the streets are closer than the suites yeah yeah it's uh yeah it's to me it's about like especially as a filipino um like manila has four million four million homeless people four million and for me like it's what the way people talk about homelessness is is disturbing and you know so a song that kind of was built around an event where you know after it happens all all i hear is discourse about like you know well did he have a record did this did that like all this other stuff yeah yeah and it's like that's not that's not how we're supposed to that's not how we should react to these things that's not that's not how this is supposed to go at all and so that's why it was nice to have that as the last track i actually that the people always talk the people that that listen to that song hit me up about the real anguished vocal in the bridge when it cuts out and like that that was a mix of me like trying to do justice to the the used uh thursday taking back sun like uh og taking back sunday type of like scream and it was easy to but it was easy to key in on one uh because of the the anguish inherent to these songs two because it was the last song we recorded and three because i was in immense physical pain because i uh i pulled a muscle in my back playing hockey the weekend before and uh i played goalie in in hockey uh i played growing up now as an adult it's it's just uh it's just something that i play what was something that i you know i was i was playing every weekend every other weekend just like a pickup games here and there and i was like oh my god i'm gonna be like oh my god i'm gonna be like playing goalie it's much harder on your hips and knees and and everything yeah um but like it was like a week before uh recording and i'm playing because i'm thinking like you know i want to play uh it'll be good for me i'm like i'm like so locked into this this every day i'm like going over like just you know doing extra like vocal exercises to the to the songs and making sure like do i feel this is tight should i try this blah blah blah and i was like let let me just play hockey that's something for me to just like turn my brain off right it'll be good to get some exercise kind of yeah exactly exactly exactly yes yes and like i'm playing i'm playing goalie and like i love to like play like in a very like acrobatic style and like i'm playing there's a rebound like oh it's right there a guy is going for the puck and i like i dive because i think i'm gonna get to it first and i dive forward for it because in front of me and he gets he has long he had a longer reach than i anticipated so he got it pulled it back and like as he like pulled it back i tried to like kick my legs over my back and i didn't get the puck and i just instantly just feel one my ribs hurt like fucking hell and that's what i was like keyed in on but like i i and it was a pain that like wrapped around and i seemed like oh you know it's all connected maybe it's a wrapping pain or something we have our last practice before recording a couple nights later that the real it's i'm still thinking this is a rib thing and like i'm like just give me a second i need to like loosen up a bit this pain is just yeah just my ribs you know inherently with breathing it hurts and then like the morning we recorded from a thursday through through sunday i couldn't be there for the thursday and that was just drums and most of bass but i was able to take off friday and i drove i drove um jacob and robbie all the way out to long island in amityville suffolk county and like but when i wake up i'm just like oh no oh no moving hurts breathing hurts sneezing hurts what the fuck happened and like we get there i'm driving i'm driving neither of them drive so i i uh was just like just in pain while driving we get to the studio i just lay on the couch just like yeah that sounded good i think like yeah you're killing it oh my god and just like slamming like uh like excedrin or some shit i forget what and hopefully it feels better tomorrow it did not and like so recording with like you know trying to gesture to like you know make sure that i'm feeling loose and i'm pushing pulling from the right places pushing from the right places getting your whole body into it engaging your core engaging the core so the entire time it it's inherent i'm just like oh this is my back i can tell and i was like everything hurts every single thing every movement of my shoulder hurts everything hurts the whole time and like it was one of those things where like i i'm i'm really proud of how the vocals came out but it was it was because i had to fucking fight through so much fucking pain but it made it so that one bad day was such an easy song to record because actually i could focus on the thing that was happening to me all the other ones i had to like think around it or like ignore it and just like gesture and and breathe past it like breathe around it this one you're like i can use it oh yeah i was like no they're like oh we can record tomorrow and i was like no no no i i know this is gonna it has to be today it's gonna let's do this this is the time i've been like for you know i guess essentially probably four four and a active hours of singing maybe six my like the thing that's that's hurt is being like pulled and punched at like there's no like we have to do this now because who knows what tomorrow is going to be like let's let's just leave tomorrow for trying to touch up anything that like no no i think i think you you still are probably not not locked in enough past the uh past the anguish past the physical anguish like to to and there's only a couple parts but like and it was the first part like it was broken into two so like and we recorded in track listing order it just happened that way so it was like the first like verse and chorus of um of team player and the first uh and then we and then we did rumors of my wellness by then you know i'm mocked in warmed up so it goes good in the zone we break for lunch we come back we do last thread and it's just like oh what the fuck this hurts so bad and like and and and that was the same thing first first verse and and first chorus had to like get uh get redone and and but but one bad day we were like no if you want to maybe if you want to just try and see if there's crazier ones you can get but it was like no it was just like no we got the we got the psycho we got the psycho vocal i i think so this is kind of like the last thing before we move on probably but um i think that that is something that i'm i've found interesting about this project and you've kind of mentioned a little bit like on twitter and things that the album where we've always been feels a lot more pop punk whereas the ep feels a lot more emo inspired and just like musically it feels like you're pulling on slightly different influences it still sounds like career day but it sounds like you've got different things going on in it which i i think is really really neat and like keeps everything sounding really fresh yeah no and and i think uh thank you i think i think it's it's in part that like inherently you know it was a a more introspective the lyrics were more introspective and we wrote the music like jacob had had the ideas that that you know we would we would kick around and like uh here and there while practicing practicing was mostly just getting ready for sets and stuff like that but like yeah you know oh let's keep it loose or something i want to try this thing oh that's sick okay let's but let's circle back like let's write in a concentrated way and when we wrote it was like end of november it was early december of last year and like that's where we were like focused on and i think like the environment the weather i think just the the the um the motivation just lends itself to that kind of lowercase e emo in a way like that that emotional that like super emotional push but i i think um i think that maybe the guitar work is is a bit let's see i mean the the album jacob riffs riffs his ass off and on the on the album too yeah so i don't want to do that i don't want to do that i don't want to sell short the riffing at all in uh on the album but it it's just different stylistically yeah i i think i think it's i think it's uh i also think it's the dynamics i think like with the exception of the acoustic song on the album everything is kind of go go go go go dynamically whereas this has a little bit of push pushes and pulls that that i think are maybe from yeah and i think that i think the vocals also are less like uh because like you know this is my first time recording after the vocal surgery and and all the vocal therapy and stuff like that i wanted to be less that like shouty like all the time you know pop punk vocal and i wanted to kind of do things that were more dynamic and and moved around to like move my voice around a bit a bit more because it'd be more fun i felt like it'd be more fun for me to do easier for me to do and might be more fun to listen to all right okay so i i really like that where we've uh kind of ended this right now i think that this is a good time to transition into the second part of the episode where we're going to share some new music back and forth i'm going to have the first song we're going to go back and forth which is going to give you the closer if that sounds good to you oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah so my first song is going to be by saint judas who is an emo artist i believe he currently lives in arizona and he just released a split with a band called brown maple from ohio and it literally just came out as of recording this it just came out yesterday and i i've kind of known that this was coming up the pipe for a little while been really excited about it uh we featured a song from this split by brown maple on the last episode because we're doing two episodes this month and so i wanted to feature one from saint judas as well to really kind of give you both sides of this uh this project and so this song is called the places we don't remember but can't forget by saint judas off of the split songs about cats and starting over call me when you need a distraction i'll make a mistake and take you away somewhere that i fall into a deeper depression it's out of my head you don't really care all this noise is making me nervous i'm put on a smoke you say i'm all right so i find some peace locked in a bag so i can feel clean should i learn my lesson do you think i'm cool can't shake this feeling that this emptiness my life's forever i'm a little too fucked up now to take you home oh not sure if i believe that anything is worth it anymore all of the people that told me they love me Eventually we'll leave, but that's okay All of the things, all of our temporary It's nice to think about Cause nothing matters anyway I hurt myself mentally By shutting you out And watching you leave Too afraid to be potentially abandoned again All alone with a cloud Hanging over my head And I hurt myself Physically This bruise is on my head And blood in the sink I'm alive Washed up Big excuse for always letting you down I'm fucking wasting your time You should know better by now Cause I tried killing myself But I didn't succeed Woke up to the sound Of hospital TVs What's the point of fucking trying at all? Let's hope For something better to do Than starting over again Dude, I absolutely love that song And like, I think it's really cool Seeing St. Judas start to do a little bit more like Electric full band type of stuff Are you familiar with his music at all? I feel like I've seen the name plenty But I've only heard great things Yeah, so The last EP was like They had Or was it an album? I think it was just an EP But I need to Need to check to be sure Before I just say anything as facts Yeah, it was an EP called Backchecking, what? Poignant But that was an EP Called A Terrible Year That came out in January of 2022 And it was a lot more like Kind of acoustic leaning type of stuff He still does full band things But this particular song I feel like is a lot more leaning into Kind of electric guitar type of territory Especially with that bass tone Which I think is a really cool development For his sound No, I mean that ripped And you said that's off a split With Brown Maple? Yeah Yeah, Brown Maple rips When we played Bowling Green last summer They played And the energy was like The energy was unreal Like that was a nice You know, all sorts of talk about Howards With Focella And that was like Seeing them play that night And they're a pretty good turnout But it made me think Oh man, Focella must be nuts I got to go to Focella this year It was absolutely crazy And I actually saw Brown Maple I saw Brown Maple with Cinema Stare Who you guys recently did a little weekender with A little while ago And that was when I found out About this project happening I was talking to them at the merch table And they told me about it Well, actually Funny you mentioned Cinema Stare Because if it's My turn to go Well, I think that we I think that we can discuss This song a little bit But I do think that that'll be A good transition Oh, no, okay Yeah, yeah, my bad Sorry, sorry My apologies No No, no, no You're good I think that this song And especially St. Judas I think is kind of To me like Capital E Emo Where it gets a lot of There is that emotional Especially in his vocal stylings Like, I mean, you listen to this song You can just You can feel the tension In his voice It's Yeah, like There was a vibe Like, I don't know There was almost this sense of like Kevin Devine-ish Like songwriter Type of like heart To like Like that That track that I felt Like Obviously it's this big You know Has Affects of it Of, you know Emo and punk But like the The headspace of it Was just like I don't know It was It was They have They have a really cool sound Yeah, and I To me specifically The one line That That sticks out is I tried to kill myself But I didn't succeed I woke up to the sound Of hospital TVs Like Every time I hear that line Like it's just Fucking Gut-wrenching Dude That Hurts Yeah, no I mean I Definitely have to check out More of them now So So that's off of a split Are they Are they playing Shows Anytime soon Do you know So I know that St. Judas Is going on tour Over the next month And Unless they do Something local In Ohio As far as I've seen I don't think that Brown Maple is a part of that I do know I remember seeing That they're gonna be playing With Joe Howland In Pennsylvania Which is super cool Because that dude Has been You know Around forever And kind of started Just playing shows This year So that's Really cool That he's gotten On that bill And especially Because they're like Such good homies You know Well it's funny It's funny that like To that point It's Joe Yeah I feel like Joe Has been I've seen Joe Just in the In the Twitter In the DIY Cinematic universe Yeah Like you know St. Judas Is one of like Again it's one of those Names that like Feels like I've heard it Very esteemed And I hear I hear why Obviously And you mentioning Them playing with With Joe Is just like Oh okay cool Like the people That like It's nice to know Like oh I'm glad they're together Type of thing You know what I mean Like Yeah yeah yeah Like seeing them Like link up I'm like That's gonna be fun You can Like that's really cool I mean that's part of Why you do all this stuff You know to like I'm hopefully When we roll through In November I see you in Michigan Like the The hanging out IRL Is so fun Like I don't know It's just It's nice but no no I mean to bring it Back to St. Judas That To your point So you said that they Mostly Have not been more Full band oriented So it's been Kind of full band Type of stuff I It's kind of a Confusing history A little bit But It's largely been Kind of like Acoustic type of stuff If you want to get A little bit more Of a vibe Of that The other song That he did For this split Which is Called If I can pull it up Still growing Is a lot more Of like the vibe Of his other stuff Which is largely Acoustically Acoustic guitar driven And then there is Like guitar and bass But it's Not quite as Prominent maybe Like the They're there But like It doesn't It feels like The guitar and bass Have more personality On like This type of stuff It feels like They pull their weight A little bit more If that makes sense No it Well and I mean The way The dynamic That you're describing Is interesting In that like I I mentioned Kevin Devine But I think another thing That like Is perhaps like closer In genre Similarity Is uh Oh damn it I just lost it My brain Oh oh okay To me It's almost like There it is It's almost as if Because as I was saying it Then I was like Ooh there's another one Okay sure sure sure So it's I feel like It's almost like Full band Dashboard confessional But written Like the lyrics Are very like Balanced and composure-y Okay Yeah yeah Like that's kind of the The energy That like I uh I obviously more Upbeat punk-ish Inspired Dashboard But like The heartfelt resonance With like That That like Balancing composure type Like damn Lyrics Like oh Gonna Yeah Sit down For a minute Hold on The meme The meme of like Of the Of like the The fast food worker That's just like Sitting down after the ship Like looking down Like that's the The energy Just like fuck Yeah yeah Yeah Just to hype up this project Like a little bit more This was the song That he specifically chose That he wanted to have Featured on On the episode Cause I asked him Like you've got two songs on here Which one would you prefer And I think that Because this is more Kind of like Leaning in a new Direction I think that that's why He chose it But um The other song Is definitely kind of More of his old style And was a Defining song Of the set That he played At Focella This year Because he was The last band To play a song On the side stage And it was really cool Because a lot of it Was kind of more Of the like Acoustic type of stuff And personally I liked it a lot Because you went from Like a really Like harder You know Type of like Punk emo band And then you kind of Got this Which was almost Like a Like a chill out Type of session Before the headliner Which I thought Was fantastic As far as pacing Because it was right When I needed A little bit of a break And that song Was like You know There is this big Sing along section In everything I'm sure you can find Videos of That song From the set Somewhere online And just Absolutely incredible stuff No I mean And well Yeah When I think about Like big shows Like that I'm glad that It rocks Just because You always worry About when there's A more acoustic performance Especially amidst Like a loud show That people will You know Be talking about That Netflix Show that they've been Watching or something You know Chattering Rather than Rather than Paying attention Which is a shame because to that point like it is nice it's nice for your ears and it's nice for your your like your soul to like okay we there's other ways for us to express ourselves then well and and with the sing-along of that song like it was really like a like take me to church type of moment you know i just absolutely loved it i thought it was great i can't say enough good things about saint judas hell yeah so we we had mentioned with the brown maple stuff and me having seen them with cinema stare that was such a great transition that was unfortunately a little too early in the conversation so moving on to that now yeah no okay so yeah and again my my my apologies uh no worries at all so yeah cinema cinema stare unbelievable bops they we just did a weekender with them and uh shall i shall i put the song on and then we and then we kind of dive into them a bit uh what whatever you want to do if you want to kind of introduce them a little bit first or if you want to save it uh for afterwards i mean up to you they rip they rip we we did a weekender with them uh at the end of august and that was like the first weekender that we did those are the first shows that we played after rumors of my wellness came out so there's like and we like released rumors like two days prior so like there's just like fun energy um and and i i mean getting to play with them was like uh it was exciting for us but it was also like a not a chat not a challenge but like it was like oh okay we have to bring it like we they are so good their hooks are so massive quinn is such an unbelievable singer like those songs are so big let's let's make sure that we are also bringing our a game because like you know we're lucky to get to play with a band that that good like the the unreleased stuff that that they played on that on that weekender i was just like this this can be like jimmy eat world's like size like the these are just humongous sounding catchy you know you can call them pop punk or emo or anything but i feel like it's limiting like what the at least the maybe that's what they you know genre wise are but the feel of them and the writing of them feels like man these songs are big and um so can't say enough uh great things about about them hoping to play many many more shows with them i i have a song here that's from their their album the things i don't need please don't be the one that i already featured which was uh i i need to check i believe it was remember thank god okay because i am i want i am sharing commit this to hot keys yes all right such a great tune let's go she's gonna lose it i think she's gonna lose it anything she's losing in her mind been talking to fbc's all her life and if someone calls her a slut one more time she's gonna lose it she's gonna fucking lose it be nice to find me be loved found someone not behind this screen to know what's in you it means when they tell you you mean everything she'll be my factory line seven to five she couldn't avoid these men if she tried they're doubling her age by like three times but she doesn't wanna talk she said she doesn't wanna talk be nice to find me be loved found someone not behind this screen to know what's in you it means when they tell you you mean everything be nice to find me be touched like a woman's antibody to finally know you're enough in the night now that means everything don't forget to like, subscribe, and share this video with your friends! and i'll see you in the next one! bye! *outro music* *outro music* i love cinema stare so much oh my god dude those songs are so catchy and big and like i i chose that song just because like quinn for me one of the things about music like for me the way i we mentioned before it's lived experience like for me also i appreciate others writing their lived experiences of things that i don't experience you know and quinn they they wrote that uh you know those lyrics about you know femme experience and and it it is just so it's so catchy but the lyrics and and and and their delivery is so it's still catchy but man there's like a there's a it hits something yeah yeah yeah there's an anger in it that that is lived you know what i mean and and oh 100 that that the storytelling aspect of it is just like i is is awesome like from verse one to verse two the like verse two moving to like the factory like the fact that the the like the working class like invite like environment like that that has to like put put up with it was just like i was just like damn man this song is going in well the the other thing that i like about it too is i like the use of because it this type of person that and like almost anybody who has interacted with this type of person knows who they're talking about but like the thing that i love is that it even includes like the gamer lingo a little bit of like calling all these other guys npcs and stuff like yes there's something that's so clever about using somebody's own lingo against them in a way that like it's not it's not cringy like i there there's something about like like sometimes i don't know i don't know i don't if you were to say like npc like in another song referring to another person there would be like a cringe factor to that but i think that because you're like kind of co-opting it and like using it for this like more progressive thing there's something that's like very like not cringy and very like kind of progressive about it that i really like yeah no i mean that was a thing that i was thinking like it when you hear when you hear npc the first time you hear the song i remember being like well wait was that that was that npc okay interesting and then as the song goes on it's like okay the the world of this song it it it just like to me there's there's ways that like you can write like conversationally or or uh you know internet speak e that can be that can be cringe as you said but but the the utilization of it the performance of it the totality of the song the way the chorus just is this like massive release of fuck you basically yeah it's awesome yeah it's and and that that that synth part that comes in dude i'm not sure if that's a synth or is that if that's just a lead that comes in during the chorus i think it's a synth oh yeah yeah yeah uh it just makes that like and and but but and i also love that i i forgot that it had the um the little guitar solo section in the bridge well and and that's one of the things that i kind of love about cinema stare is i feel like they're taking kind of like a classic sound and putting a new spin on it like it doesn't happen a ton for me i feel like your album was one and then this is another one that like it doesn't happen a ton for me but it's like the first time i listened to it i'm like all right i'm hooked this is new this is like a new take on like kind of an old school sound and there's there's something about that that i find very compelling and like i i remember specifically the first time i listened to cinema stare because i was staying at a buddy's house like over the weekend we were hanging out i think we went to a show or something like that uh on friday and then i just spent the weekend at their place and uh i was up before them just hanging out in the living room i saw on twitter somebody mentioned something about the cinema stare album and i was like that sounds cool i'm gonna check this out and it was like immediately it had me hooked i was like this is just killer songwriting killer production everything like feels like it's pulling on something that is familiar but it's also a song that i'm like i'm gonna check this out and it's also like still feels fresh and it doesn't feel dated which i love no no i i mean absolutely like hanging with them like that weekend there for us was one of our best weekends as a band just just by virtue of playing with them and the feeling of playing with a band that good and and like listening to them it was just one of those things like you know that that i had as a performer was having a feeling from a different angle perhaps of that that communal warp tour type of like feeling of like man this like shared energy and experience and just like i want i can't wait to see that band again i can't wait to see that band again and and like you're like i get to see them the whole weekend this is incredible yeah and and yeah and we we yeah we stayed we played and stayed at austin's uh the sunday uh of which boy that that that day was uh it's a bit hazy it's a bit hazy uh leading up to the i remember watching aew all in in the kitchen and hyper fixating on it um for various reasons and uh and uh oh boy but like great people too you know like it's the fact that like how big their songs are like i said to them it was great because like quinn messaged me like i think a day or two after like oh i think the next day like miss you guys so much and i was like miss you too i was like i just want like i didn't like i want you guys to know that like it is awesome to hear a band that i genuinely think the songs that you're that you're working on and about to put out can be so big it's nice to know that that if if they go as far as it feels like they could that it's happening to really awesome just down to earth people yeah absolutely i really wish that i could have that that tour would have hit somewhere closer to me because like getting to see the two of your bands like on the same bill i feel like would have been it would have felt like i like rebooted or something you know we're gonna we're gonna try we're gonna try we there is so much synchronicity there that like we're gonna try to make sure that we're playing shows with each other for a long time all right so my next song that i'm gonna feature was a direct submission this one was submitted through my email if you are listening and you make music and want to submit it to the podcast for uh a potential feature on an episode fresh finds pod at gmail.com this is by a band called dagwood and they are from new haven connecticut so another kind of yeah yes they played that show that they played that show are you kidding me they played that show they read that is incredible so hard i can't wait what song did i keep talking about i don't want to step on the intro they're awesome no no no awesome it's it's so funny how this is all lining up this is so perfect um but anyway they they sent me their whole ep early via email and this was probably my favorite track off of the ep pollyanna visions which came out on september 3rd this is probably my favorite song which is the closing track called left the place a mess life is like a game that anywhere you play living then you die and then you wonder why thrilling pretty curse a shame you can't reverse step onto the stage and hit it unrehearsed i really do wish you the best i'm sorry i left the place a mess just know that i live with no regrets days are flying by i'm running out of time speeding down the highway trying to read the signs brain is kept on ice but if you fry it right pollyanna visions flash rapid in my mind i really do wish you the best i'm sorry i left the place a mess just know that i live with no regrets i really do wish you the best but yo i had really better split before i do something i regret so yeah i really do wish you the best i'm sorry i left the place a mess just know that i live with no regrets life is like a game that anywhere you play living then you die and then you wonder why thrilling pretty curse a shame you can't reverse but i never break a spell i live with no regrets oh man they're they're such amazing songwriters like they they they are just incredible songwriters like to me it feels like a band that like it just dawned on me to be like oh my god i'm gonna be like oh my god i'm gonna be like oh my god i'm gonna be like oh my god i'm gonna be like oh my god i'm gonna done me because they're banned that they're such good songwriters that i'm like i i sometimes like have trouble placing their sound just because like the melodies comparisons can be hard because they sound kind of unique they they sound kind of unique and it's like especially like for the time because they don't like to me a band that they kind of sound like my like initial like thoughts before you know this this recent thought that i had just now while listening to them but in general like a feeling that i've had about like when listening to them it feels like if like blue album weezer was written by by someone that wasn't um it was actually like a a good uh like a you know heartfelt person and not like an incel like that that because the songs are so they're they're they're so catchy they move from pete from like part to part so just like swiftly and and like it's a major like power pop kind of vibe yes but it's also got like a little bit of like a 90s like on yes like it all it almost reminds me this might be a weird comparison to pull but it's like the first thing that popped into my mind when i was thinking about it i was like it's almost like if presidents of the united states of america went straight power pop if that makes sense i i i don't know okay like the the sounds that they pull on that kind of like nostalgia factor kind of reminds me of something like that but it also reminds me of like more modern type of power pop type stuff to your point like like the thing that that came to mind and the similarity similarities are there in some regards like uh did you listen to diamond youth uh no i didn't but similarly to diamond youth it's it's just like that feels such like unbelievably like written like pop like again power pop's better than like pop rock because that that feels like not the thing or that feels like maybe it feels like imagine dragons yeah it feels like you know it feels more rock with like a touch of pop thrown in yeah i mean it to me like it feels like power pop written by like you know people that have been like cutting their teeth on like punk like you know uh music alternate like on like underground music for such a long time you know what i mean like and that's who they all are it's just it it is like because you don't hear bands like that when you get to play with dagwood it was just like think about uh trying to be kind like i think about that bridge all the time that's cool it's it's really like i highly suggest that anybody who even like this just a little bit check out the whole ep because it's absolutely incredible i was torn between every single song on this project with which one i wanted to feature um like candy apple green which is um another one off of this project that almost feels like 60s power pop it's almost like almost like beatles beach boys ish type of stuff but it's like it's still has kind of like that modern flair to it and i think that the way that they can span this like you know 60s all the way to modern like styles of power pop all on one project and it still feels cohesive i think is absolutely incredible yeah no i mean that's part of why like i said to them after they played it was just like getting to getting to hear those kind of like little your pushes and pulls and deviations live play flawlessly too and it it's still like it hit you and like feel the way you feel about listening to like a punk like a a more like i guess like uh affected like uh with more of a punk affect like you feel the same way to those songs even though they have that like that blue album like catchiness and that like you know 90s slackerness to them yeah and like i mean honestly like like i said it's surprising to me for you you've played with them before do you have like an idea of kind of like how old these guys are no i mean i i i uh feel that they all as a as a man in the middle of my 30s that i feel i feel like we we both uh have similar pop culture uh reference touchstone points okay we talked big x-files uh uh at that show so that's why i was like okay that's something you've mentioned on twitter a lot oh okay yeah yeah dude i've been watching x-files a lot lately it's such a banger the sexual chemistry is off the map it's unbelievable david de covney and jillian anderson unbelievable but like to me it's kind of incredible that as a first release for a band it's this strong and has so much identity to it because they don't they've got a couple singles leading up to it but they don't have any other like full projects and to have a full project that feels this cohesive and it feels like you know exactly what this band is about like that that leads me to believe that they must have had other projects in the past because i can't imagine somebody who's like you know early 20s oh yeah putting together something that has like this type of reach to it and feel so cohesive at the same time and that's not to disparage any young people or anything but that's just like it feels like it's something that has been like it's the project of a bunch of other projects that never quite got there if that yeah makes sense well yeah i mean to your point i i know i know tim the bassist was was in hostage com which factor like when when you know that now you can hear you can hear an alignment absolutely yeah that that you know old uh you know 60s pop type of band 60s pop band emphasis on the band part of the pop yeah feeling so i i know that like if maybe that that might help contextualize it a little bit yeah i just think that it's incredible that like for a first project for a band that it's this cohesive this catchy but also like tries a bunch of different things you know kind of doing like the 90s thing the 60s thing kind of doing a little bit more modern stuff i think it's just absolutely incredible how much time they can cover in just six tracks on a little ep you know no no i yeah i i mean again and that that to me is a testament to like it just feels they nailed as such a precise sound you know like and and it it feels very like cold like it feels like i i it feels cultured and that that work feels annoying to make but like to your point like to make something that sounds that uh that like like what like we i mean like we've just been saying that much of like an alternative fuck yeah feeling but like you're saying it to these just like like these just like bops yeah these mid-tempo which bops you know what i mean like yeah yeah that just takes a very particular and and you know a really lived in right uh project lived out right yeah i exactly i i really highly encourage anybody who listens to this who liked that song even a little bit to check out the full project there's going to be something for anybody who's into this kind of like you know pop rock uh power pop type of thing i i think it's absolutely incredible i got yeah i mean i i can't say enough good about about about those dudes so what do we have up next up next uh so you know we talked about how uh there's there's the feeling of drawing on on some pretty deep far-reaching back references with with uh with dagwood but this next artist great friend of mine old phone uh greg is one of the best people i've ever uh i've met in the scene you know uh they they put out on on their on their on uh solidarity club records they put out pride was somewhere else our first ep and that was just off of us being twitter like twitter friends sight unseen me sending them the like the ep just because i wanted to like i dug their vibe like the i uh and fellow poc in the scene like being able to talk about those experiences with them has been like so comforting for me and like i just wanted them to just check out the songs and they were like this is sick okay you want to do tapes and i was like okay i'm gonna do tapes and wait what like what just happened um well and even though they're uh in la now i believe they're originally from the east coast right they are they are originally from like philly area they are they are and uh stay tuned on that though yeah i mean and and greg's ability to with old phone to draw on like very i guess like it's called like hyper pop ish uh yeah influence yet the there's so much clear you know grew up in the scene aspects to the guitar to the drums to the like to the emotional um just like dynamics of these songs that like every time they put something out i get so so excited because i know it's a one-of-one thing i know i'm not gonna hear like uh something like it because there isn't something like it and uh this next uh this next song that i'm going to be playing it's off of uh it's off of their album i hope the world can make uh it's a long hold on long title i don't want to and as an english major you think i'd be more precise but uh you know i did it to get better at writing lyrics and not be a teacher so look at where it got me um so off of uh came out the same day as us hope the world can make room for us that's what i thought it was and and this song title is your childhood is never coming back slash aloft you i can't see it i can't see it i can't see it i can't see it i can't see it i can't see it i can't see it yeah i mean like It tickles such a, like, you know, postal service itch for me, but it's also, like, there's so clearly so much more. Like, Greg also, like, used to enjoy, or maybe still, there's, like, an EDM aspect to it, but, like, you know, that's, like, tastefully. Like, the synthesis of, like, this, like, newer, like, SoundCloud hyper-pop thing with, like, that riff, man, is, like, awesome. That riff is the Midwest, like, all these things, like, happening in such a cohesive way. It's just, like, I'm so fascinated by the existence of songs like that. To me, one of the interesting things is, like, everybody always brings up. hyper-pop when talking about old phone. And it makes a lot of sense, because there are definitely songs that kind of skew more that direction. And there's a lot of, like, auto-tune and form and shifting on the vocals and, like, that type of stuff, which is definitely, like, a big calling card of hyper-pop. But I think that one of the things that I find really interesting is their ability to blend that with other styles. Because, to me, this isn't a hyper-pop song at all. This is, like, an emo. An emo meets, like, R&B jam type of song that just happens to have, like, some form and shifting and auto-tune on the vocals. And, like, they've done stuff where it's, like, it's basically just a straight-up ska song, you know, and doing, like, the hyper-pop vocals. And especially with them teaming up with Eichler's on the production of a lot of their stuff recently. You can hear kind of, like, those two together. And the way that they kind of, like, rub off on each other artistically is very interesting to me. If you listen to, like, both of their projects that have come out this year, you know, this one and, what is it called? Eich World, I think, is the new Eichler's project, too. You can definitely hear the ways that they've influenced each other in working more closely over the last, like, year or two. Man, I saw Eichler's. First time I met Greg in person was Eichler's and Greg were. Were he. Were he. Were he. Were he here playing a ska show just over in Brooklyn? Nice. And, man, it was. Like, it translated so well. To your point, they do kind of. It makes sense they remind me of each other, but also, like, there's a pride. Greg, like, put so much pride into their craft. Like, the fact that there's, like, almost like a signature old phone production is, like, such a, like, awesome thing. That, like. Yeah. I feel like you can't. You can't over. Like, to your point, you know, the R&B feel, like, man, once that, like, once that drum. Like, once the beat came in, there was just this, like, man, it made me think of, like, moody. Moody drives at night. Like, just, like, being engulfed by it rather than, like, you know, anything hyper, you know? Yeah. No, exactly. And that's one of the things that I think is interesting is, like, there's. Again, there's the hyper pop aspect of it. But I think that. That is kind of, like, reducing things a little bit too far. Yeah. Because, like, there's other styles of music that use the auto-tune and, like. I mean, before it was ever a hyper pop thing, auto-tune was a major, like, you know, kind of, like, cloud rap type of aesthetic. And this is kind of more taking that and bringing it to kind of, like, an R&B type of thing than taking. It's more of, like, a progression than a regression. But you have to. You have to frame it differently, if that makes sense. No. I mean, it's. That's a great way of putting it. I remember when I posted a song of theirs once. And a friend of mine from high school, like, messaged me, reacted, just being like, Yo, this is awesome. He was like, yo, this is so cool. This is, like, Postal Service meets American football. And I was like, damn, damn, damn. That is, like, such a. And the fact that Greg does it. He does it all. It's just so. Like, I am so. Again, as being on the opposite end of creation, like, I'm just so fascinated by the ability to, like, create, construct, perform. All of that is just. And, again, to make it cohesive. That's kind of the. Maybe the through line here of a lot of these artists is, like, they're, to various extents, like, doing things that emotionally move you in different places. And sonically, you hear, like, a love for just a multitude of music. And songwriting. Yeah. So, I'm curious. Are you familiar with the YouTube series that I believe is run by Phones With Chords, You Have Until Lunch? Have you watched any of that? Oh, no, no. So, it's super cool. So, basically, the general gist of it is that people are given 30 minutes to try and write a song or as much of a song as they can. And that's kind of the idea. You have until lunch to create this thing. And I think it's really interesting because a lot of the time you see people sit down with a guitar. They figure out, like, a chord progression, riff, whatever. And then, like, write some vocals over it. And, you know, get, like, a section or two out of it in, like, 30 minutes. And that's kind of, like, the main thing. But Greg Oldphone did an episode of it as well that was very interesting because it was a lot more, like. All right, write the riff and then, like, start programming the drums over top of it. And it was very interesting getting an insight into the creative process that goes into something like this. Because it's so different than just, like, a traditional song where you, like, come up with a melody and then, like, put some chords or a riff over it. It's, like, there's a different method of operations to get to this type of sound. And I think that it's very interesting. It's very interesting to have watched that. I gained a greater appreciation for what they do musically. Yeah, I've got to watch it just because that's something that I've wondered. So it'd be awesome to see a, you know, an expedited, I guess, version of the process. Because, like, to some extent, it's also each part of that, like, those songs hits. Like, it almost, like. Yeah. Like, each. As parts come in and out, it's constantly moving. The songs are constantly moving, you know, sonically and emotionally. You're, like, you're getting. Like, certain times the riff hits me. Other times it's the beat. Like, sometimes it's, like, it's a line that clearly, like, is delivered right in a space where just in between beats or something that, like, I don't know. Yeah, it's one of a kind. Like, really, one of a kind. No, it's so cool. I think it's. I think it's absolutely incredible just to watch this type of stuff. And just how different it is from so many contemporaries that are doing kind of similar stuff. Like, it still holds its own and has, like, its own niche to it. So, my next song that we're going to listen to is from the upcoming album by Thin Air, which is called Breathe and Bleed. And this is another artist that, to me, also from L.A., interestingly. And another one that has a very distinct. Unique kind of sound to it. So, this is actually an album cut. And the album doesn't come out until the 18th of October. So, by the time this episode comes out, it'll be out. But as of right now, we're listening to it a little bit early. A little bit of a sneak peek. So, this song is called Me and You and I by Thin Air. Me and You and I by Thin Air. I could never even try to I would rather die I don't need reasons for the things that you do I'll never ask why We can see into each other Like you see through me Like you see through the sky We could be Alone together You and I I could never Steal from you No, I could never steal Steal integrity I know it seems unreal But I am fair and I am honest At least that's how I feel Though I am not always certain I feel it's true We could stand through together, me and you. I could never cheat on you, I've never betrayed all the trust that we've established. I must say, we want the ocean floor, we've gone so far. So deep, and there has never been a secret that I would keep. We can sink in conversation like stones in the sea. We could probably talk forever. You. You and me. You and me. Sufjan Stevens. That, that, that's the, that was like a thing, almost like a, like a, a more like, uh, folk, uh, maybe, uh, involved Sufjan Stevens. It just, uh, cause it had that like kind of, you know, like a very, like misty type of feel, but like it, it, it had such a, the vocal had such a, just like, it had that, that kind of like, it had the twang to it. And it, and it had that kind of just like. Slice of life feel to it. I guess you'd say like lyrically. Well, and that's one of the things that I find very interesting about his music is that it's very clearly like lyrics first. It's almost, almost feels poetic in a way, like more than it there's definitely, you know, it's a music project, but like, it's very clear that like the, uh, the lyrics and the poetry kind of came first. And then everything else is based off of that. And I think that there's some interesting. Stuff that is definitely going to make this very niche and definitely doesn't make it for everybody because there's, you know, the, the op, the, uh, choice to keep the vocals untuned. And so sometimes like the harmonies get a little bit abrasive against each other and start to rub and have this little bit of dissonance. But I think that it's something that like, if you experience it as a piece of art for art's sake, it's something that you like, you can see what. The. The point of it is. Well, yeah. And, and you saying that kind of like it, it peaked, uh, something in my brain. Let me, let me see, make sure I get the, I get the album. Right. Um, but something that, that kind of the lonesome crowded West by, by modest mouse, there are, there are things on that, on that production wise that, that like are not the cleanest. And I remember like watching like a documentary on it or a video and like them talking about how, like, you know, something with like. Mess up on like the soundboard or something that would make, like, it would make this like noise happen at that, like during random part of the song, like at that one during the middle one song. And guy was going to go like, uh, engineer producer was going to change it. And they were like, no, no, I think that, that actually fit the part that, that is doing, it's like doing the thing. It's actually extending the, the, the motif. So like there's, there's that aspect of like the, that like just full, full on like ownership of like, uh. How do you put it out? Like almost like, almost mapping the, the, the, the, the listener experience from just such an organic place. Yeah. And well, and I think that that kind of goes along with like the slice of life kind of like, uh, way that the lyrics are written to where it does. None of this feels manufactured. This is like probably, you know, some of the most authentic music that's being made right now. And it's clearly being made from such a personal place. It's not an. I, I always hesitate to say things like this because they, they almost sound like they could be like backhanded compliments, but it's like, this is very clearly being made for the person who's making it first. And if you like it and it resonates with you, that's fantastic. But like the point of it is very clearly to be a person who makes something that resonates with yourself. Yeah, no, I mean, yeah, like you can picture, uh, him playing these. Songs now and never releasing them, you know, like him, like playing that song out and like just being glad to have be performing it, you know, like it, it, uh, it just, it has that kind of natural extension of self that, that, uh, is, is owned. You know what I mean? But I also love how this song gets into, like, starts out with this pad that's very like enveloping and like, it's, it's like a soft blanket and you've got the, the, the drums that are very clearly like. Moving everything forward. And then at the end, you almost get like a little bit of a string section type of thing. I don't know if that's actually, if it's actually strings or if it's like a synth or whatever. Yeah. But it's like the way that the build happens and you get to like that big, like cathartic string section, it just gets absolutely massive. There's something very moving about it in a way that's very difficult to describe. I mean, it, it almost feels like the, like, uh, as. As the ending shot of a movie happens, you know what I mean? Like, like. Yeah. It's like end credits type of thing. It's arrived. Yeah. Like it's arrived type of like. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The, the, the, the journey has like not ended, but like you've, you've arrived at the place type of thing. Yeah. It's, it's like, uh, I mean, another good way, like you're, uh, you're, you're driving through the woods and you finally arrive at like the cabin or something like that, that you're staying at and you're, you're pulling up the driveway and you're like, oh, this is, this is beautiful. I've never seen anything like this before. You know, there's. Um, it's stuff like this that is funny trying to describe it on a podcast because you get very like everything that you say feels very artsy and nonsensical, but it's like, it's also the only way to describe it. And it feels really weird trying to be like, I'm on a, a, a, a thing where you're supposed to talk about things are, uh, uh, articulately. And it's like, you can't really come up with like the exact articulate thing because everything is just vibes. Yeah, no, no. I mean, but. But that's kind of the, the beauty of the scene right now, you know, that, that, that there's, there's an artist like that, this, that, that is going and is, is making noise and getting, getting some love, you know? I think it's absolutely incredible. I'm, like I said, this album will be out by the time this up, the episode comes out, but right now, uh, unreleased, it's going to be out on October 18th. So definitely keep an eye out for that. It's going to be a really interesting release. Very, very artistic type stuff. I absolutely love it. No, I, I can't, I, I'm going to, I, I, that, it's a long album too. So like, I'm, I'm, I'm very curious, just hearing that song. I'm very curious about the, the arc of that album. It's a, it's an interesting one for sure. Definitely one to check out. So, uh, what do we have up next? Up next, we have my fellow Filipino in the, in, in the genre, Justin, the singer of Glazed. We have a song. Okay, all right. Ghosting Myself, Left Out Wild. Uh, you know, they are such a, them taking us out was such a, like, uh, in, in spring 2023, it was like such a cool thing because they are clearly a band that like, they have that road warrior type of like energy to them. They have the, like, they, they are like a band, you know, and, and there's an, an old school feel to them, but the songwriting is, is so strong. And that was another thing of like being dignified, being, being like dignified by them was, was so sweet. And the way they carry themselves, like we, we just, you know, I feel like we, we got like a good, a good grasp of like the best way to keep vibes good on tour all the time. And yeah, I. I mean, I'm gonna, let me, let me play these, uh, this song just because like, it is, it's such a banger that I want to like, I just want to, I just want to get to it. So, uh, without further ado, here's Glaze ghosting myself. I don't know if I can just like a piss off spirit in the foot of my bed. Can you feel it? Pull your leash again. Just hang it up so you can meet me where this sidewalk ends. It's all clear in your man's land, you say, like you're new in that land, now it's dusting the wind. I left the best of myself on a scooter in Texas, the summer we went was. I want to wade in the river to the core. It ain't bad. I might only scratch the surface, getting my body back. This could be the year I'll disappear, whatever, only you can know. I miss you so much on the road. Yeah, I could feel this way forever, but the memory begins to fade. When your signal hits my screen, the less I want to feel is free. I'm sick of only kissing through the foam, through the foam. It's all clear in no man's land, you said, like I knew in that man, yeah, when we drink like this, we are madmen, who've done a trip on a step into a genuine. It's all clear in your man's land, you said, like I knew in that man, yeah, when we drink like this, we are madmen, who've done a trip on a step into a genuine. Thank you. I don't much like the way you look at me You don't know how hard it is to be Someone you look down on A sudden lack of commitment that I'll never catch on to If you turn those lights to be so big And you don't know how hard it is to be You don't know how hard it is to be If you turn those lights to be so big I don't know if that day will ever come Cause I fucked off But it's just because I was growing up And if you took those steps To be for you to walk on Would you still step up on the way others feel? I don't know how hard it is to be Someone you look down on A sudden lack of commitment that I'll never catch on to If you turn those lights to be so big If you turn those lights to be so big If you turn those lights to be so big Next, throwing it back to Fochella alum, of uh friends of ours they they stayed at my apartment when they played in new york i showed them the empire state building from across the street from my apartment and then i got them chopped cheese at 1 a.m scarlet street scarlet street oh hell yeah they are just man i'm as said many times i'm big time lyrics guy and and ben's lyrics are crazy their new stuff is going to like you're gonna need to sit down when for some for some of them for for how like just i i have so much love for how like unrepentantly emotion like like how unrepentantly not a bit their like emotionality and like the darkness of their music is like they're they're all they're chill sociable people but like there is clearly a pride in like in their songwriting and like making sure that you feel punched with every line there's like a real yeah and i'm playing let me make sure i i just this is patron uh the patron saint of bad ideas all their song titles are bangers man i know everything you're trying to hide you're putting everyone on blasts away the past the time but you want mine you want mine you hurt your footsteps across the hall loud enough to shake the walls with revenge and alcohol those people tend to clean their mess when they know they're having guests great exceptions for life and i'm tired i wanna live in black and white i wanna stop this pointless fight i don't care what's wrong or right you stress everybody out it's hard to picture you without a grudge to live inside by now yet i'm tired there's no hope left for us all took the fun out of it all wicked frontage you just deflect got an ego to protect yeah they say you were wrong you're always wrong you've been turning this into a lie turned into something that it's not yeah no i say there are good days and there are bad days and the bad days seem to happen quite a lot yeah no i say there are good days and there are bad days and the bad days seem to not be quite a lot yeah no i say there are good days and there are bad days and there are bad days and the bad days seem to not be quite a lot what you said about the sad jams like just to get more ears on bands that are just like pouring their heart out no matter how no matter how big or small and i think that that's one of the things that i love and what i strive to do as well um you know not to get too terribly off topic here but i think that it's there's something about the community it's very easy to hype up something that everybody else is hyping up because there there's not a lot of friction there but i think that there's something about using the platform that you've cultivated to uplift stuff that might not get that uplifting from other platforms and i think that that's something that's really cool that they do and that a lot of other people do is that you know you take these bands that the greater scene is maybe not quite as aware of and you try and give them some sort of platform whether it's playlisting or mentioning them on a podcast or you know doing this that the other thing i think that that's the community building aspect of this that i absolutely live for yeah no we we have a a you know a band playlist called songs to pop off in your prius too and i i tried to like very very much curate it the the one that we just did like i i just had to go with like because september was such a crazy like month or like like i just was like let me just see how many banger september releases i could put on here but in general what i love doing is like you know you have some of the the the you know bangers from like big bands that are that are killing it like you know origami angel or foxing or something but like putting like my friends like what i like to try to do is like i like to try to put like a big band and then like a band that i really believe in that doesn't have as like uh is doesn't have as many listeners yet but like i feel like you know like uh my friends in this band fear not ourselves alone really awesome like world is meets like clarity type of like songs but about just like gender identity and and and mutual aid and all these it's fast like putting it like deliberately being like so if someone's listening and they hear foxing and then they hear fear not it'll be like awesome there's no reason between bigger bands as like a way to like engineer people to listen to it more no i get that for sure all right so my final song of the evening now uh is going to be the final single off of a place for owls new album how we dig in the earth this single uh as of right now is not out but the single is going to come out uh on the 18th and the album is going to come out just after this episode releases on november 1st this is what i have to say by a place for owls so what i have to say is for you you alone god i'm not okay i can't take you and i know that it's a problem and i know i shouldn't care but if taking time is the issue would you take me right back there you're not going to take me back to the place where i'm supposed to be like literally made me like remember being like 16 and vividly like hearing summer ends for the first time or uh stay home like the last track on on the album um like it there yeah that's that's beautiful music you know what else it kind of that horn part specifically kind of reminds me of they came out earlier this year was the album ferried away from stay inside i don't know if you listen to that now i gotta check it out ben from a place for owls he uh is the main vocalist and one of the primary songwriters actually wrote a lonely ghost community review of that album uh right after it came out and there's there's something like i feel even if it wasn't even if they had most of this album written i feel especially in like the decision to include the horn parts on this song i feel like you know that was a little bit of an influence because reading that review you could tell how emotionally impactful that album was on him and i feel like that's kind of like i can trace that thread back a little bit like i've been paying attention to this and thinking about it i'm like i think that connection makes sense let me look let's take a look at this album yeah this a lot a lot of tracks on this they they clearly took their time with it like to just leave nothing off the table man nothing left unsaid yeah man this is gonna be just like looking at these song titles man this is gonna be some good sitting in your car like after after you you you turn the engine up you you don't turn it off all the way because you want to keep hearing like that last like tug before you you get out the car this is the relatable content i've subscribed for because i i feel that so much like you know you uh you get home at the end of a work day and you're like oh my god i'm gonna be able to the song isn't quite over you're like i'm gonna wait until the song's over then you end up listening to like the rest of the album just like sitting in your car like i don't want to get out of my car and go back inside right now i just want to listen to the rest of this project and just feel this for a second banger absolutely the other thing that i like about a place for owls too is that it's not all acoustic but the way that they orchestrate things the way that they arrange their songs has this like this softer thing to it going on that like a lot of a lot of like emo and like emo adjacent bands tend to do like you know more aggressive type of stuff and you know borrow from like hardcore and like punk and things like that and really get into like this aggressive like abrasive type of thing and i think that them going the other way and kind of leaning more into like the softer and like introspective stuff like that is very like counter-culturalized to the culture of emo right now which is really interesting because it's like you you're watching a counterculture of a counterculture almost but it's not the culture if that you know what i mean it's so an example of what you're um it's kind of like they them in the scene is kind of like joe para on adult swim okay you know what i'm saying and that there's the wholesomeness there's a there's like a uh a confident softness to it and it's kind of like a kind of like a kind of yeah it's just like intoxicating exactly and it's like almost like it connects because you're trying to feel these deeper like more uh introspective emotions and i i think that that's what a place for where a place for owls really shines is when they're doing stuff like that because it's it's just so resonant for sure for sure well it's it's been it's been a long ride thank you for for everyone that's that's still here uh how are we closing out the episode we are closing in uh in quite a bombastic fashion ultra deluxe okay yeah max max is is uh one of the like most just thoughtful confident articulate politically like uh courageous people i know uh their belief in us as a people to be able to unite despite everything and you know they're always talk about like they're inspiring as far as like for us like you know there's always like amazing literature uh narcan stuff like that like at their at their tables you know uh max is always talking about what's going on in the world in every you know every set it there's such a just sincerity to what they do but also the the this description on i'm very glad uh that the description there's a description on twitter because i was like how am i going to describe ultra deluxe communist cyber what a name what uh and this is uh this is a song this song called skin them alive so they can be safe there you are oh no oh no oh no this is our burden this is our fight for them to be safe this is our burden this is their fight for them to be safe and they're the ones that are they're the ones that are in the light this is not just our fight this is not just our fight this is not just our fight this is for them too without us without us without us they are alone without us they are the ones you know that ice is for us you know that ice is for us because we need to grow because we need to grow we need to move you know that ice is for them no one else can see no one else can breathe you know that ice is we drive to educate and recalibrate you know that ice is for god you know that ice is for god you know that ice is for god Don't care never long, it's all your promised land. In the casket, it doesn't matter what they believe. How dare you lie, how dare you take away my love. We've got the wrong, we are still wrong. Don't care for the stars, instead of love. Symmetry upon the sun, teach them to grow now. We're failing on the soil of death. We don't have a heart in the land. Nothing ever meant to blossom. Like, seeing them live is fucking awesome. There is just a passion, you know what I mean? It's specifically interesting to me to hear this song. Because they also kind of go into the cybergrind side of things a lot too. And get really aggressive and have these crazy, just blast beat the entire time type of songs. But this one is really interesting to me because there's something very cinematic and ethereal about it. Like, this is not the cyber screamo side, cyber scrams side of what they do. This is like a very, like, emotional, broadly, like, you know, I'm listening to it seeing, like, these wide, like, establishing shots of, like, you know, cityscapes and things like that. And I think it's really interesting that they can pull all of that together under, like, one line. And that it makes sense. Just, I mean, like, that line, man. This is our burden. This is their fight. Like, it's, to your point about, like, you know, cinematic, man. That shit makes me want to just, like, go to war for Max. And for everything they believe in. Just, like, the raw passion in those vocals is, like, they are, I think, one of the most passionate people I've ever met in music. They're very inspiring. They book so many awesome shows in the scene here in New York City. But, like, I can't wait for their new stuff to come out. Just because from seeing it live, there are. lyrics in that similar to this when you say cinematic man it's just being about the ang like just the kind of the fucking raw anguish of like trying to fight yeah trying to like there is there is something so powerful about it that like i really i remember the way i said ouch or the way that person said ouch about our our the i think what's going to be like the outro track of it i just remember like thinking it has so there's a lot of long like long sweeping kind of your point like cinematic end parts where it's like man music is a messaging you know uh service or source you know for me and and fucking max to you and and you know to the point of you know listen to billy there's so it's there's so many fun things to listen to in the little like the little like straight like kind of string part that that i think happens right or yeah yeah there's a little bit of like like a string part and then there's like um you know there there's like the almost like solo piano part that feels very haunting in the way that it's played and again the fact that this is the same band that does you know cyber grind type stuff too is absolutely crazy to me because like what a range to be able to do something as like aggressive and like bombastic as that and then being able to like reign it in and make like some of the most beautiful stuff that you've ever listened to like like this track is just absolutely gorgeous and i think that there's right there there's something about there's something to be said about the fact that you can do both of those in the same project i mean absolutely that that's again kind of mag uh ultra deluxe is just such a like the first time i saw them they're like there's just a huge like like again i'm seeing all this literature narcan uh condoms all sorts of stuff like at their at their uh table like uh there's literature on joining like the uh the communist party i think maybe the psl like the there's like a backdrop of just oh they'll play like uh a clip of like sounded like it was some like irish ambassador just like excoriating like the eu or or the uk about about like you know supporting the idf in israel and and like there is when you say cinematic it's a it's a multimedia experience it's an experience and to me kind of you know what we talked about beginning live being the bridge of of all these things yeah that is there's no i think better example of that than ultra deluxe like the the the the band feels like an organ like like like an organism you know what i mean no it's it it breeds such a life i think that that makes a lot of sense and again the the fact that there's there's so much going on with like advocacy and things like that as well is also another reason to lift them up because they're also doing something for the culture and clearly have like a message that they're trying to get across and i i think that that's just an amazing thing it's interesting because i never really like knew about them before you know a few months ago probably like six seven months ago but it's it's been really cool discovering more and more about them over the course of the year i think it's been really neat i i can't wait i can't wait to see them in the future i can't wait to see them in the future i can't wait to hear like i feel that the emotional intensity and like subject matter of of their of and the fact that there's going to be more eyes on them i do feel like you know music at its best like i said it has the power to educate and and i i think man i seeing ultra deluxe grow it's like one of those things where like they're a band that that i think is going to like change so grandios but like the the the extent to which there's just an intensity with no uh apology but it's all grounded in conscientiousness and and and solidarity is just so i feel like it can it can reach very far and like that's what that can do for people is immense and i i have so much respect for me for max for an ultra deluxe as a project for that absolutely i think that's a great place to end on um is there anything specifically that you want to mention one more time before we sign off about the new ep about career day about anything else uh but before we call it a night for sure uh so yeah i'll always be this is streaming everywhere we are going by the time you're listening to this we'll have cds and tapes we are we'll we'll have probably just finished playing in in the midwest but we will be back we love the midwest please word of mouth is everything for us like i i i didn't quit my job for nothing like i'm gonna be working gigs and flexible stuff here to make myself available when band opportunities and to be able to build band opportunities as best as i can because i want to i want to get our message out i want to to play these songs and and uh so you know spreading the word is everything that's the life like word of of bands like ours we're doing this entirely independent self-released everything so being able to express these things in a room in real time is such a emotional and but but like that that's that's what we're after because like some of the stuff that that like we played shows and like filipino kids have come up to me um like just saying like you know how cool it is for a filipino you know uh like a this hawaiian dude uh came up to me talking about like how cool it was to hear songs about like colonialism and things like that and and like i remember and playing a show uh that was like not well attended in in baltimore but like there were these two young uh girls and at like uh that were like black and and and hispanic and and and they were just so they didn't know us going in and we closed with no problem and afterwards they were like they came up to me and they were like that last song was so real and like for one of them it was it was it was their first show ever and for me that's gotta be that's gotta be fantastic that's just replenishing man that's just like endlessly replenishing and and so for me i am trying to we're we're trying to really go for it so please you tell a friend we'll uh we're trying to make 2025 a year that this is our our most shows ever after this year's over we'll have played 31 shows and and we're just trying to go more and more and more at it so so you know check us out all on our all the socials at career day and why um also want to shout out water me down who will be doing that that midwest tour unbelievable songwriter uh sky and lyricist but yeah i i uh and oh and and for anybody that's a hockey fan i have the dumbest uh hockey podcast uh it's the adult swim of of uh uh islander podcasts uh it's called through the island it's uh we're failing upwards more and more it's kind of nice but yeah please uh just check us out tell a friend and uh if you feel it just hit us up and and let us know because that's the type of stuff that when you have those bad days you have you hit those lulls either in life or as a band you know you're for you it's people a band is people you know you can just kind of you can fall into malaise sometimes knowing that people feel it is everything so um thank you ryan for supporting us like yes absolutely sorry sorry sorry if i was a little space head spacey uh at the beginning of of of that segment i just uh it's uh it's been a crazy uh crazy time personal life stuff here and it but it's it's getting to do this has been really nice man i like getting to just like dive into music and talk about yeah like atomized music it's kind of nice yeah i think that there's something about like just sitting down with somebody hanging out shooting the shit listening to some music talking about things whether they feel big or small there's something kind of cathartic about that and that's kind of why part of the reason why i love doing this podcast this has been the fresh finds podcast the show about discovering new music with good people fresh so the day begins with a public execution on the way to work on the x-ray and the day goes on as the boardboard ends me give a bloodthirsty refrain they say it was deserved they say he had a record they say it was good or good tell me do you see the deep sad sickness one bad day is all it takes for that to be your pain for that to be your pain one bad day is all it takes silver lining pain it all it all looks great now i can't shake it off my mind the widespread desperation the countless generations angry in the wrong direction see an enemy in your stomach and the captain's breadcrumbs taste like race when you're just a doctor's call away to find the stray circles in the swamps one bad day is all it takes for that to be your pain ♪ We're there to be your faith ♪ What better is all it takes So we're all in state We're all in state now What bad day is all it takes In this place that exploits Then destroys, then throws you out What bad day is all it takes Still no love in state It all looks grey now What bad day is all it takes For that to be your fate For that to be your fate What bad day is all it takes Still no love in state It all looks grey now What bad day is all it takes What bad day is all it takes What bad day What What bad day What bad day