BETTER BEFORE - Seriously Good, Never Serious... (Usa - Punk-Rock/Pop-Punk - Interview with Taylor, James & Andrew).

Hello ! Can you introduce yourself and tell us how it all began for you - your encounter with this musical universe, what appealed to you, what fascinated you and what made you want to get into music? 
Taylor: My brother got into music, and I was just copying him because he seemed cooler than me at the time. In reality, that turned out to be the complete opposite of the truth.
Andrew: My dad played, so that was always cool to me. And then seeing other friends play when I was pretty young.
James: I didn’t come from a musical family. I think I got into it through the radio and friends that were cooler than me. I just latched onto their taste.

Tell me about the band... How you met - the current line-up - past experiences - and above all - WHY the need to form THIS band?
Taylor: Andrew and I met long ago through my roommate and our mutual friend. I was eschewing my musical past then and fully focused on getting my degree. Near graduation Andrew and I teamed up and we started playing.
James and I met at this company where we both wrote clickbait. Our original bassist left, and James happened to play bass.
Andrew: I think the reason we formed this band is we all just enjoy playing this kind of music. And finding people with similar taste who want to create music is kind of rare in a way.

Describe your sound and explain why I should listen to YOUR band at all cost ?
James: We play a mix of punk and indie rock with some pop sensibilities. Kind of a ‘90s emo-alternative style.
Taylor: The drums are probably the best drums you’ll ever hear in your life. There are some good guitar solos and little bass melodies in there, but mostly the drums. You could probably ignore everything else.
Andrew: Ha. Sounds pretty accurate. I think our sound is pretty raw and earnest. Sometimes simple, sometimes intricate. A lot of fun plays on common tropes.

Lyrical and musical inspirations/influences ? How important are the lyrics for you ? Are there any specific messages or thoughts you try to develop and share through your lyrics ? 
Andrew: I like ideas and musicality more than I like anything else, I think. I sometimes get inspired by Taylor just telling me random fucking words I’ve never heard before. As far as lyricists go I’m inspired by Geoff Rickly of Thursday and John Rzeznik of The Goo Goo Dolls. I always loved “Autobiography Of A Nation.” That song to me, lyrically, is pretty perfect. Rzeznik talks about how sometimes you just write around one line or idea and don’t overthink it. I like that too. 
Musically I think about bands like Big Star, the Get Up Kids, and The Replacements.
Taylor: Early Replacements for sure.

About the band's discography... Imagine someone who doesn't know your band at all and wants to get interested in.. Which release would you recommend to start with, and why? 
James: We have a handful of singles available to stream. But my favorite song we’ve recorded is “Shine.” I think it has a lot of energy and a really catchy chorus and some clever variations throughout. And Andrew’s guitar solo is sick.
Taylor: Yeah, I think that’s the best too.

About your latest release ? 
James: The latest is a Propagandhi cover we recorded for this podcast called “Unscripted Moments: A Podcast About Propagandhi.” It was on an episode they did for the 30th anniversary of one of my favorite records: “Less Talk, More Rock.” I basically forced these guys to learn it. We recorded it in our practice space, so it sounds pretty raw. That one is only available on Bandcamp.
But the latest original single we released is called “Tasteless.” We recorded that one in someone’s home studio. You can stream it anywhere.

Future plans ? 
James: We’re planning a short tour up the coast early next year. Hopefully record and release a full-length soon.
Andrew: Just to get to play and continue to have fun for as long as we can.

Your most insane dream with the band would be ?
Andrew: To play music any and everywhere. I’d love to play shows with bands we love and just get to see people enjoying our music. 

Your BEST & WORST concert - as a band - and why ? 
Taylor: There was a show where we went on way later than expected and Andrew and I got way too stoned in the parking lot. But it wasn’t that bad. 
James: I think there were like 3 people in the crowd by the time we played. And one of them moshed a little too hard, fell over, and knocked the microphone into my eye.
Andrew: Our best show was probably a halloween show we did a few years ago with our friends in the band Ruling Party, and Follow C. It was a lot of fun.

Next live-appearance(s) ?
James: We have some upcoming shows in San Diego on July 27th and August 2nd. Then we plan to go on a short run around Southern California in January, if we aren’t all dead or imprisoned by then.

Some words on your local scene - bands you're friends with and you'd like to name ? 
James: San Diego has a pretty cool independent/DIY music scene with venues like the Che Cafe, Tower Bar, Brick by Brick, Banshee Bar, etc. A good amount of people organizing local shows seem to actually care about the scene as opposed to squeezing money out of it, which is cool.
Naturally, I have to mention that Taylor and I have another band. It’s a crusty grindy death metal duo called Worse Than Death and it rips! 
Andrew: Also Rumia, The Broadcast Hour, A Quiet Collapse, Fancy Faces, and Ruling Party are some great bands we’ve played with recently.

What’s the question you’ve always dreamed of answering but have never been asked? Just a heads-up: I’m also waiting for the answer that goes with it…
Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?
Andrew: It was Andrew, I mean, Taylor! Definitely Taylor!
Taylor: Couldn’t be . . . 
Andrew: Then who??
Taylor: It was James
James: . . . 

Last word is yours.. 
Andrew: Munificent, Perfidious. 
James: Pulchritudinous.