Tell us about:

Your latest single you have released: 

Pete: “I Can Tell By The Cars” – this tune, the core structure, was one that Mike and I had been bashing around on for a while. It was actually the first song we played with Glenn and Tony last year when the band came together. Glenn wrote the lyrics and melody and we adjusted the arrangement to accommodate. Glenn’s lyrics focus are an observation of the various toxic bumper stickers on cars one sees when driving and how it underscores just how fucked the world feels at times.  

Glenn: There’s a few things going on in this one, but I’ll start by explaining the title. “I Can Tell By The Cars” is a cynical summation of the state of the world as interpreted by surveying all the mean-spirited and toxic sentiments captured in bumper stickers attached to cars I see on the highway. Without getting overtly political, you can tell by some of the cars out there that the specter of extremism, bigotry and political violence is still very much alive and well. “We are in for a long slog, man…” as the song goes. The other thing happening is very much an earnest effort to focus on love in a world that feels like it’s driving right off a cliff. Ultimately, the persona in the song isn’t sure whether to keep fighting the good fight or to give up entirely. And that last bit of existential indecision is reflected in one of the lyrics I am personally most proud of, which is, “I’m just that Sisyphus, pushing up narcissuses.”

Your first single and how you felt when it was released:

Pete: “Arrive!” was our first single, and it was released in July. The bones of this track had been around a while and seeing it come to life and getting the response we got on it really felt great.

Mike: We’d been actively writing, rehearsing and recording but had really been in “stealth mode” until the release of “Arrive!” So, coming out of stealth and seeing the phenomenal reactions to the single and at our first show has been amazing and has also validated our approach. 

Tony: Arrive! seemed to stun some people in a good way. I was hoping to get that reaction but you never know how it’s gonna hit people until it’s out there. The feedback we received definitely gave me a boost in terms of how I feel about all the work we’ve put into this project so far. 

Your favourite song that you have created that is an album track:

Pete: Mine right now is our upcoming September release, “A Tsar is Torn.” It changes daily though!

Glenn: It’s probably “I Can Tell By The Cars” for me. I’m a sucker for a power ballad…haha!

Your favourite song to play live: 

Tony: “Arrive!” Is definitely that song for me. It features the most spirited and relentless drum part out of all the songs in our set and it’s also the most danceable and banging track we have as well.

Mike: I love playing them all but to pick one, I’m quite partial to playing one of our newer numbers, “Seance By the RCA,” which is actually the next one that we’ll be recording. The chorus kicks arse – it has an interesting chord progression and Tony came up with a cool drum part in the middle of it.

Glenn: They’re all my children and I can’t in pure conscience pick a favorite.

Pete: Right now it has to be our next single, due out in mid-September, “A Tsar is Torn”. Fast tempo, great riff, big choruses, and a fun instrumental section. Total banger.  

The song that was the longest to write and why?

Pete: We are actually still working on that one. The tunes on the EP, the singles released now, came together very quickly. When the song is strong, it just happens naturally.

Glenn: It felt like it took me a long time to come up with the vocal melody for “Arrive!” It felt like forever because it was a little frustrating for me not being able to land on a vocal treatment that I was happy with. But then it happened. It arrived!

Your most emotional track:

Glenn: “I Can Tell By The Cars” is probably one of the saddest things I’ve ever had to say. The persona in the song is reading the mood of the world off of bumper stickers he watches driving past him. The world is about to drive off a cliff and he can’t decide whether to grab the wheel or just go full Thelma and Louise off the edge of the earth.

Tony: Glenn’s lyrics on that one (“I Can Tell By The Cars”) are so relevant to the current state of the world and the feeling he put forth resonates with me too. The sparseness of the beat allows me to get into more of how I’m feeling about the ideas within the song and less about anything that I have to do technically as a drummer. 

The best lyric you have ever written:

Glenn: “I’m just that Sisyphus, pushing up Narcissuses,” from “I Can Tell By The Cars.”

Describe the feeling you get when you walk on stage to do a show:

Tony: I love the chance to go through a little breathing/stretching routine beforehand to get pumped up and to get in a positive mental space for the show. Bands like to feed off the energy of a crowd, but how do you expect the crowd to be giving you energy if you aren’t creating the impetus for it? We have to be the primary force to get that energy transfer between the audience and the band started! That’s what I’m concerned about foremost when I get on stage.

Glenn: The first thing I feel is being much taller than everyone else, especially if you have a proper stage. When you take the high ground, you naturally have a bit of an advantage, or at least feel like you do. Then I feel like I’m responsible for making these people in front of me feel like I know something they don’t. Like I have some kind of esoteric magic or wisdom to share with them. Even if it’s bullshit, that’s the sense of wonder I feel like people pay money and give up their evening for.

The hardest track to play live:

Tony: “Arrive!” is the hardest for me to play drum-wise although the challenge makes it very fun. There are barely any rests in that song for me – mostly driving 16th notes at a fairly fast BPM the entire time. 

Glenn: I’m also going to say “Arrive!” because Tony gets barely any rest and then I have to worry about him throughout the whole song. Seriously, it is kind of a feat to nail the vocal on those choruses though.

Mike: Probably our next single, “A Tsar is Torn”. The bass is fast and driving and although it sounds deceptively simple, keeping it locked in with Tony requires me to actually concentrate. 

Essential items you always take on tour with you?

Pete: Toothbrush, earbuds, charging battery, deodorant, the all important neck pillow, and a Positive Mental Attitude. Also obviously, my gear.

Tony: LGW has yet to tour, but in the past I brought along a practice pad with a knee strap so I can keep my hands loose and in-shape wherever I am. I also love this thing called a Powerball made by RPM Power which is a gyroscope you hold in your hand which builds wrist/arm strength or even to help rehab from overuse.  There’s a lot of idle time on the road and I need something to help burn off energy between gig locations. After all, rock drummers are the way they are because they sort of like to be in perpetual motion and are slightly hyperactive. No one wants to hear a sleepy drummer!

Describe your fans in three words:

Pete: Very Lovely People.  

Glenn: Attractive. Spirited. Beloved.

Mike: Phenomenal Musical Taste

Tony: Hipper Than Most

A song by another artist or band you wish you had written:

Pete: Even as a kid, I didn’t sit down and learn other people’s songs. I get inspired but have never wished I wrote something that someone else did.

Glenn: I’m not sure there was a song I wish I had written, but I recall wanting to be Michael Hutchence at one point as a child.

Mike: Anything by Joy Division

What we can look forward to from your band this year:

Mike: We released the single “A Tsar is Torn” in September, then the EP is to follow in October. We’re currently writing new material too and hope to get back into the studio in the fall.