Tour Press Force (TPF) had the pleasure of interviewing Andy's Room. Andy's Room is a four-piece Indie/Emo Rock group out of Fullerton, California. Februrary 2nd, the band released their single "Parchment" along with it they made their fist in-studio music video. Hear more of what they had to say about the production process of the new single, and why they decided to release it after their 2017 EP Yours Forever.
Why “Andy’s Room”? Was the name inspired by Toy Story? Matt: We were originally called Floorboards, and decided we wanted to change the name with the musical direction, and we finally decided on Andy’s Room because of Toy Story, and we all dug it and it stuck.
We noticed on your Facebook ‘About’ page you mentioned being a band out of Fullerton, CA. Considering North Orange County is immensely saturated with up-in- coming bands, how would you say you guys stand out? And would you say being a band from there helped shape what your sound is today? Garret: I think growing up in such a hotspot for music has helped us diversify our musical interests. It’s great to be able to experience so many different music scenes and subgenres in a relatively small geographic area. Musical saturation of Orange County bands may seem discouraging, but I think there’s a reason why there continues to be so much growth from this area. Personally speaking, we’ve had the opportunity to play with a diverse range of bands, and we’ve taken influence from what we like. We don’t restrict ourselves to a genre. The music scene in Orange County helps us to continue to learn from our peers and draw influence from other talented musicians, not just bands that sound like us. It’s really something to be cherished, and I think this surplus of talent in the area keeps us on our toes and always looking to improve ourselves. Speaking of inspirations and influences, who would you say are yours personally, and the band’s as a whole? And why?
Matt: I grew up listening to a lot of The Beatles and found Green Day and blink-182 as a kid, and those bands really motivated me to want to be in a band. Lately, I’ve been listening to a lot of Boston Manor and Lifetime. As a band, we all bond over blink-182, The Starting Line, Turnover, and Title Fight.
Andy's Room- "Parchment"
What made you guys decide to make a follow-up single to your debut EP, rather than just having it a part of the final cut?
Garret: Our Debut EP was released in April of 2017 and it was something we are all very proud of having as our first release. As time goes by, life changes and experiences shape our sound and Matt’s lyrics. The reason why this song wasn’t a part of the EP was because it wasn’t written until months after its release. This song’s lyrics entail events occurring at the end of 2017. We wanted to follow up our EP with a single that showcases our most recent sonic achievements. This single is a great way to give our fans a taste of what is to come, and to let people know we are working hard to write for future releases in the meantime.
Would you say your sound has matured more in “Parchment” or taken a “detour” stylistically from the Yours Forever EP? I wondered about this, because this single sounds like it may have a stronger Pop Punk influence than Indie compared to your EP. Matt: I think the stylistic shift came from my frustration with feeling like I was forcing my writing, and Parchment came out of pure emotion and feeling. It came together so quickly and naturally, that’s just the kind of music that came out. The way we approached production on this single was vastly different than with the EP, with us focusing a lot more on heavier rhythm guitars and creating more of a wall of sound. It feels good to crank the amp a little bit.
How was the experience of the making of your first on-set music video for “Parchment”? And what made you decide to shoot a video for this single over shooting one for a song in the EP? Garret: We’re constantly learning how to be the best band that we can be, as it’s all just a big growing experience. We had ideas for a music video for songs on the EP but life events got in the way. We decided to do a video for Parchment to showcase our current sound, and to show people who may never come to our shows what it’s about. When I was young and finding new bands to listen to, I remember scouring YouTube and watch a bunch of music videos, as I had no idea what local music was. Being able to put faces to a bands instruments and vocals is really cool. The visuals by Benny Gagliardi really bring the song Parchment to life in the way we hoped!
I notice you guys have a little bit of a style or aesthetic of your own, especially with the release of the new music video. Was this intentional, on you guys’ part or was it all Benny Gagliardi? Garret: Benny Gaglardi did a great job in capturing the songs essence in this video. Our aesthetic is something that has developed over time. We did try to make sure the visuals fit our personal aesthetics in the video and we were blown away by the cinematography.
How do you guys do your writing processes? Do the lyrics or the instrumentals come first? And do you guys all work together from the start, or part off into your separate ways coming up with melodies then coming back together to incorporate and synthesize your art?
Matt: I will usually come to the band with a song skeleton that’s about halfway done with chords and lyrics and maybe a couple of riffs, and sort of get a consensus of what’s good and what needs work before I finish the song. Once the skeleton is done we start putting our own parts on it and tweak little aspects of the song until they’re unique to us. What persuaded you to go with Palmquist Studios? How was working with Michael Craver, and how many days were you in the studio?
Garret: Michael Craver is someone that means a lot to us as a band. He has believed in us and helped us to be the best band we can be. His recording/engineering process has helped us to remain creative with new ideas in the studio. He doesn’t take shortcuts and he helped us achieve the sounds we’ve wanted for our releases/something that Palmquist studios has amazing microphones and gear that we found very helpful in the recording process. The room has a great acoustics, and we could dial in our tones exactly how we wanted with the equipment and the help of Michael Craver.
So, what are your plans for 2018? More writing, any tours on the books? What can we expect to see from you guys?
Matt: Another new single and another new music video in Spring, and we’ll be around some parts of the country later this year. You can keep up to date on everything through our social media! We’ll be around!
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