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| ::Interviews:: |
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| review & interview content, as well as web site graphics & design, copywrite 2003-2004 Euphonia Online. use of materials granted only with reasonable purposes. |
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| interviewed by robby sumner |
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Bryce Fehr - Vocals, Keyboards Josh Wiseman - Guitar, Keyboards Mike Bell- Guitar Bob Huber - Bass Dan Pelic - Drums |
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| Interview with Bryce, Josh, Mike, and Dan May 20th, 2004 |
| E: Maverick, a five-piece band with an undeniably unique sound, is yet another great group from the New Jersey area. What sort of trends or stylisitic patterns do you think exist here on the east coast, as opposed to the west coast in, say, California? Mike: I think it's important not to follow trends and become who you are. I don't know how it is out there in California, but we're not afraid to experiment at all. We embrace that, so our music will stand out far more than the rest. Dan: Every band basically sounds the same, but just in a different way. I think it's a little harder to be original without being ridiculous here, and to find a good balance with your music. E: Does the band make a conscious effort to create a unique style? Or is this something that comes naturally? Dan: When we write songs, they just get written painstakingly, and end up how they are. It's natural. But if we hear something that's totally generic or boring, we make an effort to change it. Mike: I'll agree with Dan on that one--it's always structure that gets built first. Then it gets warped by Josh and Bryce somehow... I like it. Josh: Everyone has very different influences, which eventually create our sound. Nothing is planned... just well thought out. E: How much do the sound and the vocals of a song depend on one another? Mike: Bryce should answer this one. Bryce: Everything needs to match the atmosphere of the music and the mood I wish to create with my tone and lyrics. So I'm very dependent on the feel that our music produces. E: When a song is performed live at a show, should the fans in attendance expect to hear it played exactly as it sounds on the record? Josh: To an extent. We have a lot of energy live, so if we miss notes it doesn't matter much because we're too busy melting faces. Mike: I am very stuck on being as tight as we can be live, all the while being very entertaining. Dan: When we play live, it's always going to be a little faster and more dramatic. We tend to retain the value of the song with a little more of an intensity dynamic, but we don't hot dog it. We just wail out and stay together. Bryce: We also use a keyboard, which does most of the effects you hear on the album, like on the track "The Annexation." I change vocal melodies at times, but that is only so I can stay sane. E: Would you say that Maverick is a band that can be listened to anytime, anywhere, in any mood? Or are there certain situations where the music fits best? Dan: Good question. I think our music is pretty diverse, so I guess you can turn us on whenever. But our live show is definitely where we turn the heads. Any band's "certain situation" should be live in the venues. Josh: Our music is dynamic in the sense that few songs sound the same. Therefore, it's usually possible to find something to match the mood you're in. Mike: Personally, it's more of what goes on in my mind that gets passed on to how I write, which is stress. We're a great band to listen to when you're stressed. Bryce: I think the current state of Maverick's music is more aggressive. It is something you'd listen to to release tension or to get some adrenaline flowing. Our music will always change and mature over the years, and I know our next CD will have a different feel than the one coming out. E: What elements of making music do you think that Maverick is close to having perfected? What needs the most work? Mike: I think music is a constant learning process, and you certainly can't be a perfect band. Bands are blessed with imperfections... every band has a few. Bryce: Nothing will ever be perfect. There's always room for improvement. If you're in a band and you think you're doing something "perfect," chances are you're doing it all wrong. Unless my name is Freddie Mercury, I will always be a mediocre singer. Dan: We need to work on just letting things involve more easily in our songwriting. However, things get done writing-wise much more efficiently than when we first started playing together. Josh: That's tough. It's really difficult to tell how we'll evolve as a band. I don't know if it's ever truly possible to perfect any element of music. If anything needs to improve, it's our ability to communicate. E: How is a self-released band evolve differently different than a band with support from a label? Dan: Bands who do it DIY will last if they are meant to last. Label bands get dropped and they have no idea what to do because they were spoiled at first. There's a lot of bands out there that should get in the f*cking van until they can put out something with any sort of true passion. Mike: The work ethic is a hundred times greater than those bands who get contracts handed to them on a silver platter. Luck is a good thing, but not early in a band's life... you have to prove that you can handle yourselves as one force. Everybody in Maverick has a job other than just the creation of music. Josh: Supported bands obviously have more freedom than those self-released, whether that freedom be from mental or financial restraints. I agree with Mike, though... work ethic is the most important factor, and a lot of signed bands, I think, lack that to an extent. E: How much of a band's future do you think is controllable by the band itself? Bryce: All of it. E: And just where do you hope to take yours? Dan: To the promised land of musicianship. Mike: I personally don't want to work anymore, so if Maverick can take care of that, I'm happy. Josh: To Byram. Mike: *Laughs* Let's stay away from Bryam, alright? Dan: I just want people to get really into our band and to not even be able to help it. Bryce: To the top, so I can leave these f*ckers and go solo. I'm going to be the next Lou Gramm. Mike: Who the f*ck is Lou Gramm? Bryce: Lou Gramm is from Foreigner, and he went solo. Mike: Oh... alright. E: Well, thanks a lot for the interesting interview. I'm sure you'll all go far. Except for Bryce. |