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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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Jerry Jones - Vocals John Ferrara - Guitar Josh Weinstein - Bass Brian Ferrara - Drums |
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| Interview with Jerry, John, and Josh May 3rd, 2004 |
| E: Trophy Scars is a band that packs a lot of emotion into the music they play... what types of feelings drive your sound? Jerry: I would say that the full spectrum drives our sound. Lyrically I try to write the emotions I feel are best conveyed through the music. For example, the self-loathing in "The Hair-Trigger Flamenco" was very much inspired by its spastic bouts of tulmultous guitars. And then from there, it's pretty much schizophrenic as the guitars become a little bit more soothing, and then lyrically it digresses into self-empathy--as I said, still schizophrenic. A lot of the lyrics reflect on a very innocent side of myself, and how I love and hate those really dark, nightmarish parts of myself. But we basically cover it: from self-absorbtion to absolute sadness, it's all there in one form or another. E: Has writing gotten easier or harder as you've been doing it for longer? John: Well... it's different with every song. Sometimes they just come out... other times it takes a long time to progress. Jerry: Writing is always hard on my part, because the original metaphors are like "new" truths. I always want to give something original... it's like creating a fresh landscape for someone to explore. But like John said, it varies from song to song. Sometimes it's easy, and it just seems like, "Wow, I must've had this song written for three years in my head. Where has it been?" And then it comes out just the way I want it, three seconds after the thought. Sometimes--and John can even tell you this--it will take months for me to finish writing a song. Josh: Oh the double-edged sword... it is both, easier in the sense that we are able to work better together, but harder in the sense that we are trying to challenge the music and think more about what each individual song deserves. E: How do the instruments reflect the mood and direction of the lyrics in each song? Jerry: The instruments are my muse, I must say! You can never truly tell where the song is going to take you, lyrically, until you've given a thorough listen... but the instruments will provide you with a pretty accurate premonition. When there is chaos, the lyrics will reflect chaos. Then there is gellin'... the lyrics reflect gellin'. Melodic parts often incite me to write my most profound statements, because I have such an irritable voice that people are just forced to listen. E: What would you say are the greatest restrictions placed upon your writing and performance as a band? Jerry: People saying we sound like someone else, or that we try to be someone else, and immediately dismiss the band as something rather generic. Josh: We are almost all in school, but this summer we are taking it all the way and are touring the east coast, the west coast, and Warped Tour. We are also meeting with some megamillionaire record labels who are promising to take our first record to platinum, and our lawyer is promising us the bling, so it seems pretty taken care of. E: How much of your style would you say is derived from influences? Josh: We have been ripping off the Beatles since we began being a band. I do not think that is ever going to change. Jerry: Hmmm... journalism is a tricky thing these days. Everyone sounds like someone else. There have been numerous occasions where we are compared to the Blood Brothers. It's weird... I can tell you a million times over that I don't think we do, and we didn't derive our style from any specific band... but everyone is going to have an opinion on that. We do have our influences, and I would agree with Josh... the Beatles stand tall and proud in our heads. But we have a big range, like from Outkast to the Daughters. E: Jerry, I need to ask... what inspired you to actually say the letters "XOXO" as lyrics in a song? Jerry: To make the whole ending to that song effective, I wanted to write it in almost a "P.S.: What the f*ck happened?"... sort of tongue-in-cheek manner. All of Darts to the Sea was very personal. I wanted to keep the same effect right to the very end. Like I wrote a big long letter to someone and I let everyone read it. I wanted to keep it intimate. Josh: The fans love the "XOXO," but people are going to be in for a shock with the new version of "Eyes Baptised [In Mercury]" where those words seem to be... missing? E: I'm sure the loss will be devastating. Josh: John, how do you feel about Darts to the Sea? John: Totally different from what we are now. Josh: Anything else to add? John: The music is way more mature now. E: As you continue your career as a band, are you finding even more new experiences? John: Of course. New sh*t is happening all the time. Josh: Everything for us is a huge step. We started off one summer playing two shows... one day we played our friends' CD release show, and bam!, people liked us. We recorded our first album in our basement, and people liked it, so we continued. Then we got to play Skate and Surf Fest. Now we are touring the whole country and having our EP distributed to stores... things keep on going high to the sky. Just like that show about the Jeffersons... the piece of the pie. Jerry: I love that show. E: When do you think is the best time to listen to your music? John: Always. You should never stop listening to our music. Josh: You said it, John. And buy our merch, because that is the only reason we rock and roll. E: Well, thanks a lot for hanging out. Keep making great music. John: Thanks a lot, man. We'll do our best. |