(Unsigned)
Genre: Alternative Rock akin to new Funeral For A Friend or Finch.
Interviewed on: 9/8/08
From: Saginaw, MI
www.myspace.com/yourbestfriend
1. How you guys doin? How did the band come together and form? IS there any meaning behind the name?
Doing great. Busy, but great.
The band started with John and Dale as founding members in 2003. They met Steve there, and though he played in a few different bands in the following years, Steve joined the group in the fall of 2006. Nick had played in previous bands, and joined the group shortyly before Steve in the summer of 2006. Before this final lineup, several friends had played and filled in; Your Best Friend is happy to still be on good terms with them all.
As for the name, it derives from the concept of how much friendship can affect and shape our lives. We all have had a lot of help from friends and relatives in life, and feel the name helps us keep that in perspective. We sometimes touch on problems with friendship in our writing.
2. You guys played Dirtfest, how did that go?
Dirtfest was a blast. We had been on the road for 5 weeks, doing 36 shows in 38 days. The road is our favorite place to be, but we do start to miss the reception that we always get from hometown crowds. We really love seeing familiar faces in the crowd, and always feel really humbled by seeing so many people come out to support us. Plus after doing that many shows in a row, we felt we played really strong and we had lots of fun doing it. The other bands were great that day too, and we couldn't have asked for a better homecoming show.
3. The album artwork is very cool and different from what you see nowadays, how did the concept for the layout come about?
We all brainstormed ideas while recording the album. We took a while to decide on self-titling the album, and we knew that we wanted to have the art relate to the album name. The art is supposed to represent trust and loyalty. It's two brothers that will do anything for each other. The front cover begins a story and the back cover finishes the story. This being our first full-length, we wanted the focus to be on the songs, with a simple yet unique packaging. The work from Marky at MidwestLove, including the sticker on the jewel case, really fit for what we wanted.
4. We heard you guys were working on a DVD, any news regarding that?
Yes, a DVD is in the making, but it's going to take a little bit. We could use any footage that might be floating around out there too, so feel free to send some to us if you have any!!! Once things come together more, we'll inform everyone.
5. What are some of your influences?
We all have pretty diverse influences, but we find some common interest in bands like Brand New, Moneen, Cursive, Minus the Bear, Small Brown Bike, Hot Water Music, and Circa Survive. We also pull a lot of influence from bands that we play with. We have the pleasure of playing with a lot of good bands around the states, and we listen to a good handful of them nonstop.
6. If you could tour with three bands who would they be?
I (Steve) have always wanted to tour with Hot Water Music. Other than them, Cursive would probably be up on top, as well as Brand New.
I (John) would love to tour with Weezer or Radiohead. But my top two would have to be Cursive or Brand New.
7. What are your thoughts on illegal music downloading?
For us, it seems better for people to steal our music for the fact that they will be spreading the word about us in a way. Plus, that may convince them to come to a show or buy the record after hearing it. It is tough to think that someone is just taking something that we put so much time and money into, but the bottom line is that it helps to get our music out there.
8. What is your favorite song to play live and why?
I (Steve) love playing Close Your Eyes and Drive Away and Decmals. We usually play them together, and they both have quiet and heavy parts to them, so they are never boring. Plus there are tons of opportunities to improvise musically, and to interact with people in the crowd, which is always fun.
I (John) love playing Aboriri, Near Perfect Wrists, and The Path of an Illogical Liar. The crowd seems to react to those songs. We love sing-a-longs.
9. What are you currently listening to?
I (Steve) have been listening to The Swellers' "My Everest" almost everyday lately. They are friends of ours, and actually recorded at the same studio (Sentient in Chicago) as us. They are totally cool guys, and their album is amazing. Other than that, Polar Bear Club has been a big one, and Rancid is always on the iPod at some time.
I (John) have been listening to Damiera's "Quiet Mouth, Loud Hands" a lot lately. I've also been listening to Modest Mouse, Rilo Kiley, and The Good Life.
10. What's next for Your Best Friend?
We are concentrating on setting up our October tour, and trying to work on the DVD as our main focuses. We are really eager to write some new stuff as well, but it may be a bit before we get to it. We are also talking about doing an acoustic show at the local Hot Topic in the early winter. It will be a different experience, but we've gotten a lot of inquiries about playing acoustic, so we're pretty excited for it.
11. Any shoutouts?
Only to all our out-of state friends! Keep an eye out for us on the road in the midwest and semi-wester US this fall. We'll be out from October 10 to November 15th, and we would love to see all the friends that we miss so much.
See you guys soon!!!
