The Crazy Carls - Alex Baugh

Catch up with The Crazy Carls' Alex Baugh and check out new single "To The Stars".

What got you interested in music?

Alex Baugh: I guess, when I was a little kid, my parents always played music, really awesome music. My family lived all over the world so they'd play Peruvian music to classical music to Led Zeppelin and we'd always dance around the house. Then I got into playing classical piano when I was a little kid and then I was dying to play guitar and so I got the guitar and then I started writing songs and singing when I was in high school and went to college and kept it going from there.

Any bands or artists who have influenced your sound?

Yeah, I mean, really I like everything. I guess, you know, being a guitar player, growing up I always loved bands with funky guitar and I loved the Chili Peppers when I was a kid - one of my favorite bands - so I liked that style of guitar work. Then, later on, I got into a Prince style, Michael Jackson style which is influencing my style now, for sure.

How would you describe your style?

It's pop rock. Everyone compares it, I guess, to Maroon 5, kind of. It's pop rock, high energy, creative, fun, dance music.

"To The Stars" is the first single off the forthcoming EP; is that the kind of sound we can expect on the next EP?

Yeah, it is, we might have another song on there but, yeah, we actually just got a date, we're going to be releasing it at the end of January and "To The Stars" is the big single off that one; we just released the music video for it and we're getting a good response from it.

I would say it's a part of it. I don't know, I mean, I'm a songwriter so I like to go into each song with an open slate and see where it takes me but they're all in that realm of pop rock. We're making sure to keep that organic element in there, as far as the guitar work and live bass, things like that, so yeah, you could say it'd be similar to that.

What's the best response you've had to your music?

I got a really good response: I played a show in Orlando and someone said it was the best show they'd ever seen done live, so that was a pretty nice comment, I would say. But, yeah, a lot of people comment that it's pretty unique and that's what I like so I try to make it my own, but still make it something a lot of people can enjoy at the same time.

How has your sound evolved since the first single was released?

Yeah, it's definitely evolved. When we first started the band had more of a beach-y feel to it. I was just surfing all the time and hanging out with a lot of that kind of crowd and I really got into that kind of beach-y, a little reggae-ish, you know, and then I just kind of, the more I've been writing songs, I've been learning my strengths and learning what I enjoy best and what my voice fits with best so it's gotten a little more pop-y, a little more dance-y and I think I've really found my sound with these latest songs.

What types of tracks have you got playing now?

I jam on everything. That's hard, I don't know; I guess, I like the new Bruno Mars record, that really funky Bruno Mars record. I listen to so much stuff. I like Chvrches' new song. I've been jamming on these bands that are coming to Orlando - we're doing this big festival there - so I've been jamming to Young the Giant and I'm excited, we're going to be playing with them. So, all over the damn place.

We've been on tour with Aaron Carter and we've been playing some Sam Smith which the fans really enjoy. We have played the Chili Peppers live, we've played some Michael Jackson, even some rap tracks sometimes for fun so, yeah, always keeping it interesting.

What do you hope people take away from your music?

I guess, I hope that they can take the positivity. It can help them and hope it can give them a good time; brighten their day, I guess. Just have some fun and, also, I want people to relate to the lyrics that I'm writing, because I try to write some real lyrics. I guess, just trying to make some original music right here and I hope people can realize and relate and take away from that.

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Animal Years - Mike McFadden

Catch an interview with Animal Year's Mike McFadden to see how he describes their sound, check out the debut album Sun Will Rise.

How did the band get together?

Mike McFadden: Well, I was living in Baltimore and actually had recorded this record there and wrote all the music for it and I was performing under the name Mike McFadden, my own name, and I knew Anthony, the bass player, was living up here and he called and said "why don't you come give New York a try" and I went up there and re-released the album and gave the band a different name. It had always been 'Mike McFadden' but we decided just to re-brand it, with all the guys helping me; it's still the same thing, I wrote everything and recorded everything, but I had a new group of guys, a new location, and we decided to call it something different. Mike McFadden doesn't really have the same ring to it as Animal Years.

The songs we hear on the album, are those recorded by just you, or by the other guys, as well?

That's just by me. I actually recorded the record for the band before I even moved to New York. I wrote everything and I did all the vocals and a lot of the guitars and banjo and some piano and then I brought in some guys that I knew from Baltimore and they did the drums and some keyboard and stuff like that.

How would you describe your overall sound?

Our sound, you know, we describe it as kind of like Americana folk rock, folk pop; we're definitely getting a lot - with this new record - it's going to be a lot pop-ier. But, definitely kind of like singer-songwriter; it still has the like a singer-songwriter feel, but with some loud guitars in there.

Now that you're working with others, is the sound on the next record going to have the same sound to it?

I mean, I wrote everything on this album, as well, that's coming out and I will be working with the guys - they'll be recording on the record with me which will be a first - but I think the sound is still there. It's definitely going to sound different, but it's still going to have that Animal Years sound to it, for sure. I didn't really step too far away from what we were doing because I liked what we were doing already, so much, so I just wanted to keep it there.

What do you draw inspiration from while writing new songs? Any artists you take inspiration from?

Yeah, a ton. I think more it depends on, there are artists who have influenced my sound, over all, but as far as what I write, I don't go back and think 'oh, who's my favorite artists of all time', I kind of just, like, whatever I was listening to that day - I heard a song in a commercial I liked or I was listening to something on the radio - either subconsciously or consciously, that's what I draw influence from. Or, I would go in and be like I really like the way this band sounds and they're kind of doing a cool thing, maybe I could write a song kind of in that style.

What words would you use to describe Sun Will Rise?

It was just a fun, upbeat record, I think, for the most part. I mean, it was definitely kind of like a motivational record; I was trying to write things that were upbeat and that just were inspiring. I just think I listen to enough depressing stuff - I like listening to a lot of depressing music - I didn't want to bum people out too much with our music; I wanted to make sure the shows were going to be really fun and I didn't want there to be too many songs we were going to play that were going to not be upbeat. I definitely think it was just an upbeat, fun, hopefully, motivating record.

Have you got a favorite song to perform live?

I've always loved to play "Rapture". I mean, we've been playing these songs for a long time and you kind of get bored with them so we like to switch them up and "Rapture", we've stripped it down on our next concert, which is this Friday. We're going to be doing it with just a guitar and a banjo and we do three part, sometime four part, harmonies on it and that's just fun to do, fun to hear, fun to harmonize with people, so I definitely enjoy doing that song live.

What type of tracks have you been listening to lately?

Oh man, I haven't been listening to much. I listen to a lot of talk radio - I play so much music that, I don't know, I like an ear break, I like listening to talking - that's kind of a weird thing to say. I've been listening to The Barr Brothers; their new record is really good. There's a guy named Vance Joy who I've been listening to, but that new Barr Brothers album is awesome.

What do you want listeners to take away from your music?

I mean, especially on this next record, I really just hope they have fun with it. Our shows are all about having fun and people really love to come and watch live; they always say that we're just as good, if not better, than on the record, so I hope that people can take away a positive message. I've been really trying to be positive, stay positive, and on this next record there's a lot of upbeat, kind of just fun, upbeat, inspirational lyrics that I hope people can relate to.

We're going into the studio in early December and we are going to record an EP and we're planning on having a new single out very soon, sometime this Winter. We definitely want to get new stuff out; we've been playing some of these songs for awhile so I think it's time that people hear them, other than at the live shows. We're doing New Years at Rockwood Music Hall; we did that last year so I think that's becoming a tradition.

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Kiko King & creativemaze

How did you two meet?

Kiko King: We met at Maze's house.

creativemaze: It was one of those constant surprises; coincidence; or destiny, however you call it. Then we made a song and then another one and we've been doing that four or five years now.

Your melodies are often haunting and ominous; where do you get your inspiration from when writing these songs?

creativemaze: I dunno. It just feels right that way. For me, everything is inspiration, all kinds of inputs and their reflections on your mind plus what is indescribable with 3-D words. All inputs find their echo within you. So, it's imminent; it's about letting go and just doing stuff.

Kiko King: I just get out of the way.

Are there any bands or artists whose work has inspired your sound?

creativemaze: Every band and artist I've ever heard. Some showed me how to do it and some I don't understand.

Is there a track from another artist you find yourself listening to on repeat?

Kiko King: Family of the Year's "Hero".

creativemaze: Hjaltalin's "I Feel You".

How would you describe your sound to someone who had never heard it?

Kiko King: Airbender music. The total sound is like a dance with all of nature's elements.

creativemaze: It is airbender music.. Listen to different songs from it and if you can describe it with two genres I'll owe you a beer.

What do you want people to be able to take away from your music?

Kiko King: Anything that brings inner peace.

creativemaze: To be able to look at at least two sides of a conflict.

Could you let us know about forthcoming releases or live dates?

creativemaze: The EP, Intellect Illuminated, is out on December 1st and we will be releasing a brand new video for our second track off the EP, "Wolves", very soon. We will be touring Europe over December with new dates to be announced early next year.

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Fit For Rivals - Renee Phoenix

Check out an interview with Renee Phoenix and look for new music and tour dates from Fit For Rivals coming soon.

How did you start this band?

Renee Phoenix: Gosh, I used to be in a punk band called The Explicits and I was looking for a new guitar player and Thomas - who's sort of my partner in crime for all this - he had heard my band once before and so I had created a Craigslist ad and he contacted me and we hit it off. What we were creating was pretty different from The Explicits, like, I'd matured a lot and we were just going in a different direction and so we decided to make a whole new project from that. So that's how we started.

Were there any bands or artists who helped to shape your sound?

Yeah, definitely. I have influences going from Joan Jett and, growing up, one of my favorite bands to listen to was Garbage. I really like pop music - I'm a big fan of that - but then I'll listen to Nine Inch Nails too. The sort of people that I admire, that I think have a more direct influence in what I do, I think probably Joan Jett would be number one out of all of them. Of course, she's the queen of rock and roll.

What was the inspiration behind the new single "Freak Machine"?

"Freak Machine", I mean, it can be put into a few different kinds of context. It could be more of a sexual tone that comes across more obvious, if you just take the lyrics for face value, or it could be something that could apply to you, that you yourself are a freak machine, as in you are different from others around you. So, I think it really depends on, when you listen to it, what you personally take from that; I love writing songs like that, where a listener can take it and apply it to how they think is best fitting for their life.

Can we expect to hear the same sort of sound on the next album that we heard on your debut one?

It's definitely a different sound. I mean, at the core of it, we're still Fit For Rivals and you'll be able to tell that this is a Fit For Rivals record, but it definitely has a lot more dynamic to it. I feel like everyone has their own voice this time around, where like the bass just doesn't follow what the guitar's doing and, you know, et cetera, et cetera. So everyone kind of really shines on this album and I think it's a lot more fun. There's some electronic aspects in it that I'm personally really excited about; I love bands that put that in without it being a crutch, like Metric - I love Metric, I love what they do - so, you know, there's like little things like that that we just kind of add. Just things like that that I think add more of a refined sound, as opposed to our first album. I'm really proud of it. I think everyone will be dancing to it, awkwardly, along with me.

How would you describe your sound as a whole?

I would say we sound like - I mean, I don't want to be too cool - but, I think we really do sound like kind of modern day Joan Jett, maybe mixed with some of Metric, that band as well, but it's just fun. Especially, hearing our shows and everything, we all just want the audience and everyone that listens to us to have some fun, you know, and I think that's how I'd describe it: straightforward rock, some pop influence in there but, you know, it's definitely us.

You've got a real raw power in your voice that's different from other female singers; any idea where that comes from?

You can probably tell from my talking voice that my voice doesn't sound like that at all. I mean, I don't smoke or any of that kind of stuff but it just kind of comes out of - I have no idea - [laughs] I have no idea but over the years I've learned to control it and really play with the dynamics of it and I think that's another thing in this new record, is you'll hear me go from super soft, almost a whisper kind of vocal technique, to screaming, you know, within the same song, so I just think the biggest word is that everything is dynamic. Dynamic, dynamic, dynamic.

Any new albums you've been listening to?

Oh my gosh, I don't know. I don't think so.. I haven't explored what's out right now. I keep hearing really good things about that Taylor Swift album everyone's all up in arms about, so maybe I'll check that out but, I don't know. I haven't listened to a new record in a while, I think.

What do you want listeners to get out of your music?

First and foremost, have fun. Second, I have noticed just, like, online, a lot of our fans, they end up having a really kind of deep connection to our music and it helps them through things that they're going through so, hopefully, some of these songs people can really kind of dig their claws into and relate and it'll help them through things. It just, it makes it worth it when I get a message from a kid saying, like, 'hey, your music saved my life because this and this. I related to it and it helped me through that time' so, hopefully, we can continue to do that for these kids, that would be awesome.

Anything you want to say to your fans?

Thank you to the fans who continue to stick by us. It took us awhile to get from our first release to this release because, gosh, just like a slew of things, from finding our sound in this new record to working out things with record labels, trying to decide who we're going with, there's just, like, so many aspects to it. I just appreciate everyone sticking by us and continuing to believe in what we do so, I guess, just a thank you to everybody.

We are trying to make plans right now for tour and hopefully we will be out in February, tentatively, but we'll see. Either way, we are going to be on the road to support this album so we're working on it. We just got off tour with Icon For Hire - we were out for about a month - but we're going to try to get over to the West coast and all the other areas we didn't get to hit this last run.

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