Introductions:
Who’s who?
The Life I Lead consists of 5 guys; Jay, Jason, Stan, Steve, and me, Puff.
Steve and I play guitar, Stan plays drums, Jay sings, and Jason plays the bass.
How old are all of you?
We are all between 20-23.
How did you guys get started?
This band came together through a bunch of different bands. Stan, Steve and Jay were jamming together and I joined in later. After a few guitar players who didn’t work out, Steve decided to switch to playing guitar and Jason came into the picture and here we are today!
Were any of you in previous bands?
We have all been in bands prior to this. Some bands we’ve been in are Endwell, Turns to Fall, Adelaida, and Your Day Strong.
How did you guys come up with the name The Life I Lead?
The name The Life I Lead was actually given to us by an old member named Tom. We wanted the music to be about our lives and who we are, so ‘The Life I Lead’ just sort of fit naturally.
How long have you guys been a band?
As a whole we have been together for a little over a year.
Music Portion:
How would you describe your sound to people who have never heard of you?
We’ve been compared to bands such as Cartel, Saves The Day, The Maine, A Rocket to the Moon, and so on. We are a pop rock band with an emphasis on the rock part. We don’t like the ditzy flash of the neon-headband-wearing pop bands. We just play very genuine and honest music and try to stay true to ourselves as musicians above anything else.
What was the first song you guys wrote together?
I believe the first song ever written was a song called “Ouch, stop it” and we do not play it anymore. I think we’ve come a long way since then haha
Send Love sounds like a personal song. What inspired you guys to write it?
Send Love was a song written to a girl going on a cruise to work and find out who she is. In the second verse, the verse says “While you’re away, finding balance in the seas, trust me I won’t lose an ounce of sleep.” It’s about having to move on and not chasing after someone if they decide to leave you.
My favorite song would have to be Me Against You or Confide. Which song is your favorite and why?
We all love Confide. It’s kind of the heavier song of the bunch and is a lot of fun to play live. It’s an extremely dynamic song and a lot of fun. We’re actually going to be shooting a music video for it later in April.
“I’m not chasing you down because you don’t want to be found. Just send your love, send your love”, is one of my favorite lyrics. Which lyrics off the EP are your favorite?
Personally, I love Insight. It’s another really personal song and it’s got a warmer feel to it. That’s definitely my favorite song lyrically, I can’t really just pick a line or two.
Which song is most meaningful to you and why?
Each song is extremely meaningful but I think Confide and Insight are definitely the most personal ones. The lyrics in Insight are extremely revealing and I think a lot of people can relate to them.
Whats the meaning behind Confide?
I asked Jay and this is what he said, “It’s about people not taking love and other people seriously. Like it’s a game, but they call it love and it fucks up my perception of other people to the point where I just don’t want any interaction with them.”
What bands would you compare yourself to?
Like I said earlier, probably Cartel, A Rocket to the Moon, Saves The Day, Say Anything, The Maine
What are some of your musical influences as a band?
We all love lots of different bands and artists but major influences include Dashboard Confessional, Incubus, Cartel, Jimmy Eat World, Third Eye Blind, and so on.
Do you guys write your songs off of personal experiences or whatever happens, happens?
We write what we feel. Sometimes it’s the music that sparks the lyrics and sometimes it’s the other way around where we already have something we want to write about. It’s different for every song.
What song by any other musician do you wish you would have written?
That’s a really tough question. It kind of changes all the time, but at the moment it’s the new Circa Survive song “Get Out.”
Why did you guys choose to title your EP, Me Against You? And is there a meaning behind the lion on the EP cover?
Well the title “Me Against You” really has two meanings. Me Against You has this negative connotation by nature. When you hear it, it just sounds like you’re competing against someone. That’s where the whole Lion and Snake come in; They are two opposites that are completely different and have that good and bad side. However “Me Against You” can also have a good meaning, like you lean against someone, like that other person has your back. It’s sort of how we felt about music at the time, we felt like there were so many bands coming out with great releases and ours had to compete against others, however no matter what we all had each other and wrote it together. I guess you can find the meaning if you look for it.
Fan Questions:
What do you think sets your music apart from other local bands? (Kate)
A lot of other local bands love to dabble in every single genre. They can’t settle down and just write a rock song, or a pop song, or a hardcore or metal or whatever song. We stick to our formula because it’s consistent and it’s what we love.
If The Life I Lead had a theme song, what would it be?
The mini mall song, just type in “it’s just like a mini mall” on youtube.
What would you do for a klondike bar?(Kate)
I would donate bone marrow and cut off both of my thumbs for a klondike bar with the nuts in the chocolate 🙂
If you had the chance to do anything without getting caught, what would it be? (Traci)
I would go to the bank, go in their vault, and carry out every single dollar in there. I could definitely use some extra cash haha
What song do you think is over played, but is still your guilty pleasure?
You know, people either love or hate on The Maine, but I love them and ‘Can’t Stop Won’t Stop’ is an awesome CD.
What song is currently stuck in your head?
The Ghost Inside just put a new song on their myspace called “Between the Lines.” It’s awesome!
Describe each of your band mates in 3 words.
I can’t really describe myself so we’ll skip me but..
Jay – fashionable, handsome, charming
Steve – vulgar, bearded, intelligent
Stan- cautious, responsible, prepared
Jason – BOSS, hilarious, talented
If you weren’t a musician what other job would you want to have?
Well, I do have another job aside from music. I’m a sales associate at an appliance store but one day hope to leave that job so music can pay me full-time.
If you were a jellybean what flavor would you be?
hahaha I’ve answered this question before actually and stick to my answer. I say grass so I could make others throw up. It made me throw up, it was disgusting.
Favorites:
Movie?
Dunston Check In
Music Video?
“My Friends Over You” by New Found Glory
Song?
“Magnolia” by Bury Your Dead
Tv Show?
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Place to perform?
The Bronx NY
Social networking site?
Facebook
Cds?
Cover Your Tracks (Bury Your Dead), Sticks and Stones (New Found Glory), Crisis (Alexisonfire), Trainwreck (Boys Night Out), The End of Heartache (Killswitch Engage) The Young and The Hopeless (Good Charlotte)
Bands?
Ivory, The Starting Line, New Found Glory, Placebo, Misery Signals
Game system and game?
Xbox 360 – Call of Duty whichever one
Place to visit?
any 7/11 because I love their tuna sandwiches
Who’s Who – band members:
Loudest? Steve
Quietest: Jason
Most talkative? Myself
Most shy? Jason
Best Dressed? Jay
Biggest Flirt? Jason
Biggest nerd? Stan
Funniest? Everyone
Craziest on stage? I think we’re all on the same level of crazy on stage haha
Anything else you would like to say or add?
Thanks so much Lucy and if we’re playing a town near you, please come and hang out with us! Hope to see you all soon 🙂