Picking the Brains of A Wolf. A Liar. (recently broke up)

A Wolf. A Liar. had been around for some time, and unfortunately broke up before I had the chance to publish this. :(

I'm not typically drawn to music with this style of vocals, but after listening to one song, then the next, etc.. It didn't take long for me to realize that these guys are incredible musicians, and pretty friendly fellows. Unfortunately, they broke up before their summer tour so I don't feel the need to write a ton. 



J: Let's start by telling me a bit about yourselves as a band, and as individuals. You've been around for a minute and have had lots of changes in your line-up, who does your band currently consist of, and who's the mastermind behind the lyrics?

A:Well, we are A Wolf. A Liar. out of Guthrie, Oklahoma. In terms of genre, we started out as a post-hardcore band, but our newer stuff is referred to as a more technical metalcore most of the time. We have gone through a lot of changes, but our current line consists of Dalton Lott(Harsh vocalist/frontman), Max Young(Guitar/Cleans), Nathan Graeber(Bass), and Eric Donnell(Drums). Dalton has written pretty much all of the lyrics. 

J:  Can you tell me what it's been like putting out your first full length? Do you plan on pressing vinyl in the near future?

A: It has definitely been a journey, to say the least. During the writing process, we lost 2 of our members, one of which was our other guitarist. So Max(guitarist) had to go back in a few days before we were set to begin tracking, and restructure the album to have a fuller sound with just one guitar track. Some of the songs had been sitting around for a year, some were written in a day, but they all had to be rewritten. In the process, we became a 4 member band instead of a 5. We don’t know about vinyl, but we are definitely going to have physical copies as soon as we can. 

J: Your backwoods benefit party went over pretty well, yeah?

A:Yeah, it was pretty rad. After it was all said and done, we got to deliver a truck load full of help to the victims of the tornadoes that hit all around Oklahoma. Our biggest thing with our music has always been to have solid live representation of what we record. Like, what you hear on the album, we do live for the most part. We have been told that our stage presence is very tight, and we are energetic. It’s not uncommon that some of us will end up in the crowd throughout the course of our set. Haha.

J: You guys all prepared for your tour? Is this your first, or?

A: We would definitely like to think we are ready for tour, and yes this is our first one. Some of our members have touring experience though, so we are hoping it goes smooth. There should be dates and locations available on our Facebook page. 

J: I listen to a lot of early thrash and post-hardcore stuff, and some older screamo before it got all weak. I can't quite put my finger on your influences, but have heard you compared to lamb of god. I don't really agree. Who inspires you?

A: Haha. That is funny. We have heard that too, oddly enough. We have a pretty diverse range, in terms of influences, especially since our member changes. We all listen to a lot of hardcore music, and definitely lean towards the heavier side of things. We also strongly like softer styles, like acoustic music. There is some rap in there too. Our road trip playlists have anything from Mumford& Sons to Impending Doom. 

J: What can you tell me about your instruments? (i.e., Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play with whatever's available?) I've noticed a way subtle synth in some of your stuff. I'm a korg enthusiast myself.

A:Well, we are kind of all over the place. We are working on endorsements, but currently our drummer is the only one that has anything going. (Imperial, Dark Horse, Silver Fox) We all like ESP guitars, and that is what our guitarist is currently playing, but we aren’t necessarily gear snobs. Definitely gear nuts, but not snobs. Haha. About the only thing we are dead set on is our live guitar rigs, which consists of Fractal Audio Systems Axe Fx guitar processors. They are the shizzle. 

J: Back when you guys were younger, who were the small unsigned bands that you went to go see/ looked up to/ wanted to die/ etc? describe them, who were the gems that never got to see the light?

A: Man, there have been so many good bands come and go. We all like Harp&Lyre, they are about the only one that we all were into at some point. 

J: Now that we've talked about influences and old favorites, what are you currently listening to? Who are some of your favorite locals?

A:We are all jamming a lot of hardcore, and metalcore right now. Gets ya pumped up. Been listening to Glass Cloud, Fit For A King, and Northlane as well, just to name a few. As far as locals go, our friend’s bands Keeper(pop punk), and In Honor(hardcore), have been tearing it up lately. Love those guys.

J: As artists, we're all pretty familiar with the term "starving artist" How do you cope with your major obstacles?

A: We work as hard as we can, and eat off of the dollar menu. 

J: What would you consider your largest fan base, and why?

A:Probably just the local kids around here. We also have a lot of overseas support too, for some reason.

J: What's been your most personal project so far?

A: Probably the new album, and organizing the benefit show. There was a lot of time and emotion put into both. 

J: Is there anyone you'd like to acknowledge for offering financial or emotional support?

A: Just a huge shout out to all of our families, and friends. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.

**Thanks to Max Young, sorry about your band. 

Morning Chatter with Garland of Sunny Side up

Sunny Side up and what appears to be an extra random dude?



Sunny Side Up are fucking delightful. I woke up to their new album Paradise in the sky woke over coffee this morning, along with pleasant conversation with Garland, their bassist. The album has left a permanent smile plastered on my face with their ferocious horns, twinkly guitar riffs and upbeat ska sound that is way reminiscent of my early youth, when I listened to lots of Less Than Jake, Voodoo glow skulls, and Ska hooplah I haven't thought about in years. (Not to mention their Orange amp. I was sold at Orange amp!) Songs like Hollywood Horror and Corporate control have me wiggling at my desk. You can catch these guys at Bad Granny's and pick up a copy of Paradise in the sky, or The Conservatory quite often, two awesome local gems I also adore.

You can also check out their latest album here, but It'd be more awesome if you bought it. Here's what Garland and I chattered about not long ago:

J: So, let's start by telling me a little more about your band. Who are you guys as individuals? What makes you tick?

G: We've got six band members who come from very different backgrounds. Individually we all have a common love for ska music but having six very different types of people and musicians makes things interesting. We've got a classically trained guitarist, theater actor front man, chiptune writing bassist, and of course, radical horn players.

J: Awesome. How'd you get your band name, and how long have you guys been together? Any previous projects?

G: The story behind our band name is kind of lame. Way back in 2010 we were at an ihop trying to come up with a name to replace our original band name, The Skalocaust. Lance thought it was weird that I was the only one in the band who preferred my eggs cooked sunny side up. I proposed the name and it was kept sort of as a placeholder. We never came up with anything better.

J: What's been your most personal project so far?

G: Definitely this most recent album, Paradise in the Sky. It was 3 years in the making and really shows off the best of our early music. It has a little bit of everything. You've got your awesome party ska music but also influences from indie, 80s rock, operatic ballads, and more. In addition to the music, the album art is all tailor made to the music on the album. Each copy of the CD comes with an 8 page comic book about the band and the universe we try to paint in listeners minds.

J: Who's helped you the most on your musical adventures, support wise?

G: That's a great question. Honestly, we have been fortunate to have a ton of awesome people help us out. Names that stand out though are Eric from The Spy FM. He's always been there for us and we appreciate every show and radio play he has given us. Also Mrs. Harris from Bad Granny's Bazaar lets us put on shows that are way too big for her back room venue. The fact she lets us still do it is very awesome.

J: Ska is a huge part of my youth, How'd you get involved in the type of music you play/sing now? What bands were your biggest influence? I'm guessing something along the lines of Mad Caddies, Voodoo Glow Skulls and some of the more old school stuff, no?

G: Absolutely all of those bands. Ska was a huge part of my life in high school, and I know the rest of the band went through a similar music phase of it around then. I'm gonna be honest with you, I was kind of a loser in high school. I used to sit around alone listening to The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Aquabats, Reel Big Fish, Ore Ska Band, and such all the time dreaming of being in a band like that. A few years later, and its a reality. Still, the way the band feels about ska is that its evolution has basically been halted due to bands conforming to cliches and rules. We're doing our best to flesh out our brand of ska with different influences.

J: What do you feel distinguishes an artist from a musician?

Personally I guess I'd say a musician is anyone who plays music, but an artist is someone who creates it.

J: What are you listening to currently?

I know the guys in the band are digging the new Daft Punk album. We did a cover of Get Lucky at our album release show that seemed to go over well. Tanner, Austin and I are all listening to the new Anamanaguchi album too.

J: If you were a sweater, what kind would you be?

The Sweater Song by Weezer

J: Your release party went over pretty rad, from my understanding. Again, I'm sorry for missing it. What can someone expect when seeing you guys live?

We're trying to change up the formula of our live shows now that we have a full album out. We're now aiming for less of a traditional ska-punk experience and more of a show. We've got lazer lights, balloon drops, all kinds of fun visual effects to keep people interested. Our goal with that is from the moment our set starts until it ends we want to keep them entertained and into it. We want to let them leave their normal lives for a half hour or so and just be happy among a crowd of friends.

J: Anything in particular you're super stoked for now that your new album is up for grabs? Where can we tell our readers to pick this up at?

We're super stoked to have a distribution and PR company working with it. There's going to be a few cable ads over the next couple months promoting the new album. Also from what I'm aware you'll be able to pick it up soon at places like FYE, Hastings, Best Buy, ect.

Right now though in OKC you can get it at Guestroom Records and Bad Granny's Bazaar. Or of course, our shows.

J: As artists, we're all pretty familiar with the term "starving artist" How do you cope with your major obstacles?

Our major obstacles, in the local scene at least, is being written off quickly because we identify with ska music. The best way we handle that is a kill em' with kindness type technique. We ask bands from radically different genres to play shows with us, we play at unconventional venues. Basically, we show the people who may be hesitant about us that we're all about having a good time.

J: If you had an opportunity to change something about the music industry, what would it be?

I'd really like big time promoters to realize the potential of local artists and what they can do. Last summer after we learned of Sublime With Rome's show at the Zoo Amphitheater we ran a facebook campaign to show the promotion company that people would come see us at a huge arena type venue. Just 48 hours into the campaign we already had over 1,500 people pledge support. In the end, we did get that opening spot and I think that shows proof of what a local scene can do. I wish promoters would take advantage of this.

J: Do you have any stalker-esque fans? If so, how did this impact you?

We've had a few. Last fall we met this girl at an anime convention who really needed to chill out. She came to one of our shows in bridal wear looking to marry a member of the band. Spooky stuff. Also she ate dog biscuits.

J: What would you consider your largest fan base, and why?

Obviously the bulk of our fans are here in Oklahoma City, but also I hear about people from all over who like SSU music. We recently collaborated with Jun Senoue, guitarist of Crush 40. They're a band out of Tokyo, so I'd love to get a Japanese fan base.

**Special thanks to Garland for being so awesome, and Steven Pamplin.