i promised to put the Pat Brown interview up. here it is:
Were you always into music when you were growing up?
Well, I’ve been playing the piano since 6th grade. My mom’s a piano teacher, so music has been in my skull since I was born. And then from church camp, I saw the counselors playing guitar and got interested. My parents bought me one and then in junior high, I started to meet other people who played guitar or bands. We started off by doing Blink 182 covers and all that, but as I got older, I began discovering serious people. I started the band through people I met in other bands who had the same aspirations as me.
How’d you get your break into the business?
Our 1st show ever, we opened for Motion City Soundtrack at this Myspace Secret Show, which was a huge opportunity. It was a tiny venue in Minneapolis and we won this contest to play. . Motion City Soundtrack is from our hometown so they’re like A-list celebrities. The guitarist Josh like us and said he was interested in helping us out and wanted sit down and talk, We went out to lunch and Josh wanted to help get us in the right direction and showed to owner of Epitaph Records who signed us right away.
How did you choose the name Sing it Loud?
Choosing a name is the hardest thing, because you don’t want to be typecast, and we didn’t want to hate our name. We ended up taking the name from a song on our album ‘Let Yourself Go’, because in the bridge there’s a part that goes ‘sing out loud.’
What’s your favorite part about being in a band?
We’re all really good friends. I love stepping back and looking around to see my friends next to me on stage and I’m thinking I don’t have to go to school and work… Touring is awesome!
What music do you listen to on the road?
My favorite band is Still Canvas; Bjork is one of favorites now. It’s weird but I usually listen to bands I’m on tour with, even though you’d think I’d get sick of it, but I don’t. So I’m listening to Cobra Starship and then I know all the words when they’re on stage. [laughs]
What’s it like to tour with Cobra Starship?
Amazing, it’s really cool. This is our 1st real tour with bands in tour buses that are famous. We’re waking up every day in a city we’ve never been to; it’s great.
What inspires your songs?
Well, we write almost all our music together. It’s all things that go on in everyday lives. When we wrote album, we were in crappy relationships with girls so we got vent together in the songs. But the lyrics are going to be more happy in our next album.
If you could collaborate with an artist from a completely different genre, who would it be?
John Mayer, he’s just plain awesome. The one thing I like about him is he’s like , B.B. king and Elvis Presley, in that no matter what, he will last. There really aren’t any band that’s come out that I think we’ll remember 10-20 years. But John Mayer is someone I believe will be listened to for a hundred years.
What are your favorite songs on the album ‘Come Around’?
The last two songs, “Fade away” and “Best Beating Heart”, because I wrote all the lyrics and music. I hold those one closer to my heart than the others.
Do you ever get nervous or feel the pressure of being a celebrity?
I’ve been getting nervous just because I’m not used to playing for big as crowds as we are right now. When the lights go out and the intro starts, we walk on and there’s all the people screaming and I start freaking out. I don’t think I’ll get used it. It’s a good feeling though.
So do you do anything before you get out on stage?
Before every show, I sit by myself and don’t talk to anyone. I just lay down in van, chill and warm up my voice. I do stretch routines too because I have back problems.
Any interesting fan encounters?
I think it’s super cool when our fans research our Myspace and know what we like to eat like I love sour gummy worms and Gatorade. Some of them bring food and drinks we like to the shows.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
Hm, I wish I could fly. That would come in handy.
Do you ever see yourself doing anything other than music?
I have a back up plan to teach piano like my mom, but right when I got out of high school and start touring I knew I was taking a step toward goal and it’s honestly the only thing I want to do with my life.
What’s your favorite thing about the other guys in the band? Any interesting quirks?
We’re all really different. Our bass player Nate is the kid who doesn’t drink or party. He’s organized and a nice guy. Our van would be a complete mess without him because he’s super responsible. Kieran on guitar is just goodness oriented. He takes care of the big important stuff otherwise we’d be lost with out him. Ben, our keyboard player, is the funniest dude ever. He can do an impression of anybody. Chris is really chilled out with other bands and is always down to hang out. I’m the go out and party, hang out with people person. So we all bring cool elements to the table and we can all still get along.
What’s one piece of advice to aspiring musicians?
Lots of other people-family and friends- will hate on what you’re doing and can be very unsupportive. I zoned everyone out and didn’t care what everyone thought. If I would have let them get to me, I would be most unhappy person ever and have passed off the opportunity of a lifetime. Wanting to be in band is kind of a ridiculous dream like being an actor or athlete. You think it doesn’t happen to people, but it does. Just focus on what you’re doing and you’ll get there.
Make sure to go out and buy Sing It Loud’s album “Come Around” in stores now, with 11 songs featuring the guest vocals of Justin Pierre of Motion City Soundtrack and Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low.
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