Over the comes weeks we're going to be putting all of interviews online for everyone to read, if you want to get a physical copy we should hopefully have some soon at www.waitingonrevolutiondistro.bigcartel.com
Here we have an interview we did with Tony from The Effort in February 2010. Enjoy
Here we have an interview we did with Tony from The Effort in February 2010. Enjoy
You have an amazing new ep out titled “Demo Sessions,” a preview of your upcoming LP “Wartime Citizens,” which you are in the process of recording. Would you like to talk about the inspiration behind those songs? And when exactly should we be expecting this to be released? And what inspires you?
All the songs are so different, it’s hard to pinpoint a simple explanation behind “what inspires me”. I’d have to say life in general does. Things I hear on the news, what I experience myself, all of it inspires me to write. Writing, as well as some other mediums is my form of self-expression and it keeps me sane. I know this seems like such a broad statement, but again, all the songs are so different and descriptive that I would literally have to write a novel to explain them all properly haha. The new LP “Wartime Citizens” has an expected release date of July 4, 2010, and we are really excited for everyone to hear it.
You released your first ep “Wear Your Heart” and full-length "Iconoclasm" on Words of War Records, then “From Our Mistakes” on Hellfish, and now “Demo Sessions” and the upcoming “Wartime Citizens” on Panic. How did you get on Panic records?
Well, after working with Words of War Records we decided that we only wanted to work with friends, and with people who we could predict how they would operate their label because we could trust them. This lead us to work with a longtime friend Michael Martin, the owner of Hellfish Family. While on one of our tours we met Timm who was singing in Wait In Vain. We became friends and Timm later reached out to us and asked us to be on Panic. We knew Timm was a great guy who did everything he could for his bands so we agreed to it!
In the past you've been lucky enough to work with Sean Murphy from Verse, Patrick Flynn from Have Heart and Sweet Pete from In My Eyes. To me that's amazing, how did you manage to get them to do guest vocals? and is there anyone we should look out for on the up coming release?
Well, they are all just humans so it was pretty easy haha. We met them, they enjoyed our band and we asked if they would like to be on our record. Luckily they were all very into the idea. As for the new record, we decided to take a step back and produce something that is only “The Effort”.
You guys are from Merrimack Valley, previously made known by the success of bands such as Shipwreck and Guns Up. Do you feel any pressure to live up to the name?
Not one bit. We wouldn’t be a band if we felt like we had to live in another’s shadows or live up to names.
You recently toured Central America. What made you want to tour there? Any interesting stories from being on the road?
Central America was pretty unique and awesome. We were actually referred to go down there by a couple bands and then we were contacted by Central Booking about setting up a tour. We have always had the mentality where we want to try new things, and that’s what this tour was for us. We were able to visit hardcore scenes down there that are literally in their infant stages. We got to go to a rainforest, see volcanoes, ride on buses for entire days and come back flat broke and left with what was in our backpacks. It was an amazing and very humbling experience.
What bands if any are you really keen on at the moment? Any we should check out?
There are always the bands in our top friends on myspace. All the bands up there we 110% support and back what they have to say. Besides that I’m really excited for this new Hostage Calm LP, I can’t wait to hear the whole thing. Also, a couple other bands to check out that are doing awesome things would be Expire and Iron Rain.
How have you found being a band throughout the recent Global Financial Crisis?
I have found being a human being and living in economic oppression a horrible dehumanizing thing. This band has helped me tour and hear first hand stories around the world how the economic systems put in place are hurting far too many lives. That’s about it, no one wants to hear how it’s hard for us, or how we can barely afford to live our dreams. That’s all bullshit, we should be the last people to talk about how financial crisis has affected us.
Apart from being in The Effort, what do you and the rest of the band do in the ‘real’ world?
James, Jordan and I are all attending college. James is going to school for law, while Jordan and I are pursuing education degrees. I’m also working at a tattoo shop, Jordan works at a coffee shop, Christian is a teacher, and Ryan is a youth organizer. We do what we can to get by.
You're one of the few bands who still have a political voice, which I find amazing and inspiring. How do you find people usually respond to your political and social outspokenness?
I think it rubs some people the wrong way, but most of the time I try to explain my views in a way that I think shows how social issues affect every single one of us. But I can’t expect anyone to agree with me, or anything I have to say. I don’t do it for a response, I do it because I have to. Like I said before, this shit keeps me sane, it’s my version of therapy. The reason I love punk and hardcore so much is because I can be myself.
What is the legacy, if any, that you hope to leave behind from your time with the band? What do you hope to achieve as an individual?
We don’t ever think about that, and personally I don’t think too much about the future myself. I just live, because if I make too many decisions based upon future outcomes I’m not living in the moment. I would just be living in fictitious worlds of wants and what could bees. All I want is to be happy, and to not be selfish while doing so, that’s what I hope to achieve personally.
What are your hopes for the future of the band?
We haven’t thought too much of that either haha, just taking it day by day. After the new record comes out we are doing a full US tour, and then hitting up Europe in the winter. The summer after that we plan on trying a few new places!
Any chance of seeing you in Australia someday?
Hopefully! I’m trying to work something out eventually where we go to South East Asia and hit up Australia at the same time, we’ll see!
Final thoughts/shout outs?
thanks for the interview man, sorry it took so long to get it back to you. Everyone should check out all the bands in our top friends and all our label mates on Hellfish Family and Panic Records!
If you like what you read you can buys their releases from us through our distro www.waitingonrevolutiondistro.bigcartel.com
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