In The Loop was lucky enough to be able to interview duo Edward and Graham before their show on April 26th. With roots in the Chicago Music Scene, this group was excited to be playing Schubas Tavern, and we were interested to hear their take on the scene here in Chicago.

What are your musical backgrounds?

Evan: That’s an interesting question for us, because I’m actually in a progressive tech, metal band, and I grew up listening to metal and all kinds of stuff really, Beatles and whatever. My dad played music also, I’ve always been into heavier bands, but I produce and engineer bands as well, and I’ve always worked with [Johnny], so over the years I did his first EP and did some guitar and stuff on it, and the next one I did even more, and then I was like ‘hey why don’t we play together live and [then] after awhile it was like, we should just change the name and hit it hard.

Johnny: And my background and influence really comes a lot from the Beatles, I think both of our fathers raised us on that stuff, but during high school I sort of deviated into more like John Mayer, really pop/singer songwriter thing, not to say Evan wasn’t into it, but I knew him more as the ‘Metal Guy’, I mean he likes Coldplay and everything, but I think our sound really comes from putting our two areas together.

Evan: I do love Coldplay

Johnny: He does

What is your take on the Chicago Music Scene Right Now?

Johnny: I don’t really know who’s doing so much similar to our sound, but a lot of what I think the Chicago music scene I think of hip/hop, uh, I hear that metal is big here too, or hard rock is pretty big here.

Evan: Yeah there’s a lot of metal, but it’s weird I feel like, I mean this went on a few years ago, but it got really competitive and like not in a good way, I think that a lot of bands realized it wasn’t the best way to go about it. Like selling the most tickets, going back to presale style shows and stuff like that. And personally, shame on venues for even doing that kind of stuff, but like, I think Chicago is back on the up and up with helping each other out, really caring about the shows, getting people out for all the bands and what not.

Johnny: That was such a good answer

Evan: That’s what it’s all about, you know?

Who are some musicians that inspire you?

Evan: So I’ve been teaching music for over a decade, so I listen to everything, I mean I had to and I finally realized I could learn to appreciate everything. It sounds kind of snobby, but it’s my job, I have to sit there and study Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa, and I'm like, ‘oh wait a minute this little chord change is cool’ but yeah, I grew up learning every Metallica song that I could, Beatles absolutely, out of the crib, Coldplay is one of my favorite bands, I went on a huge Yanni kick, just total nerd stuff. But yeah, Beatles and Metallica would probably be the biggest for me.

Johnny: For me, definitely John Mayer, like I would have to imagine Blink-182 and fall Out Boy come through somehow in my writing. I have to be influenced by it in someway from high school. But then when I discovered John Mayer I got into songwriting more.

What was your first gig like?

Johnny: I played drums in high school and that’s fine, cause you’re in the back -not to take anything away from drummers-, but the first time I sang I was terrified, because I didn’t know how I would respond to it, but I actually found myself feeling incredibly comfortable. And I didn’t like public speaking and stuff like that so I thought it would translate to the stage, but it didn’t, and it actually turned out to be ok.

Evan: I um, gosh I don’t remember, i mean, I think I actually got paid in 8th grade to play a pool party, with my metal band

Johnny: An 8th grade metal band..

Evan: Yeah we just did like Ozzy Osbourne covers and like, we threw in Hotel California and your standard old hits. Uh yeah, I just have played forever, it’s just something I’ve always wanted to do, you know? For money or not. At that age, it was just like, you play anything you could.

Johnny: And I think we both had just like super musical families, I mean both of our dads were in bands growing up, so it was just something that was always around you.

Evan: We actually found out later, our dads, both filled in for a band at the same time and we were both at the show, it was an outdoor summer festival thing, and we were probably 2-3 years old when it happened so we were with our moms. Cause the Beatles cover bands often borrowed members from other Beatles' cover bands.

Any advice to up and coming artists?

Johnny: It’s so hard not to give a cliche answer to this, but I’ll let Evan go first cause he will say something profound.

Evan: Coming from someone who is an educator, because I teach kids, high schoolers, and adults, I help people record, produce, and then I’ll tell you what you’re supposed to do after that, because I feel as though there is so much misinformation out there. [Nowadays] you can record a song on your iPhone and put it up on Soundcloud, and people are becoming more entitled to things. So if I were to offer any advice, it would be to be more open to all kinds of music and bands, and get out there and do the world. Because if you don’t, you’re not promised anything. No one is going to come listen to your song just because it is a good song, you still have to prove that it is good.

Johnny: I would say, don’t be afraid to write bad songs, because it will happen. You can’t get discouraged. Further down the road, good ones come, but I feel like it is so easy to get discouraged if it’s not great right away, or people don’t respond to it right away. I mean, I’ve written so many songs that looking back, that are so laughable. It’s easy to get discouraged if you're not what you envisioned. And my other piece of advice would be to finish the song you are writing. I can tell you that I still do it. I have a thousand verses not attached to choruses, or choruses I haven’t attached to verses. I think that seeing it through for the sake of seeing it through is important.

Evan: I think that goes along with don’t be afraid to write a bad song, because sometimes you just have to keep going and keep the wheels moving in order to finish it.

What are your future plans for the band?

Evan: I think we are going to do more shows in this format, we have a full band around us now, we are super excited about that.

Johnny: We want to broaden the fan base through that, and in some point in the future we want to do an 8 song thing, something, a bigger collections of songs as a full band. Cause at the end of the day that’s how we envisioned ourselves to be.

What are you currently listening to?

Johnny: I really like the new James Bay stuff, I always have a steady diet of the Avett Brothers going, John Mayer. Also Tom Niche and Daniel Caesar

Evan: Lord Huron, I went and saw him on Riviera on the day his new album was released.

If you could perform with any musician, dead or alive, who would it be and where would it be?

Evan: It would have to be opening for John Mayer or the Avett Brothers at Tinley Park or Alpine Valley.

Johnny: See, I would have to say I would want to play Red Rock, the acoustics out there are just fantastic, cause it’s all natural acoustics.