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| Photo Credit: Chloe Mantrom Pictured: (From R-L Caleb, Josh, Jeremy, JD, not present is Chris) |
Words by: Xochitl Hansen
Shadow of Whales is more than just an alternative indie pop band; they are five guys with passion that shows in the music they create. Starting in 2013 Shadow of Whales made a large splash into the music scene after making their debut appearance at DellWorld 2013 in Austin, Texas. Quickly following such an appearance, Shadow of Whales made an appearance on KTBC-FOX 7 gaining praise from many. After their debut self-titled EP charted on the CMJ's top 200 and was added to the regular rotation at Starbucks stores many more wonderful doors opened for the band such as playing music festivals like South by So What?! , RedGorilla, and Heart of Texas RockFest. On top of this, Shadow of Whales is back in the studio creating their second album and is currently competing to play the Ernie Ball stage at the upcoming Vans Warped Tour. Luckily, I was able to sit down with 4/5 of them for an interview.
MEMBERS AND THEIR ROLES
Josh Flores //vocals
Caleb Flores //drums
Jeremy Boyum //bass guitar
Chris Fraga //lead guitar
JD Vazquez // keys “and a bunch of other stuff”
When did you all start?
Jumping right to it Jeremy answered “We started in August of 2013, with our first show at DellWorld. There was a lot of people there it was pretty crazy. People were there for the convention and we were kind of something to look at as they walked by, like a circus act.”
Where did the band name come from?
“A couple years ago before the band started, I had a dream” JD begun, as Caleb chimed in. “Not like Martin Luther”. Laughing JD continued “So in this dream I was walking through this city, and when I looked up there was this huge fleet of whales in the sky above me. And when I was cascading in their shadow I just remember this feeling of humility and awe that didn’t leave me after I woke up, so I wrote that into a poem and that poem made its way into a book, and when discussing band names it kind of just fit.”
Given the weather, how did South By So What?! go for you all?
They all chimed in with positive remarks, “It was a once a once a life time opportunity for sure” Jeremy remarked. “Even with me being super sick” Josh added on, (for the record when seeing Shadow of Whales perform there was absolutely no way you could tell he was sick.) “ We’re just so freaking glad we did it. It was very trying with the weather and our trailer got locked and we couldn’t open it, the combination lock seized up we had to get a saw, - we had to saw it off, luckily we got our stuff on stage just in time”. Laughing Jeremy added “ The weather was awful, but the show was great. It was amazing!”
How are festival shows different from venue shows?
“Festival shows are great, they have most of the gear up there for you already, and the sound guys are usually pretty awesome and their really efficient where as venue people it’s kind of hit or miss. The crowd energy is just totally different for both”
How recently were you on tour?
“ About two weeks ago, we went up to Kansas to play the rockathon they have on campus there. The show was closer to us ( referring to the sound of SoW), which there isn’t a lot of here in Austin. We normally play with metal bands.”
How does touring working normally for you guys?
“Normally we have to take separate vehicles, but luckily we just got a van and his name is Chuy. It’s a twelve passenger and we have a trailer. When we have all the seats in, it’s not crowded... If we are trying to fit it all into the van, we have to take a seat out and that’s kind of crowded, but we still all fit so that’s great”
“On the flip side money will always be a factor and health, money and health. To stay healthy is hard, because it’s super easy to eat junk, then you feel like crap and it shows on stage. Though this past one we ate relatively healthy food that’s cheap, like sandwiches and stuff “
Pros and Cons of touring?
“Pros of touring are everything and the cons of touring are that you have to come home and go back to work. Seriously, we went out to Kansas and it was so much fun, to get out there. When we came back, we weren’t really depressed, but we had this feeling like we really didn’t want to be here, kind of like discontent. You know, they talk about post show depression for like fans and stuff but we have that too. Like whenever the tours over, whenever the shows over its kind of eh. Were happy to be home, because you miss family and stuff but you have to go back to work and get back to not doing shows, it’s just not where you want to be.”
What’s the farthest you’ve been away from Texas, and where do you want to play?
“Kansas”. When answering the added on question they all responded with passion, “Everywhere”.
How’d you describe the Austin music scene?
“That’s a big really big question, the local music scene is… saturated. The local scene is awesome, but it’s also frustrating and depressing the same time. It’s more difficult than people think, but Austin’s is one of my favorite cities, I love Austin. There is a respect and pride amongst the musicians and the fans, which you don’t see everywhere else and that’s awesome. At the same time, you have bands that are really gun ho... like I want to help the other bands, but there are other bands that are really into themselves and don’t care about helping anyone else. Same goes for promoters and venues, it’s kind of like there are two worlds in Austin and you have to be careful where you go. Austin is a great place to start but you cant stay there without expecting to get frustrated, because everyone is in a band. When we say ‘hey you should check my band out, I’m in a band’ they're like ‘cool, who isn’t’. You’re automatically terrible until proven otherwise.”
Any other locals you play with or tend to collaborate with often?
“Definitely! We have a lot of friends here in Austin that we like to play with often” They went off to name a great list of musicians I recommend you check out.
“Radio City, City Sound, Taking on Poseidon, Beard the Lion, Locket, Lions and Tigers, Hitting Subset, Minds and Machines, Calamity Jane”
What’s coming up for you all?
“Were currently working on Vans Warped Tour Battle of the Bands, we pretty much aced the first round and last time I check were in the top 10% in the country. I mean were in the top 100 so were right where we need to be. Also we have a show May 23rd at Dirty Dog, which we're excited for because this show is going to be full set with bands, so it’s going to be very local and very awesome! Plus we have another show coming up in San Antonio in June.
*Huge thank you to Shadow of Whales for taking the time to sit down answer my questions!
Catch them on Social Media
Vote from them on Vans Warped Tour Battle of the Bands
YouTube
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