← #12: CORY JREAMZ #14: CUUSHE →
I went to go see them live last week, which was an experience that showed me their recorded songs - as good as they are - cannot match the furious frenzy of their in-the-flesh renditions. I really do recommend that you go and see them, if you can of course. It's something that injects the soul with the spark of punk spirit that The Orwells' crashing boom bang sound creates. It was fun. And on top of that, they were extremely kind enough to take time to answer the Lazy Interview questions. What gentlemen!
Who are you? Where are you from? What do you do?
We're The Orwells, we're from Chicago, Illinois. We play rock n' roll music.
Why did you decide to start creating music?
It was one of the only things we weren't horrible at. And it gave us something to do on the weekends.
How would you describe your sound? What makes you and your style stand out?
Youthful. I think it's our energy that makes us different from the rest, when we play live, having a good time comes before performing well.
Is there a perfect time and place for listening to your music?
When you just got suspended from school.
What inspires you most when writing a song?
Thinking of being on stage with each other playing it to a crowd of people. Finding the connection between all five of us.
What is your most memorable musical experience?
Hearing The Stooges' 'I Wanna Be Your Dog' for the first time. That song put the band on the path we're currently still venturing down.
What are your favourite three songs at the moment?
The Virgins - Travel Express
Ty Seagall - She Don't Care
Bob Dylan - She's Your Lover Now
Who do you most admire in the music world?
The Replacements.
In your opinion, what is the future of music?
Rock n' roll will take over this planet again. Mark my words.
What's the future of your music - what do you hope to do next?
Keep making different sounding albums. See how far we can push the walls to our box without breaking them.
What, aside from music, is most important to you?
Family, cheese fries, and baseball.
In some ways, the most important thing that's said here is the word "youthful" - it's what they are most known for. But that's only in some ways. However, it is definitely something that makes them stand out. Their songs are bursts of irony, vents of frustrations, slightly morbid explosions - things that, more often than not, come from young minds. Putting that kind of stuff on a record is easy enough, but to play it with even more attitude, energy and aggression onstage - as if your life depended on it almost - is something that isn't easy to replicate every time. In that sense, they're very genuine.
It all seems to be about the live performances with these guys. They would prefer to have a "good time" over "performing well", but often if you don't think about performing at all, and just enjoy yourself, things go more swimmingly than you'd imagine. Simply by trying to have a fun time, trying to connect with each other, and always thinking of that live sound, The Orwells - in their muddle of youth as we all are - become more philosophical than they perhaps expected they'd be perceived: they are about the NOW. People may gloss over a band like The Orwells with a just-another-punk-band cynicism - for me, however, they put noise to all the wordless exclamations of our generation. Plus, cheese fries - or cheesy chips as we know them here in the UK - are very important.
As for their prediction of rock 'n' roll taking over the planet again... I've never really thought about that but, in a time where dance music is dominating popular music, the switch back to guitar-based music could be closer - and more angry - than you think. Watch out world.
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