Q’s and A’s with the Brighton Boys about new album
The Brighton Boys hope to kick up a little fun with their first full-length album.
The Brighton Boys
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We knew this day would come, but it蘑菇视频 still easy to feel proud.
The Brighton Boys have grown up.
For those who pay attention and partake in the Beaver Valley music scene, it蘑菇视频 been fun watching the ascent of the Brighton Boys from gigs at places like the Beaver Gazebo, to revving up sold-out audiences as support act for Donnie Iris and the Granati Brothers, to headlining bars like Kelly蘑菇视频 Irish Pub.
With their stage banter, energy and tight sound that蘑菇视频 fresh but mindful of past eras, the Brighton Boys have earned a reputation as a must-see live act. People in Pittsburgh are paying attention including Root Sports, which has featured the band in its Friday Night Rocks segment during Pirates telecasts.
Now comes the release of the foursome蘑菇视频 debut full-length, 鈥淟ove Sentence,鈥� a professional sounding, ambitious, wide-spanning and thoroughly entertaining effort available on iTunes or in person. Singer Alex Bobin took time recently to field some questions about the new album and the band蘑菇视频 upcoming plans.
Q: Congratulations on the new album. How do you feel your music has evolved since you first started playing local gigs?
A: When we first started doing gigs around town, it was kind of like the band had two different personalities. We鈥檇 cover these old soul and R&B records that one demographic would love. Then we had our power-pop EP 鈥淢MXV鈥� that did really well with the younger kids. With this record specifically, we threw in the 鈥済enre鈥� towel so to speak, and just made the music that we wanted to. Which was such a refreshing thing to do and with the release of our newest single it蘑菇视频 seemed to close the gap between those two demographics, and we couldn鈥檛 be happier.
Q: Besides the straight-up, catchy pop there are some fun surprises. Like that bit of big, bend-y spaghetti-western/surf guitar in 鈥�#Snaked鈥� or 鈥溾��59 Ford鈥� that sounds a bit Brian Setzer meets 鈥淢ambo No. 5.鈥� How important is it for the Brighton Boys to be adventurous and has that always come natural?
A: One thing people tell us all the time after shows is how much they love our diversity and the range of genres that we can do. The record really reflects that and we had the time of our lives making it. It was just one of those things that we were just going to make the music we wanted to make without worry of not fitting into a certain genre. Genres are so last year.
Q: There are some road trip songs on the album, like 鈥淐alifornia,鈥� which drops the names of James Dean and 鈥淣uthin鈥� But a 鈥楪鈥� Thang.鈥� Would it be crazy to interpret the lyrics as some sort of male response to Katy Perry蘑菇视频 鈥淐alifornia Gurls,鈥�? Or what is the story you鈥檙e telling here?
A: I love that! Never thought about having the song be a parallel to that Katy Perry record. As I listen to it, I can definitely see it though. When I wrote 鈥淐alifornia鈥� I took on this care-free persona that was widely inspired by the music video for Blink 182蘑菇视频 鈥淔irst Date鈥� and a lot of the videos from Dre and N.W.A., ultimately putting aside the glitzy/glamour/Hollywood vibe that we often hear on the charts. I picture some East Coast kid, with a visor hat on, driving a beat up El Camino just 鈥楥alifornia Dreamin.鈥� Upon completion of that song I鈥檝e interpreted many different ways, and I hope the listener does the same thing. Katy Perry, hit me up though.
Q: In 鈥淓ighty Sixx,鈥� are you speeding down the highway away from someone or toward them?
A: 鈥淓ighty Sixx鈥� is a relatively dark song, lyrically. Throughout the course of making the album the band had some pretty serious talks and hardships, and we grew so much closer because of it. 鈥淓ighty Sixx鈥� talks about the lifestyle so many musicians know, even going all the way back to having the urge to be a rock star, in grade school. It蘑菇视频 definitely a memoir in some right, and definitely is a vulnerable song. The tag 鈥�86 on the highway, red and blue come and find me鈥� is a cool line specifically because I wrote it on the way back from our trip to Chicago, and originally it was about the speed limit. So naturally one might interpret 86 as the speed, but I think it can double as age. As to say, me and my friends are in it for the long run, and even at 86 years old. Red and Blue is not just law enforcement, but authority and limits themselves. It蘑菇视频 about abandoning your fears and living life. It蘑菇视频 up to the audience if you鈥檙e running away from something or going toward it.
Q: How did you come up with the idea for that cool collaboration with local 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� contestant Kenzie Palmer on 鈥淟eft at The Altar鈥�?
A: That was such a different song to write for us, definitely another vulnerable one. The plot line is basically about a guy being left at the altar on the Fourth of July. Specifically the fourth because it gave the song depth and context. As I was writing lyrics, the song was begging for a female vocal, and Kenzie has one of the best voices I鈥檝e ever heard, and I knew I wanted the song to sound conversational in a sense, to give a different perspective. We did her vocal in a hotel room in Nashville, and you would鈥檝e thought the whole city shut down to hear her sing. It was mental. She just fit right on the song, and her and I discussed different ways to approach it, and we鈥檙e both stoked with how it turned out.
Q: Another of the new songs is 鈥淟ondonderry Drive.鈥� Isn鈥檛 that a real street somewhere back of New Brighton? It talks about advice from a father. Is that a personal song from someone in the band?
A: Londonderry Drive was the street I grew up on until about 2006-07. It蘑菇视频 based off real conversations I鈥檝e had with my dad, and things that I鈥檝e done over the roller coaster ride of about 10 years. From the time that he bought me my first guitar, until right now on the eve of our debut album coming out. It蘑菇视频 a personal song, but we all loved the vibe that it had, and the inspirational back story it came with.
Q: Root Sports has featured you guys during Pittsburgh Pirates telecasts, and the band recently recorded some tracks at the famed Blackbird Studio in Nashville. Besides the album release show at Kelly蘑菇视频 Irish Pub, what other goals do you plan or hope to achieve this year?
A: We鈥檙e going to be branching out quite a bit. We鈥檙e getting more and more involved with the Pirates. We鈥檙e actually (played) their block party June 3 at PNC Park as well as filming some more stuff for them that night. We鈥檙e going to be all over the East Coast and Midwest this next year and we cannot wait. It蘑菇视频 just the beginning.