The Scurves – Interview – Thanks for Asking!

The Scurves – Interview – Thanks for Asking! – by Liam Sweeny.

RRX: Like songs, every artist has a unique feeling about their first show. What was your first show like? Was it your best show? If not, what was your best show like?

DJ: Our first show was, in a word, cathartic.  It was a culmination of years of work all pouring out in a 35-minute set.  We all played in bands before the Scurves so playing out wasn’t new to us, but the collaboration of the three of us was and it worked.   Our best show was, for me, our last show.  It was one of those shows that took me by surprise, pleasantly.

Dan: We are at a point where things are really gelling.  Our set is lived-in now.  The most recent show at Desperate Annie’s takes the cake for my favorite to date.

Levi: I have to agree with DJ and Dan, the last show we played was our best. We’ve been playing together for so long everything just clicks, and that frees us up to just play our hearts out!

RRX: How does practice go? Is the road practice enough, or do you have a practice shack? If so, how does it look? What’s on the walls? What cool sh*t is in there?

DJ: Our practice space is Dan’s basement.  Practices always involve a family meal first then a rattling of the windows for dessert.

Dan: Our space is pretty pedestrian but comfortable.  Picture a finished basement full of music gear accumulated over the last 30+ years.  I have some framed The Cure records on the wall, as well as posters and mementos from my past bands hanging up.  It is great to be able to have our gear set up all the time, it makes practicing so much easier.

RRX: Let’s talk about your next project, your next few. Just not the ones you’re working on now. The ones you have your eyes on for the future. What’s coming to us?

DJ: We’re always writing and trying to get better.  The plan for our future projects is to maintain the trajectory we’re on and build on it.  Our goals are album driven, to write a cohesive collection of approximately 40 minutes of music.

Dan: We just completed basics tracking for our second album in March and are now working on overdubs and mixing.  It is an evolution from “Shelter in Place” and we are really excited for people to hear it.  I think we are more comfortable with what works for us as a unit now and it is coming across in these new recordings.

 Levi: Echoing my earlier sentiment about gigs, we have been playing together for so long it’s really easy for Dan and I to lock into our groove. Being a three piece, it is really easy to listen to what everyone is doing and find the sweet spot where the individual player can play something cool that really serves the song.

RRX: Is there a song you wrote that really died on the vine? Something you all like but somehow just couldn’t make it work. You swear never to play it live, that sort of thing?

DJ: Yeah, some songs do die on the vine, it’s just a natural part of the process.  Sometimes we revisit them down the road and they finally gel, but sometimes they just fade away.   Self-editing is an important aspect of the writing process that you hopefully get better at as you mature.

RRX: In the musical world, there are many supporting players. Recording engineers, sound techs, cover art designers. Who are three people that support the craft that you would like to shine a spotlight on?

DJ: Frank Moscowitz!!!  He’s our all-purpose go-to-guy!!  He’s a knowledgeable engineer who helps to bring a song into focus without misdirecting the initial spirit of the song.  He’s also an awesome musician who can throw on a keyboard, melody, or guitar part if needed.   Oh, and he’s an amazing electronics technician who fixes our temperamental amps and recording gear.

Dan: I’d like to add the team from Super Dark Collective to that list.  Shane and his crew are great supporters of the band and consistently put us on awesome local bills.  The Monday night shows at Desperate Annie’s are always a blast and come with a built-in crowd.  No Fun is a great scene too.

Also, Philip Pascuzzo of Pepco Studio creates killer album art!  He has done work for a number of local artists like Brent Gorton, Small Axe, and John Brodeur.  Phil also creates book covers, posters, and logos for global brands like Twitter (X).  He completely  knocked us out with his toxic skull concept for “Shelter in Place”.

RRX: Music genres are difficult for some artists. Some strictly adhere; others not so much. What is your perspective on the genre you play, or the genres you hover around?

DJ: According to the Super Dark guys we are proto punk.  I had to look that up, I guess they’re kind of right.

Dan: I usually describe us as hard-hitting psych rock, but proto punk works too.  We are definitely the sum of our influences.  I hear Black Sabbath, The Beatles, and Pink Floyd in DJ’s songs.  I come from a 90’s alternative point of view and Levi has more progressive leanings.  Somehow, it all works really well together.

Levi: At some point, somewhere, someone called us “psychedelic grunge.” I can’t speak to its accuracy, but DJ and I have a few distortion pedals between us, and some of the “weird stuff” that lends itself to psychedelia. So, it’s probably an accurate description? Come to a show, let us know what you think!

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