A few weeks ago I got the opportunity to talk to Josh Katz, the vocalist and lead guitarist of one of California's newest and hottest rock 'n' roll bands, Badflower. It's no secret that this band has nothing but a bright future (you don't get named iTunes' New Artist of the Week for nothing). In the interview we talk about not only Badflower's new EP "Temper," but also about the band's past experiences and how it lead to what they have in store for the new year. Check out the interview and the link to enter their sweepstakes below.
Q: You have just recently released your new EP, Temper, on November 4th. How has the first week been in regards to reactions from your fans and the public?
A: Its been amazing, but unexpectedly amazing. We got very lucky that iTunes and Spotify really supported what we were doing. iTunes put us as favorite band of the week which we heard was rare for a rock n roll band which is great.
Q: Your EP Temper consists of 5 powerful songs, including the first single “Animal.” If you could describe the overall theme of this EP, what would it be and why?
A: Anger, frustration, and all of these human qualities that we try to suppress to fit into human society and to try not to be strange. We tried really hard to write songs from the perspective of someone who doesn't follow human society.
Q: In the past you’ve had the opportunity to share stages with well-respected artists such as KONGOS and The Veronicas. What have those opportunities done for you as artists?
A: These experiences really helped us to understand what it's like to play to different audiences. It’s interesting because in the earlier days we were associated with pop bands even though we were always a rock band. Even though it wasn't the target demographic, people still responded well to us. Our latest shows with Billy Talent, who is more rock oriented, we really got to see how people reacted. That experience gave us good potential to see how people would respond to our actual material. Being one of the first rock bands that iTunes made band of the week, there are so many signs that we are headed in the right direction.
Q: Badflower is set to begin its 2017 tour on the 10th of January with Pop Evil and Red Sun Rising, what feelings come along with a brand new tour for the band?
A: It’s the biggest tour that we are doing so far. The feeling that the band has is how are we going to handle spending so much time together in a tiny little van.. can we get a bigger budget so we don't have to snuggle every night? But in all seriousness we are really looking forward to the shows because once again it’s a completely different crowd. We’re going to continue to learn what’s best for us as a band.
Q: What differentiates your newest EP and what can your fans expect for your music in the future?
A: The earlier songs we were still trying to figure out who we really were. The newest EP is a lot more accurate to where we are at now. We take pride in the fact that we aren't afraid of our personal growth. In reality, we don’t even like to be labeled as a rock band because of the music we listen to and how broad it is. We try to emulate the music we listen to and as we start to build more fans, its going to be exciting how different the albums will be as we progress.
Q: There was a quote that silenced the band’s concerns of the public liking the new EP along the lines of “sales are for the suits, art is for the artist..” What does this quote mean to you as a band?
A: Sometimes its an appetizing thing for people to change up their ideas, and the line can easily get blurred when you start to care about the public and what it thinks about you. I find myself writing and wondering “how are people are going to react to this.” With the entire creation of the EP, it was too frustrating to think about people liking it. We realized that it’s best to have ourselves as the judges. We have the support from our label and we’ve always been rewarded for being ourselves. There have been some times when we have listened to other people, and we have been disappointed.
Q: The EP Temper was said to be created with only your members of the band in your garage as the writers, engineers, and producers. What do you think is the hardest part of being an independent producer as well as the biggest reward?
A: The hardest part about it is that you are the only judge, so to speak. And you can’t really fall back on someone else's opinion that is credible. Its a comfort to lean on someone else. When the EP came out and got so much success, our initial thought was “this was straight from our garage and look at where it is.” But it’s also stressful. We will be touring for a long time, but we are still debating if we want to do it (create the album without help) ourselves again.
For dates of upcoming shows go to http://www.badflowermusic.com/
Click on this link to enter to win an Instax camera and a signed poster from Badflower!: http://www.badflowermusic.com/sweeps
Take this quiz to see what "Animal" you are!: https://www.qzzr.com/c/quiz/289443/which-badflower...
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