Coaches met while they were all hanging around Boston’s music scene. At some point, they moved to Brooklyn and we heard about them. So, we asked them to play our On The Rise series and spoke with them about life, influences, and other important matters. Catch them live at LPR on January 25th with Zuli, Lazyeyes, and Invisible Familiars.
photo by: Adam Gundersheimer
How did Coaches originally form? How did you guys settle on the name?
We all met through the music scene in Boston by going out and supporting the other bands we had been in before Coaches. Eventually we realized we all had common goals musically speaking and otherwise, so being in a band together was a natural extension of that friendship. The literal answer to the band name question is that I come from a big family and all of my brothers have been the coaches of high school or little league baseball teams where they are affectionately referred to as “Coach Custis”. The band name is a selfish excuse to give that nickname to myself and feel more related to my family since I lack the skill set necessary to coach baseball.
Post-Trash.com raved about your recent EP, Shush, writing: ‘Coaches have already made a big jump out of the shadow of their Creation Records-worshipping past. It’s promising when a band starts to find its own trajectory this early, and “That Not This” will please any fan of unpredictable guitar riff-rock.’ What were some of the influences behind writing these songs and the sound you wanted to create?
I try to approach writing songs and arranging them as different processes and as such I find different influences in each. As a songwriter, influences range from Leonard Cohen to Stephen Malkmus. As arrangers, our favorite sounds fall somewhere on the louder spectrum of “weird”, from the Pixies and Sonic Youth to My Bloody Valentine and Deerhoof. I find the most useful “influence” however comes not from music at all, but rather movies, the news, or any other non-music artistic medium.
The goal of our On The Rise series is to showcase bands who we believe will be some of the next big things. Are there any bands you’ve played with that you really respect and think our readers should check out? Anyone you’ve started to collaborate with or are particularly inspired by?
Too many bands to name, but here’s a sample. From New York, please listen to Infinity Girl, Big Eater, Jonathan Sibha, Bears, and Happy You. From Massachusetts, please listen to Kindling and Elizabeth Colour Wheel. Everything from the labels Disposable America and Exploding in Sound is worth listening to. That said, there is so much talent everywhere, so please get involved in your local music scene.
Do you remember the first show you played? What did it feel like? Has performing gotten easier?
Being overwhelmed by the nerves is something pretty much everyone experiences when they’re starting out, then you just learn to embrace them and use them to your advantage. Personally, I have so much respect and love for the people on stage in Coaches that when we’re playing everything could go wrong and I’d still be having the time of my life. Creating something with people you like and admire results in a better performance than good players on stage with people they hate pretty much 100% of the time.
Settle the debate: pizza or tacos?
Coaches are equal opportunity eaters and will not discriminate against any food on the basis of price, color, national origin, veteran status, or any classification protected by federal, state, or local law.
Tickets + more info for January 25th available here.
post by b.s.