Interview by Regan Brown
Not too long ago, I introduced a new song called “Glow” by up-and-coming band, Chevonne and The Fuzz. Now the pop rockers are gearing up to release their debut EP, Fire at Will on September 17th. PCL Music recently had the opportunity to ask the band a few questions regarding how they came together, what keeps them together, what the experience was like working on the EP, and of course, what fans can hope to expect from them in their future plans.
Check out the interview with Chevonne and The Fuzz below:
PCL Music: How did Chevonne and the Fuzz come together? How long did it take to form the band? Was having a band something you always wanted?
Chevonne (vocals): I’ve recorded as a solo artist, worked as a background singer, done cover bands, you name it – but I always wanted to front an original band. I’ve always done better in a group; by myself I tend to overthink everything and I end up not having any fun. With these guys, I can express myself with complete creative freedom, while at the same time they’re building and improving upon my ideas and adding new ones that make the music so much more deep and complex. As for how we came together, I had just done a Kickstarter campaign after my time on The Voice to make a solo record, and I asked all the guys—who were all my friends from before and/or friends of friends--to be my backing band. But as soon as we started rehearsing, my solo stuff transformed and we began writing new songs. The signs were all there right away; being a band was our destiny! The Kickstarter backers are all really supportive of it and knew that we would make a much better and more timeless record this way.
PCL Music: I feel like there’s always some untold story or fun fact behind a band’s name. Does this possibly ring true for your band’s name?
Mike (bass): Ahh yes, The Fuzz. We were working on the pre-production of “Burn Out” at my brother's (Steve) school studio. Unannounced, a campus "police officer", whatever that means, came in and aggressively told us to pack it up -- even though we had permission from the supervisor of the music department! We tried pleading with him, but he was enjoying his ego trip too much he wouldn't budge. During the arduous breakdown of all the equipment, this distinguished officer of the law decided to call his friend to update him that he was "just kicking a bunch of punks out of the school". That didn't sit well with me. Call me a punk, fine. I'm a 24-year-old kid with sleeves of tattoos, no filter, a bit of an attitude and an extremely low tolerance for bullshit. But SOME members of this band have toured the world or run a multi-million-dollar company, douchebag. Needless to say, Chevonne and The Fuzz was born.
PCL Music: For those of our readers who have never heard your music before, how would you describe your sound? What sets you apart from other bands in the music industry today?
Books (guitar): I like to say our music is a blend of rock and pop, with blues and soul thrown in. It's difficult to describe, but easy to groove to. That's the beauty behind what we write: it appeals to everyone! I think the thing that sets us apart from everyone else, though, is the powerhouse “duet” vocals between Chevonne & Chris. That's not something you see often nowadays in music, and they definitely compliment each other well! I love watching the two of them together on stage! And when it all comes together, everything we do works harmoniously. We definitely think that we've locked into something special!
PCL Music: What was it that made you realize joining this band was a great move? Have any of you been in a band before? If yes, can you tell me a bit about what it’s like coming from one band and going to another and having to form that bond all over again? Are there any fears or concerns either way?
Chris (vocals): Joining this band was a move that I never thought I would make. I was writing some music with Chevonne that was very different from what is going on in Chevonne and The Fuzz, but I come from a rock background so it wasn't foreign to me at all. I was just hanging around singing backgrounds for Chevonne and the band sort of happened. The energy between the players and the song “Burn Out” finished the job and Chevonne and The Fuzz was born. I was in several bands since I was 18 years old, and being in a band is a marriage for sure. I have been lucky over the years in that the relationships that were formed in bands I was in have, for the most part, been lasting ones. However, forming that bond in Chevonne and The Fuzz happened almost instantaneously, which has never happened before. That was very, very special. As a unit, we really have become quite fearless. That’s a good feeling.
PCL Music: It’s very rare for bands not to form some kind of special bond. How do you guys ensure that your bond continues to grow stronger and thereby making you stronger as a whole?
Nick (keys): It's absolutely true; all bands share some sort of relationship that's special in its own way. With us though, it almost feels like we don't have to do anything to ensure that our bond grows stronger - it just sort of does. Our personalities compliment each other so well and our relationship as a whole is just naturally and effortlessly strong. It grows on its own, and that growth only increases each time we play together. We have a bond that feels like nothing else; we're all friends, of course, but it's so much more than that. We say it all the time, but I'm pretty sure it rings true that we are wholeheartedly a family. Just a bizarre, quirky, one of a kind family.
PCL Music: Your EP, Fire at Will is set to be released on September 17th. What was that process like? What’s your favorite song off it? How long did it take to make this EP and what are your feelings now that it’s done and about to debut to the public?
Mike: I can honestly say that writing and recording this EP has been the best process I've ever been a part of...period. The way all the songs came together was just so organic and almost effortless that looking back I wouldn't change a thing. And that's not to say we didn't put in hundreds of hours of work, it just makes everything much easier when you're working with extremely talented and like-minded musicians. My personal favorite is “Burn Out.” I just feel like it's the best representation of us as a whole, and I think it shows how well we can mesh elements of different genres to make a complete song. Fire At Will took us about 6 months to write. A lot of the songs were written quickly, but things were constantly being added and changed so that's the only reason it even took that long. In terms of recording, we finished it over about a two-month period with hitting the studio a few days a week. Now that everything is done, I'm beyond excited to release our creation to the world! I think people from any age range or musical background can appreciate at least one of our songs because we leave no genre untouched. There's a song for everyone!
PCL Music: Fire at Will is an awesome title for an album. Is there a special meaning behind it? Who came up with it and why do you think it works so well?
Chris: Thank you! Fire at Will is actually a lyric in the song “Burn Out.” I always say that Fire at Will is a call to action – any action! It’s an invitation or a declaration to just do something and do it passionately! I think it works well because that is the overall attitude of our music. It’s that notion that anything worth doing is worth doing right, and if something makes you feel good and it doesn't hurt anyone else, scream it for the world to hear. Whether you love us or hate us, we'll still do what we do, so…Fire at Will.
PCL Music: I’ve listened to your song “Glow” many times now and I’m always amazed by how honest and beautiful the lyrics are. That’s pretty hard to come by in music nowadays. Most songs just sound the same. What was the inspiration behind this song? Where do you find/get your inspiration from when it comes to writing songs in general and who writes the lyrics?
Chevonne: Thank you so much, that is so nice to hear. I wrote “Glow” years ago after I’d just come off the road. It was a little blip of a song that I did in five minutes and then dismissed. At the time I was single and lonely, and I really wanted to experience the moment in that song, the fated meeting of “the one” in an unexpected place. It was much slower and more somber, and when I listened back to my GarageBand recording I thought it was absolute trash. But then during Hurricane Sandy last year, Chris asked me to play some of my old demos; my computer still had some juice while all the lights and power were out. I played “Glow” and he flipped out, saying “This is a hit song!” over and over. I argued with him for a long time before I finally saw its potential. The band created a new feel and we added new sections, and now I couldn’t be prouder of it. A lot of the songs on the record went through a similar process, with me bringing the skeleton of a song and the boys working through it and making it tastier and more engaging. Chris wrote the lyrics to “Burn Out,” and “One More Time” and “Ugly Boy” were born in a studio in Brooklyn where I was writing songs with my buddies Kareem and Shelby. The new material we've been writing is way different, though; now we begin writing a song with all of us in one room, vibing off of a riff or a lyric or even a drum feel. We're evolving every minute of every day; it's really exciting.
PCL Music: Any plans to release a music video for “Glow”?
Books: The world of 'Glow' is something unusual. It's the dark, smoky, shadow-filled bar that we've all been in before...when seemingly out of nowhere shines that one person you naturally gravitate toward...
It absolutely makes for a great story! We would love to tell that story through a video! All of our album funds came from the Kickstarter campaign, so we’ll have to sell some records or find a sponsor to put a video into production, but we really can’t wait to tack a visual element on to that song.
PCL Music: What do you hope this EP will say about you as a young, up-and-coming, talented band?
Nick: This album represents who we are, in musical form. We're going all in, and we're going in fearless. We've put all of our blood, sweat and tears into this project, literally and figuratively. We want this album to say nothing else other than "We are Chevonne and The Fuzz, hear us roar."
PCL Music: Besides releasing Fire at Will in September, what’s next for you? Any new projects or tours coming up that fans can look forward to?
Chevonne: We’ve got a record release party and our first big show on September 25th at Sullivan Hall in NYC, and we’ll definitely be booking more shows in the area moving forward. Our official websitewww.chevonneandthefuzz.com is also in production and almost ready for launch, and we plan to stock some really awesome merch in our web store. As soon as the record’s out, we’ll pound the pavement and try to snag a spot on whatever tours or festivals we can. And we’d love to get some songs placed in video games or zombie/vampire/werewolf television dramas. The sky’s the limit!
We want to thank Chevonne and the Fuzz for taking the time to talk to us. Make sure to check them out on Facebook and Twitter.
