IBOTW: PSYCLE

Rock band Psycle is kicking ass, and taking names! With a new album titled Kill the Machine releasing on June 16,2020, Psycle is definitely a contender for greatness that you should be keeping on your radar. The band released their debut single, also titled “Kill the Machine” along with the accompanying lyric video on March 24th, and they are not showing any signs of slowing down…So - sit back, relax, and read on to why this band is our Indie Band of the Week!

How do you describe your music to people?

I would say that our music is honest. I know something that we take pride in when we are writing songs is making sure that the song is serviced first. I think that songs can get away from you if there is any ego injected into the writing process. Sometimes we have to let the song be what it is and if that means a part that we wrote as an individual doesn’t fit or make it better, it probably shouldn’t be there. I think songs are at their best when they can breathe and you can hear each person part. I know that especially live we are very cognizant of our volumes and tones. I never want to step on Joe’s tone or drown him out. I think that to be at your best, you must complement each other.

What image do you think your music conveys?

As a band I think that we want people to have a sense of hope and belonging. Being at a point of feeling alone whether mentally or physically can be daunting. I hope that our music makes people feel included and presents a feeling of being able to overcome. We never go into writing a song thinking it needs to sound or be a certain way, just that it will be its best self once it’s completed. I hope people can feel the same way about themselves and that sometimes we are only partially down the road of our own story and there is a lot more left to see and hear.

Do you think that online presence is important for fans to find you and critics to find your music to write about?

I think that any way that you can reach people is important. Things have changed so much due to accessibility and I think that it can be very positive and powerful. Being able to say thank you to fans, music critics, radio stations etc. is amazing and you can use it to push the words of your music. On the flip side of this, I think that you need to be careful what waters to find yourself in and you have to realize that some people may not like your music or maybe they are just out to get a reaction.  I think treating everyone with respect is important and more importantly something we forget “You can love people but you don’t have to love everything about them”. It is OK to disagree and sometimes if we are open enough, we may learn our way of handling something could be wrong or better serviced with more information.

How would you define the word “success”?

Success to me is reaching the most people with our music as possible. I have never ever written a song or a lyric thinking “Oh this will make us a million bucks”. To me, being able to make music full time and play in front of people is success. I want the music to be heard by as many people as possible. I want our music to affect people and make them talk about things and open up. I don’t believe any of us need to have a disguise to go food shopping or go to the movies to feel successful. I think that the longevity of the music and the effect it brings is success enough.

Were you influenced by old records & tapes? Which ones?

Funny you should ask! Our bass player Mike just had this conversation on his Facebook live that he does every Friday night. He was asking about our first tapes, album and even 8-tracks hahaha. I can remember my earliest memories of my mother blaring Beatles records, Queen, Billy Joel, Elton John, Michael Jackson and so many more. That was a huge influence on myself and I know the other guys were influenced by albums such as Derek and the Dominoes, KISS, Devo and so many more. We have such a wide variety of influences and I think it does service us when we are writing.

Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?

I think that our inspiration comes from each other. The 4 of us get in a room and we go off of how riffs or progressions makes us feel. It sometimes even just takes a small 20 second clip of something for us to run with it. We record all of our rehearsals so when we are done, Joe cuts them up and sends them to our emails to listen. A lot of times just a little jam warming up can lead to something. When we are writing and finishing songs, we make sure we play them until they feel broken in. Sometimes the songs need something very small for the last puzzle piece. I think hearing them on stage also helps. Getting in a different head space can sometimes spark creativity

Which famous musicians have you learned from?

I have to say that I find myself going back to Dave Grohl a lot. He just loves to play music and not just his music but with others and as a guitar player, or a drummer, or a vocalist. Dave’s passion is just very inspiring and I think that his determination is something to look up to. He has an acceptance that music doesn’t have to be defined in the genre that we play in. I think that by being well rounded you can open the possibilities in your own writing.

How do you promote your band and shows?

Promote everywhere you can and ask for help! With a lot of the social media sites being driven by algorithms, it’s important that you utilize any way possible to push your content. At one point in my life I wanted nothing to do with Twitter. Taking a step back I realized that so many others do and I would be cutting of my nose despite my face if I refused something like that. Find different ways, be creative, be memorable, and have fun with it.

What type of recording process did you use? Who produced your recording?

We recorded our 2017 EP “Surfaces” at No Boundaries Studios with Producer Chris Piquette. We went back to Chris when we decided t record our follow up album “Kill the Machine” which is out June 12^th. I love the studio and I always feel more creative when we finish recording. Being able to hear all the work that you have put in separated and mixed is beautiful. It offers a new context on the music and sometimes you realize “You were playing that” to your band mate. With Chris, he works very fast and has his process down to a science. This allowed us an opportunity to be creative and try new things. I think capturing moments of inspiration is more important that a perfect take. Once you find that inspiration, you can fix the technical aspect later. Our music is meant to have a rawness to it and I love capturing those moments. I especially love the drums and how small things played a different way can change to mood and feeling of a song. We can’t wait for people to hear the whole album.

Do you have a band website? Why or why not? Do you have a Facebook or Twitter? Do you use Bandcamp, Spotify or SoundCloud to share your music?

We have every kind of site that will allow us content hahaha. I think that you should utilize every single site you can because you don’t know how people get their music. You can look at data and listen to others but you never know where people may be looking. I think it’s very important for your sites to look professional, remain accessible and make people want to explore. More importantly, make the music easy to get to. On our website, you can hear and listen to our music before you even enter the site. All of our social media pages are clickable on the intro page and we want it to be inviting for people to search thru the site for more content. Give people a reason to explore!

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