To venture out into the unknown is something that can be scary and intimidating to many people. To grow as an individual, one must brave the elements and take that leap of faith from time to time. Robb Torres was the guitarist in Trapt and instead of playing it safe; he took that leap into the world of being a solo artist. He released his debut solo EP, Something About You Ain’t Right, in late 2013, which you can read our review of it HERE, and he’s a man of a renewed and re-energized mission.
Because of that bravado, the experience, the tenacity, and the kickassery of his first solo EP, we are proud to announce Robb Torres as our Indie Band of the Week!
What made you decide to leave Trapt and venture out as a solo act?
There were a lot of internal changes going on and it just really wasn’t about the band making music anymore. I wasn’t the original guitarist, so I didn’t start the band either and I’ve always been a session player kind of person. It was just time for me to go; I wasn’t really feeling the new regime. I had already been writing the songs that are on my EP, but not really with the idea of putting out my own stuff. I wanted to write some new stuff and maybe license them or get them in a movie or something. I had been in the band for five years and I didn’t feel as if it was progressing in the direction that I hoped it would. Sometimes you just have to throw yourself into the lion’s den; change isn’t always easy.
You mentioned that you had been working on these songs already. Did you bring in any help in the creative process?
I worked with some very talented people on these songs. I collaborated with Jess Furman on “Out Here”, “Little Too Late” as well as the title track. I worked with Eric Lumiere on “Girl I Wanna” and I worked with Jess Furman and Rick Hack on “What Do You Believe In”.
This EP seems to have really freed you up to explore some avenues that tap into some of your influences. This EP definitely isn’t Trapt Jr. because there are some different avenues being explored such as some blues rock.
I grew up listening to classic rock and I went to school and studied jazz and improvisation, blues and stuff like that and that’s always been a big part of my playing. If I was to just pick up the guitar and play, I think the style that’s on the EP is what’s going to come out naturally. So, it felt really good to write and to play and again, these songs were not written with the intention of me putting out an EP. This stuff just me writing and doing my thing and this is what came out and I really like it a lot.
You grew up listening to classic rock. What inspired you to pick up a guitar and want to learn how to play?
That’s a really good one man. There’s always been something about a guitar that interested me in my life, but I didn’t know it was something that I wanted to do. I remember being about 10 years old and asking my mom for a guitar and she said no because she thought I would grow tired of it a month after getting it. Growing up, every penny counted, so she would rather buy me clothes than spend it on a guitar. At 13, I had an uncle who had an acoustic guitar that I would always pick up and strum the strings. I don’t know if you remember the days of the Columbia Record Club where you could get about 20 cassette tapes for a penny? I was a member of that and they would send out a catalog of all this cool stuff that you could order and I ordered a Def Leppard guitar book and I didn’t even have a guitar. I mean, I was really putting the cart before the horse. It wasn’t until I was 15 and working at Burger King, which was my first job ever, and I got my very first paycheck and right then and there, the thought of getting my first guitar came into my mind. My cousin took me to this mom and pop guitar store and I picked out the guitar that I wanted and paid $50 for it. Then, my mom started getting me guitar lessons at that same store and my grandfather would drive me there, wait on me to finish and drive me back home.
That’s really cool that your family supported you wanting to learn how to play. I don’t think that would have 
happened to a lot of kids.
My mom was super supportive and always told me to follow my dreams. She just didn’t think that it was going to be something that I would turn into a career and, to be honest with you, I didn’t either.
Who were some of your musical influences?
Well, definitely bands like Van Halen, AC/DC, Def Leppard and Elton John were right up there at the top as far as music that influenced me. AC/DC’s Back in Black was a huge influence on me and so was Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album, from a melodic song perspective as opposed to just playing the guitar. Later on, I got into a lot of jazz like Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Joe Pass and Charlie Christian.
Now, the music nerd’s coming out in me; you’re speaking my language now. That’s good old school jazz, the kind of stuff that you don’t only hear, but you feel down deep. I know it’s not ready yet, but can we mention anything about the video that you recently shot?
Sure, we shot a video for the title track, “Something About You Ain’t Right”, and it’s in the editing process right now and hopefully it will be ready pretty soon. Stay tuned!
Something About You Ain’t Right – EP Teaser
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You mentioned at the start of our conversation that you had just finished up a guitar lesson. I’m pretty sure that you were the one giving the lesson, right?
Yeah, I teach all levels of guitar from beginners to advanced. I teach here in LA, if they are local, but other than that I usually teach via Skype. If they want to book a lesson or get more info, they can email me at robb.gtr@gmail.com for details. I love teaching and passing that torch along. I’m also working on a new app which is a guitar lesson app focused on beginners. It’s still in the works, but I hope to be releasing the first version before summer of 2014. I developed it with a friend who actually started as a guitar student of mine and was a fan of Trapt; we really connected well. His company currently has an app on the market called Karaoke Anywhere. One day, we started talking about creating an app for guitar lessons and now it’s in full development.
Wow, that’s pretty cool man! I’ll definitely have to check back on the progress of that app to see how it does. Well Robb, I guess it’s time to wrap this up so you get back to teaching your lessons. Is there anything that I may have missed?
No, I think that just about covers it. My EP is available on iTunes if anyone is interested in it. I appreciate you wanting to talk to me and I think it’s great that Rock Revolt is supporting indie bands and artists like you guys do.
Connect with Robb Torres at the links below!
FACEBOOK | WEBPAGE | YOUTUBE
