Interview w/ The Fates

Hey everyone!

Returning once again with my ongoing series of interviews with local artists that have received initial exposure here on the blog. Today, we have an interview with Boston's own The Fates. The Fates were an Artist Spotlight feature here on the blog back in October and have quickly become one of my favorite local acts in the scene today. Recently, Beau and the boys took some time out of their hectic schedules to do a brief interview that allows us to get to know them a little bit more personally. And now, here we go:

- Give your names and what you do in the band?
Beau Cassidy (Vocals), Jon Greene (Guitar), Josh Friedman (Keys), Dan Alport (Bass), and Tyler LeVander (Drums)

- How did you guys meet and when did the band form?
That's a complicated answer... Jon and Beau have known each other growing up in Ft. Lauderdale, and Jon met Tyler and Josh at the Berklee 5 Week Summer Performance Program in 2007, Tyler and Josh met Beau in the fall of 2010, as well as Dan. The band formation happened over the fall of 2010, starting with Beau, Tyler, Jon and I and our ex-bassist David playing cover gigs in Allston basement parties in the fall of 2010 and then recording "Drama Dropout" in January.

- How did you come up with the name "The Fates" for your group?

Haha ok. So we had a bunch of names we were throwing around for several months, and "The Fates" just seemed to work the best. It's kind of a projective test for a band name, it's so broad, which allows people to take alot out of it individually, that's something we really liked about it. Objectively, "The Fates" evokes this kind of epic quality which is something we haven't gotten with any of the other tentative names, and "epic" is what we always strive to deliver in our music.

- How would you describe the sound of The Fates?

Pop/Rock, all the way. As individuals we all come from a pretty solid rock background (Tyler and I played in prog/rock bands in high school, Dan is obsessed with My Chemical Romance). Beau's got a pop voice and writes poppy shit, and as songwriters we definitely try and gear our songs to hook-centered melodic ideas. We're always trying to strike a balance between bringing the energy and technicality of a rock band with the polished catchiness of pop music.

- What themes and/or subject matter does your music cover?

A lot of "Drama Dropout" is kind of slices-of-life of Beau Cassidy. You have energetic, live in-the-moment Beau Cassidy ("Jump"), relationship Beau Cassidy ("Miss America", "Photographs"), introspective Beau Cassidy ("Grave", "Atmosphere"). Overall, we like to think that the personal anecdotes resonate with our fans... I like the idea of having these intimate stories that you feel like you've experienced as well. Makes you feel like you're a part of something big (epic, again).

- For people who have seen you in concert, many have noticed that your keyboardist Josh wears an eye patch, do you feel like that makes you stand out from all the other bands out there?

As of right now, I do not believe there is another keyboardist who wears an eye patch, so we definitely feel like that makes us stand out a bit haha.

- What has been the response to your music so far from the general public?

We've had amazing feedback, our Fans on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, etc. have been immensely supportive of us and when we see posts like ""Photographs" by The Fates played on my iPod today and it really helped me get through the day." or "Wow does Beau have nice teeth." It's quite heartwarming. We have incredible fans.

- How do you guys spend your free time when you're not making music?

Honestly, we hang out with each other non-stop. We're all actually best friends, so usually it's getting food with each other, watching Dan eat gratuitous amounts of cupcakes, or driving to the only 24-hour donut shop in Boston at 2am (I just realized how fat we are. We also go to the gym. Sometimes.) Individually, we're all either students or working part-time ... Jon's actually a pilot, for real.

- If you could describe your band in one word, what word would you choose?

FunLovingRockPartyBeau'sTeeth

- Lastly, what does the future hold for The Fates? Will you be playing any shows or releasing an album later on this year?

We are currently working on a buttload of new material, so a new album this year is looking reeeeally likely.

Thanks once again to Beau, Jon, Josh, Dan, and Tyler from The Fates for being so gracious with their time in doing this interview. If you want to check out their music, visit their website at www.thefatesmusic.com and 'Like' them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thefatesmusic and follow them on Twitter at www.twitter.com/thefatesmusic Just a quick reminder for Boston area readers, they'll be playing at the Middle East Upstairs tomorrow night at around 11:15pm, so be sure to get your tickets now and arrive there early to catch the other acts in action!