I recently got a chance to interview one of our Spotlight bands Up For Nothing. They also happen to be one of my favorite bands. The recently released their new album “Twelve Stories Down,” which was produced by the legendary Ernie Parada of Grey Area / Token Entry.
Their singer Justin Conigliaro and I also discussed the recording / song-writing process of their new album “Twelve Stories Down,” which can be streamed here. We also talked abour how the Brooklyn music scene has changed and how working with kids can change your perspective. You can check out the interview here.
For those unfamiliar with Up For Nothing, can you give a brief history of how the band came to be and got to this point?
Well I remember seeing Green Day and The Riverdales on Long Island when I was eight years old and leaving that show with the understanding that punk rock will consume a major portion of my life, and I needed to learn how to play. Being in a band and playing punk music was all that mattered to me throughout my childhood. I used to come up with list of band name ideas and have my classmates vote on which one they liked better when I was in like 5th and 6th grade ahaha… I came up with the name Up For Nothing by accident when I was 13, and actually began to feel confident enough in my playing and writing to start assembling the band two tears later in the summer of 2002. I had four songs pretty much written and had found a bassist (Casey) that liked the same music as me. We became close friends, and tried out a few drummers before our friend Matt that was the singer in his own band decided to fill in on drums for us until we found a steady drummer. We recorded those four songs with Matt on drums and played our first show in November of 2002. Bassists came and went over the next 4 years until we added Steven on bass in 2006. Matt stayed in on drums until 2007 when he decided that his time as our “temporary” drummer was up and decided to peruse life and other things.
At this point Steven and I decided to add in our best friend Jesse on drums and have been rolling along steady with this lineup since then. It has been a great struggle to keep our heads above water over the last eight years as it is for EVERY band. Our lives are often put on hold to be able to make things happen, but at the end of the day I know that I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else! I take great pride in this band, and I can honestly say that I would be LOST without it!
What are some of your influences / bands you want to follow in the footsteps of?
For me The Bouncing Souls have always been a band that I’ve looked up to on many levels. They are the true definition of sticking it out and creating music for the love of creating music. It’s very rare to find a band that has never been in the spotlight of “mainstream” success yet continues to play hard every night over a 20+ year span without even the thought of taking any kind of remote “break” or “hiatus”. My hat will always go off to those fellas for being true champions of believing in what they do since day one!
Your latest album “Twelve Stories Down” was partly produced and had a guest appearance by Ernie Parada who is the vocalist of the influential bands Grey Area and Token Entry. How did you guys cross paths?
I wanna say back in 2006 we had received a MySpace message from Alex Volonino (The Arsons and current bass player in GreyArea) saying that he enjoyed our songs and would like us to get together with The Arsons at some point to play shows. I believe it was about a week later that we had a show set up at a place called Arlene’s Grocery in New York City on Easter Sunday and ended up playing for the sound guy and two random people at the end of the bar… As life would have it, the two random people at the end of the bar were Alex and his lovely girlfriend Sara. They were in the area and saw that we had a show through the myspace page. We talked a lot after the show, and very soon began playing shows with The Arsons on an extremely consistent basis. Ernie also played in The Arsons and after a few months we became part of that whole circle of excellent music. As we got closer Ernie was always been quick to let me know what he thought we should do differently with examples ranging from my vocal melodies, all the way down to how we position ourselves on stage. He has mastered the art of knowing how to make things work in all the years that he has spent playing music, and I have always loved and appreciated his feedback and honesty.
When we were recording our first full length record “We’re Singing our Last Breath” back in 2008 I gave him a call and asked if he would be interested in coming in to do a few vocal parts with us on the record. He gladly accepted. He came right in, wrote his melodies, belted out his parts, shook our hands, thanked us, and walked out. It was a pretty intense experience. haha
As for his involvement with our latest record, I just asked for him to come around during the writing process this time around, instead of coming in after everything was already written. After hearing rough demos of the songs he met up with us for a pre-production session in Brooklyn and was already well aware of what he felt needed to be changed. Within a matter of minutes we collaborated on his ideas, and his stamp was put on our songs. As for his vocal work on this record, once again it was only a matter of asking. He LOVES music and he genuinely gets excited when given the chance to create/shape it in ANY way. He will have a much larger hand in every aspect of our next recording. Stoked for that! Ernie’s a good dude, and he shines bright with positivity and genuine enthusiasm.
Is Grey Area still active? I know they recently released a split with Orlando’s Go Rydell, but do you know if they plan on releasing a new full-length or tour?
GreyArea consists of fellas who love to and know how to play better than most. However, at the same time they all have steady jobs and half of them are family men at this stage of the game. This puts massive restrictions on what they can do outside of New York City. The split with Go Rydell was their first recording in something like ten years which blows my mind because I remember buying Fanbelt Algebra at a record shop on St. Marks Place in NYC. On the way home I didn’t have enough money to get on the train so my friends and I jumped the turnstile on the subway and all got stopped by a cop and were given $60 tickets… I’m the only one who still to this day has never paid mine ahahaha. Truth be told, as long as the GreyArea dudes still meet up and play together I’m 150% sure that new songs will be written; However the idea of another full length release doesn’t appear to be too likely at this point and unfortunately a tour outside of Philadelphia and New York seems even more unlikely.
What was the recording / song-writing process like for the album? Are you proud of the result?
As far as writing; this record was a lot more of a collective input than the records prior. With our earlier recordings there was a lot of lineup uncertainties and changes so all of the song writing rested on my shoulders with me being the only constant member. This time around we were three years into our current lineup when we began writing, and finally were given the opportunity to write as a whole. This made the process a lot easier for me, and also gave the band and our songs the opportunity to take on different perspectives and go places that they never have before. We’re thrilled with the end result of this record.
The RECORDING process for this record was the extreme opposite of what we’ve grown accustom to over the years. Our good friend and producer/engineer for every recording that we’ve ever put out (Mr. Jerry Farley) got offered to be the head music engineer at a brand new state of the art recording studio based out of Staten Island, New York called NOVA Entertainment group. Up until the recording of our record NOVA has been known exclusively for producing some of the most amazing music videos made over the last few years, and have worked with such artists as Korn, Mudvayne, and other major label successes. The Studio decided recently to branch out a little bit and also start recording music as well. They were looking for a band to come in and record at a discounted rate so that they can have a full fledged recording to show other artists in hopes of making a name for themselves on the audio recording end of the spectrum. Since Jerry and us have worked so well together over the years, we were the band that fit that slot. We ended up basically living in a house that was formerly owned by has been action movie star Steven Sagal and recorded this record in various rooms of the mansion. Our last record was recorded in our friends basement, and our next one will more than likely be recorded in that same basement. hahaha we just got real lucky with this opportunity!
What is the music scene like in Brooklyn and how does it compare to the rest of the state and country at large?
When we first started playing shows Brooklyn’s underground punk/hardcore scene was absolutely amazing. We had a venue called “The Punk Temple” that was located in the basement of a Jewish Synagog in Brooklyn. It started off small, housing all local high school bands that brought in tons of kids and had a great time playing for their friends. As time went on The Temple began to host bands like Taking Back Sunday, Left Over Crack, Sugarcult, and other bands that were rapidly climbing the latter of success. This really put our scene on the map for a very long time. Eventually The Temple got way too big for it’s own good and received all sorts of fines by the fire department for having too many kids inside and eventually got shut down. After this our scene got a little bit older and a lot more trendy with the screamo trend that swept the nation during the 2004-2007 era. Dudes started wearing eyeliner and pants tighter than they should be and slowly music like ours wasn’t entirely “accepted” in our scene; and truth be told we didn’t really accept the scene here either. Fights would break out often, underaged drinking ensued almost every night, and it became less of a community and more of a catastrophy. During this period we started to play out a lot more in different places and found a home for ourselves in the Staten Island punk scene… Since those dark days Brooklyn has once again cemented itself as having one of the best local punk rock scenes in the country with the help of many people that dedicate their lives to making it as such.
From our experiences with playing shows in different parts of the country I will say that New York has it so much harder than most states to maintain peoples interest, just for the simple fact that there is ALWAYS so much going on out here and its so hard to compete with other events/shows. In places like Louisville, Kentucky if someone is putting on a show on a given night, chances are excellent that the show will be packed with kids that are itching for something to do. In New York putting on a show is extremely stressful because you’re battling so many obstacles just to make it descent. Much credit needs to be given to the people running DIY punk shows and venues in New York for sticking it out and making things awesome!
Who are some of your favorite local bands to play alongside / tour with?
The Bouncing Souls, GreyArea/The Arsons, Step Aside, Man the Change, The Scandals, Hold Tight!, The Dopamines, None More Black, Larf, Departures, Paths 2 Glory, Pumps, This is Your Life, Iron Chic, Conquer the Sun, Shot Not, Model Home, Break on Through, Mute Issue, Capital, Born in a Cent, Banquets, The Briggs, Have Nots, Drawn a Blank, Mikey Erg!, Snu Snu, A Life Worth Living, Relics, Wester, and many others… These bands are our extended family and the love we have for these people is as genuine as it gets!
Where are some of your favorite hang out spots / restaurants to visit in your area?
I love to be on Coney Island. Day or night its really an amazing and historic atmosphere, and spending summers on that boardwalk is something that I will do until the I die.
Justin you run an after school program for kids where you help teach them and help them with their homework correct? What are some things that these kids have taught YOU?
Easily my favorite question of the interview! In a nutshell kids have taught me to never lose the innocence and ability to dream that we’re all born with. People tend to lose sight of their goals and what they wish to become as life and adulthood takes over. I will be forever grateful for the time that I have spent and will spend working with kids because every time I have an individual conversation with a child I learn as much from them as they learn from me, and if everyone can hold on to just a fraction of their way of thinking this would would be a better place to live in. “Young til I die”
You have a music video for your song “Can’t Get Away” where you “fight” some kids using your songs. Haha where did you learn your fancy drumstick throwing skills?
ahahaha well in all honesty Jesse (drums) is a 4th degree black belt and has been a mixed martial arts instructor for as long as I can remember. When Dayside Productions came to us with the idea that had for the concept of the video we thought it was a perfect for for Jesse and it turned out being pretty damn funny!
What’s next for Up For Nothing?
We’ve got two more music video shoots that will be taking place over the next 2 months, and we’re also in talks with a few bands about putting out a split 7” at some point before this year ends… Other than that we’re look at more shows outside of NYC, purchasing of new/more merchandise, and most importantly hard work and fun times!
What are some albums that you’re currently rockin’ right now?
GreyArea/Go Rydell Split, “Learn the Hard Way” – The Copyrights, “Proud” – Have Nots, “In Desolation” – Off With Their Heads, “Laugh Now… Laugh Later” – Face to Face, “England Keep My Bones” – Frank Turner, “Not Like This” – Iron Chic, “Expect the Worst” – The Dopamines, “The Sound of Your Stereo” – The Scandals
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