The Source/Interview
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The interview was conducted on January 29, 2007 with all the band members namely: Harrison Leonard, Aaron Goldich, Nico Photos and Isaac Watts
WMG Abby: How's it like living in California?
Harrison Leonard: I love living in California, for the most part. The weather is (usually) great. I appreciate having the ocean, mountains (and snow), and the city all within an hour from where I live. I don't really like the "southern California attitude", though. There's a really narcissistic sense of entitlement among some Californians that I wish didnÕt exist.
Aaron Goldich: I adore where I live. It is filled with beautiful nature and some pretty great people. I have lived here my whole life, and it’s been great fun.
Nico Photos: It's great, perfect for going to the beach and the park. Also very interesting, lots going on everywhere (In LA), lots to do.
Isaac Watts: I really enjoy living in California. I've lived in Southern California all my life, and I plan to stay here for as long as possible. One of my favorite hobbies (aside from music) is snowboarding. Luckily I only live a couple hours away from the snow. So yes, I really enjoy living here. And I can also find some of the nicest babes in So Cal.
WMG: What does your music sound like?
HL: We don't really like putting labels on things, but our music is best described as progressive rock. We're first and foremost a rock band, but being pretty accomplished musicians, we enjoy playing jazz, classical, country, and just about everything else. We love playing in odd time signatures, and we spend a lot of time constructing some pretty complicated musical passages. But, at the same time, we enjoy keeping it simple. The style and approach of our songs often change, but I think we always make it a point to try and stay melodic, progressive, and uplifting.
AG: It’s always difficult for me to explain the sound of our music to others. Others sometimes comment that we have a vibe similar to Yes, Pink Floyd, and Emerson Lake and Palmer, all of which are gigantic influences of mine. I’d like to think that we sound to others as though we are having a lot of fun playing what we play.
NP: As close as rock music can get to classical/symphonic, but with a jazzy flare. Aarons most recent compositions remind a lot of George Gershwin actually.
IW: It’s hard to describe our music right off the bat. I’d say we are a rock orientated band. But there are so many stylistic approaches we portray. One approach is the Classical Music element that collaborates with the Rock.
WMG: Who are your musical influences?
HL: My all-time favorite bands include: The Beatles, Yes, Dream Theater, Death Cab For Cutie, and Weezer. It would take too long to list all of the groups that I enjoy and listen to on a regular basis!My foremost guitar influences include: Steve Howe, John Petrucci, and George Harrison.
AG: My musical influences include Bach, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, Pink Floyd, Yes, The Beatles, and more.
NP: There are several main influences. I would have to say The Beatles (particularly Paul), Steely Dan, Weather Report, The Who and Yes.
IW: I have an open mind when it comes to listening to music. My all time favorite band is Muse. They truly inspire my creative side. As far as a drum-set approach, my top influences include: Dave Weckl, Jojo Mayer and Thomas Lang.
WMG: Any gigs going on?
HL: A few. We're most excited about our Troubadour show coming up on February 11th. The Troubadour is always a fun place to perform. They've got a pretty impressive sound system up on stage, and the atmosphere is always great.
AG: We’re playing the Troubadour soon. I’m looking forward to it, I love to play there.
NP: Yeah! We're going to play at the Troubadour on February 11th.
IW: Yes, we have a show coming up on Feb. 11th at The Troubadour.
WMG: Where do you get your inspiration in writing your songs?
HL: Most of my inspiration comes from watching other bands play, or just from hearing a new melody or riff that one of the guys brings in. Aaron handles the lyrics department for the most part, so I don't have to worry about lyrical inspiration. In fact, we try to approach lyrics from the perspective that the sounds of words can be manipulated much like notes and melodies. So our lyrics are pretty colorful and expressive because of that, but I donÕt know that we sit around and worry about how emotive our lyrical content is. As for me, my emotions are expressed through my guitar playing, rather than our lyrics.
If one of my band mates comes in with a riff or chord progression, thatÕs usually all I need to hear to get me excited and in the writing mood. If IÕm struggling for some musical inspiration, watching Steve Howe or John Petrucci on a Yes or Dream Theater DVD usually does the trick.
AG: I get my inspiration often from other music I listen to, but also many times just by fooling around with anything musical (guitar, bass, piano, recorder, steel drum, etc.). There are also times I am just relaxing and musical ideas come to mind.
NP: A lot of times I'll get my inspiration from a piece of art, perhaps another song or just how I'm feeling at the time.
IW: Aaron and Harrison are the main song writers in the band. But Nico and I always come up with chord progressions, or licks for the band to work on. I play all the instruments that the other band members play. I believe that drummers have an important role as a musician, and should learn to play other musical instruments in order to have a better understanding about their own role.
WMG: Why the album title, All Along This Land?
HL: There's no special reason for the album title All Along This Land. All Along This Land is a track on the CD, and given the songs' length (twenty-two minutes) and weightiness, it just seemed appropriate to title the CD after the song. We went through all the lyrics looking for an interesting word or phrase that we could make into an album title, but in the end, we though All Along This Land was the best choice.
AG: I suppose because it’s the name of the longer piece on the album.
NP: It's the name of our 22 minute epic, the one that solidifies our genre as "progressive" and which is our favorite off our first album.
IW: All Along This Land is the title of our 22 minute epic song that includes five movements. We just thought it would be even more epical to title our album the same.
WMG: So many musical styles. But what is the kind of music or genre you guys are aiming for?
HL: Again, The Source isn't huge on being pigeonholed into labels, but ultimately I think I would probably fancy being thought of as a tried and true progressive rock group, because we share the same sense of melody and musical virtuosity that unites most prog bands.
AG: I try not to aim for a specific style when I am writing. As long as it’s pleasing to the ear, I dig it and want to play it, no matter what genre I feel it reminds me of.
NP: I personally LOVE classical/orchestral music, as well as jazzy fusion stuff, so I try to add both of those, but as tastefuly as possible.
IW: If I had to choose, I would say we are aiming for progressive rock.
WMG: How did the band come together in the songwriting process as a whole?
HL: We really work well together as a unit. We all have strengths and shortcomings that the other members of the band often compliment and complete. We all are proficient musicians, and it really helps that we are on the same page musically when we write our music. I really feel like I have a unique writing relationship with each band member. I probably have the closest writing relationship with Aaron because he and I sort of took the reigns of the band after it almost fell apart in the summer of 2004. But I have always shared a real connection with Isaac, especially when playing live. ItÕs a strong improvisational connection that one doesn't usually see between a drummer and guitar player. And Nico and I have become close in recent times, as we have begun writing music for our second album. I think he and I share a similar ear for riffing that has resulted in a special writing partnership.
AG: I see our songs as being made up of separate song parts all strung together in a format that we build custom for each tune according to the mood of the music. We'll all contribute parts that we go on to arrange the best we can.
NP: A lot of the first album was written by Harrison and Aaron, I was only involved in the writing process for "All Along This Land" in which we all added our own ideas, though it was still mainly written by Aaron and Harrison.
IW: I like to describe our songwriting process as “The Gumbo Pot”. We all show up to practices with different ideas, melodies, chord progressions or rhythms. Or songwriting is pretty spontaneous.
WMG: Can you tell us about the song "Bridges"?
HL: Bridges is a song that Aaron and I wrote in the summer of 2004. Actually, we had a second guitarist back then, one Tyler Davis. And we wrote that song with him in mind, because the song leaves two opportunities for lead guitar solos. Ironically, Tyler and the group parted ways, so I wrote solos for the song, and itÕs since become kind of a staple song for me. I get to sample a couple different styles of music on the song, including jazz, country, and some harder rock. I think Bridges has a pretty dreamy qualityÑmaybe a touch of Pink Floyd, but more uplifting. I also think that Aaron captures a Lennon-esque feel, especially during the bridge.
AG: When I wrote this song with Harrison, we had trouble identifying any real verses or choruses to the song, and so we ended up calling nearly all of the sections Bridge A, Bridge B, Bridge C, etc. We decided to call the song Bridges before any of the lyrics were written. The next day, I wrote some lyrics involving bridges about an old friend who had moved far away.
NP: One of my personal favorites to listen to as well as to play. It's got a magical quality to it in my eyes, as well as a great love story to follow.
IW: Yes. I love this song. It features Harrison on two rockin’ guitar solos. He still blows my mind at every show we play. It’s just an amazing song.
WMG: I see a lot of upcoming musicians going the same path as yours, what can you offer that will differ you from those other artists?
HL: Well, I don't think that there are many bands out there doing what we're doing musically, certainly not bands of our age demographic. If our style and approach were that commonplace, I don't know that The Source would be generating the type of buzz weÕve been generating. What weÕre trying to say musically isn't new, but it sounds new to a whole new generation of kids like us; weÕre just the ones to present progressive rock to a new generation. Every generation since the seventies has seen one or two really prominent progressive bands for the times. I think The Source can be the next group in that special lineage. Of course, I hope that while we preserve the certain principals and staples that make progressive rock what it is, we also want to modify and bring in new elements that keep progressive rock, well, progressive! And I think weÕve done that.
AG: I’d like to think that our music has a certain sound that people tend to like, and that it has a certain attitude when it is played live in front of an audience.
NP: Our technical expertise is definately a hallmark of ours as well as our unusual song structure, melodic ideas and strange harmonies. These are some things that set us apart from other bands, as well as our combination of styles.
IW: To any musician, (regardless of genre) I’d recommend experiment as much as you can with music. Get as much experience as you can for performing, recording, and writing. I love to improvise when I’m practicing at home, or taking a solo live. I recommend building up your technique as much as possible, and using that to show off your creative side.
WMG: Touring across the US seems fun, can you tell us more about the goals you want to achieve while promoting The Source to everyone?
HL: I really hope to maintain some level of stability in my life, despite a tour schedule. My personality does not fit the rock star mold, so you can bet I'll be spending a lot of spare time reading and studying politics and presidential history. I'd also like to becomemore active and involved in political campaigns and events, although I believe in keeping politics and The Source strictly separate. Most importantly, maintaining a stable family life is of foremost importance to me. I think overall, the key with me is that the goals of success with The Source are wholly separate from the goals I have in my personal life. I plan on keeping it that way!
AG: I personally would love to eventually travel as many places as we could and show our music to many. We have many overseas friends and fans and I would love to make a living by touring with The Source.
NP: I would LOVE to tour the US and bring the music and feeling I love so much to so many more people. The goal is definately to make an impact on the music world and to influence the songwriters of next generation.
IW: I am really hoping to succeed in music. I am planning to have music as a major in college. But if The Source has any remarkable opportunities, I’d totally be willing to go for it!!!
WMG: Any particular favorite from all the songs you wrote?
HL: Well, the All Along This Land suite would probably be my favorite piece from our album. But my absolute favorite tune of ours thus far has not been put to tape yet. We hope to see it on a second record. ItÕs called Until Morning Time. ItÕs a two-part song, about twelve minutes, and it features some of the most melodic and technical music weÕve composed. IÕm very excited to hear a recorded version of it.
AG: Currently, my favored piece off the first album is Bridges. I am really enjoying and putting a lot of energy into a couple new tunes we’ve been working on.
NP: That's a tough question, ask me a different day and I'll have a different answer but for now I would have to say "Bridges", though I didn't participate in the writing of the chords, the song really evolved into what it is now after I joined the band and we got really comfortable with it.
IW: -I’d honestly have to say Bridges………yeahhhh……
WMG: Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?
HL: I don't really know. I hope that The Source will be fortunate enough to still be writing quality music and performing it for audiences of fans!
AG: I can only imagine.
NP: I definately see myself writing more music with my band and having them as a permanant instalation in my life. I would also love to be married and have kids.
IW: It’s hard to say. Nonetheless, I know for a fact that music will be my life!
WMG: Any last messages to your fans?
HL: Thank you for all of the encouraging support and love! You have a special place in our hearts, and we won't soon forget how youÕve helped to get us where we are today, both musically and on a level of success.
AG: I’d like to thank all of our loyal fans and all of those who support us. It is to you that I dedicate the music.
NP: Without you guys this would all be usless, I love you and thank you for your support!
IW: The Source loves you
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