Interview with Greeley Estates' Vocalist Ryan Zimmerman

I've been listening to Greeley Estates since, get this, back in the Myspace days, when half of the bands I was (or still am) into were just starting out and I was discovering (as many others were) the music I liked from adds and messages they used to promote themselves with on Myspace. I remember when I first messaged them in 2009 after they sent me a request and I was totally blown away by their music. They messaged me back and we had a conversation, which for me at the time, was totally mind-blowing. (A "popular" band was messaging "little ol' me"!?!) Getting to interview vocalist Ryan Zimmerman was my ultimate pleasure. I hope you enjoy reading what he had to say as much as I did!

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Up Late Reviews: How did you first get started as a band? From that time, do you feel like the constant change of band members has affected your sound? 

Ryan Zimmerman: We started back in 2002 as just a couple guys messing around trying to figure out how to play music. In a lot of ways it was kind of a joke. We starting playing local shows and decided to pursue it seriously in 2003-2004. We have had quite a few member changes but we have also been a band for a decade now and have 8 records out so its to be expected I guess. As far as our sound, we always try to switch things up with each release. We have had our current lineup for the last 4 years so we feel pretty good about it.

ULR: Do you feel like your newer songs are "way heavier" as many people claim? Or do you feel like your fans perceptions of you may have changed? 

RZ: Both. I think our records like NRNR and The Narrow Road are definitely heavier than our earlier material, but we still keep it Greeley. Our new release Devil Son has many of the musical elements that our early material had back when we started this band.

ULR: What is your favorite album and why?

RZ: I am honestly pretty connected to most of our records. I feel that Go West Young Man… seems to be the record we will be remembered by because i think it was a little before its time. I personally love both of our new EPs and I definitely have a strong connection to our first record Outside of This.

ULR: Who writes most of the lyrics and the music and if it's not a total collaboration, how do you come to agreements? 

RZ: I (Ryan) have always written the lyrics and for the most part Brandon has written the music until recently David has gotten involved and helped with writing music.

ULR: Please explain your writing process and how your process changed between albums, if it has.

We usually go into each record with a clean slate and just see how the direction and vibe of the music pans out. When we started as a band I would write a lot of my lyrics before I had heard the music. Now I write lyrics after feeling out the music and letting it speak to me. Many of our records have been written on the road which is tough, but this last 2 part album The Narrow Road/Devil Son was all written in AZ. We had the chance to live together and write and it was a good experience.

Do you find writing songs therapeutic, if you use real life experiences to influence them? 

RZ: Yeah, I love the writing process its one of the best parts of the job. Some songs are very personal to me and others are written in more a storybook format. I love watching movies and at times movies influence my writing.

ULR: What, if anything, have you run into as a band (or throughout the years with the member changes) that was difficult to over come? 

RZ: Touring 10 months out of the year is difficult on anyone. When you’re in a band on the road the members are your family. Its always tough losing members or letting members go it changes the dynamic of things. You just learn to work through this and hope that the changes are for the better.

ULR: Do you feel like those things brought you closer and made the current band even stronger? 

Yeah, I think difficult situations always make you appreciate life and make you stronger.

ULR: Do you guys have any plans for a tour in the near future, whether local or US? (Or even International!) 

RZ: Yeah, we plan to head to Japan again here soon. As for the U.S and other countries we are stilling working on figuring that out. Just trying to get the word out about The Narrow Road and Devil Son right now.

ULR: What can fans expect from you in 2013? 

Hopefully we will see them on the road soon and we hope to start writing again towards the end of the year.

ULR: I'm curious as to how you guys personally feel about the way music sales have changed, including illegal downloading, iTunes, Amazon, and other online music retailers. Does this totally ruin music or do you think this improves how easily and rapidly music reaches your fan's ears?

RZ: In our situation doing this independently right now, it definitely affects us. Album sales directly help us and illegal downloading directly hurts us.

ULR: Do you think that online sales will eventually completely replace CD and vinyl sales? 

RZ: Yeah for the most part I think physical copies will be collectors items in the future.

ULR: If you got the chance to collaborate with any band or artist, who would it be? 

RZ: Wow that is tough. Probably Billy Corgan from the Smashing Pumpkins.

ULR: Anything else you'd like to add? 

RZ: Check out our new records The Narrow Road and Devil Son

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Check out what Greeley Estates is up to on Facebook or Twitter, and definitely catch up on their new tunes!

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Valaska's "Natural Habitat" Album Review

I have to preface this post with a short statement. When you're doing music journalism, you get a lot of opportunities to review different albums and shows. Not all of them are quite your style or things you would necessarily listen to or tell your friends excitedly about. So far I've tried to keep my personal website (though I do other work) limited to things I can sincerely talk up, because this isn't to make money or gain recognition for things I don't believe in. Besides getting my style of writing out there, I love helping bands and musicians who I really feel deserve it.

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And on that note, Valaska blew me away. When I first checked out the songs that were available online, before I heard the album, I was pretty impressed. I liked their sound; it was very soft and melodic, and definitely the type of music I often listen to. When I got the album, I started playing it and I couldn't stop. I literally could not stop playing it on repeat, for days. DAYS! I couldn't believe what a gem this album was and that I hadn't heard about this amazing band sooner.

When I found out that it was one guy, I became even more impressed. Multi-talented Dave Valdez definitely gives one-man bands a run for their money on this incredible album that he created with the producing and engineering help of Copeland's Aaron Marsh. I can only imagine the levels his music would rise on a live stage with a full band.

I've recently gone through a couple of hardships and I'm constantly looking for music which helps me get through painful experiences. The actual quality of the songs aside (which is stellar), each one hit home with me. From the first song, On the Surface, which reminds me a little bit of old DCFC and a little bit of City and Colour, to Golden Age, which made me reminisce Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots by The Flaming Lips. In Voids and Natural Habitat took my heart with their profound lyrics and especially soulful vocals.

Every song had something to offer, and while a couple of them reminded me in part of other bands' music, Valaska has its own sound which is distinct and memorable. This alone stood out to me, after listening to so many bands and artists over the years that blend together in a fairly acceptable, but forgettable manner. I'm always looking for bands that not only have a great sound, but who sound different and aren't afraid to make the music they want to make, and seem to have a passion and love for doing so. I personally think that you can feel that love for music in a musician or band's songs, and that makes the listening experience so enjoyable. While Valaska certainly deserves recognition in the indie world, I would be surprised if it was long before they get signed.

Natural Habitat Cover Art

I smiled, I swooned, and I cried. (YES, music makes me cry, okay?!) I have never fallen in love with a band so quickly. It's safe to say that this is my favorite album of 2013, if not in the past year altogether. So right now I put my reputation on the line (as I do with these reviews) and genuinely tell you that you're missing out if you don't have this album. If you know what's good for you, buy it as soon as you possibly can. Time is ticking. You are losing valuable listening time. Seriously, if I haven't sold you yet, check out the adorable album art. How could you possibly say "no" to that cute face?

If you want to check Valaska out, you can do so on Facebook, their website, Bandcamp, and Twitter.


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