We asked some of the bands that play 7eventytwo some questions. These are those questions.
How long have you been a band? Where do you rehearse? Do you believe in love at first sight?
The Sectionals
We’ve been playing together for nearly 5 years. I believe in lust at first sight. - Sofia
We either practice at my house or at a studio, and no, I don’t believe in love at first sight. - Mick
I don’t believe in love at first sight. - Cyan
Tell us briefly about a new-ish song and when/how did you write it. What’s it about?
We have a new song called NASA which is pretty good. I’m looking forward to jamming on it. It’s a fun song to play – Mick
It’s one of only couple of songs we have that was born out of a fun jam; I think, whether or not they're the best songs, those ones are the most fun for us to play - Cyan NASA is just me being bitter towards a guy I like. There’s no reason behind the bitterness on his part, I’m just sarcastic as hell to avoid him from seeing the real me. – Sofia
If you could work with any producer on your next album, alive or dead, who would it be?
I’m just gonna say I wanna work with DJ Khaled, he seems fun. - Mick
I’d love to work with George Daniel of The 1975, he creates the most unique soundscapes. I also would kill to work with Brian Wilson… He hears the unheard. – Sofia
I would love to work with Blake Mills as a producer. He's a genius with complicated sounds, and he's still very much alive so it's not impossible. – Cyan
Whats been a favorite new album of 2017 and what's shaping up to be a major summer jam for you?
I JUST listened to Lorde’s ‘Melodrama’ and it is such a great pop record. Also Blaenavon’s ‘That’s Your Lot’ and Jay Som’s ‘Everybody Works.’ My summer jam as of now is “Saw You in a Dream” by The Japanese House. - Sofia
my favorite album of 2017 so far would have to be No Shape by Perfume Genius. But honestly i haven't listened to enough of this years albums because I'm still catching on last years! A really underrated album from last year was Beyond the Fleeting Gales by Crying; if that one could carry over into 2017 I'd choose that. Also this is an old-ish song but cash machine by dram is a bop if I’ve ever heard one, and I've been listening to it on repeat for the past few days. - Cyan
Lil Yachty's newest album and the single "bring it back" is my new hot summer jam. Joking. – Mick
If a few years from now you were to come back to be a celebrity judge at a 72 battle of the bands, what would you look for in the battle winner?
I’d look for charisma. I want a band that I can sense is deeply connected and tight in playing together, and can communicate a cool vibe to the crowd. - Sofia
If I were a judge I'd look for something new but paying respects to the old but not corny. – Mick
It’s really cool when you can see artists who are really imaginative, and can still be creative within a certain tradition. - Cyan
Blu Ray Poppin’
How long have you been a band? Where do you rehearse? Do you believe in love at first sight?
We have been a band for about two and a half years. We have band practice at our guitarists place in SoHo. Interestingly enough, we are firm believers in the whole "love at first sight" concept. Alejandro (guitar) and Kabir (Drum set, Marimba, Xylophone, Timpani, Vibraphone, congas, egg shaker, and castanets) met on the first day of high school and instigated the concept of creating a musical union between the two of them. Soon after, Rafail (Keys) was invited to join the band. So yes. We believe in love at first sight.
Tell us briefly about a new-ish song and when/how did you write it. What’s it about?
A new song that we enjoy playing is a tune called "Fake News". We wrote it early 2017. At the time, Alejandro showed Kabir a cool guitar melody that could potentially turn into a song idea. Later that day, Rafail showed Kabir a really groovy bass line, and so at band practice later that day, Kabir had the idea to combine the two. Since the tune was written in January, it obviously had some influence from the inauguration of our most recent Commander in Chief. The melody of the tune has an impish, pseudo-satirical tone that is meant to replicate the the bipartisan media frenzy that swept America by storm earlier this year. And that's how "Fake News" was written.
If you could work with any producer on your next album, alive or dead, who would it be?
If we could work with any producer, it would be Flying Lotus. His influence on modern music today cannot be ignored. He's worked with so many of our favorite artists like Kendrick Lamar and Thundercat. He's helped artists achieve their full potential in a studio, a task that sounds easy on paper, but that can take a lifetime to achieve.
Whats been a favorite new album of 2017 and what's shaping up to be a major summer jam for you?
So far in 2017, our favorite album has been More Life by Drake. We really love how he combines Trap and R n' B to create a melting pot of intricate, yet quaint musical resonance. A summer jam that we are currently vibing to is 'Hudson', a modern jazz album written by John Scofield, John Madeski, Larry Grenadier, and Jack Dejohonette. It's great to see jazz evolve into such a seamless linchpin of ideas and the album has certainly influenced us.
If a few years from now you were to come back to be a celebrity judge at a 72 battle of the bands, what would you look for in the battle winner?
If we were to be judges for 72 battle of the bands we would be looking for fusion of genres. In today's world the most interesting music comes from the mismatching of genres. Doing this creates a feeling of originality. We love hearing new artists push boundaries.
