Don’t call them a supergroup, but Fakers consists of former members of Piebald, The Henry Clay People, Vanaprasta, and Summer Darling. And naturally they were booked for August’s Monday residency at The Echo.
So Free Bike Valet and photographer Amanda Paganini (of Kissing Cousins) recently hung out with the band during practice to shoot some pics and ask vocalist/guitarist Joey Siara some questions.
Joey Siara
What made you decide to do a residency?
“Aside from the simple joy of playing rock and roll with your buddies, we are doing the residency to celebrate our very first official release –a seven inch called Personality Voices. Also, I dig the whole residency thing. It really forces the band to get better. We don’t want to phone in the same set each night so we’re trying to write like two new songs per practice. Milestones and deadlines are important, right?”
Andy Siara
Why did you choose The Echo?
“I’ve spent many-a-Monday night at The Echo over the years. A lot of fond memories. Some blurry. Some weighed down with Taco Zone burritos. My old band [The Henry Clay People] did a residency back in January of 2008 –I think? And I just freaked myself out realizing that was more than seven years ago. It was a cool little moment. We met a bunch of great bands and more importantly made a bunch of fantastic friends. Another happy Echo memory: we, the old band, opened for Mission of Burma there a few years later which was a nice little notch on the things-I-never-thought-I’d-ever-get-to-do list.”
Cam Dmytryk
Who are your opening bands?
“We’re still working out the lineup. There are five dudes in the band and five nights of the residency so we’re each booking a night. I know that The Pretty Flowers and The Western Lows are playing –two of my favorite local bands and filled with some of my favorite people. Also, there are a couple of nights where various members of Fakers will play more than one set: side projects, main projects, former bands. Again, still working out the details.”
Travis Shettel
What other Los Angeles-based bands do you admire?
“Besides the bands I already mentioned: Geronimo Getty, Heathers, Wyld Rivers, The World Record, Karoshi Mode, and Manhattan Murder Mystery. The list could go on but I’ll spare you for now. I know the other dudes in Fakers probably have different tastes but those are some of my favorites.”
Do you have a pre-show ritual?
“We huddle in a circle and everyone airs one grievance. It could be a bad haircut, a hangover, or the fact that someone else in the band sucked during soundcheck. Then we take a swig of something and get out there on stage.”
What can we expect from your set every week?
“Passive-aggressive glares. Amp climbing prowess. Microphones that just won’t stay in a mic stand.”
Will you be playing any covers?
“Great question. And I don’t have an answer. We initially wanted to do one different cover per night but since we’re a relatively new band I think we all agreed that we should probably write some more songs instead. But nothing decisive yet.”
What do you hope to gain by doing a residency at The Echo?
“I like to set the bar low. Expect nothing. And if anything positive happens: cool. Honestly, I really hope to see some old friends out there. As we get older folks get married and have babies and have to wake up early for real jobs and all of the above forces them to sort of bow out from the music scene, but it’d be great to wrangle some of the old guard back out on a school night. Make them call a babysitter.”
What are you looking forward to the most?
“The possibility of a lasting memory.”
Amanda Paganini: Website, Twitter
VÉRITÉ recently performed at The Echoplex for Popshop West.
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