How did you come up with the name?

So originally our band name was Ephraim Snow, which was the name of a real person. He was a fence, selling stolen goods as part of the organized crime community in New York City in the mid-1800s. I picked that name because I thought it sounded cool, and I still think it sounds cool. Unfortunately, I got pretty sick of spelling out "Ephraim" on stage every time we performed, and I'd considered using the name FM Snow for other projects anyway, so the switch made sense - easier to spell and still has pretty much the same ring to it.

 

 

How would you describe your sound?

I always struggle with the whole "describing our sound" thing, since no one wants to hear the laundry list of influences that inform our sound, but thanks to my bandmates we have a solid short description. Originally I would call us "loud rock fusion", but my bandmates decided that we're "rock for music nerds" and I think that fits extremely well. Add in the caveat that I often use a lot of distortion on my guitar and you've got our sound.

 

How was the band formed? How/when did the members decide to start a band?

So the band is largely my (Cameron) project, I write all the songs and have the final say on arrangements. But we formed through UNCG - I wanted to start performing my songs and announced in our Composition Studio meeting that I was looking for a drummer and bassist, and I got an email from Andrew that night offering to play drums. I asked if he knew a bassist, he tapped Grant, one of his oldest friends, and that was pretty much it. I'm super grateful for those guys because they handle the more complex stuff I throw at them extremely well, and they make it possible for me to bring to life all the music I hear in my head.

 

If you had no choice but to become a cover band, who would you cover?

Either The National or Admiral Fallow. Those two bands informed my sense of songwriting on such a profound level that I find myself subconsciously stealing ideas to this day. We'd never make money covering either of those bands, especially Admiral Fallow, but I love them dearly. For those of you, and I'm assuming most of you reading, who haven't heard of Admiral Fallow, I can't recommend them enough. Glasgow's finest right there.

 

 

How do you deal with creative block as a band? how do you continue to come up with new sounds/ideas as a group?

Most of the songwriting is done by myself, but it's super common for Andrew and Grant to come up with drum and bass ideas respectively. If I'm not feeling too confident about an arrangement going into rehearsal, we often come out of rehearsal with a tight new groove that one of them introduces that really keeps the song's momentum going. Super grateful to them for that.

 

What is the hardest part about being in a band? What gets you through those times?

Since we've only been playing together for about 2 years, the toughest part right now is working around everyone's schedules to book shows, aside from the booking process itself. It can be frustrating when venues and bookers don't respond, but that's just part of the landscape of being an independent musician. All we can do in these situations is continue pushing forward. Venues respond eventually, other bands we're friends with invite us onto shows, and we make it work either way, even if one of us shows up to the gig with our work clothes still on.

 

If your grandmother wrote a review on your band what would it most likely say?

Oh man, I don't think either of my grandmothers would like my music if they were still around. They'd probably complain that it was too loud and the lyrics were too angry or depressing. And that's ok, the only thing my grandmas and I could agree on is Wii Bowling and the movie Secondhand Lions (super underrated family movie from the early 2000s, highly recommend it).

 

Which song of yours was the most fun to write & make? 

It's hard to say which song was the most fun to put together, but I think I have to pick our song Current's Sway. Partly because it's already out on streaming so y'all can listen to what I'm talking about, but also it's just really fun to play and sing. The feel of it changes pretty often, I get to use plenty of fun effects on guitar, and writing it was a fun experiment in fingerpicking and fretboard tapping. In the recording itself I'm also very proud of the two post-chorus solos. I'm not confident in my ability to improvise, so it felt good to play something I can be proud of, no matter how many takes it took.

 

What helps bond you as a band?

The thing that brings us together the most is playing a set that we all feel good about. Not too long ago we played a set over at Monstercade in Winston-Salem, one of my favorite venues to play, and some people in the crowd were singing along to one of our songs. That was such a surreal experience, to see recognition and appreciation in the eyes of some audience members. And on top of that, it was one of our best sets for sure. Lucky for us, lately it seems like our sets tend to improve almost every time, and that really motivates us to keep going.