-Interview- Bestfriends (2/12/14)

Bestfriends
www.thisisbestfriends.com
From: Chicago, IL
Sounds like: Indie Pop



1. How did you guys get together and form?

We've known each other since preschool. There's pictures of us dressed as ghost busters and ninjas together. After playing in numerous bands post-highschool, and getting into writing and producing for other artists, we decided to find our own voice and make our own music. That is the condensed as hell story of Bestfriends.


2. Last year you guys played SXSW, how was it? Any plans to do it this year?

Last years SXSW was pretty rad. We played 3 shows in 5 hours and really tested our road and patience skills. We're passing on doing it this year. Lots of great things can come from that festival but we feel our energies are going to be better spent elsewhere; so when we return in 2015 things will be ever more rewarding for us and our fans.


3. The EP has been out for a little while now, how has the response been to it thus far?

If the response was anything less than stellar we wouldn't have been able to continue on to making this new record, shooting new music videos, and launching our most coordinated effort to date as Bestfriends ;) plus we eat haters.


4. What is your favorite track to play live? Why?

Currently it's straight up all the songs from the new record. We've been pushing ourselves musically and technically with our albums and live show to make it more challenging, and thus, more rewarding.


5. The single "Just Goodbye" has a Bee Gees vibe to it. Who are some of your influences?

The biggest are the late 70's and early 80's in general. From pop to funk to disco to rock, that era had some of the best technical performers and downright amazing songwriting abilities. And of course how popular dance was as well. It was also the first emergence of electronic instruments being widely used in popular music. We listen to a ton of modern music as well, our roots as band dudes is in pop punk, but anything with a nasty bass performance or excellent hook will get us tapping our toes. Plus Robin Gibb's face.


6. You guys have a cover of the Robyn track "Hang With Me", why did you guys pick that song to cover?

Because that is one of our absolute favorite albums of the last 5 years. She's a true pop star. And we both had bowl cuts before.


7. What's been your most memorable show moment as a group?

Well this one time, we stayed up waaay past midnight.... no really though. This is always a tough question to answer because any show were people are having fun and dancing or getting into the performance, we take extremely to heart. We also kinda have a James Brown approach to our "most" or "best" anything: it's yet to come.


8. What have you been listening to lately?

The new Haim and Chvrches records. Been digging into Zapp and George Clinton lately, that nasty shit that is directly responsible for Dr Dre creating the G-Funk movement and thus unleashing Lord Illest aka Snoop Doggy Dog.


9. What's next for Bestfriends?

Well if you made it this far you kinda know! New Bestfriends New Bestfriends New Bestfriends.


10. Any shout outs?

Shouts to Mike and From the Depths. Making your top 5 of standout acts from SXSW made our top 5.