City By Storm will be part of the OC Music Awards with a showcase at the Slide Bar Jan. 28
City by Storm is a local punk, alternative band from Orange County. Lead singer Wade Fitzgerald started the band when he was 18 years old, right after high school. Managing to keep the band together for seven years now this isn’t City by Storms first time being nominated in the OC Music Awards.
City by Storm will be playing another local OC show Wed, Jan. 29 at Hogue Barmichaels.
OC Concert Guide chatted with lead singer of City by Storm Wade Fitzgerald to see how he promotes his band.
OCCG: You are playing in this year’s OC Music awards; who are you looking forward to being in competition with?
WF: We are really looking forward to being on the same stage as our friends in Beneath The Buried again, but we are extremely excited to be competing with all of the amazing musicians and bands in Orange County.
OCCG: Will this be your first time competing in the OC Music Awards?
WF: We were fortunate enough to have been nominated in the past, but this will be our first time competing for best live band. I’m not really sure how we made the cut considering I can think of at least 27 other local bands off the top of my head that I’d rather watch live, but we are very stoked and extremely honored to be back.
OCCG: What do you think the secret is to keeping a band together for so long?
WF: Well if I’m speaking honestly, it’s very, very hard. This band went through so many members within the first few years that it would make your head spin. It’s just difficult to find people that share a common goal with you. It’s equivalent to having 4 girlfriends. I think the secret is staying busy and remembering why you do it. As cheesy as it sounds, you have to keep believing in what you do, have a desire to constantly get better and respect the people that grind it out with you. We are very fortunate to have 5 members who all share a common goal and have nothing but respect for one another.
OCCG: Being that Thrice is one of your major influences, how devastated were you when they announced that they would be on extended hiatus?
WF: It was a hard pill to swallow, but I’ll be very surprised if it lasts much longer. They are legends and I think everyone will miss their live show. Thrice, if you see this, please come back. PLEASE.
OCCG: It seems to me that the opening guitar line to “Little Misfit” is very
reminiscent of some of Brand New’s newer music. Was this intentional?
WF: Haha! I should probably be careful on how I answer this one, but long story short, yes. I think the simplicity of the song between the one electric guitar and bare vocals was influenced by Jesse Lacey’s writing style, which I’ve always been a fan of. Between the Fender Twin Reverb sound and the deeply personal lyrics in which I “over-share” a few things, I can definitely see why it would remind you of the newer Brand New. I’m also taking that as a compliment and there’s nothing you can do about it!
OCCG: What has been your experience so working with indie record labels thus far?
WF: It’s funny, we’ve actually only put our records out under our own label/publishing names. I still don’t fully understand why. I’ve just been told it was easier that way or that we’d make more money…. I haven’t had any major royalty checks come through recently (or ever?), but I guess making no money is still better than owing money? Honestly, I think every band dreams of being on a major label, we just grew up with a mindset of “if I get signed to a major label then I’ve made it!” which isn’t the case in todays music industry. It’s a double edged sword. There are just some things a major label will always be able to do that smaller indie labels can’t. Although, it seems as if this industry changes every day. Thank God we have Billy Klein (Engineer and Co-Owner at Hybrid Studios) to keep us pointed in the right direction! I’m constantly asking him about what’s going on with major labels, indie labels, ASCAP, BMI, licensing rights, etc…I guess it would be a lot easier on both of us if I would just open a damn book rather than harassing him with questions every morning when I get to the studio.
OCCG: As a band, what would you like to see yourselves accomplish in the next five
WF: I think a big goal of ours is to just constantly get better at what we do. There are still so many bands we haven’t played with and so many places we haven’t been. Being a bunch of 25 year olds, these next 5 years are going to have a lot in store for us musically and personally. It goes without saying that after 2013 we can’t wait to see what 2014 brings. We thrive on creating new opportunities and we will continue to do our best as those moments arrive, for now we are taking things day by day. Other than that, Keegan and myself have been very busy at a new recording/film studio I manage called Hybrid Studios in Santa Ana and I know we are both looking forward to having a busy year over there as well.
OCCG: How would you describe your music to people?
WF: People have been asking us that for 7 years and I think I’m 100% guilty of guessing whatever bands I think those people are into, then telling them we sound exactly like those bands just to get them out to our show…
I just don’t have an answer to that and I wish I could tell people something consistent, but I would just much rather have someone new at our show and for them to be able to form their own opinion rather than having a pre determined one based upon the bands I “think we sound like.” I don’t care if they think we sound like Lady Gaga, I just want people to be able to come out and have fun. Obviously we are heavily influenced by punk music and culture, but it’s not about the genre, it’s about the show. I think anyone will leave a Slayer concert wanting to see another one. It’s a great show! I like to hope people feel similar after watching us whether they are fans of our genre or not. Last week we played with Beneath The Buried (a metal band) and one of their fans came up to me after and said “I thought I hated your genre of music until I just saw you play.” I thought that was pretty rad.
OCCG: How do you create a following? Does social media play a big role?
WF: It’s safe to say this is something every band struggles with. It’s all momentum. These next few months we are absolutely swamped in shows, which forces us to keep up our social media, which enables people to post more on their own social media about us when they’re seeing us. It’s a vicious, vicious cycle. Just like anything, the more the name is out there, the more relevant we will be, the more relevant we are, the more momentum we gain, the bigger the momentum, the greater the following. We’ve literally gone from playing in front of 1000 people one month, to 3 people another. These days, with the way technology is, it’s extremely difficult to stay relevant and think of ways to promote yourself that 5 million bands aren’t also using to promote their music. Social media is great, just something we need to be creative with and be able to evolve with.