BRICK+MORTAR play Satellite Jul 31 photo: Meredith Truax
Brick + Mortar is an indie-pop outfit from Asbury Park, NJ consisting of school friends Brandon Asraf (guitars / vocals / programming) and John Tacon (drums / programming). Currently the band is on another cross-country tour showcasing new songs off their third EP, “Dropped,” and will be making a stop in LA at the Satellite Jul. 31.
Tacon and Asraf have truly been building a movement with their first two EPs, “7 Years in the Mystic Room” in 2010 and “Bangs” that followed in 2013. The pair has been on the road spreading a message of empathy, positivity and self-motivation. They have been playing gritty, bright, yet sinister, witty alternative pop for inspired audiences throughout the country and they will continue to do so on this summer long national tour happening now!
Coming off of the release of their “BANGS,” the group has been on the road relentlessly, opening for bands like Imagine Dragons, Icona Pop and Jimmy Eat World, as well as performing in the summer festival circuit at mainstays including Made in America, Loufest and Lollapalooza.
Concert Guide Live snagged Asraf from his busy tour schedule for a moment to find out how the duo formed and how they bring so much sound to their live shows.
CONCERT GUIDE LIVE: How did the band form and was there a particular style of music that brought the group to first jam together?
BRANDON ASRAF: I met Tacon in eighth grade. I saw him perform at the eighth grade talent show and it was a scene straight out of “Billy Madison.” There were kids standing on chairs, cheering for him as he tore down the cafeteria with a drum solo. One day walking home together, he told me to play the bass and the rest is history, yo.
CGL: What equipment is required to make the music sound bigger even though it is a two-member group?
BA: Our Roland Spd-SX is essential to our live performance. We learned to write our first songs on the original Spd-S. We didn’t use computers, just that unit. We learned it inside and out! We put everything we can’t play live into it without playing the instruments. We are all about performance and sweating with the crowd. Our show is an experience.
CGL: Was the group always a duo?
BA: Yes. We have always been two buds. 😉
CGL: On the group’s Facebook page for genre of music it says, “Anything You Want it to be;” What kind of sound influences the group the most?
BA: We are all over the place, really. Hip-hop and Reggae influence our sound in a strange way. We are just both suckers for anything that has tons of low-end. Pretty much anything that moves us in some sort of way, whether it be lyrical or musical.
CGL: What song on the latest LP was the easiest to write and record? Which was the most challenging?
BA: “Train” came together really easily. I had the lyrics in my head for a while. “Dark Skies” was elusive. We wrote it many times over before settling on even a basic demo. I tend to at the last moment change things drastically song wise.
CGL: What song is the most challenging to pull off live?
BA: “Hollow Tune” because I belt the whole chorus and the note is kind of high for me. For Tacon, it’s “Old Boy” because he is non-stop ripping the drums like a cartoonish maniac.
CGL: What was it about the song “Train” that drew the group to the star-crossed lovers theme in the video?
BA: I showed the EP to my good friend, Caitlin Smith (I have shown her everything we’ve released since our second Maxi Single). I also told her I am trying to make videos for as many of the songs as I can. She emails me back telling me she has wanted to do a music video and already has an idea from listening. That idea was the whole “Train” video pretty much scene for scene! It was like fate or something. At first, I was nervous having never done a video like that, but in the end I could not be happier about how she brought a new feel to the love song I wrote.
CGL: What is the group looking forward to on this tour? What are some new stops and returning clubs that appeal to the group on this tour?
BA: We are excited to play in Tampa, FL because we have never played there. We love Denver as a performance spot for many reasons, both emotional and recreational. 😉 We can’t wait to hit LA again; you have always been good to us!
CGL: Where does the duo see the band’s plans over the next two years?
BA: More records, more touring, more pizza, more music videos, more funny moments and more watching shitty movies we buy at gas stations… Look up “Goobers,” it’s worth it.