Alli's Articles
INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS, CULTURE PIECES, MUSICAL RAMBLINGS.
Staten Island can be defined as a lot of things: The forgotten borough, the home of Wu-Tang and Pete Davidson, and even where half of the cast of Jersey Shore is from. I'll be the first to admit, as I've done multiple times on this blog, that we don't have the cleanest reputation, but these stereotypes completely erase the musical culture that is brewing underneath the surface of drug busts and mafia drama. Ever since I scored an internship with a local radio station, a lot of artists that dabble in all types of genres creating music in the underground scene have become known to me. It inspired me to do some research and explore for more bands that I would be interested in, practically right in my backyard. After asking my peers for recommendations and clicking around on Instagram for a little bit, I found Urban Disaster: a five-piece alternative rock group that, taken from their Spotify bio, is "blending influences from 70s punk, modern pop punk, emo, and post hardcore." The band consists of Anthony Cuzzocrea and Kiefer Regan on guitar, Dominic Carnival on bass, Alex Livings on vocals, and Pierce Sparni with drums and back-up vocals. The are fairly new to the scene, with one single out, appropriately titled "Urban Disaster." They have an upcoming single on the way titled "February" that will be released Wednesday, July 17th. I got the chance to speak with three of the members about their music, and our common roots on the Island and as high school students. You recently played at Back to the Beach, a pretty well-known event on Staten Island. How did playing a stage that big to an audience that wide feel? Anthony: Back to the beach was amazing! We were all a little nervous, but overall it was amazing. I feel that our sound peaked at that show and was the best we’ve ever sounded. Plus, it was our first show with our new vocalist. Kiefer: Back to the beach was great! It was so much fun, but it was a little bit nerve-racking knowing it was our biggest show and first one with our singer Alex. Dom: With the show, it felt so good to actually play with everyone and to see everyone come out for us. While writing and preforming your music, who are some bands or artists you draw inspiration from? Kiefer: Most of our inspirations come from bands like Neck Deep, Green Day, Blink-182, Pierce the Veil, and the list goes on. Anthony: I draw a lot of inspiration from many bands I listen to, but I think for me my greatest inspiration is Green Day. Dom: I draw inspiration form bands like Blink-182 and Neck Deep. I get inspiration for what I do during live performances from Slipknot. Has living on Staten Island and being so close to New York City affected the way you write/make music at all? Anthony: I mean, yeah. I would say so. Staten Island is small, so it's easier for our music to spread across the island, and since we’re starting out we make music that we think many people would enjoy no matter what genre of music you listen to. Kiefer: Living in Staten Island just lets us know how important it is to stay relevant in a local scene, which we try our best to do. Dom: Living in Staten Island has kind of helped me, because I can see the shows that are in this area and see what other people have to go through. What is it like to be in a band and making music while still in high school? Any specific struggles/triumphs? Dom: There’s no real struggles or triumphs that come to me. Like, having clout really doesn’t come with it in high school because most people like other types of music. Anthony: For me I don’t feel that there is any struggle. I think that in some cases it makes high school more fun to me. A lot of lyrical content that we have is from past experiences and most of these experiences occurred as our time as teenagers and whatever happens inside or outside of school. Kiefer: Making music in high school is indifferent, because most people are blown away by our music and how young we are, but we’d be lying if we said we never got hate every once in a while. Your first single “Urban Disaster” focuses a lot on the struggles of peer pressure, underage drinking/drug taking, and generally being a bored teenager. Are those based on true emotions and experiences? Anthony: That song was hugely based on true emotions. I wrote the lyrics to that song during the last week in school during one of my classes, because everyday in that class there was this one group of kids who be smoking and trying to keep it low key like it wasn’t noticeable. The lyrics, for me, are based on what I could see Staten Island becoming. The perspective comes from a kid with the same mindset as myself who just wants to act like his own person and not feel pressured to be something he’s not. Kiefer: “Urban Disaster” was written as what Staten Island might become; Not necessary what it is now, but there are still themes that are relevant now that are in the song. Dom: "Urban Disaster" is mostly on people’s experiences with and on the Island. Your newest single, “February,” is being released on July 17th. What are some feelings you hope people get from this single and your music as a whole? Kiefer: I hope people love "February." It’s our most emotional song and we put some of our best work into it. Anthony: I am very excited to release "February!" It is definitely one of our most emotional songs and you could really hear the emotion while listening to it. I really hope people would enjoy it and, most importantly,relate to it as with the rest of our music. Dom: With "February," I hope that people will listen to it and really like it. Out of all of the arenas in the world, where is your dream gig? Kiefer: I would just love to play a bunch of 100 cap shows all the time... I’m not looking to play in big arenas or anything. I wouldn’t turn it down, but we have to start small. Anthony: My dream gig would be in Madison Square Garden definitely. I saw one of my favorite bands, Foo Fighters, there and everything about it was just electrifying. I would love to play there. Finally, what is the best place to get pizza on Staten Island? Kiefer: We usually order from Denino’s, Cafe Milano, and Metro. Dom: My favorite pizza place is Brother's, but it's not my favorite in New York. that’s L&Bs in Brooklyn. Anthony: For me, hands down Krispy Pizza. They make some of the best pizza in my opinion. I’ll order there like 2-3 times a week. It's pretty easy to see that these teenagers have wonderful potential and a great future in the music world, and I am excited to see what they're going to do and write about next! Their new single "February" comes out this Wednesday, July 17th, so make sure you go and listen to it when it's released.
Special thanks to Urban Disaster for taking the time to answer my questions, and for being my first glimpse into the ever-expanding young music scene of Staten Island. Make sure you follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Spotify!
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