Familiarize Yourself

I’ve always wanted to expand my punk education but never took a heavily vested interest in any punk band I’ve tested out. In high school I bought a couple “best of” albums, one of which was The Replacements and my favorite track became “Here Comes Irregular”. Go figure.

As of this week, though, They Face Reaction is convincing me to try again. They are a softer Clash; a heavier Bravery. Two fourths of TFR come to us by way of Brazil and they all bring their influences and talents together for our listening pleasure.

 

^{Photo: © Lauren Gill}

 

 

After exhausting their market in Curitiba, Brazil cousins Ren Volpi (guitar, vocals) and Pedro the Greeps (vocals, guitar) – then members of a hardcore punk band called Citizen Caged – decided to pick up their dream and keep it alive in Chicago. After relocating in 2008 they auditioned new band members and soon formed They Face Reaction. Today they are joined by Dave Perrin and Tyler Eckhart on bass and drums, respectively, and according to them they’ve “never been so excited”.

In a follow up to our last interview with them in November, Volpi spoke with me this week about what’s new with TFR.

Start off easy. What is the history of the band and how did you all come to form They Face Reaction?

TFR started back in 2006 in Curitiba, Brazil. Pedro and I are cousins and grew up listening to mostly American punk rock. We always sang in English and as a result we decided to move the band to America. Meanwhile, I applied to Columbia [College Chicago] to study music business to have a better feeling of how the music market works here in the U.S.

We met our drummer Tyler through a Craigslist add; he was searching for a band and [we] for a drummer. [Having played] with other drummers before, we knew that he would be perfect… by the end of the first song we practiced.

Our bassist Dave we met at a friend’s party. He was wearing a Black Flag T-shirt and after talking to him for a few minutes he seemed to have great taste in music. We asked him to come to a practice and [it clicked]… he was in the band!

In the band’s bio you refer to yourselves as “punk rock enthusiasts”. Has the history of punk had a big influence on your sound? What are your major influences in that genre, and outside of it?

It is hard for me to talk about the other members but I know Tyler is crazy about the Foo Fighters, Led Zeppelin, and Weezer. Pedro, David, and I grew up listening to mostly the same bands, most of them in the punk rock genre… Descendents, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Clash, Strike Anywhere, Alkaline Trio, Rise Against, Green Day, Blink 182, The Living End, Thrice, The Get Up Kids, among thousands of others.

Punk is where Pedro and I came from. Growing up in Brazil, many of our friends were skaters and surfers so punk rock was [in] everybody’s CD case. So we all started listening to SoCal bands like NOFX, Bad Religion, Face to Face and later we moved onto other bands from different areas… The Red Hot Chili Peppers are a massive influence on me, especially [Peppers' guitarist John] Frusciante’s guitar solos. Even though [it] is not much evident in our music the Peppers… made me grab a guitar for the first time.

You started playing shows in Chicago last summer, after having been located in California [Ren was in California for a period before joining Citizen Caged] and Brazil. How does this city compare to other markets you’ve played in?

It is quite interesting and different from everywhere I [have] played before. The Internet generation in my opinion is not as loyal as previous [generations] and the reason [is] there are way too many bands to choose from so everyone has their favorite band or particular style, making it difficult to bring people to attend shows and create a community. I feel that a lot in Chicago, the Internet generation controls this city [laughs], but on the other hand it is an exciting challenge for bands like us to try to stand out among so many others.

How does being a full-time student affect your musicianship and your ability to devote your time to both school and the band?

In my case it works very well. [Since music] business is my major I am always able to meet many people that are excited and passionate about music in the same way I am, so I can’t really complain that school is affecting my band in a bad way; actually [it] is quite the opposite.

What are your short-term plans for They Face Reaction? Do you have an album in the works or any upcoming shows?

We just printed an EP and we are planning a release party very shortly. Our goal in 2010 is to promote this EP and play as many shows as we possibly can, and maybe by the end of the year or very early 2011 record a full length.

What bands are you listening to right now that you think our readers should be familiar with?

Well I find out about new bands every day but only a few of them stand out for me. The latest The Living End album “White Noise” is simply genius and I’m pretty sure it will please anyone that will give it a try. Also there is an amazing ska-reggae band from my hometown called Lou Dog that is amazing and completely different from everything that it is out there at the moment.

There you have it. Keep an eye out for big things from these guys. With their high-quality sound and solid talents it won’t be long before They Face Reaction starts making waves.