Just Trying to Relate.
story by editor-in-chief: Ashly Nicole
Photo by Skylar Healy
Members: Tom - Guitar, Zach - Guitar, Duncan - Vocals, Diego - Drums, Emilio - Bass
There’s some new post pop punk vibes coming out of Denver, Colorado, and I had the opportunity to be one of the first to hear it!
While browsing through the sound-waves of soundcloud, it’s easy to kind of get caught up in all the different genres and aesthetics, but one that will always stand out and hit home a bit for me is anything in the pop punk world. Relate. is one of those bands that instantly brings you back to the days of tumblr and Warped Tour, and makes you wish it was 2011 all over again, and I promise, it’s in the best way.
Relate. is set to release their new EP, Have I Ever Done Anything? October 7th, and getting to be one of the first people to hear it is truly such a cool privilege. I also got to sit down for a little q&A session with the members of the band, and really pick their brains about not just their new EP, but what really drives and inspires them, a look into what the writing process is like, and even some fun behind the scenes info!
This might be a little cliche of a question, but how did the band name come about? and does it have a significant meaning to you?
Diego: I’m pretty sure it came from Duncan being asked if his band could play a show, which they couldn’t so he pitched his “other band”, Relate, which the other person agreed to, not knowing that it was actually Duncan’s solo acoustic project. I think the band name came about for him (and he can correct me here) because he wanted to write music that people can relate to. Personally I love the band name and carries that same weight, even if people on the internet think it’s “...a terrible name for a band” ™
Duncan: Relate was something I’d wanted to call a band since 2016. I just felt it was the most simple dilution of what my whole goal with music was; to relate to people. At some point I started writing some songs not intended for the band I was in at the time, and I began to perform them solo under the name Relate. I don’t think I’d intended on really making it a full band at that point, but maybe subconsciously
I did. I just knew that I didn’t want to perform songs under my own name, that would be lame (no shade to anyone that does use their own name though, like my name just isn’t very music sounding haha).
If you had to describe your sound or your vibe to new listeners or to anyone you want to get your music out to, how would you describe it?
Tom: Wish.com story so far
Zach: Temu story so far
Diego: Goodwill The Story So Far. Like you go to good will and pick something sick up for a specific occasion because it’s almost what you were looking for, but it works, and for whatever reason it just keeps coming back up haha on the real, we described ourselves as post Pop punk because we’re pop punk but like, have other elements to the music sometimes? I don’t know… genres are made up, the world isn’t real, we all live in the matrix.
Duncan: I’d describe the vibe as high energy, personal, and authentic. We’ve written our music to be music that we’d want to listen to ourselves and that really shines through. We’re not trying to copy a trend, but distill our own influences into something original and important to us. Whenever I go back and listen to our recordings my initial response is, “wow it’s lame I’m listening to my own band” , but so many of the lyrics of these songs we’re written for me to process my life experiences and emotions. I occasionally find myself going back and listening when I am going through something really hard in my life and finding a lot of comfort in the songs.
Emilio: Duncan’s and Diego’s answers were pretty great. But Zach and Tom’s answers were spot on.
What’s a completely unexpected influence that shaped your sound—something outside of music? (e.g., movies, video games, architecture?)
Tom: Years of family trauma
Zach: Casa Bonita reopening
Diego: trauma
Duncan: I draw a lot of influence from 90’s film and television when it comes to themes or specific imagery. But the most influential thing for me is my own relationships and interpersonal experiences with friends. Many times I’ll find my self jotting down a line that came out of a conversation with a friend or significant other.
Emilio: my wife in Borat voice
What was the most challenging song on the EP to write and why?
Tom: Probably Apathy. Took a long time to figure out what to do for a bridge, but then it came together the weeks leading up to going to the studio.
Zach: I think Have I Ever Done Anything?, I remember the 2nd verse coming together in the studio with Duncan’s vocals, us flying back to the studio and continuing to adjust the song. The last chorus is very different from what was originally intended but definitely where it needs to be.
Diego: At first I was like, totally constant pressure, but even though it went through a couple of iterations, we knew what we had there. I think it may have been Capsized. I feel like this was eons ago and my memory is bad as is.
Duncan: Oh it’s no contest, it was Apathy for me. We went into the studio with Constant Pressure, C.P.P, Capsized, and a B-side track completely written. We changed one or two musical phrasing lengths in Constant Pressure with Jay (our producer) but those songs all rang very true to the demo in terms of composition. We recorded the EP at Jay’s studio in Massachusetts and when we got to the studio I still had to write the second verses for Disdain and HIEDA. But for Apathy all I had was a first verse and pre chorus. I spent almost every night sitting at this graveyard near Jay’s house until the wee hours of the morning writing lyrics and it took me until I was in the vocal booth to have the chorus, bridge, and second verse of Apathy. It was definitely a moment that stoked a huge amount of insecurity in me because I usually write lyrics months before recording and methodically refine them. But I didn’t really have the chance to sit on the final lyrics for Apathy.
Emilio: all of them were easy for me.
Out of the entire EP, what is the stand out track to you? Which one would you initially tell someone to listen to when marketing your music?
Tom: Constant Pressure, Duncan made the chorus so big and sexy
Zach: Constant Pressure
Diego: Cop out answer is, they’re all stand outs to me, but it’s probably between Constant Pressure and Disdain, they’re both so sick, but depending on the person’s taste, I’d probably say,
Have I Ever Done Anything?. It’s dynamic and has such feeling behind it. It’s in my top 6 songs of the EP.
Duncan: My favorite song is Disdain. It just feels like it captures every element of our sound into a single track. The first verse guitar is so brooding and moody, and the chorus is upbeat and catchy.
But my favorite part is the sing along outro where I yell, “I feigned, disdain, just to erase your face, I became so fake, that I don’t know my name”. Lyrically, so much of the EP deals with the end of a relationship and my experiences forming and self-sabotaging connections after a gut wrenching heart break. I feel like Disdain is the moment in the EP that I become brutally honesty with myself and admit that all of the anger, spite, and indifference portrayed in the rest of the songs was a defense mechanism that turned me into someone I don’t recognize.
Emilio: When I first hear it, C.P.P. got me pretty good. Like that one just felt so emotionally heavy and I didn’t even know what Duncan was saying. Disdain was also very exciting to hear. However, I’d recommend Linger first, then new EP after.
Are there any other artists/bands you hope to collaborate with or tour with in the future? If so, who?
Tom: I would love to tour with Four Year Strong someday. They’ve been my favorite band since high school.
Zach: I would love to jump on a tour with Like Roses, slow joy, TSSF, free throw, new found glory!
Diego: We’ve all got some different influences, but I think Movements would be a great band to collaborate with in the future as our music evolves and progresses as theirs has. TSSF is a big influence so that would be rad, and any of our band friends - it’s always amazing to hang with our friends on tour and that would translate so well in the studio.
Duncan: We LOVE touring with our friends. It would be a dream to hit the road with Winterforever, Like Roses, Good Terms, Dead Wrong, Savings, honestly the list just goes on and on. In terms of like a really proper support tour, it would be awesome to get out with Movements or The Story So Far.
Emilio: collaborating is something that personally excites me. Like really left field stuff. I don’t see us doing anything like that, that wouldn’t make sense. But I really like those projects that wouldn’t make sense until they do.
You heard them! The Story So Far, Movements! Hit my guys up for a tour asap.
What venue (or non-venue) would be the dream place to play? even if it’s ridiculous
Tom: I would love to play Chain Reaction.
Zach: lol red rocks
Diego: Yo! That same spot that Creed shot the video for arms wide open. I have no idea if that’s a real place but there. Right there.
Duncan: Growing up in Denver, a lot of us went to shows at the Summit Music Hall and I know that’s a milestone venue for us to play. We really love playing non-conventional spaces.
I think it would be so cool to play a show in like a barber shop, or a laundromat. Most of our favorite shows have been in less conventional spaces, there’s just something about being packed in with a small room on a floor with a terrible sound system that feels like an irreplaceable moment.
Emilio: dennys (I’m being so for real)
absolutely loving all of these, but the Denny’s?!
um…YES let’s definitely make that one happen, let me know when and what location!
Do you have a favorite line you've ever written in a song?
Tom: I no words good.
Zach: Didn't write it, but the chorus of linger gets me pumped!
Diego: As a drummer, I can’t hear shit haha on the real, Duncan is an amazing lyricist and I love everything he writes. Coolest thing I’ve written? The fill halfway through Sludge is a favorite of mine even if it’s a pain in the ass to play. That, or the tom beat in Apathy.
Duncan: It’s definitely hard to choose, but I’d say that the opening lines of Constant Pressure “Are you sober now? / and on the rebound? / did you find a state of mind where you can’t hide from yourself?”
I feel like I’ve written my fair share of angsty and negative lines about past relationships, but in the opening of Constant Pressure my intention was to just wonder about this person I used to know’s life and wish them the best. Like hoping they got sober, found love, and stopped hiding from themselves.
Emilio: honestly when I wrote the lyrics to that chorus in Constant Pressure.
How did you all meet and how did Relate. come to be?
Tom: I posted an ad on craigslist of me playing guitar and Duncan asked me to be the drummer. Quickly switched over to guitar.
Zach: I made a post on Facebook trying to get into a project. Some dude named Nick told me to hit up Duncan who was doing acoustic stuff at the time. Duncan and I jammed only a couple times.
Duncan wanted to make Relate (he already had the name) a studio project, but I was like nah, let's do the thing for real. We met Tom shortly after!
Diego: Duncan and Zach met on Facebook. Then they met Tom off of Craigslist (we still don’t know if he’s a murderer, but so far so good)
Also fun fact, Tom was the original original drummer before they asked me to join so Tom could get back to what he does best, which is looking handsome as fuck with a guitar.
I met Duncan through a mutual friend at a Menzinger’s show around the same time he met Zach, but I didn’t join for a few months. Duncan met Emilio through another mutual friend I believe and brought him in right after we finished recording the new EP.
Duncan: Okay long story long, I started writing the first Relate songs in the late 2010’s, and at the same time I began playing some of those songs as a solo act under the name Relate. At the time I was living in Tempe Arizona, and in 2019 I moved back to Denver. I had 5 or 6 songs I’d written and I was about to record a solo acoustic EP, and then COVID happened. I ended up finishing that EP throughout 2020 and then in 2021 I wrote some more songs with heavier instrumentation that I knew could not be recorded as acoustic songs. I’m not really the most creative guitar player, so I went on the hunt for a guitarist and ended up connecting with Zach through a Facebook group. At the time, my only goal was to record an EP and put it out, but Zach convinced me that we needed to get a drummer so we could play shows so I did what anyone would do and went on craigslist. That’s where we found Tom. He had a posted a video of himself wine drunk playing a Four Years Strong song on guitar, saying he wanted to start a band.
His post also mentioned that he played drums so we asked him to drum for us. Around this same time I had met Diego at a Menzinger’s show and he mentioned that played drums and really wanted to start
a band, so eventually we moved Tom to guitar since that’s his main instrument. The first time all four of us met and played on our proper instruments we had rented a bike shop basement to practice in
(sooooo Denver haha) and we had a bassist that had jammed with us a little bit, but he had to go to another band practice so I picked up the bass for that first formal practice, and that just kind of worked out for the first iteration of the band. The four of us played all of the songs on Chemical Condition together, despite neither Tom or Zach ever having met Diego. It was honestly such an odd experience to be in a room with these guys who came to practice having learned the songs and written their own parts based on the terrible MacBook demos I sent them. We had maybe 4 or 5 practices after that one and then we started playing shows around Denver and self recording Chemical Condition. Around that time, we met our former bassist, Colin, and he joined the band and played with us for a couple of years before moving to San Diego. We went to record the new EP without a bassist, so Tom played bass, and at that same time I met our current bassist, Emilio, because him and I were playing together in an emo karaoke band.
The first time he practiced with us he just fit right in musically (and personality wise too, he’s absolutely hilarious, down to earth, and a hard worker).
Emilio: what Duncan said.
Anyone have any fun/weird hidden talents not music related?
Tom: Can squat more times than Zach
Zach: Actually I was going to say I could squat more times, but I forgot that was a lie so I guess I don't have any talents. I compose music for film and games
Diego: Duncan can and will turn anything into a deez nuts joke. Even though it’s not so hidden because he does it a lot, he likes to hide the joke in plain site. Please beware when he talks about car problems.
Duncan: I’m pretty sure Diego can put his toes in his own mouth…or Tom’s toes. We will send a video of that.
Emilio: I’ll destroy you in Mortal Kombat.
What's something you look forward to about playing live shows?
Tom: Seeing people who don’t know us start to think “hey, I hope this band’s set is almost over”.
Zach: I love seeing people sing our songs and meeting them at the show. It's an unreal feeling.
Diego: Just playing music I love and having fun on stage with my best friends. I’m always looking around to see who’s gonna look at me and I’m almost always just cheesin’.
Duncan: I always look forward to connecting with the people who support our band in person and talking to them. I’m beyond grateful to meet the folks who have been impacted by our band and have found comfort in our songs. That’s definitely my favorite part hands down.
Emilio: that’s like 80% of what I look forward to. Writing and all this back end stuff is cool, but playing live is where it’s at. Come see us play and it’ll make sense.
If you had to cover one pop song at every show for the rest of your career, what would it be?
Tom: Off the Wall - Michael Jackson
Zach: My humps by whoever does that
Diego: 5000 miles. Not my favorite song, but I hear it comes around
Duncan: Drivers License by Olivia Rodrigo! I tried to convince everyone at some point early on, but that song is literally perfect. I feel like a 16 year old going through a heartbreak everytime I hear it.
Emilio: no :)
Which random object would each member bring to a zombie apocalypse?
Tom: Diego > Snare buzz plugin or a keg of a hazy IPA, Duncan > Ampeg 8x10, Zach > boxing gym membership, Emilio > Cane’s 3 Finger Combo
Zach: Duncan would bring Juno. Tom would bring Finn. Diego would bring Steph. Emilio would bring a cooler or 2 JBL speakers.
Diego: Assuming this is an individual question, so for me, I’d say one of my many broken cymbals if it’s supposed to be musically related. If not, I’d probably find myself a Joel Miller and bring him around.
Duncan: Tom would bring his sunglasses (he’s always asking us if we’ve seen them), Zach would bring beef jerky, Emilio would bring hand sanitizer, Diego would bring his vape, and I’d bring
nerds gummy clusters.
Emilio: everyone bring wood!
Can you share any tea about your recording/writing process, or anything we can expect to see from you in the near future?
Tom: Zach didn’t get a “special guy” from Jay
Zach: Sharing the Halloween room with fun Uncle duncan.
Diego: I mean, closest thing to tea that I can think of is that Linger and Sludge were 2 of like 10 songs that we went and recorded, but scrapped the rest because they just weren’t it.
I’m really happy we did that. It took longer to get new music out, but imo it’s about putting out the best music we can and the music we wanna play and listen to and this EP is leaaaaggueeeess beyond
what we had before. Maybe we’ll revisit some of those songs and rewrite them.
Duncan: We might be writing a lot of songs right now that maybe will get recorded together and maybe be put as a full length LP, who’s to say?
Emilio: it’s weird. mature but playful. big but small. old but new. people are not gonna like it. but people are gonna love it.
Any other tea you wanna share? or anything you want to plug?
Tom: The Rehearsal on HBO is an underwatched masterpiece.
Zach: CARS 2
Diego: Plug this
Duncan: Our new EP comes out in October, and we’re playing a show with our friends in Capture This, Out in Front, Public Figure, and Red40 in Denver on October 18th to celebrate!
Also go listen to Winterforever, All Hype, Calmgrove, and Troubled Minds. They’re some of our best friends in the world and we love them and their music <3.
Emilio: Plug this
Here’s a little review of some of the most stand out tracks from their upcoming EP, and something for everyone to look forward to. Starting off strong with the heavy nostalgic pop punk vibes, the first track, Apathy, conveys just that. The lyrics very quickly tie into why the song is named Apathy, but also bring on the same feeling you got listening to Neck Deep for the first time, and I’m absolutely here for it.
Track three, Have I Ever Done Anything?, is a song to get you up and in the pit, but also one to hit you right in the gut. This third track is one that you could definitely jam to, but listen to the lyrics too closely and you might get hurt. Another track that really stands out to me, and I think might become an earworm, honestly, is track six, Constant Pressure. There’s just something about those classic pop punk guitar riffs and the switch up in tempo and melody that seems to be such a huge selling point when it comes to listening to this genre of music; I really love it, and I think it might be my favorite song on the EP.
Even if you’re not one for seeking out new music, Relate. is certainly a band to watch, and one worth giving a listen to! You don’t even have to seek them out, because you can listen to their brand new EP,
Have I Ever Done Anything? on all streaming platforms on October 7th!
So get ready, go pre-save, and start supporting your new favorite band!
ALSO! Grab your tickets for their show on October 18th at the Marquis in Denver, Colorado: HERE!
