Have you heard about this radical battle of the bands that Music & Arts happens to be putting on? In case you haven’t, you can check out some information on it here. It plans to be fabulous. It plans to be fun. It plans to be … a battle. In anticipation of the extravaganza, we reached out to all seven finalists and asked them all the same five questions. What shall we do with the five answers we received to the five questions? Well, we shall share them with you. That’s what we shall do. We began with Israel Creek yesterday and now, next up is Andrew Fallenz of Nasim Siddeeq, who will be representin’ Alexandria, Virginia. They’ll be competing a week from today (that’s next Thursday for those keeping score). The fun begins at 5 p.m. The venue is Champions. Go rock. Go roll.
First, tell us a little about the band. How did it come to be, how long have you been together and how would you describe your music?
We first formed around this time last year. Nasim and I (the band’s bass player) met at a party held by another one of my Music & Arts coworkers who is no longer with the company. The party had a sort of open mic towards the middle of it, so we both played acoustic guitar and sang individually. We were both really impressed with each other, so I ended up contacting him a couple months later and asking him to come over and jam. We immediately decided to start playing together and shortly after we started writing original music. Nasim had already been playing as a solo artist for quite awhile, and had a few gigs lined up. The band kind of took a hiatus from about August to October and when we reformed, we brought on Chris as the new drummer.
Have you ever competed in a battle of the bands before? If so, how did you do? If not, do you have a strategy going into this competition?
We have never competed in a battle of the bands before. We are really grateful to have been selected for the competition and our strategy is to just stay true to ourselves and give the best performance we possibly can.
What do you think is the most perfect song ever written and why?
While everyone in the band has their own tastes, I think one artist we undoubtedly agree is unbelievably talented is Stevie Wonder. It’s really difficult to pick a best Stevie Wonder song (so many of them could be considered perfect), but I think out of the ones that our band performs, “Hey Love” is one of our favorites. We think it’s perfect, because it has a nice groove, every instrument stands out on its own while also fitting perfectly in the mix, and it has a way of sounding like it’s being sung to the listener.
What’s the best part about working for Music & Arts?
I’m a practical person, so ultimately it comes down to practical things for me. I work for the company part-time, currently. My manager and district manager have been extremely flexible with my schedule, which allows me to gig more or less whenever I want. I get to be surrounded by other musicians at all times. The discount coupled with the higher-than-average wages allow me to purchase top-quality gear at a rate that I would otherwise be unable to. Even when I’m working hard, I’m actually just talking about the things that I love most.
And finally, how would you spend the $1,000 gift card, should you take home first place?
Probably effects. Our band has most everything that we need to function at a high level for the moment. I think what we need most (and have the most trouble justifying) at the moment is that little bit of extra bit of sauce. I would personally love a sub-octaver and a bass reverb. I think Nasim could use a high-quality delay and chorus as well for his guitar. I’m generally the biggest gear-head in the band. Chris is always talking about upgrades to his kit as well. I think he wants some new cymbals, so that’s definitely a possibility as well.
