Editor’s Note: This interview with Blindwish was conducted via email. Questions and answers may have been cleaned up for grammar and clarity, however, the content has not been altered.
[Samantha Warren/AltWire]: I wanted to first thank you for taking the time to do this interview with me. For our readers who may not have heard of you yet, can you tell us who you are and who your bandmates are?
Zackary David/Blindwish: We’re Blindwish from Dallas, TX. We’re all based here, but only 2 of us are from here (Kendrick and Garrett). I’m (Zack) from New Jersey, Billy is from California and Dakota is from Oregon. Even though we’re from all over the country, we’ll always see Texas as our band’s home. We played our first few shows here and wouldn’t trade it for the world.
[AW]: You guys have been very busy with your new signing to Rise Records and your new album Good Excuses. Let’s talk about the album-making process. What was it like working with Ryan Furlott and John Feldmann who helped co-write “After Midnight” and “The Maze”?
Zackary David/Blindwish: Both producers we worked with were amazing. We spent a lot more time with Ryan and got to become very close. Writing a record is always extremely rewarding, but more so when you’re in a beautiful part of the country like Beaverton, OR. It was a perfect setting for the subject matter that we wanted to put on the album. Flying to Calabasas, CA to work with John Feldmann was an incredibly experience. I had nothing but respect for John before I went to write with him, yet somehow left with more. Both producers taught me a lot about songwriting and about life in general.
[AW]: What was the writing process like for the album? How do you go about the song writing process, and how do you decide which songs you put on the album?
Zackary David/Blindwish: Most of the time I’ll have an idea of what I want a song to be about. Sometimes music comes first, sometimes it’s a melody for a chorus. Every song is so different that it’s not really a formula, more whatever feels right. It’s a lot of give and take until we’re finally left with something that we truly love. We had a few songs that didn’t make the album. It’s not that they were bad songs, they were actually amazing songs, they just didn’t find their place on this album.
[AW]: What’s your favorite song that’s on the new album and what makes it stand out aside from the rest of the songs?
Zackary David/Blindwish: My absolute favorite song on this album and probably my favorite song I’ve ever written is the 5th track “Down”. It definitely sticks out on this album being the only acoustic song on it. The opening line holds the title to our album “Good Excuses”. Without giving too much away (I want everyone to listen to it and make their own assumptions on what it’s about), its an introspective ballad on choices we make and how they make us and the people we love feel.
[AW]: Back in 2016 you opened for Palisades. Any chance we can see another tour like that happen again or do you have any other tour plans in the works? What are some bands that you’d like to tour with?
Zackary David/Blindwish: We’d love to tour with Palisades again, they’re some of our best friends. As far as bands we’d like to tour with, I’m pretty sure everyone in our band can agree on two. We’d love to hit the road with Brand New, they just let out a new album (it’s amazing go listen to it) so we’ll see! The other is My Chemical Romance. Our first two tours we threw in a MCR cover, so you should know we really love them. Let’s get that reunion together!
[AW]: When you’re on tour or playing shows how do you go about what goes on the set list? Do you ever change your set list while on tour or do you usually keep it the same? What are your favorite songs to perform?
Zackary David/Blindwish: We’ve only done two tours, but each of them had different set lists. We have some album release shows coming up (Sept 1 Dallas, Sept 3 Houston) and we have different set lists for those shows. We tailor our set to who we’re playing with and what we think the audience would like to hear. In our current set, I’d have to say that After Midnight is my favorite song to perform.
[AW]: Does anyone in the band have any side projects going on at the moment? If so, what are they?
Zackary David/Blindwish: No musical side projects, we’re all 100% committed to making this band the best it can be. But I own a company that’s on Vans Warped Tour every year called Native Trashion that could be considered a side project. We hand-make clothes and accessories from recycled materials. Come check out our tent on Vans Warped Tour ’18!
[AW]: You also have some music videos out. What was the video-making experience like for you? Do you have any other videos in the works after the album drops?
Zackary David/Blindwish: There’s nothing like shooting a music video. We hear our song during shoots maybe 5,000 times (maybe not that many but it sure feels like it), and in all varieties of speed. Sometimes it’ll be the song slowed down 50% or sometimes turned up 200%. We don’t want to give away any secrets about upcoming videos!
[AW]: If you could give any advice to new bands just starting out in the industry, what advice would you give them?
Zackary David/Blindwish: It’s all about love. Before you work with anyone, make sure they love what you do. That goes for the members of your band, your record label, your manager, your booking agent, local promoters, every body! When everyone loves what you do and is on the same page, you don’t have to worry, and can focus on writing and performing the best music possible.
[AW]: Any last words?
Zackary David/Blindwish: Good Excuses is out September 1st via Rise Records. Pre-order now!
