(Ocean Alley: Baden Donegal (Vocals, Guitar), Angus Goodwin (Lead Guitar), Lach Galbraith (Keyboard, Vocals), Mitch Galbraith (Guitar), Nic Blom (Bass) and Tom O'Brien (Drums).

We chat with Ocean Alley and learn about the influences that help create their one of a kind sound, that has dubbed them our June 2024, Mid Cap - Top Seller. ADD MORE LINA NOTE*

Let's Begin!  

What kind of music inspired your latest album? 

Baden:  The five of us all have different inspirations and music that we draw inspiration from. I know for me personally, when we were writing Shadowglow, I was listening to a lot of Lewis Del Mar’s album "August", Mutemath’s "Odd Soul", and Mock Orange’s "Put the Kid on the Sleepy Horse". I loved how hard those albums hit, and wanted to make a record that has those “knock your teeth out” moments.

What does a typical day look like while on tour?

Madeline:  Typically for me, I love to start my day by hitting a local coffee shop. My go-to order is an iced oat milk latte and a croissant! It’s a great way to get a feel for the city and to people watch. From there, I’ll usually grab a bite to eat for lunch before soundcheck!

What has been the most memorable moment(s) of your tour so far?

Dillon:  Easily the snowstorm we experienced together in Boulder! The show itself was electric and then after our set we walked around downtown Boulder while it was snowing. We built a snowman in front of our bus and eventually ended up hurling snowballs at each other as if we were 10 years old again. Being from Florida we never see snow haha so we took full advantage of it. 

How do you maintain your energy while traveling and performing on tour?

Mitch: This was our first tour on a bus so that was super helpful with sleep. When we traveled in the van we tried to keep energy up by splitting up driving times and trying to conserve everything on tour days. It was always about using all of our energy for the showtime and then preserving energy while off stage. 

Flipturn Performing For Their Home State Stop On Tour In Florida

What's the weirdest item a fan has ever thrown onto stage/given you during a performance?

Mitch:  One time I signed a prosthetic leg which was wild. Pretty sure it was at Bonnaroo.

On stage Madeline And Tristan Taking Over On The Guitar 

Can you talk to us a little about your merch? You guys play with color theory so well with those cool designs and color choices!

Madeline: Thank you! We wanted to lean into the themes of our record Shadowglow for the color and design choices. We love having pieces with shots from our music videos, lyrics, and elements of imagery that our songs mention.

Lyn and her Band Mates Gearing Up To Go On Stage in Detroit

If you could create a signature tour tea, coffee or snack, what would it be called and what would it contain?

Madeline:   I think it would be a post-show drink concoction called Super Juice. It would contain throat-coat tea, Gatorade for electrolytes, and chocolate milk for protein. In an ideal world this combination would taste delicious, but in reality it would definitely be awful LOL.

Fans Cheering on Flipturn at one of her tour stops in Charlottesville

Can you share any behind-the-scenes stories or funny anecdotes from your time on the road?

MItch:  We accumulated around 20 rubber chickens on this tour (due to our rubber chicken Jalapeño which is another story lol). We would take these chickens and hide them everywhere on the bus. Every night you would hear chickens squeaking when people got into their bunks because people would place them under mattresses before bed haha

What are some of your favorite cities or countries that you've visited during your tour?

Dillon:  On this run we hit a lot of cities we’d never played before and the biggest surprise I’d say was Omaha, Nebraska. We had an off day after our show so we got to explore the city and it was one of my favorite days of the tour. There were so many cool shops and restaurants and the people were super kind. A few other cities we hit that I never have a bad time in were Chicago, New York, and Boston. 

How do you stay connected with your fans while you're away on tour?

Tristan:  I actually feel like it’s easier to keep up with fans while on tour than not! We’ve gotten to see a lot of the same faces over the years and it’s cool to see people so supportive. Now, keeping up with family while away on tour is a whole different story haha.

If your tour had a theme song, what would it be and why?

Mitch:  Every “roadie Friday” (the last show of that specific week, which changes week by week) we would BLAST “Banana Boat” by Harry Belafonte. That became the tour’s theme song.

Are there any pre-show rituals or routines that you follow before taking the stage?

Devon:  We have this ritual that started at a show in Gainesville, FL a few years ago. The weather was awful and it was storming so bad, but I wanted to hype us up before our set by thinking of iconic performances that happened in the rain. First thing that came to mind was Prince’s “Purple Rain”, so we huddled up and prayed to Prince. I swear the second we took the stage the clouds started to part, it stopped raining, and the weather was clear for the rest of the show. So now we have our “Prince Prayer” before literally every set. 

What advice would you give to aspiring musicians about life on tour?

Madeline:  I would say to always keep your head up, even through the rough days. Touring is grueling and a lot of hard work, but it’s the best experience ever! Get as much sleep as you can and remember to stay hydrated!

What’s your favorite piece of merch you've ever owned?

Dillon:  My Shakey Graves corduroy hat. We were fortunate enough to tour with Shakey last year and on the last show we did a merch swap. I am a big hat person and this is still one of my most worn hats. 

Any personal favorite band/artist you would like to collaborate with?

Tristan: Someone I’ve always considered to be a cool person to collab with would be Unknown Mortal Orchestra! I love Rubin’s approach to music and think it’d mesh with ours really well

Did you ever have that moment of “fuck I get to go on tour” and “This is really happening”?

Tristan:  It’s honestly every time we get to go on the road. That feeling likes to kick in at the most random of times. I felt it this past tour pretty heavily after getting into my bunk for the first night of tour. 

Anything you are most looking forward to this year?

Madeline: I’m definitely looking forward to playing shows in Europe for the first time! We’re set to play there in November, and I absolutely cannot wait.

What was your first festival you performed at? What festival would you like to perform at?

Madeline: The first festival we played was Okeechobee Music Festival in our home state of Florida. It was definitely a pinch me moment to play on a main stage! A festival I would love to perform at is Fuji Rock in Japan. Just to play in Japan in general would be amazing, but playing a music festival there would be incredible!

Check Out Our Last Artist In Action

with Arrows In Action :

(Singer/Songwriter: Taylor Acorn)

Join us as we chat with Taylor Acorn! The Pennsylvania born singer/songwriter who has successfully transitioned from country to pop. Taylor talks about her inspirations, her unique start in music and her upcoming UK tour.

Let's Begin!  

Tell us about yourself, Taylor's version.

Taylor:  I'm from Willsboro, Pennsylvania, a tiny town in North Central PA. Growing up in a town where we had to create our own entertainment, I discovered my love for music. I learned to play guitar at 14 through YouTube videos. Alongside my best friend Kelly, we formed a little acoustic band, performing at talent shows, and in college, started a YouTube channel, recording cover videos using just my iPhone propped up on my dorm room windowsill. My dream was to break into the music industry, so I kept posting videos and continuing to work while I supported that dream. I worked at Bob Evans, Applebee's, and Texas Roadhouse for several years before I had my breakthrough.

 

 

How did your breakthrough come about?

Taylor:  My breakthrough came when a video of mine went viral around the time Taylor Swift released "1989." This caught the attention of someone from Nashville connected to Universal, who was venturing into artist management and development. After several attempts to contact me, I flew out to Nashville, where I began recording my own songs.

From there, everything started to fall into place, leading to where I am today.

You’ve changed genres from country to rock, tell us a bit about that transition.

Taylor:  I was a country artist for four years, and decided, you know, that really wasn't for me.

But I got a lot of really amazing experiences out of that and got to build a really amazing fan base from the country world.

 

Luckily they've stuck with me and have followed me over into this transition and it's just been… it's been amazing and now we're getting to play our own shows and I get to work with you guys. So that's so cool!

Any particular vocalist that you look to as your main musical inspiration?

Taylor:  I'm super, super inspired by the nineties and early two thousands music. I'm such a sucker for nostalgia, especially in music. Whenever I listen to bands like The Goo Goo Dolls or MatchBox 20 or even like, I always say this, I'm a huge fan of Butt Rock. I know a lot of people don't love that, but I'm very inspired by bands like Stained and Puddle Of Mud and The Verve Pipe and Vertical Horizon. I really crave that nostalgic,  late-nineties vibe. That's like all I listen to. To be completely honest, I haven't listened to a lot of newer music; I kind of like to do that because I feel like it fuels my writing process, and I think that it brings out a little bit of a different element to my own music.

 

I love writing things that maybe people feel like they've been heard before, but in a new light, you know, and it was really fun, especially when I was doing the covers because I kind of got to take those songs, put my own spin on it. So that's definitely like the inspiration, you know, like Alanis Morrisette and Michelle Branch, very much like Jane, I don't know if you remember her at all, but like, that's kind of the vibe that I was going for in the music that I'm super, super inspired by even still to this day.

So, the goal is to bring back that nostalgic vibe but put my own spin on it and make it something new and fresh. That’s what's inspired this new music and this new era.

Amy Lee is one of my biggest influences; vocally, she literally taught me how to sing when I found Evanescence. I remember, like, where I was the first time I ever heard, bring me to life on the radio. When I was a kid, I grew up moving around a bunch. I'm from Wellsboro, but my family moved to a ton, and we lived in a suburb of Seattle for like 7-8 years. And that's where that music taste came from. I found that music because it was so prominent out there, like the rock and grunge scenes, and that particular genre of music is really big out west, too. So it was cool to dive back into all of that and those inspirations!

How do you maintain your energy while traveling and performing on tour and what does a typical tour day look like?

Taylor:  Oh, gosh, I feel like I try to keep a pretty good routine.

Sometimes it's a little bit different. I like to be active, depending on where we are.

We usually stop at Planet Fitness in the morning, and I love waking up. I always have a coffee! You're not supposed to drink caffeine, but I always have a coffee! It's like my morning ritual: wake up, have a coffee, and go to Planet Fitness.

I love to get a workout in if I can. Sometimes, we're in a crunch for time, but I'll go in, and I'll shower really fast! Then, I'll have a nice spa moment, like pretending I'm at the Marriott or something.

I just pretend like I'm somewhere tropical or something, get my shower, and try to remain really positive throughout the day. I like to take it pretty easy. I do rest a lot up until VIP, but I'll venture around depending on the cities.

In Seattle, I love to go out and venture around there, especially if it's a city we've never been to before. We always like to make a point to go. A little group of us will go, and we'll go get a popular food spot, or we'll go get a coffee somewhere that's a more local favorite spot.

So we'll do that, and then I'll just rest up until VIP, and I'll be very, very chill during the day.

I do my little routine. On this last tour, I brought Palo Santo and Sage, and I got crystals out. I was like, yeah, we're just going to be very relaxed. Because our show is so high-energy, I like to save as much energy as I can to play the live show, but I try to make it feel like I'd be at home.

Everybody on our team, like my tour manager, is very outgoing and makes it a point to say, " Let's go for a walk,” “Let's make sure we're getting fresh air, we're breathing, and we're experiencing the cities that we're in.”

But then, you know, I'm also like, okay, I'm going to chill, and it's really good. It's a really good group of people who are all together and kind of balance each other out, and we enjoy each other's company, too. So we like to spend much time with each other during the day. It's honestly great.

Flipturn Performing For Their Home State Stop On Tour In Florida

What's one of the most memorable moment(s) that happened on tour?

Taylor:  Gosh, it was during our L A show.

My guitarist Ricky is, if you ever watched him play live, he's very, very, very energetic.

And he spins a lot and he's flipping his guitar and he's an amazing performer.

Well, our photographer Ellie, him and her were not in sync that day.

And he was spinning and he hit her and she fell during one of our songs

and I think it was actually during coma. So I was like facing everybody, It's like where I'm not really moving around. So like, I wasn't paying attention to what was going on around me and Ricky was spinning away and just playing his little heart out and accidentally hit Ellie. She flew backwards and I didn't know until the song was over and he was like “Oh my God Ellie, I'm so sorry!” So that was, that was kind of chaotic. We were all like, “Oh my god, Are you OK?”

Making sure that she wasn't concussed or anything like that. But that was kind of funny little funny moment that happened. In true her fashion, she was just like, I'm good, you got back up and she was like,” I hope I got that on video because that perspective would be really funny.” 

 

 Taylor On stage In Pittsburgh

Has anyone ever thrown anything at you guys on stage or has a fan ever given you guys anything that you're like...Why did you give this to me?

Taylor:  Bracelets are a big thing during my tour. I started off making bracelets for my fans and it would kind of be like a thank you and they'd say “Stay Emo” on them. When it was time for our headlining tour, I wanted to make everybody bracelets and stuff like the first stint, and then I realized that making many bracelets is really hard. I would love to do it, but we try to make it special in other ways now.

But they started making bracelets for me, which has been really awesome.

And so, that was like a really big thing during the tour, and I remember during one of the shows, I'm in my own, like zone, and fans were throwing things on stage. So I don't really, like, think about, oh, going and grabbing it. So they'll toss it up on stage, and sometimes it catches you off guard. I haven't gotten hit with any of them before. But I did get hit in the face with flowers one time. They hit me in the face and went everywhere and I was like, what was that?

 

But I have gotten a couple of weird things like this super, super talented  girl makes teeth replicas. She makes like teeth and so she handed them us! And to be honest, for the longest time, I thought they were real and then Ricky was like, oh, no, no, no, she makes them.

I've got teeth, to say that I've gotten a deer bone before, but it was cool because she takes these bones and repurposes them to make hairpins and stuff.

 

Lyn and her Band Mates Gearing Up To Go On Stage in Detroit

Can you tell us a little bit about your merch?

Taylor: I value merch design in general and like quality. We try to make it with fans' tastes in mind, too. I sing a lot about mental health, and many my songs can feel very daunting, dark, and sad. But, although I struggle with anxiety and depression, I love vibrancy, and I love being happy and feeling good. So, despite having the songs and the lyrics be, you know, maybe a little bit on the sadder side, we wanted to have vibrant merch that made people feel good. So, on this last tour, we picked yellow. I love yellow.

 

This new era just feels very bright, and the songs—you know, each song has its color scheme.

And so I just wanted to bring that to life with the Merch. So, the color is just pouring out of you.

What are some of your favorite pieces of merch that you have accumulated or merch you look forward to grabbing soon?

Taylor:  I always get merch from the opening acts and stuff like that or other bands I'm with.

We got a hoodie from World’s For Cinema, our opening act. It's my favorite thing ever. I was wearing it earlier. We try to get pieces from every tour we're on and support the other acts we're with. So I have merch from every band that I've toured with.

 

Honestly, I know how hard it is, and when you're grinding the way you are, sometimes it can be: You gotta pay the bills, pay for the gas, and ensure everybody's eating.

So I support that way, and I always wear all the merchandise.

If you could create a signature tour tea, coffee, or snack, what would it be called, and what would it contain?    

Taylor:  My own coffee. I'm a big caffeine drinker. I've been really trying to cut back on that, but I think my drink of choice I always get in the mornings I love to have: It's a Brown Sugar Crumble by Green Mountain, I'll make that, and then I'll top it off with a brown sugar creamer and it is so good. So that's like my signature, which I have every day! It's like what I'm drinking now from my Halloween mug.

Yeah, that's my drink of choice, or it would be like a lemonade.

 

Fans Cheering on Flipturn at one of her tour stops in Charlottesville

If your tour had a theme song, this tour in particular, what would it be and why?

Taylor: The only thing I can think of right now is with arms wide open by Creed because we would all sing that all the time. Like we joke about it, and we sing “with arms wide open.”...

So Ricky would sing it, and I would sing it, and then any time I was sound-checking, I'd sing it. So that would probably be our theme song.

What are you looking forward to most?

Taylor:  Well, we are leaving for the UK next week. So that's really exciting!

I've been wanting to play. There's this festival called Slam Dunk that I've wanted to play for years and years, and I've watched so many videos of artists playing it. I've, you know, seen so many flyers, and I'm like, I want to be on that, and we're finally getting to do that, which is really exciting. I love going to the UK. It's like, I try not to get too ahead of myself. 

I'm getting to do so many amazing things right now, and I'm just kind of taking it all in and taking it one day at a time. I really appreciate it as we've gone because, like you and I talked about earlier, it's been little stepping stones, and each stepping stone is to something bigger and more amazing.

And so, obviously very excited for the fall tour with Dashboard and Boys Like Girls. I'm such a huge fan of theirs.

 

But, you know, eventually I love, you know, to maybe open for Taylor Swift or something one day!

And just the fact that I get to, you know, we just hopped off of a headlining tour that was like, pretty much sold out is crazy and, you know, just being able to share my music with fans and this new project of music that we've been working on, I'm so proud of and getting to put that out.

Check Out Our Last Artist In Action

with Lyn Lapid :

(Flipturn: Dillon Basse (frontman), Madeline Jarman (bassist), and Tristan Duncan (lead guitarist), Mitch Fountain (guitarist/synth) and Devon VonBalson (drummer)

Join us as we chat with Flipturn! The Florida based Indie Band that is rising rapidly through their cool sound composed of soft rock, indie and slightly punk influences. Bandmates Dillon Basse (frontman), Madeline Jarman (bassist), and Tristan Duncan (lead guitarist), Mitch Fountain (guitarist/synth) and Devon VonBalson (drummer) are only getting started!

Let's Begin!  

What kind of music inspired your latest album? 

Devon:  The five of us all have different inspirations and music that we draw inspiration from. I know for me personally, when we were writing Shadowglow, I was listening to a lot of Lewis Del Mar’s album "August", Mutemath’s "Odd Soul", and Mock Orange’s "Put the Kid on the Sleepy Horse". I loved how hard those albums hit, and wanted to make a record that has those “knock your teeth out” moments.

What does a typical day look like while on tour?

Madeline:  Typically for me, I love to start my day by hitting a local coffee shop. My go-to order is an iced oat milk latte and a croissant! It’s a great way to get a feel for the city and to people watch. From there, I’ll usually grab a bite to eat for lunch before soundcheck!

What has been the most memorable moment(s) of your tour so far?

Dillon:  Easily the snowstorm we experienced together in Boulder! The show itself was electric and then after our set we walked around downtown Boulder while it was snowing. We built a snowman in front of our bus and eventually ended up hurling snowballs at each other as if we were 10 years old again. Being from Florida we never see snow haha so we took full advantage of it. 

How do you maintain your energy while traveling and performing on tour?

Mitch: This was our first tour on a bus so that was super helpful with sleep. When we traveled in the van we tried to keep energy up by splitting up driving times and trying to conserve everything on tour days. It was always about using all of our energy for the showtime and then preserving energy while off stage. 

Flipturn Performing For Their Home State Stop On Tour In Florida

What's the weirdest item a fan has ever thrown onto stage/given you during a performance?

Mitch:  One time I signed a prosthetic leg which was wild. Pretty sure it was at Bonnaroo.

On stage Madeline And Tristan Taking Over On The Guitar 

Can you talk to us a little about your merch? You guys play with color theory so well with those cool designs and color choices!

Madeline: Thank you! We wanted to lean into the themes of our record Shadowglow for the color and design choices. We love having pieces with shots from our music videos, lyrics, and elements of imagery that our songs mention.

Lyn and her Band Mates Gearing Up To Go On Stage in Detroit

If you could create a signature tour tea, coffee or snack, what would it be called and what would it contain?

Madeline:   I think it would be a post-show drink concoction called Super Juice. It would contain throat-coat tea, Gatorade for electrolytes, and chocolate milk for protein. In an ideal world this combination would taste delicious, but in reality it would definitely be awful LOL.

Fans Cheering on Flipturn at one of her tour stops in Charlottesville

Can you share any behind-the-scenes stories or funny anecdotes from your time on the road?

MItch:  We accumulated around 20 rubber chickens on this tour (due to our rubber chicken Jalapeño which is another story lol). We would take these chickens and hide them everywhere on the bus. Every night you would hear chickens squeaking when people got into their bunks because people would place them under mattresses before bed haha

What are some of your favorite cities or countries that you've visited during your tour?

Dillon:  On this run we hit a lot of cities we’d never played before and the biggest surprise I’d say was Omaha, Nebraska. We had an off day after our show so we got to explore the city and it was one of my favorite days of the tour. There were so many cool shops and restaurants and the people were super kind. A few other cities we hit that I never have a bad time in were Chicago, New York, and Boston. 

How do you stay connected with your fans while you're away on tour?

Tristan:  I actually feel like it’s easier to keep up with fans while on tour than not! We’ve gotten to see a lot of the same faces over the years and it’s cool to see people so supportive. Now, keeping up with family while away on tour is a whole different story haha.

If your tour had a theme song, what would it be and why?

Mitch:  Every “roadie Friday” (the last show of that specific week, which changes week by week) we would BLAST “Banana Boat” by Harry Belafonte. That became the tour’s theme song.

Are there any pre-show rituals or routines that you follow before taking the stage?

Devon:  We have this ritual that started at a show in Gainesville, FL a few years ago. The weather was awful and it was storming so bad, but I wanted to hype us up before our set by thinking of iconic performances that happened in the rain. First thing that came to mind was Prince’s “Purple Rain”, so we huddled up and prayed to Prince. I swear the second we took the stage the clouds started to part, it stopped raining, and the weather was clear for the rest of the show. So now we have our “Prince Prayer” before literally every set. 

What advice would you give to aspiring musicians about life on tour?

Madeline:  I would say to always keep your head up, even through the rough days. Touring is grueling and a lot of hard work, but it’s the best experience ever! Get as much sleep as you can and remember to stay hydrated!

What’s your favorite piece of merch you've ever owned?

Dillon:  My Shakey Graves corduroy hat. We were fortunate enough to tour with Shakey last year and on the last show we did a merch swap. I am a big hat person and this is still one of my most worn hats. 

Any personal favorite band/artist you would like to collaborate with?

Tristan: Someone I’ve always considered to be a cool person to collab with would be Unknown Mortal Orchestra! I love Rubin’s approach to music and think it’d mesh with ours really well

Did you ever have that moment of “fuck I get to go on tour” and “This is really happening”?

Tristan:  It’s honestly every time we get to go on the road. That feeling likes to kick in at the most random of times. I felt it this past tour pretty heavily after getting into my bunk for the first night of tour. 

Anything you are most looking forward to this year?

Madeline: I’m definitely looking forward to playing shows in Europe for the first time! We’re set to play there in November, and I absolutely cannot wait.

What was your first festival you performed at? What festival would you like to perform at?

Madeline: The first festival we played was Okeechobee Music Festival in our home state of Florida. It was definitely a pinch me moment to play on a main stage! A festival I would love to perform at is Fuji Rock in Japan. Just to play in Japan in general would be amazing, but playing a music festival there would be incredible!

Check Out Our Last Artist In Action

with Arrows In Action :

(Singer-Songwriter and Musician, Lyn Lapid )

Join us as we talk to rising solo artist Lyn Lapid: Lyn has quickly becoming one to watch, with sold out shows in the US and UK. Not only is she our January 2024 Small Cap Top Seller (a repeat winner) she has also embarked on a solo tour promoting her latest album release "To love in the 21st Century" this past year and wrapping up this February. Learn a bit more about our January Small Cap Top Selling Winner Lyn Lapid. Let’s get started!

What was one of your favorite stops on the tour? 

Lyn:  I’d have to say Cleveland. I wasn’t expecting Cleveland to be such a loud and energetic crowd. I always feed off the energy of a crowd and Cleveland was by far the most energetic. 

What kind of music did you listen to when you were creating this album?

Lyn:  I was listening to a lot of indie pop and alternative pop. I remembering listening to a good amount of Dayglow and d4vd.

What does a typical day look like for you while on tour for a show day? Any pre-show routine?

Lyn:  I wake up a little bit before call time. I nebulize and eat right when I get to the venue before soundcheck. Then I warm up right before I do the meet and greet. I try to stay warmed up between when doors open and my set time. Sometimes I take a quick nap before I go on stage if needed!

Who would you like to collaborate with and why?

Lyn: I’d love to collaborate with Sabrina Carpenter. Her latest album has been on repeat for me since it came out and I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from her as a songwriter and performer. 

Lyn Performing At The Phoenix Tour Stop

Is there any particular merch item that you gravitate to when going to see a show?

Lyn:  I gravitate towards posters and sweaters. I can never have too many concert hoodies. 

 

Lyn Lapid on the Cover over her album "To Love In The 21st Century"

Dream merch item you would love to offer?

Lyn: I would loveeee to offer a Plushie! My friend who designs all my merch and I have been dreaming of making a Lyn Lapid Plushie. Hopefully next tour!

Lyn and her Band Mates Gearing Up To Go On Stage in Detroit

Is there any artistic decade that calls your attention when creating merch?

Lyn:  Honestly the vibe of my merch reminds me of 90s-2010 cartoons. Whimsical, nostalgic, and comforting is the kind of vibe I go for.

What is the weirdest or funniest question you’ve ever been asked in an interview?

Lyn:  Someone once asked me to describe my personality by choosing a type of boat that represents my personality. (I said Kayak because I’m more laid back and the opposite of grandiose water travel).

Fans Cheering on Lyn at one of her tour stops in Pittsburgh

Check Out Our Last Artist In Action

with Arrows In Action :

(Drummer Jesse Frimmer, singer Victor Viramontes-Pattison, and guitarist Matthew Fowler)

Join us as we talk to the members of Pop Rock Band Arrows In Action: Jesse, Victor, and Matthew, along with their Merch Manager Michael. Arrows In Action formed almost 10 years ago and has lit up some of the brightest stages in the US.  Learn a bit more about our August Small Cap Top Selling Winners Arrows In Action! Let’s get started!

What was one of your favorite stops on the tour? 

Jesse: Definitely a top one would be our biggest show on the headlining tour, and our New York Show …

Each venue is very grand in its own way. So, you're like, "wow, it's so big."

Matthew And Victor:  We did, we played Hell in Atlanta, The Masquerade and Marquee Theater in Denver.

We love going to Colorado already and everyone at Marquee has always been super, super nice to us and the green rooms are just beautiful and spacious, and they give us pizza! 

 

I think it's like a really comfortable experience as a fan too, in there.

So that room is really cool and there's options, you know, for where to sit, where to stand in.

What kind of music did you listen to when you were creating this album?

Victor:  We already had a ton of ideas sonically of what we could do and we've always talked about a lot of bands, like Five Seconds Of Summer and The Foo Fighters are a huge influence on us. And we think at least in our minds, that was kind of the hope... marrying those two types of bands of like the really pop centric, like younger band and this classic, you know, rock, not classic rock, but like the writer style, just the timeless sound and a lot of the  writing for it. I think we tried to have it kind of like, chronicle us moving to Nashville and, like, feeling unsure about our place, like, as a band here or just in general and like, it sort of has a nice resolution of like, you know, oh, I should call my friends and like, everything's gonna be ok and all we are who we have sonically.

 

I mean, we went all over the place sonically and like those two examples, the Fighters and Five SOS and, you know, I think we listen to like even some Limp Bizkit and the new Demi Lovato record and heavier things and we just said, why limit ourselves? Let's, let's go all over the map on it.

What does a typical day look like for you while on tour for a show day?

Matthew: It usually starts early, we could be loading in the gear by 1:00 pm and that could lead directly into sound check starting. From sound check we may have an hour before meet and greets or before we get ready to go on.

Jesse: That hour we honestly have to decide between do we eat, shower, do laundry, or call loved ones.

You can maybe do like two of those things. We'll be deciding “I can eat, I can call my partner, or I can do laundry that I haven't done in a week or two”. Usually you're doing laundry at like 2:30 am in the morning at the local Travel Center.

 

It gets hectic but we wouldn't trade it for anything.

Michael:  On the merch side of things, It usually takes me 2 hours from the end the show until I can sit down and relax. This includes the final rush of sales plus the show settlement, count out, and merch settlement where applicable.

 

In small cap and mid cap rooms the most time consuming part can be finding and planning for drop shipments. Many venues are not open regular business hours and not able to receive deliveries and this means sourcing a location nearby planning time into your schedule to pick up deliveries yourself. Often you are travelling with only one trailer when in these rooms and that means more frequent deliveries due to limited carrying capacity.

For bands, artists, and fans going on their first tour, what is one of the biggest pieces of advice you would give based on this past year?

Victor: It's all about time management. When you get lunch somewhere, order an extra so when you are done with your set and finally back at the hotel, the bus, trailer, wherever you're staying...you have food to eat since it is most likely after 1:00 am and everything but McDonalds is closed. 

Michael: Try to be courteous to other fans in line by deciding what you want before you get to the front and have your payment ready.

Chicago and Lakewood Tour Stop

Have you had memorable encounters with other musicians or people you were starstruck by?

Matthew: We just went to When We Were Young Fest and got to meet Vic from Pierce The Veil and Jaime, which was super cool. Absolutely love that band. 

 

Victor: I have a Pierce the Veil Tattoo. I've seen that band like eight times. They were super cool to meet.

 

Jesse: We've been lucky to actually meet quite a few artists/bands while on tour, one of the most exciting has to be Michelle Branch.

 

Victor: Everybody, we mean everybody loves Michelle Branch. I want to be a part of the Michelle Branch revival.

(Guitarist Matthew Fowler, Singer Victor Viramontes-Pattison, and Drummer Jesse Frimmer)

Who would you most like to collaborate with?

Victor, Matthew & Jesse:  There's so many artists … in the top though would have to be Waterparks! Honey Revenge we'd love to collaborate with them as well, we love working with them. Daisy Grenade, Cassadee Pope, Five Seconds Of Summer, Fall Out Boy....but we could go on and on, there are so many more we could list out.

The Happy Accident ... Iconic AIA Merch

How do you guys stay up during those long tour nights?

Victor:  Caffeine. So much caffeine. Matt got an Aero Press, shout out Aero Press! He brought an Aero Press on this one which if you've never made boiling hot coffee in a vehicle while moving...you are missing out on the most ridiculous power stance you will ever have to make for caffeine. You spread your legs as far as possible and you gotta hope the driver doesn't hit the brakes because you will go straight into the wall. Jesse got slammed into the wall.

Can you talk to us a little bit about your merch, the designs are so fun and unique!

Jesse: We need to give a huge shout out to Maria Fulan who did most of our merch and Andrew Steven Cook did all the latest assets from this tour. One of the items that ended up being created on accident was the Cheetos jersey, that turned into having a life of its own.

That Hot Cheetos mesh jersey turned into one of your top selling merch items. How did that make its way into your merch line?

Victor: That Cheetos jersey... I have never spent a better $12 on a thrifted item. While we were in Dallas for a show we came across a thrift store a few blocks from where we were staying and found it. For however many shows after I found it I would wear it. In Denver, at Mary theater we asked our fans if we should make merch of this? And everyone said yes. And then we made it and it does great! Now we're so happy and then we made like white Cheetos Jerseys for ourselves to wear on stage. So it's become a staple for sure. It's a very distinctive too, like that's not like, oh, it's a band T shirt. We've since been back and unfortunately that thrift store isn't there anymore. 

Fans Cheering on AIA As They Enter The Stage For Their First Headlining Tour

What is one of your most memorable encounters, favorite parts of touring ?

Victor:  There are a few that come to mind. When we met Vic from Pierce The Veil, besides being fans of him and getting to meet in him person, the entire interaction was hilariously memorable. To start off, my name is also Vic...as he went around introducing himself he would shake our hands and go "Vic". Jesse goes first says “Jesse”, then Matt goes “Matt”, I just look him in the face and say "Vic" and he just looked at me. Jesse finally had to say "that's also his name, he is also Vic, not just shouting your name at your face like an idiot."

 

Matthew: Teddy Swims gave me one of his hats after one of his shows. We are big fans and when we saw him we told him what a great show it was and I mentioned that I liked the Jigglypuff hat he was wearing and he took it off and gave it to me. He said "it's kind of sweaty but you should have it" and walked away and I now have a Jigglypuff hat thanks to Teddy. It's awesome. 

Michael: What I like about touring is the structure of it. Every day is planned out down to the minute and I am able to thrive in that environment. The worst part is being away from my dogs and girlfriend at home. I always miss them but thankfully this lifestyle allows me to be home with them 24/7 when I am not on the road which I am thankful for.

Jesse and Matthew Live On Tour

Can you guys tell us a little bit about how this album came to be, any of your inspirations for this particular album?

Victor: With this record we started writing almost immediately after our Be More EP came out. I remember Matt and I were living together at the time and we were at home listening to the track and we were like, "We're on to the next record already. Let’s do this." 

Were you guys excited to find out you won our Top Sellers Award (Small Cap) for the month of August?

Victor: It kind of blew our minds. Being independent and being this far into things, like we kind of forget to look up from the Grindstone every once in a while. It was really pleasant surprise, to win Top Seller.

So, you know, thanks for, thanks for doing that. Thanks for recognizing!

Would you say that your journey from a new band to now was quick or did it feel like a long path?

Jesse: It took a long time to get to this point but it was so worth it. I wouldn't say we went the typical band path, we still do so much independently so i would say we are more like an industry parasite than your usual industry plants. 

What is next for Arrows In Action?

Matthew:  We are taking the tour across the pond. It's the first time for all three of us to be in the UK both as tourists and to tour! We end this year with a show in Philly and that closes out this tour. But what’s next? We're working on more music of course. We've got some things cooking as they say… big things coming next year. That sounds so anticlimactic because we can't share yet what those are but there are a lot of things we are working on and people we are having conversations with. We think next year will be the biggest year yet and hope to share some of what we are planning in the next few months!