Hi, everyone! I recently got to chat with the members of the Austin-based band Sarah and the Sundays. The band took a risk that I have seen very few groups do: They packed up everything they had and moved from New England all the way down to Austin a few years back. They've been able to have an impressive start to their career, and I was excited to sit down and hear more about their journey to where they are now!
Which album or artists inspired you guys to start a music career in the first place?
Liam Yorgensen: I’d have to say Aja by Steely Dan. That was the first album that made me pay more attention to the fine details of music.
Brendan Whyburn: When I was a kid, my family had a strong obsession with the Beatles- especially my sister. My inspiration for wanting to be a Beatle came from her.
Quinn Lane: “Learn to Fly” by Foo Fighters was the first song I ever learned on drums, and it definitely sparked my interest in playing music.
Miles Reynolds: B.B King was a huge inspiration for me. Growing up, I listened to a lot of older music from Eric Clapton to the Allman brothers. When I heard B.B King play the guitar, something just clicked.
How did you guys all get to meet each other?
L.Y.: Declan and Miles have been friends since birth, and I met them both in a high school guitar class. We knew of Quinn as the school’s jazz band drummer, and we knew he could shred. We asked him to join the band, and he accepted. Brendan was actually my roommate in college, and as soon as I saw him play, I knew he had to be a part of what we were doing.
Tell me about making the decision to drop out from college to drive to Texas from Connecticut and live there together?
B.W.: The decision to drop out happened for each of us at different times. None of us really had music dreams when we left school.
Declan Chill: At (University of Colorado) Boulder, I wasn’t interested in what I was studying. I constantly found myself yearning to do what I love to do, which is make music. With school five days a week - and work - I knew that it wasn’t the right setting for music making. After my first semester, I dropped out. I didn’t know what I would do instead. After the holidays, I began working at a restaurant in my hometown as a busser, and Quinn was already working there at the time. It wasn’t until Liam and Brendan subsequently dropped out that Liam brought up the idea of moving to Texas to try this band thing. Seeing this as an opportunity to make music become a full time thing, I said yes immediately and never looked back.
Q.L.: It was definitely a big decision to make. I guess it was good that parents were mostly supportive of me doing what makes me happy. After working as a server for most of the school year and summer, living out this life in West Hartford probably wasn’t what was going to make me happy.
L.Y.: It was really scary, but at the same time, very exciting. I’d never even been to Texas before, so packing everything I own into my car, leaving the comforts of home in Connecticut and driving over two thousand miles to a completely unfamiliar place felt like a big risk. In the end, it was ultimately one of the best decisions I’ve ever made
M.R.: I was the one that made the decision the latest. It’s one of those things that I never thought I would do, but at some point, I realized that all I wanted to do was play music.
Declan, what can you tell me about your bosses Anni and Jason over at Koma in Connecticut?
D.C.: I’m sure Quinn will attest to this, too, but they’re awesome! They are very nice people, and they run a good restaurant. While I may have been looking for a way out for most of my employment there, they were always very good to me.
Q.L.: I can attest, they are the best.
Since you guys all live in the same house, what are some of the weirdest things you guys have all done?
Q.L.: We dressed in drag for another house party we once played on Halloween. We had way too much fun trying on our outfits at home.
What is the best and worst thing about living together?
B.W.: As obvious as it seems, the best thing is that since we’re always together, we can make music anytime. We all hate schedules, so it’s great. The worst thing is probably that we fuel each other's burger addictions.
Q.L.: It’s like chilling with the homies, but it’s everyday, 24/7. The worst thing for me is probably the peer pressure- like Brendan was saying, we got burgers from P. Terry’s here in Austin every day for the first 3 months we lived here. It’s almost always a result of just ONE of us getting up and saying they’re hungry.
Liam, is it true you have a bearded dragon named Kai?
L.Y.: Yes! She just turned 6 years old, she’s my baby.
Miles, how are those breathing exercises going after watching that documentary about “The Iceman”?
M.R.: They’re going great! I recently finished the Wim Hof book as well, and that inspired me to attempt more severe cold exposure challenges. From experience, breathing exercises can and will change your life. It’s a great thing to do, and it has benefited my physical health and my overall creative ability.
What’s the significance behind the band’s name?
L.Y.: When we were first starting out, we practiced every Sunday. So, we decided to call ourselves “The Sundays.” Unfortunately, we did not do enough research and quickly realized there was already a band of the same name. After some angry emails from some hardcore Sundays fans, we decided we had to change our name. We took a picture at our first show with Miles’ sister, Sarah, and captioned it “Sarah and the Sundays”. We thought that had a nice ring, and the rest is history.
I’ve heard that the live show is a big part of the band’s image- would you guys say that you prefer playing live over working in the studio?
Q.L.: I’d say we mostly prefer playing live, but due to the state of the world it’s not really possible at the moment. That’s not to say we don’t like recording and making music, it’s just performing it live to real people is a completely different feeling.
Tell me a little bit about your first show ever- how did that go?
L.Y.: It’s funny you ask that, because our first show ever was in a food co-op of all places. There were a fair share of rough moments, but all things considered, it could’ve gone much worse. We have a CD recording of the entire set, and we sometimes listen back to that for a laugh.
Can you describe your process for making a song?
L.Y: The process changes from song to song, but it usually starts with me writing some chords and maybe a verse and chorus. Then, I’ll bring the idea to the band, and we flush out the song together. As you asked earlier, living together in one space means that we have been able to collaborate more on the songwriting process. I think it has really been beneficial, and I hope our next album will reflect that to the listeners.
What’s more important to you- lyricism, or production value and instrumentation?
L.Y.: I think this answer changes based on which member you ask. For me, a song with bad lyrics is a bad song, so I find lyricism to be the priority. That’s not to say I don’t appreciate good production and instrumentation, although I find as a listener, I tend to give those aspects of the song more slack.
Brendan, have you been able to find your tone on the guitar yet?
B.W.: Not quite, but I got damn close the other day. The tonal journey is an endless exploration.
What are some of your favorite songs you guys have made?
Liam: Since its creation, “Ruby Fields” has been favorite for all of us.
M.R.: “Chin Up” is another big one for us, too.
If you could delete one song from your discography entirely, what would it be and why?
L.Y.: I don’t think we’d delete any songs from our discography. At one point, those songs were representing feelings we had. We view that as something special to us. If I could rework any song we’ve made, I would say we could probably make “No Dice” a much cooler song now.
What do you want everyone out there reading this to know about Sarah and the Sundays?
L.Y.: We love what we are able to do, and are so thankful for the people who listen to our tunes. It has truly a dream come true so far. Never did we think that five longtime friends like us could move out to one of the biggest music cities in the United States and had all the opportunities we’ve been given. I’d also like to say that we’re also in the process of recording our third album, so hopefully people will stick around for that.
What music goals do you guys have for the future?
M.R.: I’m hoping that we can just keep putting out music and jamming! That's what making music is all about.
I'd like to thank all of the guys for sending responses to these questions. If you haven't checked out any of their stuff, I strongly recommend you do. In the meantime, I hope all of you guys are well, and keep checking back here for more great BR content coming soon!
To hear the band's music, go to https://open.spotify.com/artist/1vnh2cDW2CgA5M1ya95mZGhttps://open.spotify.com/artist/1vnh2cDW2CgA5M1ya95mZG
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