He Is We Interview Part 2 (Rachel Taylor and Trevor Kelly)

Photo by Laura Means 
Link to full photo shoot: http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?fbid=549891192058&set=a.549891167108.2064135.57701330&theater&closeTheater=1

I recently got to catch up with Rachel and Trevor of He Is We, while they were on tour with The Scene Asthetic, Carter Hulsey and Plug In Stereo....
Check out there latest music video at http://www.youtube.com/user/HeIsWeVEVO

How has the tour been so far?
Trevor: Good, good, good. We just started week two and we just had a couple of days off. Now we are in Atlanta, doing the dirty south, so its exciting!
...and you have tape on your glasses?
Trevor: Yeah, that's the story. I've already broke my glasses, can't find a Lenscrafters, the whole nine yards. Isn't that sad. We went to a five story mall in Baltimore, and they had every store but (a Lenscrafters). I guess people don't wear glasses on the East coast . As long as you know that I'm not trying to be a "trendy hipster," with these....
Last time I talked with you guys, we discussed how you guys started. I wanted to clarify if this project started out, just as a basement project?
Trevor: You could literally say it was a basement project.
Rachel: It was in some one's basement.
How did the songs start circulating originally?
Rachel: We put them up on Myspace, then all these kids were like "oh hey! What's this?" One thing led to another, and it naturally blew up. It's weird. And by "blew up," I mean that it had sixty plays.
Trevor: We were like,"Oh sweet, our parents listened to it 2 times today," so we were up to like 8 plays. Soon after, we had like 400 plays a day and we were like "this is weird." So we kept on making music, and we are pretty much here now.
What kind of advice would you have for newer bands, in terms of connecting to an audience(on and offstage)?
Rachel: Just being honest, and not having a "second persona," if that makes any sense. You are yourself onstage and after you play, go to your merch table and hang out with everybody. Don't be that band that wants to make a grand entrance.
Trevor: I guess the more relate able you can be, and just be yourself. I ate my boogers as a kid, you know? I'm just a normal guy. All of these bands have this ego, where they are hidden and stuff. Rachel and I are everyday kids, so lets hangout and talk about it. There's no reason to have a big head.
What advice would you have for a guy and girl group that is trying to start up?
Rachel: Don't date!
Trevor: You sound like you had a bad experience...
Did you guys try dating at one point?
Rachel: No, I'm just saying that I feel like that is what really complicates bands. There will be a boy and a girls, and they will start to make music, then they are like "you are kind of cute, let's try this." Then they are fighting and making things complicated.
Like Sonny and Cher?
Rachel: Yeah! I would definitely say just have fun with it. Stay friends and don't give yourself a goal. Don't look at it like "hey we want to sell out this coffeehouse by this time." Just make the music and be real with it.
When your new album, My Forever, came out I saw that you were tweeting a great deal about an issue with iTunes. What actually happened?
Trevor: Apparently when it is a holiday, iTunes releases albums a day or two early.
Rachel: Because no one is in the office.
Trevor: It was Thanksgiving week and I just started getting facebook messages saying "I just got your new album!" I figured someone had put it up on LimeWire or something. I remember or parents calling and saying "oh, your CD is up by the way, maybe you should promote it.?"
Rachel: We freaked out. We didn't even have time to be nervous about how we were going to do on our first day. Then boom, its out and we were like "dang it!"
Were you guys surprised with how well it did?
Trevor: Oh, absolutely. We had no expectations at all, whether it be high or low. It just blew us aways.
With songs on the album had been with you guys since the beginning?
Trevor: Some of the songs were re-makes of demos that we had previously released, like "Blame It On the Rain," and others were concepts that we had been working on for a while like "Kiss it All Better." "Prove You Wrong" was a song that we had a couple months prior to recording, and we ended up changing the chorus on it. The rest of the songs were in the studio, on the spot. I feel like if you are under pressure, and you go in with a certain agenda it's too predictable. It's going to turn out the same it you try and break it down to a science. If you are in a situation where you are happy, and not under pressure you will have more natural results.
Rachel: It sounds more real, not like a formula.
Did you guys co-write on this album?
Rachel: They put us in with some co-writers, but we decided that it wasn't for us.
Trevor: In a co-write session, their mindset it to help you write. They are sitting their think of things to fix, rather than guide you along like a producer would. We just decided to get in with producers that we liked and forget the co-writing. Its useless when they keep trying to change your ideas.
Rachel:When we worked with Aaron Sprinkle, he wasn't co-writing but he kind of molded it by saying "let's try this. Let's try that." We are always down with trying things, and we wouldn't be offended if someone asked for us to try something different.
Who are some people that you look up to in terms of stage presence?
Trevor: I get mede fun of for my goofy walk onstage. We all have our signature things that we do onstage, unintentionally. I grew up going to shows, but I never really took notes.
Rachel: I really look up to Nicki Minaj, because her stage presence is very demanding. She's not egotistical, but you look at her and want to listen to what she is saying. She gets you pumped up. I was watching a documentary on her, and she was playing for a huge crowd and all she had were the tracks and a hype man. That's all she had and everyone was freaking out. I looked at that and asked, "why can't I do that? I need to do that!" I need to have more energy and for people to listen to what I have to say, and get stoked on it. So I definitely look up to her.
Perfect day, driving in your car, the windows down what are you listening to?
Rachel: Right now, that would be Eminem's new record ("Recovery").
Trevor: I would be bumping the new Green River Ordinance album. We have also been listening to their acoustic EP "Morning passengers," but I wouldn't say I would listen to it with the windows down because it is kind of depressing and slow. But it is so good, and I would definitely listen to it whether the sun was out, or it was raining.
Rachel: I think I am going to have my first wedding dance to one of their songs.
Trevor: Why don't you just have them play your wedding? I even sent a facebook message to the lead singer yesterday. I never do that, but I was like "dude, I am listening to your cd non-stop. You probably don't know/care who I am, but I just wanted to let you know that I am listening to you all the time while I am on tour." So if he reads this interview, he better get back to me. I'm joking, but seriously...
What do you guys have coming up after this?
Trevor: More touring! the Downtown Fiction Tour with Cady Groves and Amely.