The team over at MTS Management Group is always introducing me to up and coming musicians. When Michael shared Psychopath Etiquette with me, I was hooked. Just listen to their single “When Anxieties Attack” and you will fall in love with them. The lyrics are meaningful and truly relate to us all. If you dig a little deeper, these guys are also gamers. As a long time gamer myself, I can appreciate their focus. Not sure what games they are playing, as I mostly play golf, but still. Michael was kind enough to set up an interview with these guys. It is my pleasure to learn more about and to introduce you to Psychopath Etiquette.
Start by giving me an overview of the band. That’s quite the band name you have there. Curious to learn where that came from, too!
Ours is literally a band of brothers. My brother Paul and I have played music together our whole lives, but only recently have decided to make a serious effort. The band is a manifestation of that effort.
Psychopath Etiquette is certainly a unique name, which is one of the reasons why we settled on it. Getting the .com was obviously important, and once we had that, it was a lock. But there is also just something about those words together that resonate with me. It isn’t a complete idea, but it is a potential idea that I’m in love with.
You guys are originally from Maine. What is the live music scene like in The Pine Tree State? Where are some of your favorite places to see a show?
Honestly, we’re not really the people to ask about the live music scene in Maine. We have kind of leaned into the “quarantine” lifestyle. We stream our music live a couple nights a week, and that seems to work for us. We have a nice setup, and we can keep a flexible schedule. That being said, we don’t get out much. And we’re about to start recording our next album so we’ll get out even less.
“When Anxieties Attack” had some success in South Africa. Tell me more about that single.
“When Anxieties Attack” is probably the most personal song I’ve ever written, and also the most well received. The lyric video on Facebook has 100k views, and I think the main reason for that is that the song resonates with people.
That song is from your debut EP Rough Draft. I’d be curious to learn more about that, too, and why you decided to release an EP versus a full-length album.
The Rough Draft EP is exactly that: rough. It’s raw with all the flaws left in, but we kind of love it that way. The idea was to get something, anything, recorded for people to listen to. Fall of 2020 we will be heading back into the studio to make a full-length album, and really take the time to fully develop our sound.
Who are some of your biggest influences?
Modest Mouse, Bright Eyes, Third Eye Blind, and Damien Rice. When I think about our sound, I envision a bullseye in the middle of those four bands.
You are producing a lot of originals. What about cover songs? I always wonder how bands decide what songs to cover.
Covers are always interesting, and I guess I’m undecided. For the most part, people cover popular songs that everyone knows because that plays to the crowd. But lately we’ve been covering lesser known songs, as a way of introducing people to obscure bands we love.
You’ve been sharing a lot of great content on Facebook. Keep it up! Where do you come up with ideas on fresh content to share?
This whole thing we call Psychopath Etiquette is really us hoping that we are interesting. So content is based around that idea. We stream A LOT of what we do, and people show up, so that’s pretty great. Honestly, what we’re looking for is true fans. We would rather have 100 people who love us, than 100,000 people who like one of our songs.
What’s the best concert you’ve ever been to?
Dashboard Confessional in Boston.
What is your songwriting process like? Do you sit down with a yellow pad or do songs just come to you over time? Always curious how that works for songwriters.
I always start with the guitar. Then I walk around in a circle and sing until something sticks. It’s how I’ve always done it. I never write anything down. If I don’t remember it, it wasn’t good enough.
I keep seeing you in an orange hat. What is the logo on the front of that hat? It must either mean something to you or just be a comfy hat to wear. Tell me more!
Funny enough, that orange hat and I go way back. The logo is a ski/snowboarding company from Europe, but that is the second orange hat. My first one died from excessive use. The second was a Christmas present from my father. Orange Hat is actually the title of one of my solo LPs.
You alluded to this earlier, but COVID-19 has put a damper on live music. How has it been handled in your area? Any plans for live shows in the near future?
We’re in the planning stages of a “front porch” show, with some solid social distancing. But honesty, COVID was the push we needed to fully commit to streaming. We were never very good at getting out to live shows, and streaming on our own schedule works out way better for us. Plus, the people who come out, come to hang with us. Some people come multiple nights a week, just to chill. It’s awesome.
Wait a minute. Let’s go back here for a second. “When Anxieties Attack” has over 100,000 views on Facebook. Congratulations on that! What do you attribute all those views to?
Unfortunately, anxiety is a very relatable topic. Most of us struggle with some form of it. And the song is about being there for someone, when you don’t know how to help them. The song is actually meant as a stand-in, for me, when I can’t physically be there, or when me being there might make things worse.
Speaking of concerts, what can fans expect from seeing Psychopath Etiquette live?
Hopefully we will start hosting live shows in our yard soon. But I doubt we’ll be our doing live shows again, until we’re headlining them.
You guys are also on Twitch. Not too familiar with that platform. What is it and what sort of content are you creating there?
Twitch is basically the predominant live streaming site. We stream live music there, but also any other content we create. But fortunately for most people, we stream simultaneously to Facebook. So people who are less internet savvy can still find us.
Tell me about your experience working with Michael Stover and the team over at MTS Management Group.
Honestly, it’s been great. Working with MTS and Michael was the moment we started really taking things seriously. We’re pushing all the chips in on this one, and it feels amazing to have profession support in chasing our dream.
Do you ever make a mistake while performing a song? If you do, how do you bounce back?
The song must go on. If I mess up a lyric, or play the wrong chord, I smile to my brother, then move on. Failure is an old friend of ours, so we don’t take it too seriously.
Someone once said, “If folks and rock had a baby, it would sound like Psychopath Etiquette.” That sounds right up my alley! How do you challenge yourself from one song to the next? How are you striving to get better each and every day?
I’m never happy, which is helpful when you’re trying to progress. Every song, I’m trying to be better than the last. More honest. More clever. More original. I always feel like we haven’t found our true “sound” yet, so I keep pushing myself. There is always room to improve, and I never want to stop doing that.
Where can folks at home learn more about Psychopath Etiquette?
Facebook is where we put everything that we do. Any content we make will be there first. Luckily Psychopath Etiquette is a unique name, so we’re easy to find.
What’s next for Psychopath Etiquette?
A full-length album. We have always recorded everything ourselves. But this will be the last time we do it in house. If we can’t get the sound quality and production value we want out of our home studie, we will go professional. But hopefully, with everything we’ve learned along the way, we will be able to accomplish our vision, and keep the creative levers firmly in our own hands.
In all of the interviews I do, I always give the artist the last word. Go.
We love you. We don’t care what you think, or what you’ve done. We don’t judge. We want to be the place you go, when the place you are sucks. We make music for you, not for ourselves. We want to make your life better, in a small way, if we can. So come hang with us, and will sing you a song.
