Interrobang!?: January 2009

2008 was certainly an interesting year to say the least. This year the band saw a great deal of prosperity and advancement as well as struggle and near collapse. It certainly has been a tough one, but this year has shown us that this band truly is a significant part of our lives and we wont let go down without a fight.

We were really lucky to meet a lot of new friends and become closer to old ones. We got to play with a lot of really great new bands this year, and unfortunately we said goodbye to some bands that have really kept this band alive and gave us reason to believe in ourselves over the years.

The first show of the year was played at the Sad Cafe in New Hampshire, which was a place that was crucial to developing who we were as a band in 2006 and 2007. It was our first time up there with our EP and we got a great response to it. This marked a new chapter in our relationship with New Hampshire as we found ourselves meeting more bands throughout the year who were very much committed to developing a scene outside of this place.

February was a really awesome month, getting to share the stage with our good friends In The Face on four separate occasions. As well as playing a sold out show at the Midway Cafe put on by a new friend Rob Nyman with Bomb the Music Industry! and The Fad, to many of our good friends. This month also marked our first trip to the state of Rhode Island and our first Co-headlining show in New Hampshire with Canada's The Flatliners of Fat Wreck Chords. At this point, we were starting to get some positive feedback from a bunch of people who we had a lot of respect for. Even though we were only two months in, 2008 was shaping up to be a good year.

Spring came, but March held a dark cloud over our heads when first, the show that was supposed to be our first with The Brave Little Abacus was canceled for bogus reasons, then the disaster which was... March Mustache Madness. Upon our friends The Fourth Floor Bandits dropping off this show, we were offered the spot which we jumped at the chance to get on because The Flaming Tsunamis were a band that we were looking forward to playing with for a long long time. Unfortunately Murphy's Law was un-avoidable today, what could go wrong did go wrong and caused my most regrettable set to date. Much of the problems that arose from this show were due to the formation of a "side-project" Challenger Deep which featured more than half of the band. There interest had clearly shifted and we clearly had a problem.

The next few months were a really tough time for us, but we played a few really awesome shows in that time. During this time, we depended a lot on Evan, Matt and Chet. In April, we played New York for our first time, unfortunately this would be the last time we would get to see our good friends Public Access and The Fad perform. We were all really honored to play that show, and it was quite the experience. We learned a lot about this band and ourselves that weekend through the long talks on car rides. We met a new friend Brooklyn who graciously let us stay at her place that night after just meeting her. That was a rough weekend as Folly's last shows happened the same time as Public Accesses. Although we never got to play with Folly they are an influence on us and these bands will be missed.

The highlight of may for us was playing with Zox right down the street at Scituate High School. It was awesome getting to sit down and talk to their lead singer Eli about music and whatnot. Our set was on for the first time in a long time and I remembered why I love playing music so much. I made friends with someone that I had a lot of respect for as a musician and after talking, a person. They played "Army Of Me" by Bjork upon my request as well as Pixies' "Where Is My Mind". This is a band that the last time i saw them were getting full beers slung at them, and this really showed me that you will go through shit as a band and a bump in the road doesn't mean its the end. I traded shirts with Eli, who later told me in an email that his mother loves his bright green Interrobang!? t-shirt. Very cool!

Summer came and went, and unfortunately we didn't get to play as many shows as i would have liked due to getting a full time job very last minute. But we did have a couple of awesome shows that really got to shape the collective into what it is now. We played Connecticut for the first time in June and had our last trip to the Living Room in Rhode Island a few days later for Skatopia III. Got to see Fatter Than Albert for the first time in a year, my parents even came to the show just so they could see them play. We also played at the Sad Cafe for the first time in 6 months, for The Fourth Floor Bandits final show. It was sad to see them go, because it was always a good time getting to play with them at the Sad. This show was one of the first that I started really flying by the seat of my pants as far as the collective goes. We played with our good friend Pat Breen on Bass for the first time as well as Adam Demirjian's official first show with us on 2nd Guitar and Matt Aspinwall's first show on Tambourine. We were also joined from time to time by Cody Laplante and Colin Maniella on Tenor Sax and Trumpet without ever practicing with them. The show went really well and we had a great time, that would be our last show for the summer.

We saw our first double header in September, with Bomb The Music Industry! at The Middle East and In The Face's last show at The Sad Cafe. The early show was our first time playing to a sold out crowd at the middle east, as well as our first time playing with The Riot Before and We Are The Union.. Once the show was over, we said our goodbyes and headed off to New Hampshire. We met up with Adam and Matt and played another set with a smaller group of people. Adam played bass for the first time with us and we had a few improvised transitions which were very cool. As some of you may know I had the pleasure of being a part of In The Face in their last few months of a band, so for me it was really tough to see this band go. They were the best friends we could ask for, always a fun time whenever we got to play with them. I will never forget the times playing with them in the band or outside, Massachusetts will never be the same without them. We got a lot of positive feedback from both shows and i think that it was at this point that this is what keeps me happy and makes me want to live.

The next few months, in between schoolwork were spent prepping for our latest recording session, playing shows here and there and working it so that Interrobang!? could play with as little as two people, this would be later known as the Interro-dance Party! We got to play a few awesome basement shows in walking distance from us including ones with The Riot Before, We Are The Union, and Sonic Boom Six, thanks to our friends at 115 and the FFA. In this time we also said goodbye to our friends The Fad, it was quite the shock to hear that we'd never get to play with them again, but it is all for the best. Check out their new bands Let Me Crazy and Backtrack.

We closed out the year with a couple of really sweet shows. One with Westbound Train and Lots of Friends in Penacook, NH, who we had been dying to play with ever since we had to cancel our show in CT with them due to personal reasons. And one with the Have Nots, Brunt Of It and Kill Conrad at the Middle East. The Westbound show really exceeded our expectations, there were a bunch of people there and they were very very nice dudes. They had lots of nice things to say and said that they wanted to do a show in Boston sometime after their short hiatus. The show at the middle east was really cool because there a lot of new faces as well as a bunch of old ones, and everyone seemed to be having an awesome time.

It's been quite the year, and we really look forward to seeing what 2009 has in store for us!
A personal thanks is extended to anyone who attended shows this year!
As well as... anyone that has played with us this year and anyone who has given me faith in this band to keep it alive
We made some new friends that I wanted to give some special shouts to,
Camp Cody Crew - your music is so inspiring and i'm so so glad that we have become the friends that we are now
Silent Distortion - you guys have grown a lot in this year, it is always a pleasure to play with you guys and see your progress as a band
Jack Of All Boxes - you guys are quite ambitious for your age and considering the time you've been a band you've developed a unique sound
New Hampshire Crew - You know who you are, i honestly don't know how you aren't sick of us.
Markie - You've been with us through thick and thin, i'm glad that you aren't just a fan anymore, but a true friend.
Kill Conrad - it's always awesome to be friends with a band that doesn't play ska, not to mention that you guys rock
Matt Aspinwall - <3 thats all
Brocery Family - Thanks for all the hospitality and good times
If you aren't on here, then you probably already know how much i appreciate you

RIP
PUBLIC ACCESS - April 2008
FOLLY - April 2008
FOURTH FLOOR BANDITS - July 2008
IN THE FACE - September 2008
THE FAD - October 2008

Thank You!
Colin

Interrobang!?

Sunday, January 25, 2009

New Shows!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

1.18.09

1.16.09

1.10.09

1.04.09

1.03.09

2008: A Year In Review

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