EMQ’s With WAITING 4 APRIL
EMQ’s With WAITING 4 APRIL
Hi everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with South African and USA collaboration project, Waiting 4 April. Huge thanks to Jesse and Colton for taking part.
What is your name, what do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
Jesse: Hey, I’m Jesse and I play the drums for Waiting 4 April.
We’re actually a pretty new band, having formed in early 2021. I’m from South Africa, and I came across Colton’s (who lives in the United States) YouTube channel. I ended up sending him a message asking if he’d be interested in collaborating, and he was – so we started with a little acoustic project. It went well, and we became good friends throughout the process of video calls etc. and then decided to put Waiting 4 April together, sending files back and forth to each other over the greater part of a year, and ending up with the Photo Memory EP.
How did you come up with your band name?
Colton: Waiting 4 April means so many different things. Someone once told me they thought it was waiting for that true love in your life, another mentioned they thought it meant waiting for the springtime. I’ve always thought it was so cool how many different interpretations there are, but for me the meaning is much deeper. My younger brother Caden was born in the month of April. When he was conceived, they found that he had a terrible heart condition and the doctors estimated that he’d leave our family at an early age. He’s now 18 years old and doing amazingly well. Waiting 4 April basically means waiting for his birthday each year.
What Country/Region are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
J: As I mentioned I’m from South Africa, and I have to say even though the community is kind of small in comparison to other countries, the Metal/Rock scene is pretty solid. There aren’t a ton of bands or venues, but where it is, it goes hard. I can’t wait to get back out to the US and start touring over there though.
What is your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
C: Our debut EP “Photo Memory” just came out on July 1st, and we’ve seen a really great response. It’s available on all streaming platforms so definitely go check it out! We’re so stoked with how it turned out and we’ll be getting some videos out in the next couple months after I head over to South Africa to meet up with Jesse in October!
Who have been your greatest influences?
J: There’s too many to name. You’ll hear this EP is pretty dynamic from start to finish, but you can definitely hear influences from bands like Paramore, early Saosin, a bit of I See Stars probably. I think we homed in on the early 2000’s scene and kind of entangled it into the sound.
What first got you into music?
C: Definitely Kurt Cobain.I used to play guitar hero a lot as a kid and loved the song “Heart Shaped Box”. Made me want to learn every Nirvana song haha!
J: For me it was definitely Blink-182. I was obsessed. I wanted to sing like Tom and drum like Travis haha.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician, who would it be?
J: Doing a song with Oli Sykes (BMTH) would be F-ing rad. I’d also love a collab with Devin Oliver (I See Stars) or Vic Fuentes (Pierce The Veil).
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
C: Oh man, bring back Warped Tour! There’s nothing better. You get to spend 2+ months touring most of the US with like 50 bands. You make tons of friends, connect with musicians, play to epic crowds… it’s just the coolest experience in the world.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
J: A box of cereal (Cinnamon Toast Crunch). Weird, but I wasn’t complaining.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
C: Not to sound cliche, but honestly if you have something you’re passionate about, just F-ing go for it man. Life’s too short to be weighed down by “what if’s”. We threw this band together in the middle of a pandemic, and now we get to make music for people all over the world. It’s been tough, but there are no regrets. So, if you want to do something and you’ve been putting it off… Stop, and just go for it.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
J: Freddie Mercury.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
J: I love being able to create. I have so many ideas in my head that I don’t know how to properly express, but the one place I really do know how to is with music.
What do I hate? How hard it is to get into the scene! And how streaming services stuff you on compensation haha. Stop being so stingy, Spotify!
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
C: I think number 1, the industry is a lot of who you know, rather than being able to shine through outright talent, you know? And I think the people who have influence disregard a lot of bands who are really really good because of that. So, I think I’d want everyone to just have a fair shot.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
J: The Used – “In Love & Death”
C: Circa Survive – “The Amulet”
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CDs, or Downloads?
J: Vinyls are cool, but a bit cumbersome. A bit hard to bring your gramophone in the car with you! Downloads are convenient, but there’s nothing like a CD, right? You get the awesome artworks with the liner notes inside, and you keep that massive folder of your CD collection in the car – super nostalgic.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
C: Well, due to the pandemic, and the fact Jesse and I live on different continents, we haven’t managed to play a live show as of yet! But, we’ve got some cool shows lined up for South Africa around October, so we’ll get back to you on that haha.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
J: I’d probably have spent more time learning about crypto and NFT’s and have retired as a billionaire by now… But, who needs money right!? Haha
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
J & C: Michael McIntyre, Freddie Mercury, Morgan Freeman (to narrate the whole thing), Anthony Bourdain, and Margot Robbie.
What’s next for the band?
C: Well we’ve dipped our toes with the release of the EP. The next thing is to start touring and getting our music out to as many ears as possible. We’re getting started with writing the next LP already, and we just want to hit the ground running with whatever momentum we may have!
What Social Media/Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
Instagram – @waiting4april
Tik Tok – @waiting4april
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
J: We’ve both never had one before (*audible gasps)… But we can say this. If they’re soft, they’re a cake. If they have ANY sort of crunch… It’s definitely a biscuit.
Fight me.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Likewise! Thanks so much for the interview. We had a blast answering.
Keep an eye out for updates on W4A, check out the EP on Spotify, Youtube Music or whatever platform you use, and hopefully we’ll be bringing you new stuff soon!
Disclaimer: This interview is solely the property of Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this interview, unless you have the strict permission of said party. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
