Black Republic

SDP: What's your band's name?
Jeff: Black Republic

SDP: Who's in the band and what do they do?
Brian: Guitar, Vocals, Keys.
Jeff: Bass, Lead Vocals.
Ryan: Guitar, Vocals, Keyboard, Trumpet.
Sam: Drums

SDP: Briefly describe your music.
Black Republic
Brian: It's pretty much a big mixture of lots of different styles. We also try to incorporate some creative and interesting chord extensions, more than just the standard "punk" or "rock" power and bar chords.
Ryan: And of course and array of different instruments.

SDP: Why should people listen to your band?
Jeff: No one "should" listen to our band.
Brian: If you hear it and like it, then that's cool. And if not, that's cool too.

SDP: How long has Black Republic been a band for?
Jeff: Brian and I have been in bands together for 3-4 years, him and I started Common Ground back in 2001 with Sam. In February 2003, Ryan joined the band, we only recently changed our name to Black Republic, when we found
that there were like 200 other Common Grounds in the world.

SDP: Where did you get your name from?
Jeff: One day I just pulled it out my arse. Then everyone just kinda formed their own meaning to our name. There is no one meaning to our name, just take it as you will...

SDP: What makes Black Republic different from every other band out there?
Brian: Well, musically, we are pretty fond of chord extensions. Ryan and I, love the 9's on just about every chord.
Ryan: Well maybe not the 3.
Brian: Haha, yeah.... But we also really are into chord substitutions and odd meters and rhythmic patterns.
Jeff: The lyrics aren't really that common around San Diego either.

SDP: Is there any message you try to get across through your music?
Jeff: Our message is somewhat political, with a mixture of everyday life. We don't have one certain message that we focus on, we write about a lot of stuff.
Brian: Another thing is, our disgust with eating meat. Everyone in the
band is vegan/vegetarian, so that definitely reflects in some songs.
Ryan: Yes, but they are all secret. Nah! Just listen to the songs and you will find out.

SDP: Do you have a single song that has a special meaning to you?
Brian: For me, probably "Eating meat is as satisfying as murdering an infant" because it has very meaningful lyrics and I really enjoy the music too.
Ryan: They are all pretty special to me, but I am fond of "Eating meat..." as well.
Jeff: I am actually pretty attached to our song called "My Wrist" cause it was our first song ever written under the name of Common Ground almost three years ago, and it still continues to be a crowd favorite.

SDP: What bands, people, books, etc. have had the biggest influence on your band?
Jeff: I think we are all on the same wavelength for this question. I would have to say bands like Propagandhi, Marathon, Nakatomi Plaza, various jazz artists, and some classic oldies such as Journey have had the greatest impact on us. As far as books, well, shit, I read sociology type books, and random politically based books. And as far as people go, people like Howard Zinn, and George Orwell are cool cats, also Howard Dean is fine by me.
Ryan: Also, Noam Chomsky, Marx, John Locke, Thoreau.

SDP: What about Black Republic are you most proud of?
Brian: I think just the fact that we are all good friends and that is the most important part of the band to us.
Jeff: I think the fact that we have been together for nearly three years is pretty cool, because when we started this band I had just turned 14, so for us to stay together for so long and be so young is pretty cool I think.

SDP: What is the biggest thing about Black Republic you want to improve?
Brian: Definitely the musicianship, there is always room for improvement in that. I just want us to play as tight as we can all the time.
Jeff: Brian pretty much said it all, I don't want to be a cliché punk band, I want us doing something different, or at least something a little original.

SDP: What CDs are currently in your stereo?
Brian: Lee 'Scratch' Berry, Doom, Awes Montgomery, Nakatomi Plaza.
Jeff: Propagandhi, The Cure, Marathon, Against Me!, and some AC/DC.

SDP: Do you have any closing comments?
Ryan: No
Brian: We got some shows coming up in December.
Jeff: Yeah, December 5th at the Wired in PB, we have a show, and also we are playing with Naked Aggression December 19th. Go to our site for all the skinny on the shows. Thanks!

Official Website: http://www.blackrepublic.tk/
mp3's: http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/638/black_republic.html

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