Interview with Echoseven
What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today?
Allon- my parents were musicians so Ive been around music/ studios all my life. If I wasn’t doing music im not sure what I would be doing lol. Maybe a secret agent or something lol
Stefanie - I come from a very musical family, so it was ingrained in me at a very young age. My dad and his family are all very musical, as is my sister. I grew up singing along to the radio and learning to play various instruments from dad! If I had not gotten into music, I'd likely be doing something creative. I really enjoy drawing and painting.
Justin- I guess what got me into music was my friends they all played some kinda instrument and if I hadn't gotten into music not really sure what I would be doing today
Luke- In grade 9, I started taking bass lessons. From that, I got my first real exposure to metal, which sparked my passion for music. If not music, I would probably be studying to become a science teacher.
What do you like to do when you are not playing music and how does that influence your creativity?
Allon-I like working on my car. Im no mechanic but I can hold my own. I have a 2010 Dodge Charger that I enjoy working on. It’s a great way to just disconnect and do something that’s not different.
Stefanie - my interests vary a lot, but currently in my down time I do a lot of drawing and art. I have always been into creating things on paper! Rekindling my love of drawing is quite influential on my creativity, allowing me to tap into a different part of my mind and disconnect from my stressors for a short time.
Justin-When I'm not playing music I'm busy spending time with my kids my creativity comes from all the things I've went through in life
Luke- I’m very interested in game design, usually involving tabletop or card games, so even while not making music, I still like to keep my creative juices flowing.
How long has your band been around?
Allon-We have been a band for a good 3 years now.
Stefanie - Roughly three years! We started out in the summer of 2019, but truly "started" around 2020. That's when we started to add members, write songs and things felt a lot more concrete.
Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music?
Allon-We are based out of Moncton, New Brunswick in Canada. I cant say anything here has influnced me musically. I will say that given the music scene here we have to work harder and that challenge does influence us to make quality music.
Stefanie - Eastern Canada - specifically Moncton. I really like the mix of "city" and nature in my area, I live next to a very nice park. This area of Canada is known for being quite musical, so it's a rather large pool of talent. It definitely gives you some drive to pursue your own stuff.
Justin-I'm based out of Moncton new Brunswick Canada I'm not really sure how it influenced the music I play
Luke- We’re all based out of the greater Moncton area. Because we’ve all got different backgrounds from Atlantic Canada, we bring our own unique influences to the band, creating a more unique sound.
How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?
Allon- I’ve always like the name “ECHO” for a band and the number “SEVEN” just sounded good with ECHO-
Stefanie - You'd have to ask our drummer, Allon!
Tell me about your most memorable shows.
Allon- Our first performance was actually an acoustic show during an event with the Albert/Westmorland Suicide Awareness Committee. It was memorable for a few reasons- one it was our first live gig after COVID and it was for a great cause. The second most memorable was our first electric show at Lexis Lounge- Third was winning the 2022 NB Battle of the Bands in St Stephen
Stefanie - As a group, our most memorable show has to be the Battle of the Bands in Saint Stephen, New Brunswick. When we arrived at the venue, I got very sick. I was crumpled in the corner of the band lounge for about an hour until I started to feel better. I had a pounding headache, chills and more. When I got on stage, I still had a headache! But the performance went on pretty much without a hitch and the best part? We won!
Justin- Most memorable show was on August 1st we won first place at the battle of the bands
Luke- To me at least, the most memorable of our shows was the first one that we performed at Lexi’s Lounge, since it was my live debut with the band. The other one, which was definitely even more memorable, was our battle of the bands at Saint-Stephens on New-Brunswick day. There were plenty of fantastic bands performing, but we managed to win first place! A huge accomplishment for the band.
What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?
Allon-Lexis Lounge here in Moncton is always good to us. As far as places I WANT to play- any arena would be fine lol
Stefanie - I am not very picky, anywhere that will have us is a good venue to me! I'm quite adaptable.
Luke- I’ve had really good experiences at Broken Record in Fredericton. The sound quality is always great, and the stage really adds to the experience.
If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?
Allon- Killswitch, Breaking Benjamin, Chevelle, Bush, InFlames, Spiritbox, Cold
Stefanie - Lacuna Coil!
Justin- Killswitch engage, jinjer
Luke- It’s a tough call, and my answer would definitely be very unrealistic, but I’d have to go with Azure, Flub and Archspire.
What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?
Allon- this journey is exactly that- a journey- a marathon not a sprint- Get good at your instrument and learn the business.
Stefanie - Don't give up. Even if it feels like you're only making music for yourself, you're still learning and growing as a musician. Also, don't EVER stop learning! There is always room to improve as an artist.
Justin-Never give up on your dreams even if people say it's a pipe dream , and advice I would give my younger self would be never give up
Luke-Anyone who is joining a band should learn some basic music theory. It makes it so much easier to communicate ideas, and makes the songwriting process so much more efficient. The main advice that I’d give to my younger self is to be more open to styles of music that you don’t listen to. There is a lot more to appreciate in genres like electronic or pop then people often give it credit for, and learning to appreciate it will help broaden one’s own horizons with their own music.
If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?
Allon-Not sure- Everything ive gone through has made me who I am
Stefanie - I'd tell myself to stop thinking I'm in this alone - I'm not. I have friends, family and a band behind me
Justin-To never give up
Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?
Allon- all of our songs are personal and have a special place with me. Not sure I can pick just one
Stefanie - "I'm the Tree" is the first song I wrote lyrics for with _ECHOSEVEN. I've gotten positive feedback on it and it means the world to me. I think it is meaningful because it helped give me a bit of confidence in my creativity.
Justin-Gunnin I came up with the song when I was going through a tough time in my life
Luke-I’d have to go with Keep from Breaking. It was the first of our songs to include me in the music video, and it is exceptionally fun to play live.
Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most?
Allon-Our next single “ Blame” is a lot of fun to play live!! Everytime!
Stefanie - Our song "Blame" constantly stands out! Every member of the band loves playing it and we're often told it's peoples' favourites. I think it really shows our best selves as a group.
Justin- I'd have to say blame, keep from breaking , everything and for requests we are just starting not alot of people know our music
What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?
Allon- it’s a group effort. We jam riffs and see what works- then we write lyrics and piece it together.
Stefanie - Usually, songs are hammered out during rehearsal. Someone will come up with a riff, send it in our group chat, and the next time we get together we try and work it out. Often, this involves playing the song a few times and seeing what organically happens. The lyrics usually happen later.
Justin- We all work together to create songs we all have a good understanding on what we want
Luke-The songwriting process with _Echoseven is very collaborative. Someone will start with an idea, and the rest of the band will start adding ideas onto it. My main inspiration to write music is simply the sheer determination to create art.
What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?
Allon- perseverance. That emotions are just a moment in time- that growth and moving forward are so important
Stefanie - As a group, we love to spread the message of inner strength, perseverance and just being as badass as you can be.
Justin-To never give up and stay strong life is hard but u are harder
Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?
Allon- since the start of this band its been the foundation to have respect for one another- and to offer criticism respectfully and to listen to eachother. Everyone in the band understands that and that is how we deal with differences of opinion. Not everyone is right and not everyone is wrong. We put major issues to a band vote so that everyone has their say. Its worked out very well and the more time we spend together to better our interactions and decision making gets. These are my friends.
Stefanie - Not often! When they do happen, we talk them out. I mentioned our group chat - we occasionally do polls and put things to a vote when we can't decide. I think our personalities mesh well together and we're quite open when we have any potential problems.
Justin- Not really often we all get along and work together
Luke-Very rarely, in my case it has only happened once, but it was a very minor issue regarding tuning. In the end, the main thing is that we hear each other out, and then find something that works with everyone.
What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?
Allon-We have our first 7 track EP “X-Ray In Use” coming out Sept 30th. Its for sale right now on Bandcamp. The first single off the EP will be “Blame” with the music video shot by @prettyokmedia being released shortly after. We have Maritime tour to promote the record. We’re doing shows with Shades of Sorrow, Jay Country, Within Harms Reach, Slush, Magnolia, and Sprawl.
Stefanie - Future plans involve plenty of shows! We have quite a few on the schedule, including an out-of-province show in the coming weeks. We have our EP, X-Ray In Use, coming out soon, too. AND we just shot a video for our song, Blame! The video should be out very soon and it's beyond anything we've ever created! Our videographer @prettyokmedia is definitely incredible and makes magic happen.
Justin- Plans for the future we have a few shows coming up hope to start writing new music for the new year and hopefully another album to come out in the new year
Luke- We’ve got a lot of new material in the work, material which I think will include our best songs yet.