Philadelphia-based band Great Weights recently shared their self titled EP, recorded at Sleepless Sound Studio, out on Bunnycat Records. The album is available for streaming and purchase on Bandcamp, GooglePlay, and iTunes.
Great Weights finished up this collection right after a short midwest tour with Cottontail (members of Teenage Halloween and ex-Ramshackle Glory). A harsher yet equally vulnerable departure from their demo, the upcoming EP explores the band’s frustrations sustained in a scene that both magnetized and marginalized members of the band. Through their music, they challenge and reclaim the emo/post-hardcore genre from a white-, cisgender-, heterosexual-, and male-dominated environment. Check out Great Weights below!
We managed to catch up with the band as they talked about their latest EP and more!
How has the initial response been to your self titled EP?
The response has been super positive! To be honest, we didn’t really know what to expect. We thought maybe just a few of our friends would buy it, but we’ve been happy and surprised to see folks from all over the country ordering it on bandcamp and Itunes. It’s really humbling and we’re super excited for the future!
What is your favourite track from the EP?
Probably Underwater! It’s the most deeply personal one for me. I wrote the lyrics in a coffee shop about a month before I wrote the song in my band. I was writing about ending a long-term relationship in a stream-of-consciousness fashion, and the last line I wrote was “I know how to breathe underwater.” That really resonated with me so I kept expounding on that sentiment, finally arriving at the lyrics to the song.
Can you tell us something about the EP no one else knows?
The EP cover was just a picture of a fake tree that I took on a disposable camera in my old practice space. I thought it was beautiful, so I suggested we use it for the cover. Later on, I kind of started to develop a personal attachment to the symbolism of it. I’ve been through a lot to get to where I am today and I had to deal with A LOT of nay-sayers. It feels like I have weathered a lot of instances where everything could have been ruined. The fact that the fake tree cannot easily be destroyed really resonates with me for that reason.
Do you think the music industry can still do more for female fronted bands?
Yes. I don’t even know where to begin with this. And not just female-fronted bands. We need to make sure that we are fighting for inclusivity in the music industry for people of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ folks, non-binary folks, and more. We’re not just a female-fronted band. A lot of us are queer and only two of us are white. I think a good way for folks to begin challenging the status quo in the music industry is to work harder to book bands that aren’t just full of cis white men. We need to make sure that we’re giving other folks a shot and increasing visibility. Representation is super important!
If you could work with any band on a new song, who would it be and why?
I would love to work with Geoff Rickley from Thursday. I grew up in the NJ emo/hardcore scene of the early 2000’s, so he was a HUGE inspiration for me. It would be my dream to co-write a song with him.
What was the first gig you ever attended?
The first gig I ever attended was Hanson in 1996! I know that’s an uncool answer.
What inspired you to get into music in the first place?
I saw LeeAnn Rimes on the Disney Channel when I was seven years old and have wanted to be a musician ever since. I don’t have a great ear or a great voice, so I was discouraged from following that pipe dream as a kid. I was really good at dancing, so I actually spent all of my childhood and some of my early adult life pursuing a career in dance. Whenever I let my mind wander, it would always go to these fantasies of being the front person of a band. When I graduated college and made plans to move to New York City to dance full time, I kind of just broke down. I moved back home when I was 23 and had a bit of an identity crisis. I was super depressed. I had a guitar laying around from a failed attempt I made back when I was 15 to learn how to play it. I picked it up and started picking notes. I had no idea what I was doing, but nothing had ever felt better. I haven’t put the guitar down since.
What’s the alternative music scene like in Philadelphia at the moment?
There’s a lot of really great things happening here. Philly is really a hot bed for new music right now. People are moving here from other parts of the country to start bands. At the same time, there are still a lot of issues with inclusivity and diversity.
What do you get up to in your spare time when not working on music?
I play in three bands, so I really don’t have time to do anything else. I like listening to records. Does that count?