We had another great Month at High Society Hookah lounge with several great performances including those by: Going Jon Es, Nikko Raptoulis and the following featured artist Apache Resistance, Deuce Deuce , and Staring Blind!
Powerfully Evocative
an alternative/hard rock Central Fl band that formed over a year and a half ago with Matt Carver as lead vocalist, Willie Carrasco on bass, Brandon Carrasco on lead guitar, and Tim Andujar on drums. Based out of Melbourne they have been playing all over Central Florida. I noticed that all of you have been involved in past musical projects/bands, how has that past experience helped in defining your rock sound in Staring Blind?Our past projects have mainly served to refine our style and help us realize what it is that we want to create. We all come from bands that fell into basically the same genre that we enjoy working in so they can be somewhat viewed as the research and development stages of our musical growth. The more you create the more chances you’re willing to take and you begin to understand what works & what doesn’t When you’re just starting out you may feel confident about the quality of half of what you’re writing. Fortunately, at this point we feel as though we all mesh very well and have worked out most of the kinks so it’s easy to feel proud of everything that pours out. Staring Blind, what exactly does that stand for? Brandon actually came up with the name and though it sounds like an oxymoron we like to think of it as being similar to the thousand yard stare. It’s being lost inside your mind and though your eyes are open you are actually blind to the world around you.
“awesome, awesome”
Interesting sound for and interesting band pure curiosity led me to ask what was the idea behind the band name? “Apache Resistance derives from a scene in Inglorious Bastards, where Brad Pitt is explaining the purpose of his special nazi hunting unit ”Our battle plan will be that of an Apache Resistance” Keef thought it was a powerful message. The idea that they were going into Germany to put fear into the monster was something I thought fit us perfectly …” With the bands first show in 2011 they have gained momenyum and established a spot in the Orlando music scene with a “mix of dirty funk and blues rock with a badass rapper. Very groove oriented and we get compared to early RHCP, Beastie Boys, andRage against the Machine. ” We asked the guys who is involved in the Lyrics and songwriting of the band, “Each song comes in a different way. Sometimes I’ll work out a guitar part and approach the guys with it. Sometimes i’ll hear keef say a phrase that sticks out and i’ll write something around it. It’s nice to have been workin with someone for as long as I’ve been working with him because we have a sort of understanding. He just seems to zig left when i need him to zig left. Gives me the freedom to come up with whatever I wanna do and just let Keef do his thing. Grant and Jorge are both music junkies. Jorge is a freak of nature that within 5 seconds of hearing something he knows everything he’s going to. It’s crazy to see cuz he does this thing with his face which somehow resembles the sounds he’s going to make and you can just tell he knows exactly what the part calls for. Grant never puts the bass down. I’ll show him where the chords are and what I would do, and he just plucks away for a day or so and has a part. The best songs come from jams though. I used to try to write out the whole things and teach the guys the parts but with the quality of musicians I have now and the chemistry we have, I feel a lot more comfortable coming to the table with something very primitive and let it evolve with what Grant and Jorge do. There’s just a natural movement to something when it comes to you spontaneously like that and everyone’s feeling it out together. Keeps it simple and stops you from over thinking things which was a problem that got in the way for me in the past.”
“Reincarnated Bass Yodeling.”
What songs influenced you the most from you childhood?Rancid was my first influence, musically & visually. Hearing high octane stories about life in a mohawk man’s shoes, is just Gold. At age 3, I saw Tim Armstrong and KNEW that’s how I wanted to look and what I wanted to do (Playing high energy music on stage and making punk music videos). Next influence was Linkin Park (Hyrbrid Theory is platinum, front to back). MuDvAyNe holds an infinite, eternal place in the core of my existence because even after 13 years of studying and loving everything they create, I STILL LEARN new things EVERY TIME I LISTEN (even to this day). Who are some of the local bands you would like to play with, or enjoy playing with? First things first, inspirational rap motivational storyteller, K Nilly (Facebook him) is a legend ahead of his time. The most humble, passionate, & positive rapper you could meet. His stories uplift, shock, and amuse the soul. A K Nilly track a day keeps the sadness of life at bay (especially “The Power’s There”). Apache Resistance set me on fire (in the crowd). Perfect blend of ForcefulRap, FacemeltingRock, & FunnyFunk (bass player flopping on the ground, not missing a beat, funny).Staring Blind is radioready, but is the radio ready for them? Let’s hope so. Maybe then I’d have a reason to put a radio in my car. Good live show, Great demo. I hope those guys are putting out a full CD this year. That’s high quality SH!T.
What would you say OrlandoBands.com has done for you?Simply put: Artist Development Showcase. Great place to start. The photoshoot with Ben hooked me up with some magazine cover worthy pictures that really represent the fun we had that day. Plus it was the perfect experience to get friends, family, and new friends out of the house and into the belly of fun rock.
