An Interview With The Band MY BROTHERS AND I!

My Brothers & I is a band that consists of Wurgler brothers Erik (bass/vocals), David (lead vocals), and Scott (drums), along with childhood friend Jordan Roach (guitar), released their debut full-length album Don’t Dream Alone in 2015. To date, the album has garnered over 10 million streams, with special emphasis on standout selections “Nowhere To Run” and “Scars.” In addition, it received over a dozen syncs for TV programs Queen Sugar and Pretty Little Liars. Several of their songs have also been licensed for commercial campaigns, including “Na Na Na” which received wide exposure in an ad for Clark’s men’s footwear. Their various tours and festival appearances have resulted in a number of high profile performances that found them supporting the likes of St. Lucia, Misterwives, Allen Stone, Family of the Year, Saint Motel and others.

Their single “When You’re Ready” out already now will be featured on the band’s forthcoming EP, due out later this year

“It’s a song about your perfect match in a person. Someone you have been friends with, but they just can’t seem to catch on to the fact that y’all have chemistry for a deeper relationship. So it’s just like a love letter to them, letting them know you’re not in a rush, but you’re here when they are ready to be involved in something real.” – vocalist David Wurgler

Connect With My Brothers + Here:

www.mybrothersandiband.com

www.facebook.com/mybrothersandiofficial

www.twitter.com/mybrothersandi

www.instagram.com/mybrothersandi

Learn more about My Brothers + I in the following All Access interview here:

So how has 2018 been treating you all? What is one musical goal that you have had for this year and how close are you to reaching it?

2018 has been pretty good so far! We have had some opportunities to play in some cities that we haven’t played in before, such as Austin, Dallas, Birmingham, and Boise. It’s been a blast. We are also hoping to get some real movement on Top 40 radio this year with our single When You’re Ready. Our team has done a great job working that so far! – David

Can you recall the moment when you thought you could be in this band together? Has anything surprised you about it all so far?

Erik, David, and I really are brothers and Jordan has been my best friend since 2nd Grade. Being the two eldest, Jordan and I have been playing in bands together all our lives. Erik was next in line to join the band, then came David. It wasn’t until David’s senior year that he joined us to form this band, My Brothers And I. The moment I realized we had to get David involved was at his High School Solo Jazz Night. I knew he could sing before, but that was the first time I had really heard him in that setting, singing his own song, swooning the mothers of all his classmates. That summer we started writing and performing, and here we are. I think what has surprised us most so far is the licensing success of our first album. We weren’t expecting much from that album because it was our first time in the studio together and we didn’t have a huge budget or anything like that. But we have an amazing licensing team over at Secret Road who managed to get our music on shows like Pretty Little Liars and The Bachelor. – Scott

I am curious to know what is the best and most challenging part about being in a band with your brothers?

The best part is also the most challenging part. We are brutally honest with each other. This is helpful because we are able to just tell each other what we think straight up and not beat around the bush. It makes for more efficient songwriting and communication. However, this can also cause us to step on each other’s toes a little bit because we are so comfortable around each other. Ultimately, it’s a blessing that we get to live life together and be in a band together. This group of guys are the most talented & hardest working individuals I know. Being able to share in this experience with family is truly special. – Erik

How do you think your hometown has influenced the sound and how you all carry yourselves in this group? If you don’t think that it has, why is that?

Our hometown, Salem, OR, has definitely influenced us musically and as people. All four of us went to the same high school and went through the same choir program with the same teacher. (Shoutout Mrs. Stenson!) She helped all of us fall in love with jazz music. The amazing intricacies of the chords, the power of the improvised solo; it’s all so beautiful. We still hold jazz close to our hearts, even when we write pop music. Salem is the capital of Oregon but it definitely has a small town feel, which has rubbed off on all of us. There really isn’t much of a music scene here. However, the support in our hometown is amazing and people have really rallied behind us and shown a lot of love. – Jordan

Let’s talk about your upcoming EP release. What has it been like putting that collection together and then preparing to put it out? Do you remember what it felt like hearing it all the way through for the first time?

Putting this EP together has been so much fun for us. Like we said before, we didn’t have a huge budget for our first album, but this time around we had access to a really nice studio up in Vancouver, WA (Loud War Studios) and got to put a lot of our ideas into motion for the first time. We have always wanted to write pop music, but didn’t have the resources to really put it into action until this EP. Having access to more resources definitely came with some growing pains and trying to find a balance between pop music with digital beats and synths and all that, while also staying true to who we are as musicians and not losing sight of the organic nature that has gotten us this far. We are super excited to share more of our EP. That moment when we played it back for the first time, and felt like we stumbled upon something so familiar yet so fresh and new, that was a great feeling. – Erik

How creatively involved were you all with the making of your newest music video for “When You’re Ready”?

We have been really fortunate to work with people who are super chill and let us be as involved as we want to be. However, we are pretty good about knowing our limits. This is true with the When You’re Ready music video as well. We have no experience with making or writing a real music video, so from the beginning we told them to just listen to the song and let it speak to you and be creative. The main plot and story board was brought to us and we really liked! They let us have final say with everything, but it didn’t take long to land on the idea. Overall it was just a blast to be a part of it. That was our first experience doing a video and not being required to do anything other than be in the video. There was a big crew doing all the heavy lifting and we just got to enjoy the ride. – Scott

How would you say that this band has grown since your previous albums? What has stayed the same?

We have definitely grown as musicians, songwriters, and as people since our first album. We are all sponges and listen to all sorts of music, so we have been able to absorb what we hear and have that influence what we write. We have learned a ton just from listening to other bands and musicians. We have also learned how to hold onto our vision and not be timid with it. We know what our goals are and what we want our music to sound like, and we have had to learn to be more confident in our abilities as musicians and songwriters. – David

Where do you think you are all happiest- in the studio recording new music, on stage performing or elsewhere?

It comes in waves. We have been having a blast being on the road and playing in front of people and feeling that energy in a live room. However, we also love writing and recording new music and diligently working on our songs to get them to a place that can be recorded, then pushed out into the world as a finished product. That can often come with stress because you want every song to be perfect. Once you release it, you cant go back and change anything, but perfection isn’t realistic and you have to know when to just let go of a song and give it to your fans. Otherwise nothing would ever get released. – Scott

We are currently living through a very trying and politically charged time right now so I am curious to know how your own music is reflecting this time period? If you don’t think it is, why is that? Would you say that other musicians are making music that has been influenced by this climate? 

We have never been very big fans of the circus. 😉  But really, we aren’t here to grab headlines or jump into arenas that we don’t know much about. We are pursuing music to touch souls and change hearts. We want people to feel something deeper than surface level when they listen to our music. Everything we write is incredibly vulnerable and honest, we hope that people are willing to be vulnerable when they listen to it. Bruce Springsteen said, “You can change a life in three minutes with the right song,” and that’s what we are all about. We want to have success in music, but not to make a ton of money and buy huge houses and get chicks. We are here to change lives, show love, and be a light in what feels like a pretty dark time in this world. – Jordan

How important do you think social media has been to this band? Do all you help to maintain all your sites or is one of you more into it all? Or do you rely on your PR/management team to handle it?

Social media is something we are learning to tap into more and more. Maybe it’s because I’m the youngest, but I have definitely been into it the most. We are all pretty active on our accounts and try our best to engage with our fans in ways that are genuine and don’t feel staged or distant. We want people to feel connected to us and feel loved and appreciated by us. We also are all extremely dorky and make sure to not take ourselves to seriously. – David

Who would you love to work with in the future? Who are some of your favorite artists right now? What do you think would be a dream collaboration for this group?

We probably wouldn’t have said this a few months ago, but after hearing Shawn Mendes’ new album, that would be an awesome person to open for. We feel like what we have released, as well as what we have cookin’ behind the scenes, would really compliment a lot of his newer stuff. We all are suckers for JT, Tori Kelly, Adele, Sam Smith, John Legend, John Mayer, Chance The Rapper… We could list so many more but those are definitely some of our favs. – Erik

If you guys were all going to be stranded on a deserted island, what musical item would you want to take with you and why?

I would bring a grand piano because I could sing some nice piano ballads with the rich sounding chords of a well-kept grand piano, and then when I get bored or cold, tear it apart and use the wood for a fire or a raft or something like that. – David

I would bring my drum box because I could play some beats, but then also store food and other essentials inside of it for later. – Scott

I would bring an acoustic guitar for similar reasons as David, get to play some sweet sweet songs and then just use the wood for a fire after it goes out of tune. – Jordan

I would bring my Nintendo Switch… that’s an instrument, right? – Erik