The Traditional are a rock & roll / emo band from Buffalo, NY. Formed in 2012, They quickly became a premiere band in their music scene. From being the opening band at a garage show to selling out The Waiting Room (one of Buffalo’s premiere music venues) and touring the U.S. , The Traditional have continued to grow in every aspect of their career. On ‘The Queen of Heaven’; their 2nd release on Anchor Eighty Four Records and follow up to 2014’s ‘How To Live Without Blood’; vocalist Anthony Musior says, “The Queen of Heaven is a record about growing up and trying to move on with a broken heart.” Adding, “It covers anger, longing, self loathing, and loneliness. It was my therapy in dealing with what was going on in my life and I’m forever grateful to this record for doing that for me.”
What are some words you would use to describe 2016 for you and your music?
Focused, evolving
What were some of the highlights?
Recording the record last February was definitely one of the highlights. We also made some great friends in the band “Save Face”. We did a short run of dates with those guys and hand a great time.
What are you most excited about for 2017?
As of right now, we’re excited for people to hear what we worked on for so long and to play these songs live for everyone.
Growing up, did you all always want to be musicians? Can you recall your earliest musical memory?
All of us have been playing music for years and have always had that dream to play music as a career. I personally (Jon) started playing piano when I was 3. After about 3 years I started playing the drums. My parents picked me up from school and surprised me by going to pick up my first set of drums. That’s probably the best and first real memory I have about wanting to be a successful musician.
How did you come up with your band name and how did you all meet each other? Was it difficult to narrow it down?
What other names were you considering? Coming up with a band name is never an easy task. We spent days trying to think of something we liked. We ended up getting our band name “The Traditional” off of a Yuengling beer box. We were all thinking of what we could use as a name and it just seemed right. At one point we referred to the band as “Pilots”, but that was before we ever played a show or released a song.
How do you think your sound and really how you all work together has been influenced by being a Buffalo band?
We all have such different influences in music which makes for an interesting writing process. We all know what we like and make it work the best way possible. Living in Buffalo is great. We experience every season so depending on what time of year you’re writing, songs can have a different feel.
What is the music scene like there and how has it fostered your sound?
The music scene in buffalo is incredible. There’s so many great bands. Everyone supports each other and it’s crazy to see the amount of love shown by the kids in the area. The people here are so relatable. When we sing about something, odds are someone listening is dealing with something very similar.
You are about to release your newest EP, “The Queen of Heaven.” Can you talk about putting this collection together and the inspiration behind these songs?
Choosing songs for this record was definitely interesting. We originally wrote 16 songs over 3 years. We did pre production on each one to see what songs had the most potential. From the 16 we chose what we thought were the best 6. We edited these songs and made them what we believe to be the best product. The inspiration behind these songs is basically what ever was happening in Anthony’s (our vocalist/bass player) life at that point in time.
I understand that it was like therapy writing it?
Expressing yourself through music is very therapeutic. It’s a constructive way to express yourself and you feel a sense of accomplishment when things come together. We were all going through a lot while writing this record and I think it was a way for us to get those feelings and thoughts out and sort of find our way through it all.
How do you think this group has grown and changed at all since you first formed in 2012?
Everyone in this band has matured musically. We have different tastes in music now and look at things differently. We want what is best for the music and take constructive criticism well.
Do you have plans to tour heavily in support of “The Queen of Heaven” this year?
As of right now we have a few record release shows set up with our new label mates in Southpaw, and after that we’ll be focusing on a lot of regional shows. We’re looking at possibilities of hitting the west coast later this year, so we’ll see!
What are some of your favorite shows in the past?
Any show in Buffalo is always a blast. Kids really let loose and it makes for a great time. One of our favorite places we play is a house show in Nashville. Some friends of ours throw a party once a year and have us come play. It’s always such a good time. Touring is such an incredible experience and every show we play sticks out to us in some way. We are just thankful we get to play music for people in different states.
What do you think makes for a perfect gig for this band?
I think what makes for a perfect gig for us, is when the crowd is really involved and energetic. There’s nothing like playing to a full room and having that electricity from the crowd to feed off of.
Who are some of your favorite musicians?
It’s kind of hard to narrow down since we all listen to a wide variety of bands. We all love the local bands in our scene, like Head North, Pentimento, ETID, etc…I think Anthony has a music crush on T Swift.
What musicians would you love to work with in the future?
I think we would all agree working with Jesse Lacy and the guys in Brand New would be amazing.
At the end of the day, what do you hope is the message of your music?
We like to have fun with our music, but at the same time I think we like to convey hope and that support from family and friends are always there for you when you need them.
What do you hope people take away from your songs?
What ever it is you’re going through, you’re not alone, things get better. You just have to keep pushing forward.
Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers about yourselves or your music?
We really enjoyed making this record, and we hope that people like it as much as we do. We hope to see everyone out at a show this year, and thanks for your continued support!
About the Author
Leah Brungardt (recently married) joined All Access Music Group in August 2011 and has been enjoying getting to know a new side of the music industry ever since. Having worked to promote radio stations in the past, seeing what makes a successful radio hit has been a thrill. As a lover of all genres of music, working at All Access Music Group is a perfect fit for Leah, and she loves learning about up and coming musicians as well. Most of her friends have come to rely on her for new music.
Leah grew up overseas attending American international schools and attended The University of Arizona, where she earned a BA in Music Management. She roots for the Wildcats every chance she gets.
Leah has been able to work at a variety of music-related jobs including several internships at small independent labels, ClearChannel Radio and Journal Broadcasting Group. She also spent time working retail at a store that specializes in vinyl, which was a lot of fun for her. Her favorite movie is Empire Records, so that makes perfect sense.
