Band of the Day: Off Guard

Off Guard are an alternative rock band from New York and they have just released their first single “Strawberry Moon”. So what is it about Off Guard that has got the interest of not just the local Long Island scene but us here at The Moshville Times despite the fact that they have only played two gigs in their career so far? Well, based on the accessibility of this first single the band have a lot of promise; it is the balance between the pop sensibilities and the sincerity of the lyrics which really are going to appeal. We caught up with the lads to find out a little bit more about them and found them to be both affable and earnest as you can imagine. And yes, we had to look up what Trident Layers are too.

Simple things first – where are you guys from?

We’re from Long Island, New York

How did you meet?

Most of us met in high school/college. The four of us met Nick (drummer) from the Long Island music scene.

How long have you been playing as a band?

For about a year now.

Before you get sick of being asked where does the band name come from?

We thought of the name in Tyler’s backyard during his 21st birthday. We kept on getting pissed off because every other band name was taken. One of our friends suggested the name Off Guard and that’s just what we stuck with.

What are your influences?

Pierce The Veil, Queen, Fall Out Boy (pre-hiatus), Paramore, Foo Fighters.

Describe your music. What makes you unique?

Our sound has a unique mix of complex harmonies/vocal runs and haunting guitar tones/themes. Though they are all very different, we have managed to take all of our musical experiences and writing styles to fuse together a sound that we are able to call our own.

Do you have any particular lyrical themes?

Blending every-day life experiences like break ups and relationship issues with self doubt and depressing thoughts that most people experience.

What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?

We always aim to have high energy and as much crowd involvement as possible at our live shows. We have only played two shows so far as a band, but we have a show with Postcards from Colorado on October 11th at Amityville Music Hall and another one at The Kingsley in Brooklyn with 7 Minutes In Heaven on October 17th.

What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?

We’ve only played two shows so far, so nothing crazy yet. We can’t wait to get to that though!

What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?

Gretsch Drums, Fender (Squire) J Mascis edition Jazz Master, Jim Adkins edition Fender Telecaster, and a Music Man Sterling (bass).

What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?

We are promoting our new single “Strawberry Moon” which came out on September 29th and our debut EP, Set The Scene which comes out on October 27th.

What are your plans for the rest of 2017/ 2018?

We plan to promote our new EP, Set The Scene which is coming out this October by playing as many shows/tours as possible. We will also be making music/lyric videos for our songs and writing new ones for a second EP.

If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before?

We’d love to open for Mayday Parade, and we’d love to have our friends All Out! on the bill as well. You should check them out, they’re rad.

From previous Band of the Day We Fall Slowly: If you could change one thing in the world we live in today, what would it be?

Acceptance. If people were more open-minded and accepting to others’ beliefs, we wouldn’t have so much conflict between different religions/countries/people in general.

And from previous Band of the day Defences: What is, objectively speaking, the best type of bear and why?

I’m gonna go with pandas. They’re super cool looking and they’re herbivores!

And from Boobs of Doom: What would you get paid in, if you couldn’t have money, and why?

We’d like to get paid in Trident Layers.

Can you give us a question to ask a future Band of the Day?

If you could choose any producer/engineer to collaborate on a track with, who would it be?

Set The Scene is out October 27th

Off Guard: facebook

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