In a new EP release from Liquid Pennies the band pulls together a floating post-punk atmosphere that breeds elements of progressive rock that bleeds into experimental soundscapes and is done with a purebred love for the craft from beginning to end.
The A Wake-Ending EP has quite a range within a four-song spectrum with songs stretching past 7 minutes in some instances, the band shows their true diversity in songwriting and let's lose with righteous and massive approaches that come through vast but almost nostalgic in a way.
One of the things that really pulls you in about this record is the guitar work and how it's performed. The instruments are layered to perfection and have just the right balance of tightness and looseness to give a touch of that late 90s underground alternative rock feel.
Listening to this record makes you want to see these guys live for sure because the energy on the recording itself feels like players are feeding off of each other the entire time and that's something that you look for in a band like this.
You get all kinds of classic progressions done in a unique and new style that show a lot of the character of how these guys do their thing which definitely has to be writing songs together as a whole.
What's really cool about this is that the first three songs give you these different feels and although each one could stand on its own two legs the EP itself has a vibe if you listen to it as a whole and I think that's how it was meant to be soaked in.
The last track on the record called "In An Ebb" is absolutely mind-boggling.
The track is completely relentless and explodes into this almost grunge and post punk soiree that you have to gain your footing again once it's over.
I think it's really cool to have songs like this that actually feel like they're taking you to these completely different places and you forget about the world around you for a moment.
That little form of escapism is really important in music in general but with bands like this you don't get it often so it's really cool to hear it.
This is an 'expect the unexpected' type of record and if you approach it like that, you're going to absolutely feel right in love with it.
Even if you don't, I'm sure that's what's going to happen.
All the instrumentation and performances across the record are outstanding including the drums and bass along with those gigantic guitars and the vocals that sort of swim through the record and create this particular atmosphere that you just don't want to come out of in the end.
If you were up to me, I'd say listen to the last track first, but most people will probably go from the top down.
With the release of such a great record we wanted to have a sit down with Liquid Pennies to really find out where this record came from and what might be coming up next for the band.
Here's what happened.
Buzz Slayers: Okay, let's start with the A Wake-Ending EP! This EP was vast, progressive and had this classic rock tonality to it! How did this record come about?
Thank you, glad you enjoyed listening to it. This was the culmination of us gigging extensively through 2022 after putting out our full-length Any Wonder that June. The songs were written and rehearsed in between shows, and when it came time to record them, we had played them at a lot of shows, and a couple of them on a live radio performance as well.
We decided to do this one with Ryan Boesch of Candor Recording in Tampa as we had less time on our hands to mix like we did on the last album, and also in order to get the cleanest/high quality sounds that stayed true to our live shows. This will most likely be the first of many releases we do with Ryan as we were all incredibly happy with how this turned out.
Buzz Slayers: How did this all start for you guys as a band?
Our drummer JJ and I started jamming around 2015 when I moved to St Pete from San Francisco. Eventually we accumulated some songs that we played with a synth as the low-end. At that point we were going by Floods, and played a couple of small house shows while recording demos. When the synth player, Ashlee, left we were about to do a two-piece thing with baritone guitar and drums, but after putting out a music video for the demo version of our song “Angles,” we connected with our bassist Dylan at a record store show we were attending who had seen it and dug the song. From there we changed the name to Liquid Pennies and kicked the whole thing into gear.
Buzz Slayers: What kind of things really inspire songs for you?
Lyrically, it’s an outlet for something that can’t be explained or expressed any other way. There’s no specific thing that inspires songs though, it comes from life experiences and continuing to exist as a band, sometimes in defiance of the odds. Musically it can often happen when we find a center point amongst all of us and the balance of pushing ourselves with not overextending. Like keeping a sonic catalyst.
Buzz Slayers: This EP has some great styles combinations on it! Can you give us some of your biggest influences musically?
We all have a pretty wide range of influences, but Psychedelic rock, 80s post punk, math rock, punk/thrash, prog rock, bossa nova, late 80s/early 90s alternative, jazz, and post rock are a few of the genres that we pull influence from
Buzz Slayers: What are you doing when you're NOT working on music?
Enjoying the outdoors, making/eating good food, listening to music, traveling, and waiting to play more shows.
Buzz Slayers: Who's in your headphones right now?
I’ve been listening to a podcast about the history of the cure. Remi Wolf has been a recent guilty pleasure too, her music fits with the warmer temperatures we’re getting here in Florida.
Buzz Slayers: Are you doing any live performances right now?
In April we’ll be playing in DeLand Florida and Lake Worth on the 14th/15th, then back to our home base of St Pete to play Record Store Day 4/22 and the Lost in St Pete festival the following weekend with an amazing band called Zeta from Miami, Timothy Eeerie, and Haute Tension to name a few. These are our first shows back from our East Coast tour we did in February.
What can your fans expect from you in the near future?
We have some new material we’re hoping to put out by the end of the year, and additions to our lineup we’ll be announcing in the coming weeks.
Buzz Slayers: Before we go, what would you like to say to fans of the music?
Facilitate your creativity and expression however you can. Whether it be music, poetry, art, cooking, photography, or coming up with unique questions for a music interview, delve deep and don’t short yourself. Make something uniquely yours. Draw from your influences, but look beyond them too. Also, thank you to everyone who’s listened to and cared about our music, that’s what makes it worth it for us.