Uma Nambiar
I interviewed Pedro Cerda, who is a senior at Inglemoor High School.
U: What are some of the songs you’ve been listening to the most lately?
P: Lately I've been listening a lot to a buncha songs from South America that I remembered from when I was younger like ‘Flaca’ by Andres Calamaro but also a lotta hardcore from California, especially the song ‘True Blue’ by Dead Heat which is one of my favorite of all time.
U: Who are some of your favorite musicians (listening to currently, or of all time)?
P: My absolute favorites gotta be Lower Species, who are a hardcore band from down in Seattle and who just released a new ep last month which owns, Los Prisioneros who were an incredibly famous and influential band from Chile who sadly aren't together anymore but made insanely beautiful music. Turnstile, who is one of the bigger bands in hardcore right now, released a full album a year ago which owns. Also Metallica just completely and forever owns, I love em.
U: With artists like Los Prisioneros that you really love or more current stuff like True Blue by Dead Heat being one of your favorites, what makes songs good to you?
P: For me what makes a song really good is mainly a few things, either a nice groove that makes me wanna just move, good lyrics that either I can connect to or that I thought were clever, or if everything connects. With some songs, they'll have some good parts but then the rest is boring or doesn't distinguish itself (which is a problem I have with Slayer, I've always felt most of their stuff sounds the same).
U: Can you talk more about the differences, in terms of emotional significance, between the ‘music of your youth’ versus music you found yourself as you got older?
P: Honestly the difference in significance for them for me is mostly in terms of how the two types of music help me connect with others and connect with how I feel. Music I've kinda discovered as I've gotten older has mostly been fairly angry-sounding but with messages behind them; a lotta Lower Species and Youth Crew type hardcore in that vein are always talking about how a person can improve themself, and music from when I was younger usually is more mellow and helps me out when I don't really feel I belong anywhere. It kinda reminds me of my roots I suppose. Also hardcore specifically has helped me branch out and meet a lot of new people and friends, meanwhile music like Andres Calamaro or Los Prisioneros has helped me connect more deeply with people I already knew, such as my parents or my grandparents.
U: How did you get into hardcore?
P: I got into hardcore specifically because when I was younger, I was really into that classic rock kinda stuff and slowly got more and more into older punk like The Misfits and Black Flag and the Bad Brains and that kinda stuff, and a few years ago I was looking for more modern stuff and found the band turnstile. Turnstile really marked a turning point in my musical tastes cause after that I got into a lot of the heavier, more modern hardcore like Dead Heat and Biohazard and Crown of Thornz. And since that was the kinda stuff I liked, I went to my first show, made friends who told me about other shows of the same genre and just kept going to all those shows.
U: What got you into going to shows?
P: I go to a lot of shows down in Seattle, pretty much always just small hardcore shows at smaller venues like the Black Lodge or the Pizza Palace in Seattle. When I moved away from Chile I found some bands I liked here and decided to just start going to see them; at first it's kinda hard to find shows, but after a while it gets a lot easier.
A lotta friends I've made at shows have really just helped me get out of my shell more. I remember the first hardcore show I ever went to a person who's now a good friend of mine came up to me and just started talking to me and trying to get me to not feel anxious and nervous, and that exchange really just changed my life. From then on I was able to just be myself no matter the situation, and at every show I've tried my best to meet new people which in turn has helped me even more to break out of my shell. It's kinda selfish I guess but in making friends it's been a way to just get myself out there more. When I was younger I was super anxious and nervous all the time about everything, and ever since I started going out to shows and meeting random strangers I've felt better than at any other time in my life.
U: So would you say the music you listen to reflects your tendency to push your own boundaries?
P: I suppose the music I listen to could reflect that. I try to always make myself better; as cliche as it sounds, I think trying to improve oneself is important. I used to be completely stagnant and I hated everything, then I started learning guitar and it helped a lot, I started going out on runs with my dog and it helped. I started going out to shows and trying to be more kind to others and a better person and it helped.
U: If you were to categorize what you listen to as genres, what would you think best describes it? Would punk be in there at all, or is that more what you used to listen to?
P: I used to be really into punk but now I find I can't bring myself to listen to much of it anymore. For me, I just like things that make me feel. Hardcore makes me feel pumped, or makes me feel centered personally, drowns out the rest of the world for a time. Doesn't even have to be modern; Crown of Thornz is a fairly old band at this point and is still one of my favorite bands of all time. Also, I love a lot of older pop music, which is what I would categorize pretty much all the stuff I listen to in Spanish as being.
U: What are a couple songs you think people should listen to if they’re interested in getting into hardcore?
P: Oh, definitely everyone should listen to ‘7/Keep It Moving’ by Turnstile, ‘Juggernaut’ by Crown of Thornz, ‘New Damage’ by Lower Species, ‘Guilty by Ignorance’ by Snapcase, ‘The Ruminator’ by Ekulu, and ‘Real Thing’ by Turnstile, those are all incredible songs.
