I had the opportunity to sit down and get to know the ladies of unpolished* a little better. Here is my interview with these fantastic young ladies.
unpolished* consists of four young ladies named Mary, Jasmine, Celinda, and Santos. Here are the ladies talking about band and influences.
Jasmine: The music that influences my drumming really stems from the 90s/2k East Coast scene. My Chemical Romance is and always will be my favorite band, and I love everything from Thursday to Interpol to The Strokes. I’m a huge pop punk kid and I love Midwest emo, post hardcore, grunge, and industrial. My style of playing really is just me asking how I can meld something like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs with something like Black Veil Brides and Nine Inch Nails and call it unpolished*. I’m really just all over the board.
Santos: The bands that have formed my ideal bass sound the most have been primus, rage against the machine, No Doubt, and Rush. However, the artists that have been my consistent influences as a musician overall have been my chemical romance, B-52s, Cake, System of a Down, and still Rush!
Celinda:
I’m a total 2000s pop punk/emo kid. My Chemical Romance is my favorite band so their sound and guitarists (Ray Toro and Frank Iero) have definitely influenced my own style and it shows in the riffs and solos of our songs. I practically taught myself how to play guitar by learning to play my favorite MCR songs, but I also love and take notes from Green Day, Halestorm, The Pretty Reckless, and New Years Day. I also grew up listening to a lot of ‘80s rock thanks to my dad, so Def Leppard and Extreme are others that have snuck their way into my influence pallet, among others.
How do you balance blending different musical genres while staying true to your identity?
So far every single song we have recorded all have a different blend of genres from pop to post hardcore influences. We never want to put ourselves into a box of only playing one genre and are constantly trying to blend new sounds to create something unique. However, at the heart of every unpolished* song, we never lose our vision, passion, and attitude. No matter what genre we play, Mary is going to sing her lungs out, Celinda will shred like there’s no tomorrow, Santos will lay down some heavy bass, and Jasmine will be hitting the drums like they owe her money. That’s what makes an unpolished* song an unpolished* song.
– Jasmine
Can you walk us through your creative process when writing and recording music?
We haven’t been a band for a very long time but everyone’s been writing and playing music on their own since before the conception of unpolished*. Most of our current songs have started as a relatively fleshed out idea from one band member, and it evolves as we play it live together then take it into the studio with our producers (Tré Nixon from Nixon Studios for hollybaby, Tom Chandler and Jasmine Crowe from Elite Recording Studios for the rest) where we all get to sit down with the song and think of ways to make it even more epic before laying down tracks and getting them ready for release. We tend to write about our personal experiences, observations, and feelings as young women navigating today’s society.
— Celinda
What’s been your most memorable recording experience so far?
My first session recording with unpolished* and our producer was probably my favorite in my life so far. The vibes in the studio were SICK and these girls are so encouraging and kind. On top of that, our producer knows how to truly bring the best musician out of me and that adds so much to our music overall.
-Santos
What’s the story behind the name of your band? The * comes from what people use when correcting a mistake over digital forms of communication. The name itself is a commentary on the intense pressure to be perfect in today’s society and acknowledging that it’s not only okay to be unpolished, but it’s cool. We want anyone listening to our music to embrace that side of themselves. – Mary
unpolished* links:
https://www.instagram.com/unpolished.band
https://www.facebook.com/unpolished.band/?_rdr
Photos by Denise Johnson
https://denise-johnson.kavyar.site
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