A Vintage Touch
They may not be bringing back disco or flares, but this is one cameo you won’t want to miss. Miss Vintage, that is. Miss Vintage is a rock band based in Philadelphia, Penn. The band is comprised of Jason Min (lead guitarist/vocals), Joe Chai (guitarist/vocals), Colin Leaman (bassist) and Brian Skulski (drummer).
Last Wednesday, January 24, Miss Vintage played a gig at T.T. the Bear’s. They performed five songs from their debut album, Runways: All That’s Left, The Roadie, Marry Annette, The Last Time We Cried and their closing number, Temporary Like Me. True to form, these guys have a passionate energy and adorkable charisma that is as yet untainted by the industry’s cynicism. They also happen to have a quirky, trippy sound that lends itself well to indie film soundtracks.
I got to catch up with three of the band members in the back “green room.” We chatted about everything from mixing drugs with pleasure (you’ll see what I mean…) to Kollaboration and everything in between.
Sarah Ip: Hi, guys. Could you tell us a little about yourself - where you’re all from and how you guys met?
Jason Min: I met these guys in Philly. Me and the guitarist [Joe Chai] are from California. We played at a local church together. We met the other guys later on. They’re from Philly.
SI: Where did the name “Miss Vintage” come from?
JM: There’s not some spectacular meaning behind it. We’re not really big on names defining who we are. It [Miss Vintage] doesn’t really have a meaning.
SI: How would you describe your sound?
Colin Leaman: It’s rock.
JM: It’s ambient rock.
SI: When did you realize you wanted to make music for a living? Or do you have day jobs?
CL: I’m still in school.
JM: The three of us have full-time day jobs. It [music]’s not a full-time thing yet. It’ll be two years in April. We’ve been together for one-and-a-half years. We’ve been in Michigan. Because of our connections in California, we’ve done a lot of shows there, and up and down the East Coast. We’re playing in Georgia in March.
Brian Skulski: I’m the oldest one of all the guys. I’m in pharmacy school. I sell drugs and play music.
SI: Who were your inspirations?
JM: All of our inspirations are different: Beatles, Radiohead, collectively – Lovedrug, Explosion in the Sky.
SI: Were your families supportive of your music careers?
JM: Surprisingly, yeah, especially Asians. It’s not really something you’d expect from Asian parents.
SI: What motivates you?
JM: We love it [performing]. It’s the only thing we can imagine doing.
CL: It’s not like work. If we go without it for too long, we go crazy.
JM: I think it’s amazing to be able to do what you love.
SI: What is the craziest thing that has happened to the band?
BS: After we’d been together as a band for three or four months, the first summer we started – Summer 2006 – we flew off to Berkeley. Joe took a separate flight. We met up with him later. Three of us flew out, had a connecting flight to Texas. They closed down the airport for a tornado. We landed at a different airport. Finally, we got to the connecting airport in six hours. Hundreds of people were trying to get on the flight. Only three seats were left, and amazingly, we got the last seats. We get there and find out that we only have twenty minutes to set up. We played three songs, got food and got back on the plane. [The song] “Atrium” was written while in Texas.
SI: Wow, so that song has a meaningful history behind it. Are you shopping around for a record deal?
CL: Getting signed isn’t what we’re striving for, but if something came along with the right kind of deal, we won’t reject it [right off the bat].
SI: What are your future goals and plans?
BS: There’s talk about moving out west.
SI: Why the west coast?
BS: Well, there are a lot more people going the musician route there.
SI: What’s your new album going to sound like? When is it due to be released?
CL: We’re about to start a second CD. We’re happy with our first CD, but super excited about the second CD. It’s more our sound, more mature. We’re putting it out independently. The first batch of songs on the first CD – we fought through differences and found a meeting ground. The new album will have 6 or 7 new songs and 4 songs off the old CD, remixed.
SI: I recently saw a Youtube clip of you guys at Kollaboration NY in 2006. What was going through your heads when you were performing there? [For those who don’t know, Kollaboration is an annual event that brings together and showcases the musical talents of Asian Pacific Islander youth. The organization and movement was founded by Paul “PK” Kim in 2000. Today, there are Kollaborations across the United States and in Canada.]
CL: Kollaboration was cool. For me and Brian, it was fun [and] weird…there were so many Koreans. People are excited that there’s not many half-Korean, half-white bands. There was a lot of hip-hop.
SI: Where can people check out your music & merch?
JM: Myspace is probably the best.
Miss Vintage will be playing at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., this Saturday, February 2, at 8pm. Come out and show them your love and support!
Last 5 posts by sarah
- Taiyo Na - Love Is Growth - May 23rd, 2008
- Ryness chats about their Ahh Sum roots - February 15th, 2008
- 20 Questions with Big Phony (or more like 18) - January 23rd, 2008
- Back to My Roots - December 28th, 2007