Your names:
Rich Taylor. I play drums.
Sam Hargrove. Guitar and Vocals.
Where are you from?
We’re from Toronto. We were both born here and lived here our whole lives.
Name of band:
Terrorista.
How would you describe yourselves and your music?
Rich: We’re probably best described as post-post-post-punk. Somone said we have “90s vibes” though. Sam will probably say “bubble-gum grunge” whatever that means.
Sam: Bubble-gum grunge for sure.
Who are your main influences musically?
Sam: I don't really have musical influences as much as I have emotional associations with music which alternate over time. Since Terrorista has been writing and recording some of the stronger connections I've had with music have been with Silver Mt. Zion, Death Grips, Bonnie Prince Billy, Guerilla Toss, Absolutely Free, Oshwa, Banned Books, Four Tet and Atoms for Peace. Recently, I've been listening to the "Life is Very Long" tape by Good People with some frequency.
Rich: I guess for this band, At The Drive-In is a huge influence. I always wanted to be in a pop-punk band playing fast drums. We get a lot of Japandroids comparisons because we’re a two-piece…and that’s ok, I like them a lot.
What do you hope to achieve in music?
Rich: I want to make people dance at shows and have fun. When they listen at home I want people to have that feeling where they think about their lives and almost start to cry. That’s my favourite part about listening to music, when you start to cry a little bit and hate yourself, or when you get all excited about things. That would be great too.
Sam: I've learned a lot about myself from writing and playing music. It's a time for me to be focused and honest. It's something I would like to keep happening. If music ceased to have a peaceful and meditative element, which went from being writing's benefit to it's imperative, I can't see myself continuing to do it. Also I would like an insane amount of money and a pony, but not a pony that I had to buy with the insane amount of money. That would cheapen the pony.
What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?
Rich: Definitely recording these eight songs (that we’re releasing on four cassettes). It was August, and we were at Sam’s parents house. It was such gruelling work to get it all done but we had the best time. They have a pool so at the end of the night we could get stoned and jump off the deck into the pool.
Sam: I like playing pay-what-you-can shows in DIY spaces. While I don't think that music must, or even should, have communication as it's goal, an important part of shows is fostering a positive social environment. When that environment is there it becomes easier to meet new people, open yourself up to new music and to play a better set. I look forward to playing in those environments and the memories of times I have are probably my fondest.
And what’s the moment you want to forget?
Rich: Playing any venue that’s empty. It ruins the vibe completely.
Sam: All the times I've broken strings. It's so awkward changing a string as fast as you can. Your set loses all it's momentum. I break at least one string almost every time I play an electric guitar. It's a problem.
If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?
Rich: Darren vs Bag. It was the first song we wrote when we decided to start this band. It’s fast and fun. We named it after our friend’s cat Darren. He’s great.
Where can we listen to it?
Where can we find out more about your music?
Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask?
Thanks for the questions. If you’re in Toronto, come see us play at Handlebar on December 6th!
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