After coming across Wishful Thinking's "Consequences" music video, The MIC knew we had to chat with these guys. Here's five fast facts with NJ's Wishful Thinking talking about how it all started and where it's going!
Credit: @brittcphoto
Hey guys! So excited to chat and to hear about what you’re working on.
Can you start by telling us a little about how Wishful Thinking started? Members, their instruments, how you came up with the band name, etc.?
Hello! Happy to be speaking about it! The band started when we were fresh out of high school and just looking for something to do. Steve and I (Evan) went to school together, and we both played guitar and started writing songs. He had known Matt since childhood, who had recently picked up the bass, so everything lined up, and we started jamming. We only recently started playing shows, and with that came the addition of our drummer, Dylan! We had a good friend, Stevie, fill in on studio sessions and music videos beforehand. The name was on a list of ours that we thought was relevant to a bunch of dudes just playing music as a hobby but that it could turn into much more. Now that we’re getting out there, maybe it could come true.
How would you describe your musical style? Your lyrics?
We all have a common love and interest for explosive, fun rock music that also gets stuck in your head all day. Reminiscent of the early 2000s pop punk and alternative rock that we grew up listening to. We look at our music the same way; explosive, fun rock and roll. The lyrics are personal, but obviously, we want people to relate to what we have to say. Everyone has experienced the same things we’re describing in their own ways, and we typically like to put emphasis on how to overcome those things.
One of your latest songs you released was ”Consequences”! That track rocks. What did the writing process look like for this song? Recording process? How has your process evolved or stayed consistent over the years?
Thank you! We wrote that song right after finishing up our album “After Hours,” and it came together pretty quickly, which is rare for us. We can take a long time to get things right. Our songs usually start as ideas that Steve or I have; sometimes, it starts with Matt bringing up a bass line, but we try to always be together when building the main idea of the song. I’ll record all the instruments with the guys at home, and up until recently, we’ve been using drum loops to get the intended feel for the songs before bringing them to the studio to be completed. Now we’ve been writing and rehearsing new material with our new drummer Dylan, and we’ve been feeling great about the process and the results. Everything we’ve released, aside from one song, has been recorded with Nik Bruzzese of Man Overboard and, more recently, The Story So Far. He was kind enough to help us on our first EP years ago at his shed, and he’s been a mentor and a friend ever since. We’ve followed him from the shed to the Gradwell House where he’s at now, and the guy gets better each time. We can’t say enough good things about him.
4. You had a really great music video for “Consequences” filmed by Kurt Fowles of Sirius Cinema. What was it like shooting that music video, and what was Wishful Thinking’s favorite part?
That video was so much fun to brainstorm and execute. Kurt was awesome, a true professional that doesn’t make you feel silly for not knowing anything about shooting a music video. We came to him with a loose idea of parodying That 70s Show with our own twist, and Kurt took our ideas and made them make sense. Our favorite part was getting to mess around and be ourselves during the scenes of us hanging out, and Kurt was able to capture us just vibing and being ourselves.
5. What is your favorite Wishful Thinking song? What’s one song you wish Wishful Thinking wrote?
Oof, that’s a toughie. We obviously love all of them, but if we all had to pick, I think mine would be “Better Days,” Steve’s would be “Consequences,” Matt’s is “Constant High,” and Dylan’s would be “Day After Day .”Playing a lot of these songs live and seeing how people react makes us appreciate each one more, so that’s hard. As far as what song we wish we wrote, there’s too many. We constantly hear songs and go, “damn, I wish I thought of that.”
Credit: @joellestarmedia
So What’s Next for Wishful Thinking?
a. At the beginning of this year, we only had one thing in mind; play shows and let people know who Wishful Thinking really is. We still have that mindset. We have a few last-minute surprises for this year that may or may not be known by the time this gets out. But we intend to keep playing shows; we have new music that we hope to have recorded in the New Year and ideas for music videos. The sky is the limit, really.
Stream "Consequences" below!
Credits:
Written, Produced, Performed: Wishful Thinking
Recorded: Gradwell House in Haddonfield NJ with Man Overboard's Nik Bruzzse