Band Interview: A Wolf in the City

We here at GBHBL are proud to being you an interview with the alternative/emo rock band A Wolf in the City. Hailing from Orlando, Florida their latest release ‘Heavy’ is available now! 

1. How did you get started as a band?

Originally, Jentzen (our drummer) and I were playing as guns for hire at a studio in Orlando, where Josh (our rhythm guitarist/principal songwriter) at the time was interning as an engineer. Josh was eventually convinced, I can’t quite remember by whom, to stand in on bass and keyboard in the band while we tried to fill the spots. Jentzen, Josh, and I gelled well as musicians and personally.

At some point, Josh mentioned his band ‘A Wolf in the City’ to us and showed us a few demo recordings they’d done up to that point, which if I’m remembering correctly, were all covers of beautiful songs they’d found most inspiring (Jesus Christ by Brand New was one, I remember.)

Josh and his bandmates Robbie & Stephen found themselves at Jentzen and I’s house where our other roommate, Brian DiMeglio, was producing their debut record. The guys had originally hired Jentzen to play on the record as a session drummer and were ironing out the songs while I was out in the backyard, escaping the noise. I heard a lead guitar line being butchered and when I walked inside, Josh asked if I’d heard that bit. I said, “Yep! I did.” and did my best not to show my true feelings through my face.

Eventually, the guys asked Jentzen if he’d be interested in joining the band as a full time member. Jentzen and I met privately one night and he said he’d be much more inclined to join them if I were to play a part as well. Conveniently, the rest of the guys had been discussing having me come in as the lead guitarist. They came by the house soon after that, and Jentzen and I were officially brought in. *Cue photoshoot and 90’s movie wardrobe montage*

2. How would you describe your sound?

Although we are constantly evolving as musicians/song-smiths and expanding our sonic horizons, I’d say our sound falls within the “alternative rock” realm. Lyrically, I think we tend to lean into the “emo” sector. Big guitars, beefy bass, fat drums, raw vocals, and genuine feeling.

3. What bands/artists would you say have influenced your style of music?

Obviously there are thousands of influences we could name between the 5 of us, so I’ll name the most consistently referenced groups: Manchester Orchestra, Hawthorne Heights, Have Mercy, Minus The Bear, Sorority Noise, Mayday Parade.

4. Has the rise of YouTube & music streaming helped or hindered you as a band?

A Wolf in the City never existed pre-YouTube/streaming, so we can’t really imagine the difference between that time and ours. I will say that while people are buying less and less music, these platforms have certainly helped level the playing field for smaller up-and-comers such as ourselves. Anyone with vision and courage can make incredible leaps and bounds in the music industry, using these new tools to their advantage. That being said… you can *buy* our music if you’d like to support us!

5. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not making music?

Experiencing real life: Kissing my girlfriend, talking to my friends, making plans, creating in any sense, working, breathing deeply, peering into dogs eyes like they might lead me somewhere new, laughing with my family about how dumb we all are sometimes, trying to emulate my dad’s work ethic and outlook on life, trying to understand the world as a whole, eating great food, finding new local businesses to get excited about, watching people trip and look around to see if anyone noticed (I saw that!), staying up really late with Steph, Josh, Jent, and Rob and talking about how many awesome things we’ve done and want to do together, you know? Living.

6. What are your future plans musically? Tour?

Two words: Haul ass.

We’d like to thank A Wolf in the City for their time & Stencil PR for arranging the interview. As the band themselves said above you can buy their music by click on the link here. The album is also available on Spotify, Apple Music & Google Play Music. You can find out much more about the band by checking out their website here, liking them over on Facebook, following them on Twitter & on Instagram.