Newly signed Rock Band DEAD POET SOCIETY | Release First Single 'IN TOO DEEP' | We Talk College, Rock Music & The Future
L.A.-based rock band Dead Poet Society are Spinefarm/UMG’s latest sign, kicking off with the video for first single, “intoodeep.“
The four-piece formed while attending college in Boston and have amassed a dedicated following with millions of streams. Unconventional yet familiar Dead Poet Society‘s musical landscape runs from heavy, riff-driven songs to stunningly beautiful ballads. With fretless guitars and the extraordinary vocals of lead singer Jack Underkofler at the forefront, they have cultivated a signature sound that’s distinct
DEAD POET SOCIETY ARE:
Jack Underkofler — Vocals/Guitar
Jack Collins — Guitar
Will Goodroad — Drums
Dylan Brenner — Bass Guitar
Why did you choose the name Dead Poet Society? Is it anything to do with the Robin Williams movie?
The name has no relevance to the movie, just a drunken 18 year old idea of mine in early college.
You all met at college in Boston what did you all study and how do you think your college studies helped you as a band?
Aside from our former bass player, we all studied different subjects in music. I studied production and engineering, the others more performance. As a recording engineer, it helped a lot. I used a lot of the information I learned in school to produce our early recordings. Although, I’d say most of the grind came from the vision I wanted for our music early on. That drove the long hours of mixing, recording, etc. I think I spent 100 hours mixing one of the songs on our first EP.
Musically you are all about a big explosive chorus’ and heavy riffs. Your uniqueness is said to be, partly due to the guitar playing sliding riffs on a fretless seven-string which was soldered off with an iron.
You said the expression itself and what you’re trying to say and how you want to make people feel is unique. How do you want to make people feel?
As cute as it is, we’re not setting out to be the most original band on the planet. It’s just like creating anything great, we want to make people feel something different. That could come from a great melody, sick riff, whatever. In our case, the fretless guitar is just a channel we use to create different moods and emotions. Just feels like our own lane.
On the subject of rock and where it is currently at Collins said “It’s just lame, it has been for like 10 years. I think that’s because people are paying too much umbrage to classic rock —there’s this passing of the torch thing that I think is just bullshit. Some bold statements made could you expand on what you mean by this and when you say ‘passing the torch’ is this in reference to nepotism?
Yeah I mean, I feel like there is a general consensus that not much more can be done in rock. People say everything has been done. I think there are infinite ways to evolve heavy music. And it’s not just for the sake of it. It’s about finding your own identity. Fuck up the notes. Stop trying to do what you think you should do with each step. Write your own path. At least that’s what I tell myself.
What has been the band’s experience of lockdown how have you navigated the pandemic?
Fortunately, the lockdown came at a good time in terms of our album production. We were starting to stack up with tours and finishing the final recordings was going to be really complicated. It allowed us to spend a lot more time in the studio. Mixing, writing, everything. As far as not being able to tour for a full year and a half, well that fucking sucked. (and still sucks).
There are some dark themes of drugs, alcohol, the past, regrets and a sense of hopelessness in ‘in too deep’ is expressing this in your music a therapeutic process for you?
Jack U wrote most of the lyrics in this one, but our lyric writing is definitely a therapeutic process for us. I mean, how else do you know when a song is done? When you feel it, right? It’s tough to describe. We work hard on our lyrics man.
What are the band’s goals for when things get back to normal?
We want to headline Madison Square Garden. Let’s see how long it takes.
How do you feel the Internet has impacted the music business?
It’s up and down. ’08 was the worst time to be a rock band. The past few years the scene has picked up and there are actually avenues to be discovered on. It used to be impossible. It almost still is. I guess the good side is, you can do whatever the fuck you want if you can connect with the people who feel you. I think that’s about it.
