MWN: Hello guys! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these few questions for us. Alright let’s kick things off with some personal questions about the bands root. So where did all of the band members meet?
SondorBlue: Thank you for taking the time to interview us! Andrew and I [Connor speaking] met at a pickup game of basketball at Dolphin Head, a little beach-front park on Hilton Head Island. We were 15 or 16 years old, and I knew of Andrew from the music that he put up on Youtube. We met up a few weeks after the game and wrote our first song, Walkin’ Home. We started busking around Hilton Head and eventually got a few shows playing mostly cover songs, and that’s when we met John. About two years ago our songwriting started to develop it’s own unique identity, and that was around the time that we wrote “More Than Reality” and Drew Loo joined the band. That’s when we named ourselves SondorBlue.
MWN: How did you get your name?
SondorBlue: Sondor is the idea that we are all living these complex and unique lives, filled with friends and jobs and our own hang ups – but we get to cross paths, perhaps only for an instance, as a man reading the paper or someone drinking coffee. It’s the beautiful realization that you’re not alone. We all fell in love with the word and what it meant, and it resonated even more because we want to make music that all people can relate to.
MWN: What music influences you when you were growing up? Has it changed at all?
SondorBlue: Our early musical influences have definitely stuck with us. Andrew grew up on r&b and soul, John grew up on artists like Ed Sheeran and Coldplay, and Drew and I both grew up listening to bands our parents loved like The Eagles and The Beatles.
MWN: One of our favorite songs is “More Than Reality,” do you guys mind telling us a little bit more about how that song came together? What inspired it?
SondorBlue: “More Than Reality” for us was about seeing the way something really is and becoming aware that you’ve got to do something about it. The song is about a relationship with a girl, but at the time it was also about escaping from the situation we were in, which was playing very long shows of cover music when we knew there was more to music than that.
MWN: How do you write your music? Does it come to you in spurts, or do you write it all at once?
SondorBlue: Every song is different, but we get a lot of inspiration from the things happening around us. When a lot is going on, we certainly all feel it and digest it in our own way, so it’s not unusual to have three of four different ideas being workshopped at the same time.
MWN: So you guys are from Charleston, SC how is the music scene like there? Have you found that it slips into your music?
SondorBlue: Charleston has a great art scene! We’re lucky to be a part of it. There are a ton of great artists and musicians here, and they’re all very kind and approachable. It’s an inspiring place to be, and when we started playing music here we were welcomed in with a lot of love. We love you Charleston.
MWN: What bands are you guys currently really into?
SondorBlue: We’ve been listening to a lot of Broken Bells and old Stevie Wonder recently. We’ve been channeling more r&b into our music, and it feels really good to explore those sounds and vibes.
MWN: A bit of a random questions but we like to ask these so people can get to know you guys a little better! So what is your favorite love song?
SondorBlue: Man it’s hard to choose a favorite! But the love song I’m stuck on right now is “My Cherie Amour” by Stevie Wonder.
MWN: What is your first recollection of live music?
SondorBlue: One of my first memories of hearing live music was a Genesis live album that my dad had put in our car before he and I left to drive to a boy scout trip. I remember hearing Phil Collins’ voice and the wailing of the crowd. That was definitely a moment that has stuck with me for quite a long time now.
MWN: Lastly, where do you guys hope to take your take music in the next couple of years? Once again thank you so much!
SondorBlue: We’re grateful for everything music has given us so far – we’ve been able to tour around the country as best friends, and that’s a priceless experience. In the future, we hope that our music continues to reach new people and that we leave a positive impact. After all, if we are able to enter into someone’s life just for a moment, maybe just one song or one concert, we had better make it a positive moment.
Interview By: Allison Wyrsch & Maria Limon | Exclusively for @Music, Why Not! – All Rights Reserved-
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