WEATHERS are an LA-based alt-rock band that are releasing some insanely catchy, hard-hitting songs. Their song “Happy Pills” currently has over 6.3 million views on YouTube – sometimes it feels that about half of those are our views.
But the band recently released “Dirty Money,” a song that features a melody that’s iconically catchy paired with lyrics that are darker, more brutal than the song lets on.
We caught up with the band at their show in Washington, D.C. and we asked them about “Dirty Money,” touring and Los Angeles.
You guys recently released a new single, “Dirty Money.” What’s it about? What was the process like for recording that song?
Cameron Boyer: That song was kind of funny how it came about actually. [Cameron] Olsen and I wrote it with a couple friends of ours and we, honestly, had a bottle of Jack Daniels (laughs) and took a few shots and then decided to write a song. And then we kind of came up with this concept of growing up and kind of dealing with one’s egos. Basically, being in a band and having fans and being as young as we are. It’s something that we thought about a lot. Not letting your head get so big, staying humble that sort of thing. So that’s kind of what the song is about funny enough doesn’t have anything to do with actual money.
Going off of that: with your debut album, is there a song that you regret putting on there? I mean that in the sense that sometimes you play it live and it’s not the way you envisioned or it’s sort of lost its meaning over time. Is there any song like that on the album?
Cameron Boyer: No not really. We wrote Dirty Money a long time ago and we were debating on putting it on this album in the place of one of our other songs. But we decided not to at the end of the day and save it for later and so I guess not really. Every song on the album serves its own purpose you know and it all kind of flows well together.
Same question, different perspective. Is there a song that you regret not putting on there?
Cameron Boyce: No. For me, there’s definitely some songs that we wanted on the album but we didn’t want the album to be like 15 songs. So we had to you know make some really hard decisions but no.
Brennan Bates: I think of it kind of like a movie. Like, you can only put in so many scenes and dialogue before it gets too busy or becomes too much, even if the content is good itself.
Cole Carson: I think we all wanted Dirty Money on there but we’re glad that we didn’t. Because now it can be its own thing. We all wanted “Dirty Money” on there pretty bad, but it actually worked out better that we could do it after. We’re all digging that song quite a bit right now.
Cameron Boyce: And “Dirty Money” sounds so much different than anything else that’s on the album, too. So it kind of worked out that it’s standing on its own.
LA is obviously known as a city where things happen or the city where dreams are made. Do you think that being from that area made it harder to actually break into the scene? Just because there’s so many people competing.
Cameron Olsen: It’s a little harder to stand out in LA. If we did that in Lincoln, Nebraska, we would have a little bit more recognition and get through a little easier, but yeah I think it is a little harder in LA. But then again, you have access to a lot of studios and people and whatnot so it’s like a catch-22.
Does being from LA change your perspective on what music can be or does it actually affect your music?
Cole Carson: I think it comes more in the lyrics. Lyrically it does. Especially being out there, just talking about the 405 and the songs talking about the way of life in California. In a lot of songs we reference living in California, so I think it does shine through.
Cameron Boyer: I think that living in LA and being especially on the coast, you know, and kind of being in a beach community — I think that has influenced more who we are as people, rather than the music itself. Because I think we who we are as people comes out in the music, but it has a more direct effect on our personalities than it does on the music.
Do you ever have a moment where you feel like you’re sort of deceiving your own music? Because you can write about losing someone or going through a very awful period in your life, but there’s like a really good track underneath. Do you ever feel conflicted about that composition?
Cameron Boyer: Not really. It’s funny because when you’re writing the album, we never even really think about the whole happy-sad type of vibe that we have. That just kind of came out naturally and it wasn’t until recently when we were writing one of our newer things that we had talked about how our music sonically sounds happier but lyrically is a little darker. I think that’s something that just kind of came out naturally because again that’s kind of who we are as people. And no, I don’t really think we’re deceiving our music, to be honest. I think it all actually kind of works out.
Brennan Bates: You kind of need the music to get to the happy-sad. So the music isn’t all just sad and it’s not all just happy. So you kind of needed that music to be like that so you’re bringing the happeier stuff on a lot of the songs. Music is almost another lyric.
Cameron Boyer: I just think that we as people… have a lot of inner demons and stuff going on in our head all the time. But we also walk around every day smiling, making jokes and being “happy” and stuff. So I think that actually gets reflected in our music. Cameron said something earlier today that was that was kind of cool.
Cameron Olsen: The type of music we want to make is the kind where you can jump up and down while crying, you know? So I feel like if I’m not okay with like a piano ballad or something, it just wouldn’t work for us. It needs that rowdiness… this high-energy rock song with like really sad lyrics.
Brennan Bates: Which I think is extremely relatable to almost everybody ’cause everybody has something sad. everybody has something going on. But then you’re walking down the street and you smile and act like nothing is wrong. That’s what our music is about, so I think it’s relatable to everybody because everybody’s been through stuff.
Cameron Boyer: And it’s always good to strike a balance and we tend to do that in every song. It’s always good to slow things down a little bit, too. Like our song “Secret’s Safe With Me,” is a much slower song and that’s just because the subject matter is a lot deeper and more personal and also the song isn’t actually about me. It’s about someone else and I feel like a good way to pay our respects to that someone is to write it the way we did.
And my last question, just so it doesn’t end up being a pity fest for all of us: favorite part of touring besides actually playing?
Cole Carson: Seeing the country.
Cameron Olsen: Just like travelling.
Brennan Bates: I like meeting different people everywhere and making friends across the country and all that.
Cameron Boyer: I like the long drives actually. I really like to sit in the back of the van and just kind of getting lost in my thoughts. And sometimes you don’t have phone service so you’re literally forced to just kind of be in the moment, which is good.
Make sure you follow WEATHERS on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. And make sure you follow Cameron Boyer, Cameron Olsen, Cole Carson and Brennan Bates on Twitter for more tour updates.
Catch them live (for tickets click here):
- Feb. 9 – Philadelphia, PA
- Feb. 12 – Toronto, Canada
- Feb. 13 – Detroit, MI
- Feb. 14 – Indianapolis, IN
- Feb. 15 – Chicago, IL
- Feb. 16 – Columbus, OH
- Feb. 19 – Cleveland Heights, OH
- Feb. 20 – Covington, KY
- Feb. 21 – St. Louis, MO
- Feb. 22 – Milwaukee, WI
- Feb. 23 – Saint Paul, MN
- Feb. 26 – Missoula, MT
- Feb. 27 – Seattle, WA
- Feb. 28 – Portland, OR
- March 1 – San Francisco, CA
- March 8 – Las Vegas, NV
- March 9 – Salt Lake City, UT
- March 10 – Denver, CO
- March 12 – Phoenix, AZ
- March 14 – Fresno, CA
- March 16 – Santa Ana, CA
- March 17 – West Hollywood, CA