Trainspotting

1. Background and Formation:

– How did the band Trainspotting come together? What inspired the formation of the band? – Can you tell us a bit about the journey of each band member and how they contribute to the band’s unique sound?

It all really started when Rami and I (Lana) wanted to audition for AUB outdoors, we both were apart of the music scene in Lebanon, but only as people in the crowd. We have always been obsessed with music, and always wanted to start a band. That’s when him and I joined forces. It was March, and we needed a drummer since we were just two silly guitarists who were way too ambitious starting out. We knew we wanted to start a band before the audition, but we started putting in the effort of finding other members and practicing songs together when auditions were announced. We went through two drummers, none who were really interested, nor did we
click with. We ended up missing the auditions but still met up to practice songs together. Until all of a sudden, a person heard a song we were covering from outside the practice studio, rushes in with chopsticks and asks to jam with us. Even without drumsticks, this drummer was the best we’ve seen and had super magnetic energy. He played with extreme maturity, no obnoxious drum-fills, he just felt the music. All three of us clicked, and that’s when John joined the band. John suggested someone for a bassist, and we all jammed together. This bassist brought along his friend George for our first practice session as a four piece. When the bassist took a break, George took over on bass, and Rami and I looked at each other in pure shock. He had incredibly groove, feel, and skill that we knew right there and then that he was who we wanted for the band. When all four of us finally assembled, we decided that we were going to put in the hours and commit to this project.

2. Musical Style and Influences:

– How would you describe your musical style? What genres or artists have influenced your sound the most?

Of course, we have our classic dream-pop & shoegaze influences such as Cocteau Twins and Slowdive, but we also take inspiration from post-punk bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, and The Smiths. To be honest, inspiration, in terms of our music, can come from almost anywhere or anything. If we resonate with it, we’d incorporate elements of it into our sound. Each of us appreciate music so differently that we know that our influences are going to be a hybrid of so many different things. We just listen to music, learn from it, and see what could come out of our understanding of that. To water everything down during conversations, though, we usually just tell people we’re a “dreamgaze / post-punk” band, but I really don’t think the sound we’re aiming for could ever be so simply described without going off on a tangent for an hour about every single influence we’ve ever had.

– What themes or messages do you usually explore in your music?

We’re currently feeling things out, it’s too soon to have a concrete idea of what our music is going to be all about. We have our own experiences, stories to tell, and things we’re passionate about. We also know that we won’t shy away from saying the things that are hard to swallow for some people. We’d be punk without the noisiness of it, but even then, sometimes we’d have to be loud to make sure we’re heard. I think politics, especially because of the things happening in our country, is definitely going to be the one of leading inspirations behind what we write, in terms of lyricism.

3. Performance at Zico House:

– How did it feel to perform at Zico House? What was the atmosphere like?

Honestly, we went in blind when it came to preparing for our first show. We aren’t professional musicians, so we had no idea what the process would be for setting up for a show would be like. We knew we wanted to do our show at Zico House because of how beautifully inviting the environment was. Zico was incredibly supportive and helped us out as much as he could which was super reassuring. When the day came around, we were really nervous until the venue filled up with all our friends and the musicians that we admire. It just felt like a hub of support, we eased up after the first song and just enjoyed ourselves. Yeah, we messed up a few times, but that was expected. The fact of the matter was that we finally put ourselves out there and all the months of effort finally paid off. It’s an experience I don’t think we’re ever going to forget.

– Were there any memorable moments from your performance at the festival that you’d like to share?

The road trip up to Batroun was really fun, we’d all just listen to music together and just enjoy each other’s company. Sound-check was also super fun, the sun was setting and there was a video of us playing at golden hour, which was so pretty! Listening to the people sing along to the songs was definitely really cool, we mainly did covers for the festival, so it felt nice to interact with the crowd! I’m going to share a secret: There was a cool lady who knew the lyrics for one of the songs we were doing by heart and I did look at her the whole time to make sure I didn’t mess up the words! Another memorable moment was the fact that we shared the stage with some of the coolest bands in the country! The support they gave to us before and after our set was surreal. Going from people in the crowd, to people who get to share the stage with these amazingly passionate musicians was so heart-warming. The fact that legends like Julia Sabra and Fadi Tabbal were also there to watch us was insane. Overall, by the looks of it, every bit was a memorable experience, it was a really cool event and we’re grateful that we were a part of it.

4. Creative Process:

– How do you approach live performances? Do you tailor your setlist or performance style to the venue or audience?

So far, I think we’ve definitely based what we’d perform by the environment we’d play in. First show felt like an introduction to who we were, second show we were opening for other bands, so we kept things tame, and for the festival we played some things that were classics while staying true to what inspired us. As we get more comfortable and more familiar with the scene, we’d later on think about these things less. Hopefully we’d get to the point where we’d make enough of a mark to attract a crowd who would be open to listening to whatever we throw their way. Awareness of the environment is important, but at some point, that would just set limitations for what we’d want to do. We can’t please everybody, and that’s okay. We just want to make and play music that makes US happy.

5. Future Plans and Projects:

– What are your upcoming projects or releases? Is there anything exciting on the horizon for Trainspotting?

We’re currently working on writing an original that we’d hopefully record and release when the timing’s right. If we manage to come up with more than one, that would be even better but making promises like that would be cruel! So, let’s say that one’s definitely happening, and we’ll see how everything else plays out. We know we’d like to take our time since we wouldn’t release anything unless we knew we could confidently stand by it.

– How do you see the band evolving in the future? Are there any new directions you’re exploring?

We’re finding ways to experiment with different types of sounds right now, seeing if we could come up with new things that we might possibly resonate with. Also from a technical standpoint, we’re continuously evolving. We don’t play our instruments with any discomfort anymore. We get to grow together and learn from each other. I’m almost convinced we have a clue of what we’re doing!

6. Connection with the Audience:

– How do you connect with your audience during live performances? What do you hope they take away from your shows?

We’re quite socially awkward people, but we usually just ask the crowd if they know the songs or the artists we’re playing before we get to them. It’s a funny habit that’s become a bit of an inside joke between the band members. I actually think I did that the entire time when I was introducing songs for the first show, which is so embarrassing! I even did that for the songs that I knew not too many people would know so the response from the crowd would be like one or two “WOOHOO”s and a singular clap. Shout out to the people who did that, though, you guys are great. Even when I’d mess up the lyrics, I’d yell “Oh, sh*t!” and keep going, which was a really funny moment because we all laughed and reminded ourselves to not take everything too seriously, especially in the beginning. That’s definitely something the crowd should take from our shows, we’re here to have a good time just as much as they are. We also just want to encourage people to step out of their comfort zone when it comes to the music they listen to, there’s nothing that makes us happier than when we’d cover a song and have people coming up to us afterwards asking what it was that we played. We highly encourage that! We want everyone to be curious enough to ask!

– What does perform at cultural spaces like Zico House mean to you as a band?

What definitely inspired us to perform at Zico House was seeing Dajjeh have their first event there, it was cool seeing how carefree people were while dancing around to music that they usually might not have the environment to publicly enjoy. It felt so inviting, it was a space for everybody. As a band, we definitely want to create a little subculture in the music community where everyone gets to be allowed to be themselves with zero judgement. Zico House just felt like the place for that.