Gamblers Interview

Hailing from Massapequa, do you think it was easier to break onto the scene with having access to studios and professionals or do you think with such a large music scene in the surrounding area that it actually made it more difficult to stand out?

We grew up in a pretty active music scene on Long Island. I didn't always align with what was happening genre wise, as it's mostly emo / metal / or cover bands. But we had a lot of friends who played music, and being in the suburbs, it's good to have constructive ways to spend your time I suppose, compared to getting yourself into trouble. I can't really say we had access to studios and professionals because that makes it sounds like something was handed to us, we've always worked really hard to make our music and bring it to life. I think it's hard to stand out regardless of what you're trying to accomplish. 

When Gamblers’ were forming and you guys were finding your sound, did you plan on being a blend of electronic and indie rock or was it more a long the lines of a natural progression or perhaps a happy accident?

Definitely a natural progression. When I took over the band in 2019 once the original lineup disintegrated, I made it a point to keep the name of the band alive but do whatever I wanted to do musically. My tastes are more diverse than what the original conception of the band was willing to do.

Where do you get the inspiration from concerning the samples used in the electronic side of things? Is it a clip from an older recording or do you create your own samples to be used or is there a bank of samples you dip from occasionally? 

There's no sampling on this record. It's all original sounds. But outside of Gamblers I've done a bunch of sampling in hip hop projects I've been involved in.

Do you lean more towards the physical hardware of the electronic portion or more on the side of software with plugins? Do you have a favorite?

Both, I'm not really partial. Whatever gets the job done as far as conveying what's in our heads.

Your name is very interesting, Gamblers, no ‘the’ or ‘a’ in the beginning, pretty ambiguous don’t you think?

Perhaps. I think the name is way worse with a "the" in the front and it's definitely a pet peeve of mine when it gets incorrectly printed that way. I don't know why it would have an A in front of it though, you got me on that one.

Has the fan base surprised you at all? Maybe a demographic or trend that you didn’t expect?

I wouldn't say anything has surprised me per se, but it's very rewarding when people resonate with the music and feel compelled to tell us or share it online or something. 

Any fun stories from touring? Meeting anybody exciting along the way? Anybody you would definitely like to cross paths with in the future?

Personally, I was out in Los Angeles working on a hip hop project and got to meet John Frusciante at a concert, who I grew up idolizing. In terms of people to cross paths with, it would be fun to perform Another Dose with Mick Jenkins on a late night show or a festival or something.

Where has been your favorite place to play so far? 

Probably Brooklyn Bowl.

What does the future of Gamblers’ look like after ‘Pulverizer’ is released? Plans for a tour?

Yeah we'll be on the road through the spring and summer, beyond that just continuing to make music.

 Lastly, what is in your headphones? What are you currently listening to? 

John Denver and Daddy Yankee.

Interviewed by Donovan Bryant insomnia music journalist