Start At The End is back again this month at NYC’s oldest rock club The Bitter End in New York City on May 25. The bands chosen to play are local ones that deserve a chance at creating more buzz and getting their names out there. This month’s lineup is made up of Wyland, Experiment 34, Rob Jennings, Above The Moon, and Jared Dylan.
We recently caught up with Ryan from Wyland to talk about their background, sound, latest release, and more! Check it out below:
How long have you been a band and how did you get started?
We’ve actually been asking ourselves how to answer that question. Let’s explore. Mauricio and I began writing about three years ago. We had our best friends perform live with us over those three years but nothing really ever felt right until about eight months when Zach Calidonna and Richard Joyce jumped on to record In A Sea Of Things Unsaid. That’s when this whole thing started to feel real and now, I would say we’re a band.
Why did you choose your band name?
We got the name through a complete misunderstanding. We had a close friend who misunderstood a lyric from Bon Iver’s Halocene. The correct lyric was, “You’re in Milwaukee, off your feet,” and our friend thought he sang, “You’re in the world, get off your feet.” A line that went on to not only inspire our band name but it was also named after one of our releases. Essentially, from that line, we thought, “Why would anyone who is flying high ever want to come back down? Why land?” To make it a little hipper, we took out the ‘h’ and connected the words: Wyland.
How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard you before?
I would say that our sound is hopefully an experience. We’re not writing songs to fit a scene or genre, instead we’re trying to take people on an adventure of sorts. We’re looking to capture someone’s imagination for three to four minutes and give them a cinematic experience. It’s atmospheric, it’s electric, and it’s songwriting that we bleed over. We come up with a lot of ideas but we don’t release anything we don’t believe in.
What was your latest release of music and can you talk about that a bit?
We recently released In A Sea Of Things Unsaid. We’re really proud of it. I think it’s the best thing we’ve released thus far as a group. It’s the first thing we released as a group too. Our singles “Without You” and “Butterflies” were both received very well. We’re over 102K+ streams on Spotify, which is really cool. Kind of crazy that anyone would listen to us that many times but we’re very humbled by it.
Does one person write the lyrics or is it a collective effort?
Yes, I primarily write all of the lyrics for the songs.
What is your recording process like?
It’s been very different each time but we’re certainly a fan of the way we recorded In A Sea Of Things Unsaid. We were in one room, recording in single full takes, and then overdubbing whatever we had to after capturing the important things live. We really like to experiment though, with different instruments and different soundscapes. We’re pretty much like kids in a candy shop when we’re in the studio. They have to pry us out when they want us to leave.
What are current projects you are working on? (Tour plans? New music?)
We’re working on a number of exciting things. Some I can talk about and some I can’t just yet. It’s all exciting stuff though. New shows, new music, etc.
What are your thoughts about this Start At The End event?
I think it’s a brilliant idea. The Bitter End is an incredible venue that we’ve called home many times and The Aquarian Weekly is a legendary publication for music so combining the two is only logical.
Have you played with any of the other acts before that are part of this lineup (Rob Jennings, Experiment 34, etc.)?
We haven’t played with Rob Jennings yet but we have with Experiment 34 and they’re really something special. They’re an incredible bunch and extremely talented. A lot of fun.
What are your goals for the future as a band?
We’re working on getting a record deal. We’re at a point where we’re ready to take all of this to the next level. We’ve gotten a taste for what it’s like to play in front of thousands of people and it’s a rush that you can’t ignore. When someone reaches out to tell us how much our music means to them, it’s all the fire we need to keep moving forward.
Wyland will be appearing at this month’s Start At The End showcase in New York City on May 25. For more on the band, go to wearewyland.com, and for more on the event, go to facebook.com/startattheend.
