I
own a very old, unreliable Honda that has a dashboard full of lights that
should not be lit up but I drive it around anyway because I like to live life
on the edge. A couple weeks ago we were far from home, in an unfamiliar city for a
show when my car battery decided to give out as we were trying to get home. As
a AAA gold card member you’d think I wouldn't panic but I did. After
pointlessly calling my father, he told me what I already new; I needed a jump
start. During the show we’d briefly talked to the guys in The Red Leslies and
as I panicked I saw them drive past us. I shouted after them like a crazy person
and they nicely agreed to help us out. It’s funny how things work out because a
week later we found ourselves meeting them over coffee.
We
arrived a little late, I know, how typical of us, and we found them already
waiting for us at a table. Although, we’ve held interviews with a couple bands
already, each one of them has been a distinct experience. It can be awkward
meeting up with them without really even knowing the individuals in the band so we
imagined it’d be just as awkward meeting these guys for coffee. Each time we do
this it kind of feels like we’re going on a blind date, a blind interview if
you will. But after moving the interview to a table outside conversation rolled
out naturally and so we talked for a couple hours without any real awkwardness.
Read on to learn about their start as a band, their passion for music and their
second debut EP, yeah, second.
The
Red Leslies are a rock n’ roll duo from Anaheim, California that consists of
Lui Buenrostro on vocals and guitar and Adrian Martinez on bass.
Their
excursion together as an early incarnation of The Red Leslies started about two
years ago with three other friends when they performed Lui’s original material
at an open mic. It was Adrian’s first time picking up an instrument, in this
case it was the keyboard. Yes, that’s right. At the time he’d never played an
instrument live, while Lui was more familiar with the situation. They knew how
to compose music before playing instruments for the band but after that live
show together they were both left wanting more.
“[After]
the open mic we thought, this is sick, we should do this. We should start
writing more songs and maybe get a band together,” Adrian says.
One
thing lead to another and they ended up as a duo. Which was fine because even
before meeting each other they’d already planned on pursuing a career in music
whether it be in a band, individually, or simply in the production of it. After
playing together they fell in love with the idea of performing as a band and
decided to continue doing so as a duo.
Their
passion for music was, quite frankly, the best thing we’ve ever witnessed. I
don’t know how to describe to you the way they both talked about music with such reverence without making them sound like the cheesiest guys in the world because
there’s really nothing cheesy about them, if anything, it’s contagious.
“There’s
never a shortage in wanting art,” Adrian says.
Their logic is
that art, including music, is always high in demand regardless of where you are
in the world. Lui then went on to say,
“It’s
impossible to fail at something you love doing –it's not failing.”
Although I agree, what amazes me the most from
this duo is that they are fearlessly and unapologetically following their bona
fide passion.
“It's my life,” Lui says without hesitating.
Any art-related career is not easy to pursue. They are
unquestionably aware of that but regardless of that they’re going after it.
From personal experience, it’s sometimes a bit of a struggle to admit what you
want to do with your life, whether it’s to other people or even yourself, when it’s
something as trivialized as a career in art or specifically in this case:
music.
From their songwriting, to their
performances and even their album cover art, it all truly shows how very detail-oriented they
are about their work.
“When
playing live we want to engage the audience, at least personally I don’t want
it to be something where the audience just watches you play,” Adrian says.
“We
want to be more sharp and piercing live, we want to break through people’s
attention barriers and then when they go home hopefully have them think of us
and throw on one of our records and then they put on one of our songs, and it’d
be like our b-sides [to their performance] the songs we really want to play,”
adds Lui.
“We
want a few songs where you can hear the classical influences,” Adrian says, “we
have some songs where you can hear weird orchestrations, and some songs are
just going to be bass, guitar, and drums like a rock'n'roll band should be. I
think both are valid. We have room for both of them. We don't want to have a
specific style. We think that from song to song we should just be a new band.”
“Every
song calls for a different ...,” Adrian starts.
“Universe to be pulled into,” Lui finishes.
They know what they want to create and they have high standards of what they produce because, obviously, they are passionate about their craft.
While
we met up to film their video teaser, I asked Adrian what was his favorite
thing about playing live and he said, “Playing live is one of the most fun
things I’ve ever done in my life, It’s beautiful, It’s spiritually rewarding as
it is fun. I think playing live is a form of sorcery, we’re using these
machines to make magic.”
And
then immediately asked to do another take. We all laughed about his
oh-so-melodramatic answer but the more I thought about it, the more it made
sense. That’s how it feels to him when he’s playing music because he’s aware of
it’s powerful influence on people and the world. As Stephanie and I discussed
this she brought up a good point: there’s probably no one out there in the
world that can say “this painting saved me” but as for music, there is. Music
is definitely magic.
I’m
going to go ahead and dare to say that from the beginning Adrian and Lui’s
destiny was to create The Red Leslies, or at least we think so. If you don’t
believe in destiny here’s something to test you.
Lui and Adrian basically decided to go to
college in order to meet other people to start a band. It so happened that this
duo went to the same college and met in a recording class that neither of them
were keen on taking from the beginning. The fact that they were able to bump
into each other in a campus with over a thousand students is remarkable.
Yet
they met, they vibed, they jammed together a couple of times and things seemed
to be working out for them. Adrian happened to a go to a show at Programme, a
music store in Fullerton, but wasn’t feeling the vibe so he casually walked
into the Goodwill next door. At this Goodwill he purchased a book about cats
that paint that would later inspire their band name. That same day he found out
about the open mic and pitched the idea to Lui. If a single one of these things
did not occur it’s possible that they wouldn’t be where they are today. Imagine
if one of them hadn’t taken the Friday class, imagine if Adrian liked the show
and didn’t walk into Goodwill or imagine if they didn’t do an open mic for fun.
I mean, I can’t actually confirm the whole they’re-meant-to-be thing and I don't know what's in store for them in the future but you
have to admit that things have played out very nicely for them so far.
The
thing is, even before briefly talking to them at the show and them helping us
out with my car issues, we already knew who they were and frankly, we were
already fans of their music.
I remember the
day that Stephanie sent me a link to their music after she’d somehow stumbled
upon their Instagram. I sat by my window as I watched the sun disappear behind
my neighbor's house with their music playing in the background. It’s the
perfect soundtrack for a chill, summer afternoon.
Actually,
if you’ve already listened to them before you know that they once had music up.
An EP known as Sounds of the Sun was up for awhile but they wanted a clean
slate and took it down. If you didn’t get to hear that EP, then you truly
lucked out. (I'll sell you a copy on eBay in 10 years when it's worth a lot of $$)
But, honestly I lack musical knowledge and therefore can't do them any justice. I can not continue. We are not a music blog. I'm not qualified to tell you why their music is good based on official music standards or whatever, so I'm saying this as their friend and their fan; All I know is that they know how to play their instruments well and that together, along with the help of many other talented individuals at Melodious Din Records, they have and will continue to produce incredible music.
Today their debut EP, The Listening Room, has
been released. This is, in a sense, their official beginning as The Red
Leslies. I don’t know what to expect, except I know that it’ll be magical. I
guess there’s only one way to find out.
***
I
was going to finish this post like that but before I posted this, at exactly 5am, Spotify sent me a notification saying their EP was out. I
can officially confirm that it is indeed magical. Listen here.
---
They're throwing an EP release party and you're invited.
words by diana martinez / graphics by stephanie mejia
*I edited this post on 9/1 because I was disappointed w/ myself for posting such a trash post about ppl i truly admire so i'm sorry i'm trying to be a better writer i swear
For as long as I could remember I've wanted to travel. Growing up, my grandpa and I had the dream of visit Spain together. Every summer I'd fly to Mexico to visit my grandparents and we would joke about whether either of us were saving up money for our trip. I would tell my grandpa that I was and that within a year we should be ready to go. However, rough times came and we lost a loved one. Suddenly our travel plans became redundant and did not revisit the idea.
I decided it wasn't my time and I would have to continue making happy memories and one day all the stars will align perfectly and the doors will open once again. I finished high school and started my freshman year of college. Boy, was I overwhelmed. I started off the bat in my major classes and I was working ALL the time – remember when we didn't post a lot?– I began getting the hang of school and I got a job in my design department. I was making money, but honestly everything went towards my school supplies and food. I wasn't really saving anything. I ended my first semester and towards the end of my second I learned that my favorite professor was planning a trip to EUROPE! I was so stoked! I attended the meetings and I discovered he actually had an agenda for this. Turns out he has friends in the business (designers) and was hoping to introduce those of us who went. EUROPE AND FUTURE CONNECTIONS HECK YEAH! I was sold and I really wanted to go but part of me was being realistic and realized I didn't have a REAL job – by real I mean not a work study job that is provided by financial aid – I was ready to mention it to my parents but realistically I would have to do this myself. My mom encouraged me to try my best and save up and she'd help out where she could. My dad agreed to lend me money when his tax return came in and I was so excited to try. I let time pass by and I was slowly realizing this was hard and I somehow talked myself out of it. I was not going to go, it was too expensive and my parents were still struggling. It was always in the back of my head and I thought about it constantly... what if. 
I made really good friends with a classmate and we bonded over our design woes. We would joke about how much we needed a vacation and that this was it. I agreed and for a while even made myself believe it was happening but then again it was all talk, I wasn't saving. I didn't have a job and my parents were not an option. By this point I was really frustrated and a little jealous I would miss out on this opportunity. It was December and my professor’s travel group was small, 6 including him. My friend who had gotten a job, was slowing paying the trip and kept pressuring me to join. That it would be great she said. I told her I didn't have the money but I promised her I would try my best to get a job. I was filing applications left and right but no one would hire a teenager without experience.
I was now in the beginning of my sophomore year and in three months I get a call during class for an interview. I answered it and agreed to meet the following day. I was SO HAPPY I got a job! I was now officially employed and it was at my local movie theater! This was October btw, I was working like crazy. I had 32 hour weeks! I was getting paid every Friday and for myself I had a pretty ok income. My friend kept insisting I sign up for the trip and my mom made sure to tell me that at the rate I was going I could finish making the payments in no time. I was at the dentist office, I still remember, my mom pulled out the calculator app on her phone and proved to me it was totally possible. In fact, I would finish making payments and have money left over for myself along the way. This was around December and I was so excited to tell my friend, the moment she found out she couldn't wait to tell Ed, my professor, she wrote a note and slid it under his door! LOL So there it was. There was no backing out now. I went home that weekend; during a long homework sesh opened up the page and ... I did it. I signed up, paid the $295, I was now on the list and within 50 days I was to make a 500 dollar payment. Guess what... I gave a $2,000 payment and within 4 months I was done paying my trip and still had 3 months left to save.
Also, don’t expect The Red Pears to play a show with a planned encore, if you want it you better make sure they hear you, because the band sees that as simulated and they want each performance as unique and intimate as possible.
“We always get people requesting Wonderwall by Oasis,” adds Jose.We’d personally like to hear that. Maybe next time, if the crowd yells hard enough, they’ll finally cover the song.
