“Curse of a Tongue” is the debut full-length album from Tryingtogetby. Self Described as the “punk rock nomad”, Tryingtogetby is the brainchild of musician Tyler Miller who wrote and performed everything on the new album. He did feature Stephen Pastor on drums and Steve Markel on Bass one song though. Drawing inspiration from 90s and early 00s ska-punk and hip-hop, the album was written and recorded during the global pandemic. The upcoming tour will feature talented artists Anton Filyayev, Houston Herman and Andy Milne. Check out the album and the Exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you all come from and how it all got started?
TRYINGTOGETBY: the band is just me, Tyler Miller, I wrote/ played/ recorded everything on this record and the last ep. Tryingtogetby has become a collaborative collective featuring other people on previous tours. The November tour will feature
Anton Filyayev – keys/ guitar, Andy Milne – drums/ keys, Houston Herman – Bass, Tyler Miller – vocals/ guitar
My story is that I grew up in a small southern town, moved to a city when I turned 18 and booked bands for 7 years before giving it up to play in other people’s bands for tours for 4 years till the pandemic hit. The ska punk evolution of the ‘band’ happened during the pandemic with me tracking alone in a basement.
2. Did you guys have any formal training or are you self-taught?
TRYINGTOGETBY: I am self taught in everything I play. I took a semester in a keyboard class in highschool but stopped learning after I learned a blues scale. When I was a teenager I would go to the only music store in my town and he’d let me play on different instruments. I was thirsty after that for more but never liked learning things traditionally. I usually work best on my own and with my own frustrations
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘TRYINGTOGETBY’?
TRYINGTOGETBY: a guy with a mohawk gave me a burnt cd when I was younger with the adicts, operation Ivy, catch 22, the unseen, and rancid. I got as much as I could off limewire then. Id say my biggest influences for this comes from lyrical 90s era hiphop/ rap and ska/ reggae grooves.
The name just made sense, I hated it being four words so I deleted the spaces. “Hey, I’m tryingtogetby”
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
TRYINGTOGETBY: to not feel alone and touch on subjects more directly than for the sake of likability. Be yourself and do something different, be observant and stay vigilant. Don’t give up.
TRYINGTOGETBY:
hard times of a large perspective on a dirty world. I’ve seen the worst and witnessed the best. The things that stuck with me was the in between. This is me, it is who I am and what I’m supposed to be doing. The support that I’ve been getting as a solo artist is pushing me to keep further evolving myself as a writer and a musician.
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
TRYINGTOGETBY:
Music is and has always been the power that can make any message be not only heard but felt. That is what makes music an eternal force of change whether it be political, cultural, or spiritual. Words themselves are an art, a weapon, and a teacher of feeling or social constructs. I like to talk about how I feel about how easily the world has become manipulated and swayed by how dull social media has made the normal human brain and how it would have responded to social change even 20 years ago. In short, I still have things to say and I think music is my personal vessel for expression.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
TRYINGTOGETBY:
It has been validating hearing the response of these recent songs but the biggest payoff is playing these songs in front of friends and strangers alike and bringing the sense of unity to wherever we play.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
TRYINGTOGETBY:
I wish there was a rhyme or reason but lately I have been. Writing out structures>Laying out drum grooves to fill it out >Recording basic mono guitars>Add bass>Add stereo guitar>Mix mix mix>Add vocals>I try to get verses done within a few takes or I don’t use it at all, to keep the angst and cathartic feeling that keeps the listener on edge. Edit what guitars and drum fills I want and add overdubs> Remove all effects and bounce everything down to .wav file stems and sent them off to my engineer Kyle Tilev at Black In Bluhm in Denver, CO. Once I had them back I had the full record mastered by Roger Lima. The songs were tracked when I felt right in my head on a whim to do them. I used reaper, nothing fancy. So over 1 ½ years to track these by where I was mentally as I wrote the verses.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
TRYINGTOGETBY: the pandemic stopped me in my footsteps and I had a hard time adjusting to not playing shows. My drinking eventually got the best of me and hospitalized me in 2020. I since havent drank alcohol or smoked cigarettes and live a healthier more positive lifestyle, that added the before mentioned perspective.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
TRYINGTOGETBY: Any time I finish a song is a new milestone. Any time I meet someone who says they enjoyed my music is a new milestone. I’m a big fan of never being satisfied.
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