Exclusive Interview with WHERE'S GLADYS

The new EP by Where’s Gladys is the band’s maiden release and offers a variety of rock styles and emotions. It opens with drum-driven indie rock (“Out of Air”), then transitions to gritty garage rock (“World Stopped”), then to a retro ballad (“Let That Set in”), then to peppy pop/rock (“So Insecure”), and then to a soulful ballad (“Sleepwalk”) to conclude.
In 2019, the Boston-based duo debuted. Art Papas and Alex Reinart have been performing in Boston with a variety of organizations for many years. Art plays guitar and sings lead vocals. Alex plays drums and sings background vocals. The two take turns playing the piano and the bass, which is admittedly difficult to execute live. The band’s music is heavily influenced by rock from the 1960s to the present and is driven by Art’s guitar and Alex’s distinctive drumming style.
Three years is certainly a long time to develop a debut EP. In actuality, it simply took a very long time to “find Gladys” and compile a collection of music that told the correct story. Apart for “World Stopped,” which was recorded at Dead Moon Audio in Somerville, MA, all of the tracks were recorded and mixed by Matt Girard at his home studios.

Mixing elements of indie-rock and gritty garage-rock, Where’s Gladys’ self-titled EP comes out swinging. The EP comprises solid tunes that will captivate the listener from the very first note, due to its vast diversity of rock styles and moods. Check out the EP and the exclusive inteview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

WHERE’S GLADYS: We both grew up playing music in and around Boston and had played in a number of different bands. We met in 2016 and had always enjoyed playing together, so we started Where’s Gladys right around the beginning of 2020. It was only a couple of months later that the world went into lockdown. It was such an intense moment in history. At first, it was too much for us to process creatively, but after a few months passed, we started to find ways to express how we felt about that time in our lives.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

WHERE’S GLADYS: We both grew up taking formal lessons and we share a love for learning new instruments, genres and styles. Art started learning classical piano at 5 years old, then moved to learning guitar. Alex learned a number of instruments growing up and eventually focused on drums. We’ve both studied everything from classical, to jazz, blues and rock and we’re both still taking lessons on a number of different instruments today.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘WHERE’S GLADYS’?

WHERE’S GLADYS: We both grew up listening to the Beatles and Led Zeppelin as young kids. They were enormous influences on both of us. I think in many ways, both of those bands shaped much of our sound and songwriting. The Beatles were masters at melodies, harmonies and interesting chord structures and the drums and guitar of Led Zeppelin created an incredible power and energy in their music.

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?

WHERE’S GLADYS: We’ve worked really hard over the course of the last few years to try to carve out a sound and songwriting style that’s truly unique to us. We’ve heard a number of people describe our sound as “gritty garage rock” meets Indie. That seems sort of counterintuitive – those two sounds shouldn’t really fit together – but it makes a lot of sense to us.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as ROCK?
**WHERE’S GLADYS**: We struggled trying to find our identity early on. The feedback on our early demos was consistent: we had a very strong 90’s retro vibe, but that wasn’t at all what we wanted. We wanted to make our own sound, not some recycled nostalgia. It was discouraging at first, but we kept writing and eventually, we started to feel our own identity emerge. You can hear the evolution in the EP because each song seems to have a different vibe and feel to it. That wasn’t deliberate as much as it was a natural outcropping of the creative process.

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?

WHERE’S GLADYS: Music plays such an enormous role in people’s lives. It can completely change someone’s mood or emotional state. That’s not a technical thing. You can study some of the most famous songs in history and the theory behind them, yet that isn’t enough to recreate the power and emotional intensity and create something similar. So, for us music is about trying to create something that people can listen to and enjoy. And, maybe we get lucky and put the notes and words in the right place and we create something powerful that people will love and want to have in their lives.

7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

WHERE’S GLADYS: Sometimes you pour a lot of work into a song that you think can be great, but it never gets there. That can feel draining. Other times, inspiration strikes and you write something great that really doesn’t require nearly as much energy or effort. In the end, the process is rewarding, but it’s never a straight line.

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?

WHERE’S GLADYS: We almost always start with the melody and lyrics. We’ve written a few songs around guitar riffs or beats, but none of those have come together as well as the ones that start with a great melody. So, that tends to be where we go first. The rest of the parts of the song are in service to that.

9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

WHERE’S GLADYS: One of the most painful experiences we’ve had as artists is when we share our music with someone and they don’t like it. People are always polite and say nice things. But, you can always tell the difference between “yeah. That’s pretty good” and “wow, this is really good. I really like that”. When you’re writing a song, your so close to it that sometimes you can’t step back and judge it. But, as soon as someone else gives you a lukewarm response, you can suddenly hear it too. It’s like, “wow, why did I think this was good at all? Why did I spend so much time torturing that melody? It sucks.” It’s that inner critic who can be so harsh, even when your friends aren’t.

10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?

WHERE’S GLADYS: Putting out this EP has been a peak musical experience in many ways. We really weren’t sure what people would think of it when we released it. Our family and friends had heard the early demos, but no one had heard the finished tracks. So, we had no idea what to expect. But, the response has been really amazing. The highest praise is when someone tells us, “if I didn’t know you guys, I would straight up listen to this”.

13. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?

WHERE’S GLADYS: Music is very personal for people. They ascribe all sorts of meanings to song lyrics in beautiful ways that the artist never intended. Shattering that with our meanings or intentions doesn’t seem like a great idea to us.