Mirror Point just released an ultra fun alternative rock record laden with popundertones and a colorful vibe.
Guitars rock with a touch of twang and vocals belt out with soul and heart. Well, the whole damn thing has heart and lots of it.
The Shine On record is an album full of some important messages and a special brand of deep groove rock that feels great to listen to as guitars wail and wah into melodic choruses.
The record brings to mind bands like Faith No More at times and other and these tracks have endless energy that comes through raw and infectious. There is also this sort of southern rock feel happening too. It's really a killer combination of rock and you can absolutely hear how much fun these guys had making this record.
On e of the catchiest tracks on the album called "PhenoBarbieDoll" is so addictive, you want to play it again as soon as it's ended. Sing along crew arena rock with a lovable honesty and humor.
The song comes with a music video that says it all just as good as the song itself does.
With a record with so many messages we wanted to have a chat with Mirror Point to find out more about where this all came from and where it's all going.
RAG: Okay, let's start with the Shine On album. This record has some huge sounds and digs into some deep southern rock style. Where did this album come from?
Travis - Marc grew up on a tour bus as his mom was a successful country singer. His childhood was spent learning the ins and outs of live music. Always being surrounded by professional musicians was a huge influence on his natural-born talents. Travis was born Cajun but grew up Texan.
Marc - We come from very different music tastes at times but other times we meet right in the middle. The album was really just a chance to do something different than we had been prior to making the switch to original material. RAG: One of our favorite tracks from this album was "PhenoBarbieDoll" and the video was great as well. Were you happy with how the video turned out? Travis - Absolutely! it was our first single, we had tons of fun shooting it. PhenoBarbieDoll was Marc's brainchild. so the song came together really quickly, so it was the front runner to be our first release.
Marc - I have been making corporate videos for a few years so it was nice to have some fun creating visuals for something totally different like a music video. Our addiction levels on a societal basis at least, feels like it's never been higher so this was a bit tongue in cheek and a bit recent illness my wife was going through. I noticed people in waiting rooms taking selfies and just generally passing the time but it felt very self-absorbed to do that while a loved one was going thru something major in the next room. So addiction to these little devices became the focal point. RAG: Most songs on this record have a message to send. Would you say this was a concept album? Travis - The concept of "Shine On" was really an inward-looking reflection of ourselves in a message to hopefully let people reflect on their own lives and experiences. We are kids of the '80s and to us, it seems like individual identity gets muddled up with all the social media and lost personal connections the internet brings to our lives. The idea of one consciousness born out of ones and zeros seems to dilute the individuality that we see in ourselves and our friends and family. Marc - Yeah for sure as Travis mentioned it wasn't a thought out idea as we were just writing to write but we did notice a theme that has carried over into our new material as well. We have in many ways lost ourselves and we are certainly included in that group. Technology is great but it can certainly strip away our humanity if we are not careful. All of the material was written in 2019 so to release it in 2020 and watch what unfolded certainly added some weight to a few of the lyrics and tracks we put down in the studio. RAG: How did this all start for you guys? Travis- We were playing in a cover band in the Raliegh N.C. area. While the tunes were good the gigs all started to feel the same. As a cover band, we had shot a few videos to boost our social media presence. that's when we started feeling a sense of accomplishment about the new fans we connected with virtually. So the third member of our cover band was one foot in one foot out as far as doing videos, and creating new material, So we would get together just Marc and me, do originals and it got to the point that the 11 PM start times for gigs outweighed the motivation to do live music so we packed it up and hit the studio to create "Shine on"
Marc- I love to perform and play in front of people but I cut a few original albums in the past and always had the itch so it just seemed like the right time to make a change back to creating something versus interpreting someone else's creation. RAG: I'd love to know what bands and artists really influenced you guys. Can you give us your top 5?
Travis - Marc is 100% inspired by Eddie Van Halen! He is a lover of all guitar-driven music, but Eddie is his idol. As far as I go, well let's just say my playlist has identity issues. As a band, we try not to pull on any single point of inspiration but let our wide range of influences blend into our own sound. Marc- Yeah I'd be hard-pressed to pick anything specific for Trav. Maybe old school Metallica or some SRV, he is all over the place indeed.
Yeah, I was a big fan of EVH and all iterations of Van Halen. My first real rock show was a VH concert and it sounds cliché but it changed my world. However, as we age often we will mellow and since I was raised on old school country then went rock and stayed there, I have always like melody and harmony blended in with some tude' and some crunch. Funny that modern country in many ways is 80s-90s rock or pop/rock. RAG: Did you perform live before? Do you think you'll be focusing on performing live again when the time comes? Travis- Actually, we are working on setting up live original music events with several breweries here in North Carolina. So if there are any original artists in the N.C. area interested in joining our rotating line up get in touch with us @MirrorPointBand on Facebook. Marc- Yeah I leave that up to him. I love playing and singing for people but with this new world, I am often just in the studio. If he tells me where to be and when to go on, I am there lol. RAG: What's next for you as a band? Anything in the works even now? Travis- Right now we have an album written, and in the mixing stage. we have two songs at the finish line waiting to be mastered and they will be released as single in the next 2 to 3 months. We are working on a video shoot at the end of February or March for these songs and like how we built upon the sound from the first album with our new material. although the album is still untitled at the moment we have high hopes for its appeal as we tossed the kitchen sink at it with a wide blend of styles and instruments to pack energy into each tune.
Marc - Yeah that is on me, I have been stuck in the "sound isn't there yet" mode but as he mentioned getting close. It's a pretty wide range of stuff but with that same line of a guitar running through it. So many ways to make music now and however someone wants to get it done more power to them but I really wanted to not over automate the process and I think that is where the struggle comes into play. As only two people playing all the instruments, the new world of recording makes it great and easier than ever to do it but I still want to have as much of it organic vs coming out of the digital box. So it's a fine line but a fun one to tinker with. RAG: This album feels like it was a pretty big undertaking. What advice would you have for other up and coming bands trying to get their music out there? Travis - Well thank you for that compliment, it was a lot given that it was all done in house. however, in that simplicity comes some good lessons. Having lots of people pull a project in different "creative" directions can lead to it never getting finished. By just the 2 of us playing all the parts, writing all the lyrics, music, sourcing music video locations and talent, mixing, mastering, and shooting the videos allows us to collaborate and delegate. Marc is the studio engineer! He does all the heavy lifting in the studio and I trust him 100%. So we spend less time pooping on each other's ideas and thoughts on the project and more time dialing in what we feel is the best use of our time and energy. The advice from our experience is to foster creativity, but at the end of the day if you want results from creative energy some times you have to just hunker down and work and remember that the input from your bandmates is why you are in a band instead of a solo artist. so if something feels off inside you while you're creating just go with it and see what comes out the other end. If you try and impede and toss your thoughts on every idea or twist and turn while trying to get a song on the books you may find your project spinning out of control.
Marc - Well I overthink things a lot and in can be a bear but it can be helpful. At the end of the day, we have a limited amount of time on this rock and we need to do somethings that make us happy. Be honest with yourself and others, cause in the end the uncomfortble chats about whatever will pass, doing something that doesn't make your soul happy will linger and fester. Too deep? Ok maybe just do something. Whatever it is you want to do musically, do it! RAG: What are you guys doing when you're NOT working on music? Travis - Well being retired from the Army I am usually spending my time between homebrewing beer, tending to his chickens, and the German Shepards. Well of course with my wife and family also. Marc- I work with my business partners on my day job as a creative director for our company. The rest of the time, well nowadays it's not that much. But I am a bit of a hermit so ... low-key is usually my MO. RAG: What sort of things inspire you to write? Travis - Sometimes it's like a lightning bolt, other times it's four or five words that hit us and we mold a song out of it. we share a drive and jot down words and concepts as they hit us. From those creative scraps, we help each other conceptualize a story that turns into a song and a video.
Mirror Point was forged out of a shared passion for music, storytelling is at the center of every song, and music video we create. Marc - Yeah what he said. For the most part now that father time is gaining ground on me, I just want to make some music that I enjoy making, and hopefully, others do as well. I try to write what I see, saw, feel, or felt at some point. Isn't that what we all do? We don't know how long this will last but I know that making music is not what I do but who I am, which is how every musician I know tends to see things, so for me, I will just do this as long as I can.
RAG: Before we go, what would you like to say to fans of the music? Travis - Thank you to everyone that has supported us on this journey! All the likes, subs, CD orders, downloads, shirts, and playlist hearts mean the world to us. For all things, Mirror Point go to www.mirrorpoint.net to stay up to date on new videos, songs, and events.
Marc- Yeah this new world is a challenge and the music industry has and always will be a challenge. The biggest thing anyone can do for an artist they like, whether you are a fan, friend, or family, is to share it. Little things like leaving comments on social pages, tagging some friends that might dig it so that they can check it out, hitting all those buttons Trav mentioned. It's not that time consuming and it means the world to the struggling unsigned artists. So thanks for the interview and helping get music out there for people to find and enjoy.
Comments