We got the chance to sit down with a couple of band members with the Vibe opening band, After Wednesday, a three-piece punk rock band previously named Casper. These St. Louis natives described their approach to music as technical and passionate. Along with their happy-go-lucky attitude, Pat and Jack expressed how they are honing their sound (which is seen in their newest single, Tattoo) a change emphasized by the change of their band name.

What high school did you go to? How did you meet?

Pat:  We went to Chaminade, which is in Creve Coeur. Funny story…Jack and I never really hung out until senior year of high school. [But] we had band class together [and] we were always bored in church so we played music at church together. I had noticed that Jack was wearing Vans, and I had just started skateboarding again. I was thinking to myself, “wow, this guy is such a poser just wearing Vans”. They I asked him if he skateboarded and then we started to skate for about six months at Webster Grove State Park. I had been thinking about playing music for a while, but it was really hard because it was hard to find people in high school who like common music. I asked [Jack] if we could jam sometime and we [did that] it in the basement with a small drum set that faced the wall.

Jack: We needed a bass player, and I was like, “Pat! I got the perfect guy! He’s really good at bass [and] he’s a good time.” So I introduced [Pat] to Bennett and sparks flew.

Pat: [When we brought Bennett in] and he asked if it [was] something we would like to play live. Yeah, ideally we would like to play live. Some covers we played were a Tool song, Blink-182, and some Red Hot Chili Peppers. Our first show was not good. We had a guy who was too scared to sing and a guy who kept on dropping his sticks.

Jack: Yeah, [my drumstick ended up] flying across the stage. I put a drumstick on my bass drum, so I grab it when I drop it. But the vibrations made it fall off so I had to reach underneath while playing with the other hand. It was sloppy.

Jack:  [Soon we honed our sound] and what we sound like is the closest in between of what we all listen to. So when we first started out, we were listening to all kinds of music.

Pat:  A cool part of it is that all three of us write. That doesn’t happen too much in other bands.

Can you describe your music?

Pat: A little pop-punk and a little rock. I’d say experimental pop punk alternative rock n’ roll hard rock. People called us Green Day at first, which is fine. We sound like alternative rock with a hint of 2000s rock. Maybe a little progressive.

Jack: Yeah, when I mess up on the drums sometimes, I would say it is a little progressive. It’s on the alternative side. We kind of sound like a step up from a talent show band [laughs].

How did you feel about performing live at Delmar Hall and the Duck Room?

Jack: We’ve played at the Delmar Hall twice. The first time we played at Delmar Hall we were in disbelief because we were playing these Utopia and Fubar shows, The Crack -Fox. Those venues are just for starting out and we were doing that for a while. Luckily, Bennett [and I] had a friend from Mizzou who is from a bigger band and we [ended up opening] up at a Christmas Show. We opened up for Tidal Volume and they helped us out.

Pat: We are thankful for those shows. Our first headlining show was at the Duck Room. The first time we played at Delmar Hall I drank six cups of coffee before then. We were really nervous. Blueberry Hill to this day is my favorite venue. It’s more of a restaurant and gets a lot a people off the street in the Loop. It is one of the bigger smaller clubs.

Talk about your experiences filming the video for Tattoo.

Pat: We did it on the spot and didn’t think about it enough. We’re very “do-it-yourself.”

Jack: Especially right now, because we don’t have money.

Pat: We also had a fear of wasting money on something that may not come out good.

Jack: We asked Bennett’s cousin who has a great camera and did journalism in high school and asked him, “hey do you mind filming this?” Pretty much all we wanted to do was eat cereal in front of the camera and maybe do some improv things. We are not actors, so that didn’t go really well.

Pat: After 20 minutes in, I almost puked after eating that much cereal. [Two nights before shooting] we paint[ed] everything [including our shirts]. We didn’t think it through, because when the shirts dried they were crusty. It was the first music video we’d done. We can kind of either do it yourself, or wait for a record label to want you.

Jack: But, we kind of wanted to make a home video. Which is probably giving it too much credit.  But yeah. we each had a box of cereal almost.

What kind of cereal was it?

Jack: I don’t know if we are going to get copyrighted but it was Lucky Charms, Cookie Crisp and Cap’n Crunch.

https://www.facebook.com/AfterWednesday/videos/2066753550227370/

What are your favorite bands and the influences for your sound?

Pat: My influences personally are Blink-182, Sum 41, Angels and Airwaves, newer Sum 41, Agent Orange, [The] Dead Kennedys and The Cure. Favorite band: Angels and Airwaves and The Cure. We don’t dislike mainstream. Our whole band is driven by pop punk to punk to hard rock. Jack and I also like a lot of The 1975.

Jack: Tool, because Danny Carey is a God. And Muse, too. [Jokingly] Nick Jonas is our main inspiration. We really get our sound from his essence. Bennett likes Dream Theater, Deftones, Leprous, Blink-182, and Green Day. He likes a lot of rap, too. I don’t know where I get my influence.

After Wednesday will be the opener for Vibe on Saturday (doors open at 5 and show starts at 6:30) and will play again at Delmar Hall on May 11th.