Daniel Leary and Jeff Hall canâÄôt stop arguing.
The two have been playing in garage bands for as long as they can remember, but canâÄôt seem to see eye-to-eye on anything related to music. But they manage to agree on at least one thing: TheyâÄôre all old guys in a young manâÄôs game.
ItâÄôs a reality that Leary and the rest of his band, Quitters Go To Meetings, acknowledge without any hesitation.
âÄúWe have no choice but to do this and no reason not to. Why would we quit doing this?âÄù Hall said.
Formed three years ago, Quitters Go To Meetings is a garage band in its purest form. Leary, along with his band mates Hall and Jeff Zorkin, are all seasoned vets of the local music scene, and theyâÄôve known each other for nearly 20 years. YouâÄôve probably never heard of them, but itâÄôs not like they really care all that much anyway.
âÄúWeâÄôre anti-promotion. We play shows and record records but never release them,âÄù Leary said.
Despite their relatively low profile, the trio is tirelessly chatty. While theyâÄôre not trying to be stadium superstars anymore, theyâÄôve certainly got plenty to say about rock âÄònâÄô roll, doling out musings on everything from the music industryâÄôs ever-changing climate to why The Clash is more interesting than Led Zeppelin.
And their album âÄúTalkbackdrumsâÄù is, to put it simply, quintessentially indie. But itâÄôs nothing like the run-of-the-mill fuzz rock that rules todayâÄôs underground.
Chock-full of crunchy, no-frills garage numbers, âÄúTalkbackdrumsâÄù hearkens back to indie rockâÄôs most humble beginnings. The songs, falling somewhere between the lo-fi warbles of Dinosaur Jr. and PavementâÄôs slacker pop sensibilities, recall an era that pre-dates the angst and teenage ennui that went on to become so marketable amidst the âÄô90âÄôs grunge explosion.
The members, all in their early âÄô40âÄôs, have been playing in various acts for years. While some things have stayed the same, the way the three approach songwriting has changed drastically as theyâÄôve aged. Zorkin highlighted how the music gestates differently and stressed the lack of urgency compared to their college heyday.
âÄúWe just write songs and put them out. WeâÄôre not out there trying to prove anything,âÄù Zorkin said.
And with families and full-time jobs on the burner, the aged rockers donâÄôt have that much time on their hands either âÄî most nights theyâÄôre begging to play first.
âÄúThe reason weâÄôre a band is because we enjoy our practice night. We can only practice one night a week. If there is any advice I can give to young musicians is take advantage, because youâÄôve got every night free,âÄù Leary said.
