AOTM Spotlight: The Warplanes -

AN AMF EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Who are The Warplanes and how did you all come together?

-We all dropped in as parachute fighters in Vietnam. Lost as we were within the deep jungle, away from civilization and war, we fashioned instruments from wood and hide. That is how we came together. Ok, no, not really, Isaac and I (Aric) met in elementary school. Much more tame than the deep jungle, yes, but it was still rough grade school life. Post high school graduation we moved to Austin and eventually formed a band that played from 2007-2009. Eventually around 2010 we formed a new project that came to be called The Warplanes. After a few initial lineup shuffles we met Luke and Andrew Dalton who came on board to form 4/5 of the band. In 2015 we came across a lead guitar player whom we felt would be a great fit and Jonathan “Jelly” Ellington joined in to round out what is today’s The Warplanes.

Isaac J. Routh – Vocals/Guitar
Aric Garcia – Drums/Vocals
Luke Dalton – Keys/Vocals/Guitar/Percussion
Andrew Dalton – Bass
Jelly – Lead Guitar

Your latest album is “Epigenesis”. Which in a way means growth and transformation, how did you all decide on that name and does this album represent growth for you?

-It definitely represents growth and transformation for us. Wether we’re talking about forming The Warplanes, writing a song, planning an event or a video, It all spawns from a single idea or seed, that grows and transforms into what we see or hear in front of us.
I believe we were in the studio recording the EP when Luke suggested the term “epigenesis.” To which we all replied wtf does that mean? But we all knew something special was forming and coming through in song and onstage, so we were all quickly on board with the idea of Epigenesis. It perfectly represented what we were going through at the time and are still going through today.

When you’re writing and creating music, who are your influences?

-See answer to the question below.

Living in a music heavy city like Austin, do you feel added pressure to create? Do you draw inspiration from the local music scene?

-Personally, I don’t see it as added pressure to create, I absolutely see it as inspiration. No matter what venue I’m at, I’m constantly amazed at the level of talent we’re surrounded by. And that makes us better musicians and better at performing and writing. That is most likely the answer to the question above, Austin inspires and influences us musically.
Additionally, I like to learn from what others are doing on the business side of things as well,
and that inspires me to continue to think outside of the box. If I see something that is working for others in town, I try to work it into our business model.

How did you get involved with the Austin Music Foundation?

-I’ve worked with Alex Vallejo many times over the past years, so naturally when I heard he was working with AMF, I reached out. The Warplanes recorded Epigenesis at Omar Vallejo’s studio, with AJ Vallejo producing, so it’s all in the family.
Couldn’t be more grateful for the insight and opportunities AMF has given us.

What have you learned through working with AMF?

-Well, they guided us on the business side of things. Not the money side of the business, but for example how our website should look to visitors, What we need to do to look good to bookers, and how helpful a music video can be for booking. A lot of small but very important things that can go a long way and help us get to the next level. Though the AMF relationship, I’ve realized how important networking is, and on how many different levels it goes. Bands, bookers, venues, organizations, business owners, graphic artists, videographers, etc.
If your network consists of ONLY YOUR BAND members, that seems to be the wrong approach to me. If you as an artist/musician and can’t list at least 5 other bands who are friends of yours and who could share a bill with you, I’d say you have the wrong approach. Branch out, network more. It’ll make it easier. A greater number of opportunities will come your way.

Where do you wish to take The Warplanes and when people see you live, what do you wish people to take away from the show?

-The warplanes want to go on the road. We want to continue to build a following and continue to branch out, network, and build our live show experience. If a person comes and sees The Warplanes, and they have one positive thing to say about us, we’ve done our job. Our hope is that that person goes to a friend and tells them one thing about our show. That was always my favorite about seeing a band live; “Did you see when they did that!?”
We want it to be an experience. Experience it.
Make it mean something. Not just another show, another band. And that goes for any band you see, just open your eyes and ears and put your phones away and live it.