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Keepin’ it Classy Bitches
If you like Indie bands that curse, while rocking blue hair and a strand of pearls, then you will really enjoy Birch. They are just being themselves. Almost no one can go wrong by being themselves.
The Brooklyn band includes Michelle Birsky – Singer/Songwriter/Synth; Mat Towles – Bass and Emma Munger – Guitar. The drummer situation is more complicated.
Birsky says, “The drummer on the EP is Aaron Hamel, the drummer who has been playing with us for the past 4 months is Theo Munger, but he’s leaving for college.” They will be adding Goose Faundez as the drummer very soon.
Lead singer, Michelle Birsky, answered the following questions with some input from the other band members, including Theo on drums.
Interview with Birch
Do you prefer people to tell you the truth about your music? Do you think people tell you what you want to hear?
I’m sure many people tell me what I want to hear, but I definitely prefer people give me their honest feedback. That being said, I believe that “truth”, when it comes to any art, is subjective. I like honesty and I need honesty, but I try not to take any advice too seriously as I know that advice is just an opinion. When you start listening to everyone else’s opinions, it’s easy to get lost and forget your own.
How do you keep yourselves honest and true to the music?
Well we’re in the position right now where this is all new. We are unsigned, we don’t answer to any higher up, we’re basically writing whatever the fuck we want to write. It’s awesome. Since we are such a young band, everything we write is fresh, exciting, and new to us, so it’s very easy to stay honest and true to the music at this stage in the game. Who knows what the future holds, but right now my main focus is to write compelling, meaningful songs. So far, so good.
Your first album is available now. Have you had a positive response so far?
Again, so far so good! I’ve had these songs in my head for over a year and to finally have it out in the world is an amazing feeling. Getting positive feedback is even better. So far, we’ve been told that the album makes a “very strong first impression” which is great! It’s always a good feeling to exceed expectations.
Behind the scenes, do people treat the ladies and the gentleman in the band equally?
So far we’ve had no jarring sexist issues arise. But little things do add up. For example, Emma and I (the two females in the band) have both had instances where we’ve gotten unsolicited advice from men about music. Some men think it’s ok to offer their “expertise” to Emma about her guitar pedals, or tell me my live set was “actually really good!” Mat and Theo don’t experience that stuff. It’s obnoxious, but you can’t dwell on the actions of morons.
What bands are you guys fans of currently?
St. Vincent, Porches, Pinegrove, Sharon Van Etten, Wildhoney, Girlpool, Tei Shi, Literature, Expert Alterations, Media Jeweler
You guys took over my Instagram account last month, which I appreciate. Do you work with one photographer primarily or several?
That was a blast, thanks again for having us do that! And nope we are photo whores. It’s so early in the game we’re up for trying different photographers.
What would fans be surprised to know about you?
Everyone in the band has a totally different musical background. Together our pasts cover Punk, Singer/Songwriter, Jazz, and Classical. This is one of my favorite things about the band and I think it’s what makes us work.
More of Birch’s music can be found on Soundcloud. Also, check out their video for “Halfway” on YouTube.
