Q: You are a woman of many talents, you are the guitarist, songwriter and the vocalist, who are your biggest influences?
ELIZABETH II: This is a loaded question! As a guitar player, I’ve got to say Jimmy Page, Mateus Asato, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Andy Timmons. The bluesy riffs of Jimmy Page and Stevie Ray Vaughan caught my ear when I was young and led me to spend hours a day practicing guitar. Nowadays, I’ve been obsessing over the phrasing, melodies, and articulation of Mateus Asato and Andy Timmons. As a vocalist, I’m influenced by the singer-songwriter talents of James Bay and the rock n roll vocal styles of Gerard Way and Emily Armstrong. Songwriting wise- I spend hours listening to and analyzing songs by My Chemical Romance, Dead Sara, Nothing But Thieves, and Aerosmith.
Q: What has been one of your most favorite memories along the path to making the track?
ELIZABETH II: Definitely getting to record the song at Bias Studios! The best part of the song process for me is always when I get to hear it come to life beyond a demo. I love trying to dial in tones and toy with vocal harmonies and guitar layers as the day goes on! It was also great to have Mark Reiter (engineer) and John Mark King (co-songwriter and producer) there to help with the arranging and general flow of ideas.
Q: What’s it like being a woman trying to and succeeding at being known in punk music?
ELIZABETH II: I have a lot of fun with it! I feel like women being present in this genre is becoming more and more common as time goes on. As long as your able to bring that punk energy, attitude, and songwriting to your track and image, the community will welcome you with open arms.
Q: You are a three time WAMMIE award winner, what have you taken away from your experience?
ELIZABETH II: I’ve mainly taken away how wonderful and welcoming the DC music community is! The community is loaded with music lovers and musicians who support each other, so I think it was very cool that they selected me to win a few awards! It also feels good to be recognized for songs that I put A LOT of hard work (and money) into.
Q: If you were stranded on a desert island and could only take one song or album to listen to, what would it be?
ELIZABETH II: There is only one album that I can listen to every day and not get sick of, and that’s Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge by My Chemical Romance. The record is full of clever arranging, energy, rage, and class A songwriting that has me wild every time I listen through.
Q: A lot of our readers are artists who are working hard at their craft and wanting to get to the next level. What kind of advice would you give to other up and coming bands trying to get their names out there?
ELIZABETH II: Dial in your live sound and work on being the tightest band in your town and beyond. Once you start to really learn how to blend your tones together and create cool live arrangements of your songs, it makes for one great live show. Also, work on being rhythmically tight and nailing your song dynamics! It will take your live sound to the next level.
Interviewed by Jaye Maverick
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