We Are The In Crowd: We stick to what we do

Here’s what Funfare has gathered from research about We Are The In Crowd:

An American pop punk band from Poughkeepsie, New York, formed in 2009, it’s composed of Taylor Jardine (vocals), Jordan Eckes (guitar/vocals), Mike Ferri (bass guitar), Rob Chianelli (drums), and Cameron Hurley (guitar). The band released its debut EP, Guaranteed To Disagree, on June 8, 2010, and followed it up with its first full-length album, Best Intentions, in 2011.

In April 2009, We Are The In Crowd’s Myspace page was hacked. The hacker deleted all of their friends and music. The music site Absolutepunk.net posted a news article regarding the hacking, and the news post attracted the attention of someone at Hopeless Records who contacted the band shortly after.

On Nov. 10, 2009, the group announced that it was signing with Hopeless Records as “The In Crowd” and released its first single For the Win on iTunes. The band changed its name to We Are The In Crowd due to trademark issues with a reggae band from the ’70s also called The In Crowd.

In February 2009, We Are The In Crowd recorded its debut Hopeless Records EP, titled Guaranteed To Disagree, which was released on June 8, 2010.

The music video for Both Sides of the Story was officially released on Oct. 15, 2010. The music video for Never Be What You Want was released on April 20, 2011. The band performed on the Vans Warped Tour for Summer 2010.

In early May 2011, the band began recording its full-length debut. On Aug. 3 last year, it was announced the album would be titled Best Intentions and that it would be released on Oct 4. It debuted on the US Billboard 200 at No. 122.

Last week, Funfare did an exclusive e-mail interview with Taylor “Tay” Jardine (from New York), the lone female member.

Being co-vocalists, where do you get this chemistry that you guys have, is this natural, are you guys close friends? Have you guys ever gone out with each other, perhaps? What about the rest of the band, are you guys close friends outside the band? 

“Something just naturally clicked. We tried it and it felt right when we first started the band. We have never dated, hahahahaha! The entire band is really close. We are pretty much our only close friends.”

As touring musicians, how much do you guys still get to experience the “normal life?” Any interests and hobbies outside of music? 

“We aren’t home very often, so sometimes it feels like life moves on without us. However, we do try to stay as well connected as possible with our friends and family. As for our own hobbies, I love to read and watch movies.”

It seems that a lot of people and moonlighting music critics seem to compare you to Paramore, what do you think of these comparisons and what do you think of their sound?

“I think being compared to a band as talented as Paramore is a compliment. However, we do not have the intentions of being the ‘new Paramore’ or anything. We like to stick to what we do.” 

How did this boy-girl interaction in your music come about? Was it a conscious effort to offer something unique? 

“We really just utilized the assets of our band. It came naturally.”

Can you please describe how each other gets crazy when the intense touring is getting on each other’s nerves… 

“Sometimes we become very on edge and we just want to sleep for days without any connection to the outside world, hahahaha! But the second we have time off we want to be back on the road.”

What are your respective outlooks in life; are you guys optimistic or pessimistic? 

“Optimistic and cautious.”

Who would you guys consider as major musical influences? 

“Our families.”

What was the biggest treat you gave yourselves for your hard work?

“I’ve never done that.” 

There was this interview in PULP Magazine where you said that you guys watched The Hunger Games together. How did you find the film? Did you guys read books as well? If you guys do read books, what would be your other favorites aside from The Hunger Games? 

”Yes, I made them all watch the movie. I was the only one who read the books. I am currently in the middle of reading two different series, Fifty Shades Of Grey and Chaos Walking.”

Being a band that relies on vocal harmonies and interplay more than most, which bands do you find as great examples of utilizing vocal harmony and interplay?

“Relient K.”

How crazy are you guys with being on Twitter? 

“We love Twitter!”

What was the funniest experience you had with each other? 

”There are too many to pick just one. I can’t even think of one off the top of my head. We always have fun together.”

Who would your dream collaborations be and why? 

“Pink. She is one of my biggest vocal inspirations.”

So far, have much of your expectations of your musical experiences been met? How easy or hard is it from what you expected?

“I was never sure what to expect. The music industry is always changing so you can only expect so much. Every day seems like an adventure.”

Do you guys subscribe to any form of exercise or diet?

“We try to avoid fast food and fatty foods on the road.”

How much sleep do you guys get in a day? Do you guys find weird sleeping habits with each other? 

“Not enough!” 

How long does it take you guys to fix yourselves?

“Depends, probably about an hour.”

How long do you guys spend in the bathroom? 

“About 15 minutes each.”

(Note: We Are The In Crowd with This Century and Set Your Goals will perform for one night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on June 2, Saturday, presented by Vans and produced by PULP Live World in cooperation with Karpos Multimedia. For tickets, call Ticketnet at 911-5555.)

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