Spot-On: Punchline

Punchline have been churning out pop-punk jams since '97, but it wasn't until Jan. 4, 2012 that they shot to No. 1 on the iTunes rock chart -- beating out the likes of Metallica and The Beatles -- for their new EP, So Nice To Meet You. Yeah, it's a big deal. To make a momentous month even bigger, vocalist Steve Soboslai was then featured on FOX's Mobbed, a show where flash mobs are a very real, very entertaining thing. With the help of his band, and Cheap Trick's "I Want You To Want Me," Steve confessed his feelings to a long-time friend, and everything looked a little bit like the movies. We caught up with the band to talk about their 15 years of music-making, why flash mobs rock, and why bassist Chris Fafalios contemplated leaving the band. Check it out, and while you're at it, grab yourself a free download of "Universe" from the band's new EP.



PureVolume: Congrats on hitting No. 1 on iTunes rock chart! What's the vibe in the group like, now that you're chart-toppers?
Steve Soboslai: The vibe within our group is to keep the momentum going. We are all very inspired right now to continue to interact with fans, and focus on upcoming music for Punchline and other artists on the [Modern Short Stories] label as well.

PV: I noticed you used a lot of social networking to encourage fans to support, which is awesome. I also noticed the statements/rumors going around about your bassist, Chris Fafalios, leaving the band if you didn't hit #1. Can you give us the full story behind that?
Soboslai: One day, I read on the internet that Chris was going to put down his bass if we didn't make it to #1 on the iTunes charts. Drummer Cory Muro called me later after he had noticed the post as well, and we watched as word spread throughout the internet. People questioned [Chris’s] intentions. Haters were called in to make claims that Chris was exploiting our fans. What we did was rally our friends, fans, and family, saying that if you are a supporter of what we do, we need your support at this very moment.

Our EP was supposed to go live on iTunes [Jan. 2] at midnight, but was reminded of Murphy's Law when it didn’t. iTunes took a Christmas vacation and were behind on their work. Our fans waited by the phone (and computers) to pick it up. I couldn't believe it when I saw that over 150 people on my [Facebook] news feed had posted the iTunes link -- this is coming from a guy who was part of the decision process just one week earlier to release this EP. That's how quickly it came together! We entered the charts at #38, and I watched and worked as it kept climbing higher and higher! It was incredible. Every time it moved up, more and more people would post. The most rewarding part was finally getting the music out there that we had worked so hard to prepare. Some of those songs and ideas had been stewing for years. The time had finally come to let them go.

When I woke up the next morning, we were #1 on the iTunes Rock charts above Metallica and The Beatles. It stayed there for 3 days, and that's more than we could have ever asked for. At this point, Chris realized that putting down his bass was not an option. This might have been the most rewarding moment in my musical career -- aside from running into MXPX at Stonehenge (we were on tour with them, but we kept pretending on camera like it was a huge coincidence).

PV: You've been making music for 15 years now. How do you keep the passion, and find the inspiration, to stay fresh with each new album?
Soboslai: I wake up everyday with melodies floating in my head. It wasn't always that way, but after years of writing songs, the music just kinda stuck there. It's so fun for me to think about song concepts, keys, quirks, chords, and all that. The big thing that I've learned in recent years, is that not every melody I write was meant to be sung with my voice. Hence, I've been trying to write songs for Punchline for my voice. I could talk about this stuff for so long that you'd have to purchase more server space.

PV: Starting out as a '90s band, you've seen a decade and a half of musical innovations. We're talking cassette tapes to album streams. What has been your favorite?
Soboslai: More than anything, I look forward to the future -- songs that have yet to be written, and new and exciting forms of presenting them to the public

PV: Do you think it's easier to be a band now or in the '90s? Without social media tools, what were you most reliant on for promotion?
Soboslai: Calling us a '90s band is like calling a 3 year old a fluent speaker of the English language. Things were "easiest" when the excitement of underground concerts, and better access to underground music, converged. It's not that I don't think things are necessarily "hard" now, [they’re] just different. Calling things "hard" shows resistance to adaptation and innovation. If there's a problem, try to fix it. Reevaluate and consider a new way.

PV: What spurred the decision to create your label, Modern Short Stories?
Soboslai: Even before the inception of the label, we found ourselves amidst an entire community of extremely talented musicians, writers, and creators. We were tired of trying to exist in someone else's world, so we created our own. The people in this community are my influences and inspiration.

PV: Speaking of side projects, let's talk about Steve's [with help from the band] appearance on "Mobbed." You performed the Cheap Trick song, "I Want You To Want Me," which also closed out your new EP. Was the TV performance what inspired you to take that song to the studio?
Punchline: It made so much sense for us to tie the story and EP together, using that song to close it out. We've always loved that song, and have no problem paying tribute to songs we love.

PV: What Punchline song would you most love someone to pick for their own flash mob?
Soboslai: Most definitely "Universe," because flash mobs are so widespread.

PV: Now that you've dropped [and conquered] an EP, can we expect a full-length album from you in 2012?
Soboslai: It's a matter of writing the right collection of songs. We try not to pull the trigger on things until we have the right ideas. Besides, we really enjoyed surprising everyone with just a weeks notice that we were releasing something new.

Links
http://www.punchkids.com/
http://www.facebook.com/punchlinemusic
http://twitter.com/punchlion
http://www.merchline.com/punchline
http://www.myspace.com/punchline
http://modernshortstories.bigcartel.com/