SMYTH

Interview by Joe Simek, Philly Edge Correspondent - Sept 2006
--------------------------------------------
Artist: Meghan Smyth of SMYTH

Where are you guys from?
Who is in your band and what do they play?
My sister Maureen (acoustic guitar & vocals) and I (lead vocals) are originally from Bucks County but we now we're based out of Philadelphia. All 5 band members live in Philadelphia. Originally, Bruce Torres (lead guitar & vocals) is from Reading, PA, Nina Soto (bass & vocals) is from Brooklyn, NY, and Tommy Mellon (drums) is from Philadelphia.

Whats your newest album called and when was it released? We just released our self-titled EP in July. We're extremely happy with our first recording together.

Describe your sound in five words or less.
POW! BAM! CRASH! BOOM! ZOINKS!

Whats your quintessential track and where can you find it online?
Our quintessential track is "Acting Like A Guy," because it's fun, amusing & hyper (kinda like us), & it showcases the harmonies that we are known for. It has already been played on WMMR 93.3 and WSTW 93.7, so we're very excited about that. It's available online at www.myspace.com/smyths or www.smythmusic.com for listening, and you can purchase it on www.philafunk.com/users/smyth.

Whats your story? How did Smyth form?
Maureen and I have been playing around Philadelphia for the past 4 years. We started with open mics and our first show was actually opening for our guitarist, Bruce Torres, who is also a singer-songwriter on his own. He asked Maureen to open for him in December, 2002 on the acoustic stage at the old Grape Street Pub. Maureen was a bit nervous to do a whole show on her own, so she enrolled my help, to make being on stage a bit more comfortable. Meanwhile, I was terrified to sing in front of people, because I'd never even picked up a micorphone. So we had a few months to shape up our own songs, and we ended up drawing a pretty large crowd and realized it could work with some practice. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to perform with a full band, but it was years until we found the perfect formula. While Bruce was immediately on-board as our guitar player, we ended up placing an ad in the paper, where we found our bass player Nina. Tommy was the last piece to complete SMYTH, and that was through a serendipitous meeting with Tommy Kay of Fooling April. After only hanging out with us for a short time, Tommy Kay knew that the drummer from his last band would be a perfect fit with our personalities.

Whats it like being in a band with your sister?
I love being in a band with my sister. If we could pull off the whole Partridge family thing and have my whole family in the band, I totally would.

What did you both listen to growing up?
Maureen and I were brought up on rock music. Our father was really into bands like The Rolling Stones, Led Zepplin and The Beatles. We even had a KISS lunchbox when we were young and Maureen's first album was Pat Benatar.


On your myspace site, you call yourself the "lead ninja." Is that because of all the flying kicks you do on stage?

I knew I always wanted to be the crazy rambunctious lead singer. I always had a lot of energy growing up, mainly directed at sports. After college and multiple knee surgeries, I needed a new project and after the full band started, the jumping and kicks began…eventually leading to the "ninja" nickname. I think I get a lot of my energy from my parents, because they are always hyper. The fact that they're in the front row jumping around makes it even more fun to perform.

Is major label success your goal, or are you happy with an indie existence?
It'd be a great compliment to be recognized by a major label, but lots of bands are thriving on indie labels these days. Let's face it, major labels aren't as supportive as they used to be for bands and it's the indie bands that are really taking off. I mean, we wouldn't blindly turn aside an opportunity from a major label, but of course we'd absolutely have to make sure they weren't turning us into a band that we're not.



- Philly Edge

Block captains and community groups are expected. Businesses and students are more than welcomed. But rock stars? Didn’t see that one coming.

Philadelphia has been buzzing in anticipation of this Saturday’s Philly Spring Cleanup, and rolling up their sleeves to join the effort is Smyth, a local band trading guitars for garbage. While most musicians will probably be getting to bed about the time the cleanup begins, Smyth will be beautifying East Falls. The band also encourages others to the same, to get involved and do the “giving back to your community thing.”

Just a few days away, volunteers continue to enlist. The Mayor’s goals of 10,000 volunteers and 5,000 clean blocks, among others, are certainly achievable with so many lining up to pitch in. So thank you to those who normally may not, without the inspiration of this effort, for getting out of bed a bit earlier and doing your part. You rock (and in Smyth’s case, in more ways than one).
- Ned Rauch-Mannino, www.phillynews.com/inquirer

Groups getting out the message about Spring Clean Up
Written by Uri Friedman
--------------------------------------------
Most rock musicians cringe if you associate their music with garbage. Meghan Smyth brims with excitement.

That's because the 27-year-old lead singer of the band Smyth and three other band members are joining thousands of fellow Philadelphians Saturday in an ambitious effort to tidy up the city.

With his Philly Spring Cleanup, Mayor Michael Nutter hopes to enlist 10,000 volunteers to remove one million pounds of debris from 5,000 city blocks.

"We hang out a lot in Manayunk, so we're going to go over there," said Smyth, a resident of East Falls. "I guess we'll just show up at the canal, come with coffee in hand, and they'll hand us a pitchfork and tell us what to do. I sent out a Myspace bulletin telling friends to get involved."

The band's members, including guitar players Maureen Smyth and Justin Verechia and drummer Tommy Mellon, will not be the only young people welcoming springtime with trash bags and recycling bins.

Halle Johnston, co-founder of the East Park Revitalization Alliance, said the event is an encouranging extension of the organization's efforts.

"I'm excited about expanding education about recycling and littering to youth so we can avoid such wide-scale cleanups in the future," Johnston said. "If Saturday stands as an introduction ... then this will be a tremendous success."

- Philly Metro