Hell on Earth: An Interview with Poolside At The Flamingo
Poolside At The Flamingo, formed in 2005, is a deathcore/grindcore band out of Colorado. Their latest single, "Hell on Earth", just dropped, and they're releasing their latest EP on May 22nd. Of the single, they have shared: "This may be our favorite song on the EP. There's a hint of melody as dueling guitars blend tremolo riffs. The series of breakdowns at the end will make you want to hurt something.”
MSM: Tell me about your journey with creating music. How did you get started, and what first ignited your passion for music?
We all got started creating music very early on. As far back as middle school we were either in bands together or in bands that played with each other. We helped to create a sizeable local metal scene in our small home town (Longmont, CO). Our singer and guitar player are twin brothers and their parents owned a dinner theatre, so we would clear out the tables and chairs and throw shows there. We must have had 4 or 5 bands within our friend group. Those were good times!
MSM: Where does the name Poolside At The Flamingo come from?
It comes from the movie “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”. Previously, we were called Out For Blood but of course there was a few other bands in the US with the same name. We thought of a couple other darker, more traditional “metal” names but they were already taken as well. While sitting at practice one day we just took the first weird name that came to our heads and since we’re fans of the movie, it just happened to be Poolside at the Flamingo.
MSM: Who are some of your biggest musical influences, and how have they helped to shape your sound?
Our sound definitely originated in the “Myspace Grind” era. We were writing and touring a lot from 2005-2009. Our influences at the time were bands like See You Next Tuesday, As The Sun Sets, Daughters, Norma Jean, and The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza. More recently we’ve updated our sound while trying to still keep those influences. Today I would say our music still has a lot of those older “myspace grind” elements but is also influenced by bands like END, Wormrot, Bodysnatcher, Bound in Fear, and Knocked Loose.
MSM: Can you talk about the creative process behind your forthcoming EP, ACCABADORA?
A LOT of thought went into writing the songs for this EP. More than anything we’ve ever written before so we think that this is our best material to date. The writing process was also different for this EP than for our early releases. Back in the day a lot of the material was written during practice while messing around and trying things out with no real way to record what we were writing for reference or remembrance. Obviously the technology has advanced and these days and one person can pretty much digitally write an entire song. Our guitar player (Danny) usually goes first and creates a song or a portion of one and then we all weigh in with suggestions and changes if need be.
MSM: Do you have a favorite city to visit on tour, and why?
It’s been a while since we’ve done a big tour and we’re hoping to change that shortly, so we’ve been a little out of the game. There hasn’t been one single city that is consistently the best but we had a very memorable stop in Idaho once. We pulled up to the “venue” only to realize it was a house in a cookie-cutter suburb. Turns out some high school girl got her parents to let her throw a show in their small basement. There must have been 100 people in this 500sqft basement. People were falling into us and crowding the mic. By the time we were done there were holes in the walls and ceilings. It was awesome!
MSM: What artists have been inspiring you lately or that you feel are consistently pushing boundaries and changing the game?
Our friends in Crown Magnetar have been blowing up lately, so that’s super inspiring to see!
MSM: What’s your motto or some good advice that you live by?
We never take ourselves too seriously (hence the name). We’re out here to have fun!
MSM: Lastly, what would you say to any potential new fans on why they should check out Poolside At The Flamingo?
We bring a very unique mix of deathcore/grindcore that hits hard and is HEAVY.
Poolside At The Flamingo are:
Scotty Bohnen: Vocals
Danny Bohnen: Guitar
Rudy Garcia: Drums
David French: Bass
