By Morgan James
Founded in 2010 in Riverside, Liquid has transformed their music as they have matured over the past six years and the band has grown into new members. Led down a path of self-discovery through life’s trials, angst, and deep emotion, Lily’s leading vocals channel the passion of Brody Dalle from The Distillers and a hint of Janis Joplin. The entire band consists of three core members- Lily Ortiz on Vocals and Guitar, Vanessa Espino on Bass, and Anthony Lozano on Drums. I spoke with Lily about Liquid’s original music, live performances, and where our readers can hear it all for themselves.
MJ: What is the band dynamic when writing your original music? Does one person write or is it a group effort?
LO: “In the beginning Vanessa and I would collide heads with each other and write a lyric at a time and then groove out the rest of the jam. And our first drummer Josh would help us finish an idea we would have for a song. There’s one of his songs that we still use today and it’s very popular. But throughout the time it’s been me that started to focus on writing it all; music, lyrics, parts, riffs, everything!”
MJ: What inspires you to write? Are there consistent themes among your lyrics?
LO: “Well, when I was 18 I really got into The Doors. I like their blues style to everything they ever made and it was cool because Josh liked Led Zeppelin, The Doors, and that one band, Mars Volta. So he was already on board with the idea of sounding a little 70’s and I dug that. But of course when we kicked him out of the band that 70s sound died immediately and got buried along with his memory. So can you guess what inspired our music then? Josh. I was so angry at him that I started writing and playing a little darker instead of that average garage sound. That’s when I started to write about the drama and turn it into song and I’ve been writing that way ever since.”
MJ: What is unique about your band and your performances so far?
LO: “When Anthony joined the band as our third drummer, our performances where nearly phenomenal. That booming sound was far more powerful than we ever had before! Vanessa and I realized we had a golden horse with us. I think I was still figuring things out when we were with Josh. I was still learning in what way I should sing. When it was just me and Vanessa I was singing normally and softly, but when we got a drummer I couldn’t hear myself and it sucked so I asked myself, what’s gonna make us sound completely different from other bands and people? So I started screaming and projecting, not just because I couldn’t hear myself but because I really wanted to sound distinct.”
MJ: Would you share some memories of past shows, great venues, or other bands you have enjoyed playing with?
LO: “All of our funny shows were always with our sister band Happy In Hemet. Their fun and warped style made everyone else feel disturbed but made us feel at home and comfortable. One of the best shows I’ve ever experienced was the very first Happy Fest we ever threw. Happy Fest is basically just a huge Halloween party/show for the local youth that we would throw once a year at Anthony’s house in San Jacinto. The first year we had the sickest line up; The Coltranes, Them Savages, Crisis Arm, Limerent Dance Machine, Liquid, Happy In Hemet, The Gravitys, Interracial Bookclub, and Planet Vegeta. It was a very successful show and very wild. I personally don’t care for venues very much because of all the restriction and the mic checks; it’s all a very old routine that I’m tired of going through. I like when the shows are in houses, in backyards, when there’s people and there’s animals running around you, and there’s drinking and it’s obvious that everyone who is there is there to have a good time. Those are the kind of shows that I like. With venues, depending on how popular the venue is, like the Dial in Temecula, or the Smell in LA, or the Che Café in San Diego, there will always be this pressure of judgment, this cloud of boredom, or the essence of dissatisfaction.”
MJ: What type of energy do you evoke from your crowd? What can our readers expect from a Liquid show?
LO: “The energy we get sometimes just depends on the crowd. If we get a crowd that really needs to dance, head bang, or mosh then they’re going to do it. If we get a crowd that is kind of shy and just want to stand and chill and watch that’s cool too. We’ve played a hip-hop show before and they all went nuts and it was amazing. I saw a tiny skinny little girl smoking her cigarette in the crowd one second and the next second she was literally flying across the floor of Clash City Studios, it was sad and hilarious. Our shows are a box of chocolates.”
Download Liquid’s newest EP here: liquid2.bandcamp.com/album/entropy-ep
