Conor Riley - Birth

When, and where were you born? Are you originally from San Diego, Ca?

Not originally, I was born as an eighties child in Long Island, New York. I moved to San Diego when I was about 10.

What was growing up like for you?

My parents were hippies, loud music and parties were common. Moving to a conservative part of San Diego was a bit of a culture shock. I was a very quiet kid and spent most of my time alone reading and listening to music, to the point where people thought it was a problem. That’s probably why I gravitated towards music, it’s something that I could spend a lot of time doing alone, but kept me connected enough.

Do you have any siblings? When did you first begin to have a fascination with music and wanting to play?

I have a sister, she’s pretty cool. My earliest memories of playing music was being taught piano by my neighbor in New York. He had Alzheimers disease and would teach me the blues pentatonic scale in C over and over. When I was a teenager I got really into metal. That’s when I started practicing every day.

What groups left a huge impression on you early on? What would you and your friends do for fun in the early days?

At first, metal bands like Metallica and Iron Maiden. I think the heaviness and the mixing of classical elements with rock is something that still influences me today. In high school I started listening to 60s and 70s jazz. “Coltrane, live at the village vanguard” and “Bitches Brew” were favorite albums of mine that I still listen to today. Eventually I got into more pop psych and older R&B. I went through a pretty significant Beatles phase which eventually led me to explore heavier psych and progressive rock. We dressed like weirdos, listened to music and caused havoc.

The community didn’t really like that and banned us from certain areas of the town in which there wasn’t much to do in the first place. Most of the time we played music at each other’s house when our parents were gone, or in some hollowed out bushes in the middle of a field. We had a little too much fun and I ended up living many of my teenage years in a “home” in which there wasn’t much fun to be had aside from an old juke box that had a blue cheer 45. So, I took a pretty long break from playing music and fun until I was an adult.

Did you participate in any bands prior to Birth? If so, what were some of those experiences like for you?

A few before Birth, the most notable being Astra, that’s how I met Brian. Being in Astra was pretty eye-opening, this was the first real touring band I had been in. It was amazing to be able to go to different countries and play music for people in places I’d never thought I’d make it to. Before Astra I was in another band with some of the same guys called Silver Sunshine. This was more of a singer/songwriter, 60s psych influenced group and the first band where we put a lot of time and effort into crafting and perfecting songs. This was mainly led by Richard Vaughn’s who was a great visionary and perfectionist. I really learned a lot from him which still influences me today. In the last few years I’ve also been playing bass in Mondo Drag which has been a really cool since I’ve been a fan for quite a while.

Astra at Stonehenge.

How did BIRTH initially form? How did you guys want to approach music when starting out? Was the chemistry right away between everyone?

While Astra was losing momentum I kept writing, but without a real goal in mind. It was kind of refreshing to be able to write without having to worry if it would live up to past work or fit within an archetype. I would jam on some of these ideas with a few different groups of friends until eventually Brian and I began to share parts of songs we had been working on and decided to start a project. We weren’t able to practice as often as we used to in the beginning, so the material became a little more independent, song based and less jam oriented. It took a little while for the band to take shape. The first two years were pretty rough trying to schedule practices and shows since some of us were in other bands with intense touring schedules. It really wasn’t until the pandemic slowed things down and we were able to focus on song writing and recording, however, during this time Paul Marrone decided to part ways and Thomas DiBenedetto (Sacri Monti, Joy, Monarch) took his place. The chemistry was good at first, but in the last six months the chemistry has been amazing, I think we sound better now than we ever have.

When/where was the band’s live debut? What was that experience like for you?

With this lineup we recently supported Earthless at the Casbah (San Diego) and the Echo (Los Angeles) at the end of February. It was amazing to be able to play again after three years! The shows were packed and everyone was excited to be back out again. I think first official Birth how was at some warehouse in Otay Mesa at 4:30am several years ago.

How did you meet your other band mates?

I met Brian when we were making the crossing from Silver Sunshine to Astra. The drummer, Dave, knew Brian from high school and invited him to practice. We’ve been solid friends ever since. I met Trevor and Thomas from playing shows in San Diego. They both used to play in different incarnations with a band called Joy that I would go see often. Trevor also used to play with Brian and Paul in Psicomagia.

BIRTH.

How did the name BIRTH come about?

As cliché as it sounds, the name Birth actually came to me in a dream. I don’t remember what the dream was about, but I woke up in the middle of the night with the idea.

Can you tell me about writing and recording the band’s demo that was released via Bandcamp? What is the groups process and approach to music like?

A song usually starts with a part that one of us has written independently. We’ll then jam on it and write around that. There’s a certain amount of experimentation that we do to get the songs to the point where we’re happy with them. It’s usually writing, listening back a few days later, re- writing, recycling old parts, knowing when to compromise and when to let go.

How long did it take to lay out those tunes from start to finish?

The demo’s were recorded mostly at Brian’s studio in Escondido. The drums and some of the guitars are live but everything else was overdubbed. Those songs took about a couple of weeks to record and mix.

You guys recently signed to Bad Omen Records. How did this come about?

Fuck yes! We’ve known Will Palmer, who runs the label, for a while, since the Astra days. Will contacted us after discovering a post on the internet that one of our mutual friends made. We were pretty excited with the offer from Bad Omen. Since it is such a good fit for us we didn’t have to put much thought into it.

What’s the band’s set up gear wise?

I sing and have three keyboards on stage, a Hammond, Prophet and a Nord. Brian’s been playing a Kramer through a Carvin X100B and Trevor a Fender Bass through a Peavey amp. Thomas plays the drums.

What are you currently working on for 2022 and how have you wanted to approach this year thats different from that of last year? What are you most eager to express and explore with you with the band?

We’re finishing the record and writing new material. The songs we’re working on at the moment are heavier and more extreme, but there really aren’t any rules or boundaries so we’re just seeing where it takes us. Even though we’ve been playing for a bit, I feel like we’ve really just started so I’m really eager to explore every crevice of our musical bodies together.

I imagine you guys are working on an LP for BOR? How has your style/approach changed since you’ve first started out on this journey?

I don’t think it has really changed that much. My approach has always been to write as much as I can whether or not I feel inspired. Whatever passes the test of time is typically what I bring to work on. The thing I like about our music is that it has so many different influences that I feel like I can write almost anything and it could fit. Stylistically, if you had asked me last year, I probably would’ve told you that we were going to write an easy listening album, but the stuff we’ve writing has actually been pretty heavy. It’s hard to say what the direction is but I like things that are over the top. You are correct! We hope to have some dates settled soon!

How has the pandemic impacted your life these past few years? What have been some ways in which you’ve managed to stay positive and optimistic during this time?

Definitely writing and playing music. I also meditate almost every morning. It definitely slowed things down for everyone. Not playing shows and seeing friends wasn’t the greatest but being an extreme introvert, I was actually relieved to not feel the pressures of going out. I had more time to think and write which I think was ultimately positive.

Birth live at the Casbah. Photo by my friend Sam Giles.

Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?

Thanks for reading!

https://www.instagram.com/birth_prog/

https://www.facebook.com/Birth.prog

https://birthprog.bandcamp.com/

Dakota Brown