PAWN PAWN

Pawn Pawn is the Toledo, Ohop-based dark electro band that just released their EP, 'Halloween'. The themes in the EP are about embracing darkness and emotional extremes: vengeance, obsessive attraction & jealousy. It's the Halloween spirity regardless of the time of year. We're grateful that the band decided to take a little bit of time and answer our interview today.

Hello and thanks for answering the interview for our blog today. We usually like to start off by asking for a brief background for the readers that might not be familiar with a particular band. Would you kindly do so?

Brandon: We're all from the Toledo, Ohio area. In 2015, David and I started getting together once a week for instrumental writing sessions. About a year into it we brought Liz in to write the lyrics/vocals for what became our first album, Bedtime. We released our second album, Mourning, in 2022.

Liz: Our sound has evolved a bit over the years. Our earlier albums were more nu gaze, new wave indie pop, and our latest release is darker, heavier, and more synthpop, dark electronic, and industrial-pop.

The latest release is ‘Halloween’ What kind of genesis did the songs have to go through before you were happy with the final product?

Brandon: Every song is a bit different, but we tend to iterate a lot. Specifically on this release, Trick or Treat changed a lot from the original instrumental idea. We rearranged it several times, removing the entire original chorus section and adding the bridge very late in the process.

David: These songs were made in a bit of a different way from our normal routine. It’s because of that, I think we approached the layering and mixing a bit more dramatically. There are a lot of fun production things we did, and I think it turned out nice and big.

Do you think that you’ll adopt a release plan that is perhaps less full-length albums and more singles, remixes and Eps?

Brandon: Historically, I've always been an album guy, but I find myself listening to fewer full albums lately. From a production perfectionist standpoint, EPs and singles help me relax a bit. So, yeah, I think it's highly likely that we'll incorporate more of them in the future compared to our early history.

David: I like full length records that sound like a cohesive piece of music. That being said, singles open up a lot of opportunities to keep releasing music with different vibes, which is also loads of fun in a different way.

Scenario: You are stranded on some island but you had the capability to put a flash drive with three of your most important songs into a sealed bottle and send it out to the world. These are songs that mean the most to you and best represent your legacy. What are they and why did you choose them?

Brandon: Since there's three of us, I'll choose one…From Mourning, Machine in the Ghost. I really love how that song turned out and it still gives me goosebumps. And I love the video that Casey T. Malone made for it.

David My choice would have to be I Don’t Want U 2 B Happy from Mourning partially because the groove is a cool synthy dance thing, but ultimately, the lyrics really grab me.

Liz: Hard to choose, but I’d have to say Watch Me Break. It starts quietly but builds and builds -- I love how layered it is. Lyrically, it draws on some pretty intense feelings, and the crescendo of the chorus has such an epic feel.

Are your songs created in pretty much the same way in every case? Do you have to be in particular locations or moods to be inspired?

Brandon: We do tend to have a pretty similar process for creating all new songs instrumentally. It's scheduled and structured, which is different from a lot of previous projects I've been involved in. We know we're going to work on a new song, sit down and start cranking it out. It's always in our studio. The instrumentation varies. Sometimes what we create is never used at all, sometimes we hit a home run, and sometimes we refine that first sketch into something better later. I guess the mood/inspiration probably do play into that but we try to write regardless and sort it out later!

David: What Brandon said.

Could you give us some insight into your studio, your “tools of the trade” so to speak? How much is hardware/physical instruments and how much is based on softsynths and the like?

Brandon: I love gear…and software! We were all in more traditional guitar based bands before so we love hardware. But for this band we record as we write and build. We embrace MIDI, but typically use actual synths and an electronic drumset to get things started. The sounds we start with often get replaced with either hardware synths, drum machines, soft synths, guitar reamping etc. The studio is alway evolving but our current launching pads have been the Roland TR-8S, Jupiter-X, Korg SV2 and a rotation of mono-synths.

David: Almost every song, no matter how electronic, has live alternate percussion and cymbals. There is something to be said for a cymbal that isn’t a sample.

Some artists often engage in certain rituals when composing in the certain studio orbefore performing. Ex: They may like to have certain items around, They may docertain pre-show preparation, They may do things like meditation. Are there any particular rituals you do before writing or performing?

Brandon: We are creatures of habit. We typically get together the same day/time every week and don't have to schedule it. We usually catch up in the kitchen while enjoying some whiskey before getting to work.

Liz: Well, you guys enjoy whiskey, anyway.

David: I usually show up a blank slate. A glass of whiskey is helpful.

Some artists have resorted to using AI for the likes of cover art and even videos. What’s your feeling on that? Do you think that it’s already gotten out of control andmaybe is an excuse for lack of creativity? Or do you think people are still inserting a bit of human/organic quality into what’s being produced?

Brandon: That's a tough question! Personally, I don't touch it, but I can see where for some people it can be helpful and break down creative or financial barriers. I don't think we'll know what AI's real impact will be on music until decades from now. People are always afraid of new things - drum machines were hated outside of a few genres for a long time and now you hear 808s on country songs.

Liz: I can see how it could help someone brainstorm ideas, but once I’ve actually started the creative process I’d rather have a much more granular level of control than you can get with AI. Plus, the generativity is part of the fun. Using AI wouldn’t give me the intellectual dopamine hits you get from making something. I don’t really want to offload that. I also really worry about the environmental impacts of AI -- especially with the volume of content that’s being generated.

What do you anticipate for the coming months? Side projects, shows, more releases?

Brandon: We've got a bunch of new songs in the works that we're working on finishing. And a part live-action, part animated video for Jealousy that's in the works that we're really excited about.

William ZIMMERMAN
13/03/2025