Where for art thou Romeo? He’s here giving an interview and putting a full band to his acoustic music for you to enjoy! I know we do!
We’ve reviewed Dan Romeo’s Velvet Scars here. Check it out and check out his album!
Dan Romeo is a dedicated musical artist from Newtown, Connecticut. He wrote a sweet article for the CT Scramble and dropped an awesome emo album called Velvet Scars, April 1st, 2019.
First off, tell us about your musical past, would you tell us about your early years?
I always had a mind for music. While I didn’t start playing drums until I was 13, every day I waited for that long bus ride home from school so I could throw my MP3 player on and jam out. I played drums and was professionally trained throughout high school until I picked up and taught myself guitar. Singing shortly followed and has been something I’ve had a passion for a couple of years now.
How would you describe your sound?
I grew up on a lot of 90s grunge and alt-rock, so there’s definitely a little bit of that in there, but City and Colour is definitely my biggest inspiration. Dallas Greens ability to mend his post-hardcore writing style from his Alexisonfire days with acoustic folk has been something I’ve always wanted to recapture. My product is more along the lines of acoustic punk, but the influences from elsewhere are definitely there.
What’s the last artist you listened to?
I’m seeing EYEHATEGOD next week, so I’ve been blasting some old school NOLA sludge lately.
What’s your source for hearing new music?
I’m a Spotify user, and Bandcamp is great for finding new stuff. But the best thing I’ve dome for my own music listening tastes is getting into the local bands here in CT. This state’s scene is getting stronger as we speak.
What led you to music and what motivates you to keep making it?
Growing up, I had a lot of self-loathing going on thanks to the way people treated me. But music was always there to make me feel like I can just be myself. The ability to express has been very formative for me ever since I began writing. So I have a lot to thank music for.
What’s next for you?
I plan on re-recording Velvet Scars with better production and more instruments. Only time can tell if it will be a full-band thing or remain acoustic and stripped down, but I do think the tracks have some staying power. Other than that, I plan on playing as many shows as I can.
Connect with Dan Romeo via Instagram, SoundCloud, and Bandcamp.
Velvet Scars sounds inspired by early 2000s emo. Was that intentional? Were you influenced by any emo bands?
Not directly, I grew up listening to sad sappy music, and it always felt relatable and accessible. To be able to write something that others find relatable and accessible was always the main goal. The emo style was just the perfect way to do it, I guess.
Where do you like to play the best?
The dream for any musician is to play in front of a lot of people, but I’ve always adored coffeeshop shows for their tight-knit communities and love for creative expression. People are so much more genuine at shows like that.
Which song on Velvet Scars is your favorite? Which one was the easiest to write? Please, tell us why for both answers.
The easiest song to write was probably “Self-Destructed.” I was in such a rut when I wrote it that the emotions and lyrics kind of just spilled out onto paper. I had been sitting on a chord progression for a while, so I had the song recorded within the hour it was written.
My favorite is probably still “Core.” It was the first song I ever wrote and is still the one that gets the strongest response. I wrote it years ahead of everything else on the record, and have always thought the lyrics were great, if simple.
We love “Core,” “Full Band Disguise,” “Disguise,” and “Fray” a lot!
You wrote for the CTScramble. Do you have an interest in music journalism? If so, how do you get your work out there? Are you going to continue to write for the CTScramble or will you be looking to work with other music publications?
I graduated this year from URI with a degree in Journalism, and have spent four years writing for a blog on Metal Amino. I have about 2500+ followers on there at the moment. I do a lot of freelance music journalism work as of late and am currently working on a piece on the correlation between heavy music and mental health. The CTScramble is a great local music publication I’ve had the pleasure of writing for. I do plan on sending them more articles in the future.
Back to Velvet Scars, your songs had strong themes concerning the human condition. What was the overall goal of Velvet Scars?
I wrote the majority of Velvet Scars about breakups and complicated personal relationships. But my message from it all is not to let anyone walk all over you. I’ve been a victim of overreaction and overthinking my entire life. So when someone is a slave to their emotions others can take advantage. We live in a day and age where mental health statistics are astonishingly harsh, and the action toward someone’s self-help is to institutionalize them. Having been someone who went through their own battles, my experiences gave me a front-row seat to what was wrong with my mentality. Writing these tracks helped me express, get over, and process the emotional beatings I was receiving, while also adjusting who I am to better fit my own mold, not someone else’s. We also need to be there for broken people rather than just send them to help. As I wrote in my song “Sweet Thing,” “No embrace can hide the hurt we feel, no words can truly help us heal, but love will prevail and make our hearts as strong as steel.”
