Only on Weekends – “We’re not athletic, so it was the only way that we could get girls.” – Interview

Only on Weekends chatted with us about their musical past and how they go about writing songs. Let’s see what they have to say!

• First off, What’s up with your name?  Is there a story behind it?
  • Our original bassist, Kenny, came up with the name Only on Weekends when we were in high school, but as we’ve gotten older, the name has started to take on a whole new meaning.  We all have full-time, Monday – Friday, 9 – 5 jobs, and so do most of our friends.  So aside from a few exceptions, we only play on weekends.  Because that is when we can get out and have fun.
• Tell us about your musical past, would you tell us about your early years?
  • Only on Weekends played its first official show in 2002, but it wasn’t until almost a decade later that we started to really become what we are today when Anthony (drums) answered the Craigslist ad that we posted looking for a new drummer.  We met for dinner at a Taco Bell and bonded over our love for Saves the Day and cheesy gordita crunches.  We’ve gone through some lineup changes but finally solidified the band in 2015 when John (bass) and Jim (guitar) joined the band.
• How would you describe your sound?
  • We are a rock and roll band with punk influences.

• Which artists have the biggest influence on your sound?
  • Harry (Vocals / Guitar): Jimmy Eat World and The Beach BoysJim (Guitar / Vocals): SoCal punk rock and The DarknessJohn (Bass): Anything with a catchy melody but most definitely Blink-182 and The Decedents
  • Anthony (Drums): Green Day and Saves the Day
• What’s the last song you listened to?
  • Harry: The Get Up Kids – “Don’t Hate Me”Jim: No Use for a Name – “International You Day”John: Fall Out Boy – “Love from the Other Side”
  • Anthony: The Loved Ones – “100K”
• What’s your source for hearing new music?
  • Spotify!  Trust the algorithm and your daily mixes.
• Who is your dream producer?
  • We’ve already worked with Fred Mascherino (twice!) and Jesse Cannon.  We have no reason to trust anyone else, but if Mark Hoppus ever wanted to produce an OOW song, we’d let him give it a try.  He used to be in a band called +44, and he produced some songs for The Matches, Motion City Soundtrack, and Socratic.
• If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
  • Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato, Katy Perry, and Eartha Kitt are our dream backup singers.
• What led you to music, and what motivates you to keep making it?
  • We’re not athletic, so it was the only way that we could get girls.  Now that we’re all taken, we must keep doing it because we like hanging out in Harry’s garage, drinking beers, and making the music that we love to hear.
• Tell us about the songwriting process. How does it all come together?
  • Every song is different.  A lot of songs start with Harry’s lyrics, melodies, and chord progressions.  Then the rest of the band fills in the gaps.  Some songs started out with Anthony’s lyrics.  Other songs were Jim’s ideas.  We just go with the flow and don’t force the creative process.  We let the magic happen.
• How do you connect with your audience? What is the easiest way for them to connect with you?
  • Come out to a show!  Watch us play some songs and hang out.  There is no better way to connect than that.  But we’re also on all of the social medias, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube.  If someone wants to let us know what TikTok is, we can get on that one too.
  • http://www.instagram.com/onlyonweekendsmusic
  • http://www.twitter.com/ooweekends
  • http://www.facebook.com/onlyonweekends.band
  • http://www.youtube.com/onlyonweekendsmusic
• What’s next for you?
  • We are in the process of recording some new songs with Fred Mascherino and Steve Angello at Diver Down Studios.  We’ll be releasing these songs in 2023.  We’ve got a show in Ardmore, PA at The Rusty Nail on February 4th, and we’ll probably be booking some weekend trips around the east coast and Canada once our new songs are released.  So keep an eye out for those and come see us play!
• Anything else you’d like to add or let us know about?
  • While you wait for our new stuff, check out our LP Another Wasted Night and our EP Light Years and Heavy Lifting.  They are both on Spotify, iTunes, and Bandcamp.

• Bio:
  Only on Weekends is a pop punk band from South Jersey.  We made our 2014 EP, Light Years and Heavy Lifting, with Fred Mascherino and our 2018 LP, Another Wasted Night, with Jesse Cannon.  These are some of the best songs that you’ve never heard, so catch up now before we release our new stuff in 2023!
• We also have a longer bio here, but it’s a little older.  http://www.onlyonweekends.com/biography