Answerman answered some questions about themselves and their music. We love it! Let’s see what they have to say!
First off, What’s up with your name? Is there a story behind it?
Sam Pitino: Blame that one on our official namer, bassist Walt Enright. He has a knack for such things. He was listening to a band called Delta Spirit; specifically a song called “Ransom Man” that he liked. I don’t know what possessed him to switch out “Ransom” for “Answer”… but we were looking for a name and the universe spoke to Walt.
Tell us about your musical past, would you tell us about your early years?
Most of us are late-bloomers when it comes to actually playing instruments. I started out as the vocalist in a Black Sabbath tribute band in my mid-30s. After all the other members had babies, we had to kill it, so I started looking for another band outlet. I was also playing some guitar and starting to do open mics… playing cowboy chord type tunes… lots of Neil Young and CSN, LOL.
My long time friend Walt used to manage some bands back in the ’90s in Boston and he always had an ear for new music coming out of the city and elsewhere. He was just starting to pick up the bass around the same time I was doing open mics – and so we started jamming in my loft apartment together. One night he brought me to meet this guy who owned a deli in Marlboro. That was guitarist Tommy Murphy. He had this amazing jam space in his basement with like 35 guitars. Tommy is the proto-punk rock historian. He’s played and forgotten more punk covers than most people will ever learn in a lifetime. Anyway, I had a handful of songs I was working on and I also play a little drums – so we just started hammering out what felt good and sounded fun.
Our first real drummer was a great guy named Alex – from the Boston hardcore scene. An incredible drummer, but not the best musical match for what we were doing, although he did give us the punch we were looking for. Eventually, my friend Thom, the drummer from the Sabbath tribute band joined us. That’s when things started to gel and we could focus on writing new songs. Soon after that we got the itch to play out. Back then, there were small music clubs peppered everywhere in the Boston area, so we just started playing out as much as we could. We took a few years off, went on hiatus, and got things back together around 2018, 2019 with our current drummer Chris Orcutt.
How would you describe your sound?
Loud and pumping garage rock from hell.
Which artists have the biggest influence on your sound?
The Cramps. The Pixies. The Velvet Underground. Luna. Black Sabbath. Modern Lovers. The Dirt Bombs.
What’s the last song you listened to?
“Beat Me to the Punch” by Oneida.
What’s your source for hearing new music?
Mostly friends. And the local music community here in the Boston area are always tossing up new bands to check out everyday.
Who is your dream producer?
No idea.
If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
Ozzy Osbourne.
What led you to music, and what motivates you to keep making it?
My brother and I used to put on KISS rock shows for our parents, with our friends. My mom did the wardrobe and makeup with her surplus of Mary Kay cosmetics. She was always open and encouraged us to listen to rock music. So I’ve been a music nerd first and foremost throughout my life. Then, in my early 30s, my ex sister-in-law bought me a little Walmart toy guitar, kind of as a joke. But I took to it hard and started learning my favorite folky songs – America, CSN, Neil Young, and it just grew from there. I think I’m motivated by the process first. From there it becomes a quest to extrude the perfect rock song that we could have fun playing live.
Tell us about the songwriting process. How does it all come together?
There’s a couple ways the songs come together. I have a set-up at home where I play guitar, drums and sing at once. You’ve seen these folks who do three or four things at once – drums, guitar, clarinet, plate spinning, etc. – it’s like that. I need the beat, it helps get the idea across quickly. So I sort of jam things into existence that way. I record everything. Some are just small nuggets. Others can be fully formed songs. Then I bring the good stuff to the band and we make it a million times better. Then sometimes we just jam on stuff at rehearsal and tunes might develop from that. Tommy always has a few excellent riffs or parts to share as well and some of those end up as new songs or parts of a song.
How do you connect with your audience? What is the easiest way for them to connect with you?
Instagram and Facebook are where to find us, and we’re at “Answerman Boston” on both platforms.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/answerman_boston/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/6zq6gcOAdvwaBB9VoQdK5e?si=ad4cb52574024d32
Bandcamp: https://answerman.bandcamp.com/
Press Release: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13tM8x4A8Sl1KrjkQChMweY53kbbqfeRXfNMsx4lamug/edit?usp=sharing
What’s next for you?
We’re kicking off a regional tour starting April 22 for our Black Light Poster album release. Right now we’re just looking forward to getting back out into the clubs to share our music. We’ve got some old Answerman classics, as well a handful of new songs – so we will be road testing those, too.
BIO:
Answerman are a Boston-based garage rock band from hell. Led by Sam Pitino, the quartet’s gritty band of psych-dosed rock and roll has returned after a brief hiatus, reclaiming a place in the New England music scene with blistering debut album Black Light Poster. Set for April 2023 release, the LP is led by singles “Black Heart” and “No Complaints.” The record release party goes down at Faces Brewing Co. in Malden on April 22.
