Meet My Friends: An Interview with Annasophia and Friends

A couple weeks ago KSDT had the opportunity to connect with Annasophia and Friends (ASNF), a student band crossing genres of emo, rock, classical, and many other modes of sound. After their studio session (stay tuned for its release) the band stayed back to have a conversation about ASNF as a band, individuals, and much more.

KSDT: Hello, Annasophia and friends! For the introduction, let's get all of you guys saying your name and your role in the band.

Seth: I'm Seth. I play bass.

Annasophia: Hi, I'm Annasophia. I'm the lead singer.

Declan: Hi, I'm Declan. I'm on drums.

Julia: I'm Julia. I play viola.

AJ: I'm AJ. I play guitar.

KSDT: Okay. Well, we just had a studio session with you guys. It went awesome, it went great, first of the school year. And, I mean, I... I haven't really been too familiar with your band, just like little stuff like Muir Unplugged. But Annasophia and Friends is a very cross-genre band, I would say. Your sound is low-key hard to describe. And so, like, let's say a toddler is coming up to you guys and is interested in your music, how would you describe to them your music and your sound?

Annasophia: We have a hard time describing it because we have a lot of influences and the culmination of that I feel like is hard to capture into words sometimes. But I would tell this child we are a little bit of rock and don't even know what else I would say. Maybe like... Yeah, I would say, guess right now we do a little bit of rock and then sometimes it's softer. But it’s probably the best way I can put it.

KSDT: You said that you guys have a lot of influences. Could you name some?

Annasophia: I would say I came from maybe a little bit more of a folk background. And then I joined a band and I would say AJ, Seth, and Declan had a really big influence on the sound. And so I'll let them talk a little about that

AJ: I guess for me, like... when I play guitar I just play whatever I think sounds cool. I take a lot of inspiration from multiple genres like shoegaze and a little bit of midwest emo because I'm like a big fan of, I don't want to be mean but like loser core rock music because that's like the music I listened to in high school.

Declan: Yeah, I mean, this band has kind of been us all bouncing ideas off of each other, which has been really fun. I mean, we're probably all going to have different influences, like I listen to a lot of Modest Mouse.

Seth: Yeah. I guess since I know that, like, Anna, Julia, and AJ mostly carry, like, the melody, I guess I just try to add that, like, extra oomph. And I even added overdrive pedals so I could get a bit crunchier and get that, like the body for the rest of the song. But I'm trying to think of specific influences for bass. I guess my favorite one at the moment is Lucas from First Day Back, just because I really like how he follows the drums. He's very dynamic where he plays highs but then lows, which I think is cool.

KSDT: Nice, okay. Next question. I know, Annasophia, you mentioned how before the band really formed, you came from a folky background and everyone else had their own moments. But timeline-wise, how would you say your sound as a band has evolved, especially with the recent addition of strings?

Annasophia: So... Prior to the band, in high school, I was just making a lot of stuff for myself. And so the instruments I had on hand were like an acoustic guitar or like a MIDI piano. And so a lot of my songs kind of just surround that. And then a lot of it had MIDI strings. So strings are always something that I wanted to have in my music. I just didn't know anybody in my town. And then in college, I wasn't even sure if I wanted to be in a band. If I wanted to do music in this kind of light, but when we did form I think it was really seeing the scene of San Diego, too, that kind of changed the way that I wanted to go directionally. Because I would say that obviously the guitars are pretty crunchy – it's like a pretty fast beat. I just think with vocals, I've heard so many different styles. Some people scream, you know, some people are kind of in the middle. I feel like I'm a bit of a lighter singer, but I try to experiment. But I'll say, like, having Julia in was, kind of healing in the sense of I'm glad that at least something at my core that I've always wanted is now a part of the band, and it's really fun experimenting how to mix her in and explore what I think my sound is and then add their influences in.

KSDT: Julia, do you have anything to add to that?

Julia: Well, it's been a treat to play with everyone. I was added pretty recently for the Arcades performance, but then it's been interesting because I have a lot more of a classical background and I've never really played in a band before. So it's been really fun trying to learn how to play with more rock bands. And I think that being in this has helped me a lot as a musician. So shout out.

KSDT: I guess kind of tying into what we've kind of been talking about or hinting at. The space of UCSD is known to hold this space for many student bands, but it's really, really hard to find cohesion and find a way to keep up these ambitions. How would you say Annasophia and Friends is able to keep up that momentum and keep moving and creating?

Seth: We get a lot of support, which is really nice. Like, people genuinely really, like, mess with us. Like, obviously our friends but we've also had a bunch of people come up to us and be like, hey, that was really good.

Everyone: True.

Seth: And it's fun, so, yeah. And we have shows coming up. We also have a social media manager

Annasophia: Shout out to you, Sam. But, yeah, I think being on campus is a completely different scene. I mean, I come from a smaller town that didn’t have a music scene or I mean, I wasn't very involved. So being on campus and meeting people who were so interested in different things, but the string of it all is music, that has been so much fun because there's always people coming out because they all want to listen to live music. And yeah, I think the campus. Well, at least the station here is doing such a great job of highlighting the bands on campus and giving opportunities because I do think that right now there's not the most support for the arts. I think it's always a constant battle, and so I think showing up in any way is just amazing here on campus.

KSDT: We could go around, unless you really don't know how to answer, but do you guys have any words of encouragement or little advice that you could give to aspiring bands?

Julia: Don't be afraid to play outside your genre. I think if I stayed to what I used to play in the band, I wouldn't be here. It is a lot of fun to try to push yourself and try new stuff, so don't be afraid to do it.

AJ: I guess something I could give is, just don't be afraid to put yourself out there. Like, even if you're really introverted because it would just be a lot of people who will like you. Like, genuinely. Yeah, that's about it.

Declan: Honestly, like don't let skill set ever be a barrier. You should just throw yourself in. That is what I've learned from this for sure.

Seth: Always make it something fun. Don't, like, stress about it.

KSDT: Awesome. Let's see. For the next question, we're going to move away from the space of UCSD and just look at the music industry as a whole. It can be very, very binary, led by, like, cishet white men. But... I think you guys take a lot of pride in expanding outside of that, which is really, really awesome. And so I wanted to ask how your identities have shaped your creative ambitions and artistries.

Annasophia: Okay. Like I've said, being from – it's not exactly a small city, but like, I don't see a lot of people that are here from my town. It's very few. But I would say, like, I think a lot of the things that I end up writing about are things that are kind of personal to me in my life. I like to focus on that coming of age aspect because I think that was a lot of the reason for my character growth and my character in general, but also I wrote in my essays about being queer and how that has kind of... affected the way that I grew up. Also I'm not shy to sing about those instances and I think it's kind of an interesting space to navigate it here on campus and in San Diego and around a lot of cishet men and it's almost always an uncomfortable experience and it's always ongoing. And I feel like I don't say it a lot, but it is something that, you know, I'm constantly, I do have to keep in mind. But yea, so I mean, I try not to be like super loud about it, but I don't hide it in my work either. So it's definitely affected my music a lot, especially with lyricism.

Julia: I feel like for me when I was growing up, I've been playing viola for all my life and a lot of the spaces I had were very much like read by the book – you know like play the sheet music and stick to what you're doing and I feel like being in this band and still playing viola but in a way that I wasn't taught is both a way to like honor where my background but also like be able to put my own spin on it if that makes sense and I feel like that is nice and cool!

AJ: I guess, not really my identity, but most of the things that shape how I'm creative with making music are my friends, you know? Because they give me music recommendations, and then... Sometimes I even make music with them. That is the whole reason why this band formed because we're all just friends, you know, that's not even a joke. We're all kind of blending whatever we want. That's the best part about music, it could be whatever you want.

Declan: I guess a little bit similar to that. Before COVID, I was actually sort of involved in San Diego, DIY spaces – hardcore. And I think just seeing the ecosystem of musicians approaching and doing music in a non-traditional way – not through major labels, but having their own spaces, promoting themselves, making their own music was really encouraging to me. Kind of something I wish I stayed with more, but... Yeah, I think that definitely influenced me being a drummer and being in bands and all that.

KSDT: That was the last of the hard-hitting questions. These are the more chill ones, don't worry. But just for those out there who are film geeks or whatever, have you guys watched Pitch Perfect? Well Annasophia and friends, who is the dream riff-off lineup for you guys? you can give like two to three artists.

Annasophia: Any suggestions? Who could we riff off with? I'm scared. Who could we actually riff off with? Who could we win against? Is it another college band we know?

Declan: AJR, Falling in River.

Annasophia: Let's do a riff off with AJR. And then let's also do... Title Fight?

Everyone: Title fight, yeah.

Annasophia: Just to see them? Yeah, just to see them. Okay, I guess AJR, Title Fight, and Itchy worms

KSDT: A lot of this interview, you guys would circle back to the fact that you guys are friends. No pun intended, but if you guys were to describe Annasophia and Friends as a movie, what movie would it be?

Annasophia: I don't know. It's like a music movie. It's like Whiplash haha. I'm trying to think, like, genuinely.

AJ: The Long Walk

Laughs

Annasophia: I’m trying to think, like what's a movie where everybody's diverse and going through something?

Julia: Little Miss Sunshine.

Annasophia: Little Miss Sunshine? Yo. That's a great movie. The diversity going through something. Oh my gosh, I don't even know.

Seth: Honestly. Fight Club.

Declan: Fight Club.

Annasophia: Yeah, Fight Club. Wait, I'm down to say Fight Club. That or I feel like we're kind of like Ocean's Eleven.

Laughing

KSDT: And for our final question, in lieu of the studio session we just did, could we go around and just say your favorite song you performed?

Seth: Yeah, my favorite song is smoke the first one

Annasophia: My favorite song is Bite

Julia: I think ATP

AJ: I kind of like Chew

Declan: These guys know damn well it’s Sticky

KSDT: Okay, thank you, Anna-Sophia and friends, for the studio session, the interview. Of course. Keep in touch. Keep updated.

More on ASNF check out their Instagram and coming up shows on Nov 1 at Humble Heart and Nov 23 at the Che Cafe!