A Brilliant Lie is a think-outside-the-box alternative rock band from Orlando, FL.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Well, we don’t have actual “roles.” We all just yell in microphones at the same time. It’s very hip and avante garde.
……………….Just kidding:
Tara Lightfoot – Vocals, Guitar
Jason Lemrod – Guitar, Keyboard
Zachary Teman – Bass Guitar
James Christopher Lane - Drums
Matthew Movens – Guitar, Keyboard, Backup Vocals
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to A Brilliant Lie? How long has the band been around?
Tara and I were in a punk rock band (2005-2007) called Finding Mulder. After that disbanded, I joined a hard rock band called Mansions Of Thought (2007-2009) where I worked briefly with James Christopher Lane. Tara and Chris were always reliable and great to write with, so the three of us got together and started what ultimately became A Brilliant Lie. – Zack
I’ve dabbled in a number of projects, but the all-original bands that actually played live shows were a hard rock band called Public Opinion (in high school haha) and a pop punk band called The Starlits. Zach, Chris, and I began casually writing in 2009, and by 2010 had our full line-up to make our A Brilliant Lie debut. -Tara
Burn After Reading and Hydrosonic - Matt
An Empire’s Atrocity, Mansions of Thought, Savi Fernandez Band, Method of the Soul, Heroes of the Storm, The Great Divide, Beatnic, & Imperial –Chris
When I was 15 my best friend and I started a band called fanMONKEYS. We were a two-piece band and learned how to cover 'Cute without the E' by Taking Back Sunday. That was the pinnacle of its existence. True story. -Jason
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
Like most bands in their infantile stages, we went through a few “tester” names. But at that point, we were still just playing in our living room.
We have noticed some event calendars and venue signs having us listed as “A Beautiful Life” instead of “A Brilliant Lie.” So there’s that.
But really, the name is fitting to our content. From the get-go, there’s been a theme throughout our lyrics and discussions about what it is to be human. That’s something everyone can relate to…and it’s a fascinating topic with never-ending material. Who are we? What’s real? What’s honest? Sometimes the most brilliant lies are the ones we tell ourselves.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?
Our music is written in a collaborative fashion. We all bring parts and ideas, and each member has an equal vote on how the varies facets of the songs get constructed. That being said, it’s tough to make everyone happy haha. But at the end of the day, this writing method pushes us to a higher standard that ultimately creates (what we feel is) meaningful and exciting music. When all five of us stubborn members can agree on a song, it has a better chance of holding its own weight with our listeners.
Typically, our songs spring off of guitar riffs, melody ideas, or even emotive inspiration.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
I have a broad list of bands/artists that I like, top ones that come to mind (all for different songwriting reasons) are: Butch Walker, Anberlin, Minus the Bear, and Death Cab for Cutie. How that translate to the music we make is beyond me. -Matt
Manchester Orchestra, The Ocean, Closure In Moscow, Foo Fighters, Our Lady Peace, and Soundgarden. - Chris
John Mayer, 30 Seconds to Mars, Taking Back Sunday, and Twenty One Pilots -Jason
Dredge, Modest Mouse, Deftones, Foo Fighters, & Closure in Moscow – Zack
At The Drive-In, Ani Difranco, Mewithoutyou, Death Cab For Cutie, Metric, Smashing Pumpkins, and Bjork to name a few. -Tara
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
On a late spring day when I was in the 8th grade - I was sitting in lunch with my friends Dave and Jesse, and some kid was playing guitar through the cafeteria (also the auditorium) PA. Being middle-schoolers we thought it sounded horrible and jokingly said we should start a band (not really knowing how to play a thing). I spouted off who would play what, and we started thinking of band names (still not knowing how to play a thing). I asked for a guitar for my birthday, and that August I got my very first electric guitar. It was one of those Epiphone LP-100 Les Paul style guitars, it was probably the worst made instrument in the world but I played it and really fell in love with what you could translate that all into... - Matt
I was in middle school and a buddy of mine showed me an album from his guitar teachers band “Brody” from Downingtown PA. It was then that my mind was blown away learning that anyone with enough drive and determination can get an album together and play out. That was when I really opened my eyes and ears to my local music community. –Zach
I was inspired by bands like Taking Back Sunday and Thursday to start learning to play guitar but ultimately a friend, Sanja Jovanovic from Anyone’s Guess, pushed and inspired me to join a band. – Jason
An Our Lady Peace concert...and honestly garth brooks live – Chris
In middle school, a friend of mine told me that he was going to teach me how to play bass guitar because I liked rock music and had long arms. *sigh* So, we put bass strings on a cheap electric guitar and started learning Nirvana and Green Day songs. That coupled with the fact that I secretly always wanted to be Jem from the beloved 80s cartoon “Jem and the Holograms.” -Tara
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, etc …
Stretching, certain yoga poses, a lot of hopping around, vocal warm-ups and scales, playing through guitar scales and phrasings. – Matt
Preparation for shows is compiled of rigorous training. Stamina and tolerance has much to do about how real the struggle is. I prefer to slam a Peach-flavored Rockstar beverage for power and vitality , and follow that up with a few frosty PBR’s to knock of the energy drink jitters. Oh…stretching the neck and back before and after each set makes a world of difference on how sore the following day will be. – Zack
I do a series of single and doubles exercises. Then I always play my favorite exercise "Paradiddle Nightmare" - Chris
I warm up to click tracks, going over parts of the music. I also put a lot of effort into not crapping my pants beforehand (mainly just this, really). – Jason
Yoga poses, a series of vocal warm-ups, half a Mucinex, lots of Fisherman’s Friend cough drops, boiled lemon and ginger tea, some smiles, and jumping jacks. That’s pretty much my pre-show prep routine. And maybe a sip of whiskey if it’s cold outside. Or warm outside. …or any temperature, actually. -Tara
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
We have been fortunate to be a part of some really great productions. Opening up for Passion Pit at Sunfest was huge. We also had a blast playing with The Crash Kings and Niko Vega last year…and Fuel just a month ago. But honestly, things like playing local shows or even fulfilling our (pretty ambitious) Kickstarter and seeing how much people actually care about our project is a huge deal to us, too.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Foo Fighters. They are very high energy and authentic with the crowd. They seem to connect with their fans – which is something that has always been important to us, too. Plus, they are an actual ROCK BAND. Not too heavy, not too indie, not too poppy – just straight, fun rock. Like us!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Not really – but this has been fun!! Thank you for the opportunity to chat.
Now, we’ll write a series of inside jokes in the form of hashtags so that the five of us can giggle when we see them in print. *ahem*….
#justonegrammy #isthisavideo #membersofmuse #what #ABQ