All For Amends is an acoustic project from London, UK and is the musical efforts of Aaron Akeredolu.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Frontman – Aaron Akeredolu
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to All For Amends? How long has the band been around?
All For Amends is the first project I have pursued musically.cI started All For Amends around the Summer of 2012. I started it just before I enrolled into University so it has been a slow effort as I have been trying to balance school work with this project sensibly.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
The origin of the name was a cynical joke I have always had towards my attitude in coping with negativity in life. The idea being that I am always hopeful, I am always opening to amending and fixing certain issues in my life even if all the negative stuff persists.
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?
I write and basically do everything, from writing lyrics and composing the instrumental aspect of the songs. The main themes I usually approach in my songs are issues with understanding myself I guess. Understanding my human tendency to dwell on the negative experiences. I suppose I chose use the song format to acknowledge experiences (good or bad) that seem to touch me at that time.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
Well I think there are two spectrums of the music I listen to that have influenced All For Amends in different ways. In regards to 00’s modern punk rock and Alternative music I would say Saves The Day, Turnover, Bangarang, Fireworks, The Movielife, The Wonder Years, The Get Up Kids, Lightspeed Champion,You Me And Everyone We Know and The Smiths. I have realized recently that old Soul/80’s90’srnb has also been integral to the music in All For Amends in subtle in terms of my approach to melody. So within that spectrum of music I would say Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, New Edition, Dont Be Cruel era Bobby Brown, Craig David, Mark Morrison and Lynden David Hall.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
I would say that funnily enough a lot of Folk legends such as Leadbelly and (early) Bob Dylan instilled a courage in me to play ‘acoustic music’. I was just enthralled by the rawness of emotions they would evoke in their recordings and it just encouraged me try at least mimic them regardless of how pathetic my efforts would be in comparison to their recordings.
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
To prepare for a show I usually just panic a lot to be honest, speed through songs quickly for reassurance or I talk to the others acts that would be performing.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
The biggest highlight so far would be releasing my latest EP “Looking Out For When It Starts To Look Up” and seeing the artwork my friend Steven Umanee designed for the rerelease. It was just so reaffirming knowing that another person shared and could reproduce the vision I have in beautiful way.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
I would definitely do a Saves The Day acoustic show circa Through Being Cool, Fireworks, oh and Bangarang who were a fairly small but incredible pop punk band from PA.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I’m really excited to see what the future holds for this project and interact with people who like All For Amends. I want to thank anyone that has ever took time out of their day to listen to my releases, thanks.