Design Flaw garner inspiration from the genre-bending alternative icons of the 00's and 10's, with Deafheaven, Glassjaw and Deftones particularly prevalent in the East Coast outfit's dexterous lexicon.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Gibran Esa - Guitars
Ryan Hobbs - Bass
Navid Marvi - Vocals and Guitars
Stephen Smith - Drums
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Design Flaw? How long has the band been around?
We’ve all spent the last decade playing with various bands in DC’s heavy music scene. Gibran was a member of Lanternfish. Navid, Ryan, and Steve were members of Technicians. Steve was also in the experimental hip-hop group FunkMnkyz. Navid is currently an active member of Drop Electric, whose score can be heard weekly on the NPR history podcast Throughline.
Design Flaw started roughly at the beginning of 2019, with Gibran and Navid wanting to collaborate after meeting at a show. We went through several member changes and landed on the current lineup in the fall of 2019.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
Navid’s wife Lauren came up with “Design Flaw” after hearing the truly terrible slash great names that were in consideration (including “Piano Bear” and “Ando Roya”). She has a knack for it. Her other idea was “Femur,” but it was already taken…
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?
We usually write the music (instrumentation) and song structure first. Sometimes it starts with a guitar riff or progression, other times with a bass line that we all latch on to and build off. Once the music is sort of there, Navid will refine his vocal approach and ideas and send out some drafts. Everyone has feedback on the vocals, and Stephen and Ryan often sing too. Sometimes we change the music if there’s a new direction we hear from the vocals.
Navid has an incredible ear, and his vocal style is dynamic — every time he has a draft, it is fresh and different. He’s constantly pushing his voice, our music, and the space we create. It’s inspiring and also challenging when our ears don’t always line up, but that’s what makes it good and worth it.
We wrote the four songs that make up our debut EP in 2020. Like many people, we were overwhelmed by emotion due to the pandemic and the endless barrage of vitriol fueled by social media. We didn't set out to address these feelings directly — but each song ended up about coming to terms with a dark future.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
Our tastes are as different as they are the same. For every band that someone shares in the group chat that we all end up loving, there is another band that we troll them mercilessly for liking. It’s honestly about 1:1.
We are continually inspired by our influences in rock, post-rock, post-hardcore, and post-metal (Mogwai, Radiohead, Caspian, Cult of Luna, Pelican, Failure, Deftones, Puscifer, QOTSA, Balance & Composure), but there are a few others that have stood out recently:
Holy Fawn — Their combination of shoegaze-style guitars, almost synth-like heavy bass with electronic-inspired sounds and textures, and incredible vocal layering and buried screams is incredible. Navid and Gibran met them at a show in Baltimore with O’Brother, and they were so gracious and fun to talk to as well.
Low — Total legends who are somehow making the coolest and most vital music of their career 30 years in. “Double Negative” and “Hey What” are beautiful and jarring albums.
Spirit of the Beehive — They put out an incredible album last year. “THE SERVER IS IMMERSED” is one of our favorite arrangements and tracks from 2021.
Deafheaven — Their latest album is gorgeous. They just keep pushing their sound, evolving but still holding on to the urgency and authenticity of their sound. Really inspiring.
Other favorites include Moses Sumney (“Conveyor” is an incredible work of art), Wolf Alice (“Lipstick on the Glass” is another favorite from 2021), and the incredible Emma Ruth Rundle whose poeticism and hauntingly beautiful arrangements keep us inspired.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
Navid — Two words: Hybrid Theory
Gibran — There was a Black Clouds, Tera Melos, Dillinger Escape Plan show in DC. I think it was back in 2013 or 2014. My friend Ross, who played bass in Black Clouds, and now plays guitar in Burial Waves, asked me to help run tech for him at that show. Black Clouds blew my mind. Their sound, the heaviness, the textures, and the lights tied it all together, and they created all that with three people. We became good friends, and I did lights for them for a few shows and a short tour up to NYC and back to DC. But that’s where it started, and that show was incredible. The energy that Dillinger had and the response from the crowd were inspiring, especially to witness it from backstage. The effects and guitar work by Tera Melos was also really eye-opening for me as a guitarist, and I think they heavily shaped the direction of my music interests and guitar style from then on.
Ryan — Red Hot Chili Peppers & Deftones
Stephen — Deftones
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, etc …
Navid — There is nothing better than just chilling backstage with the bands before a show. “Rituals” just get me too in my head.
Stephen — I definitely flex and stretch. I use a stretching app and usually flex backstage before the set.
Gibran — I usually listen to the setlist on repeat for a few days ahead of time and try to internalize what we want the audience to walk away with. I love performances that include visuals — lights, imagery, something to elevate the experience. Also, a shot of Tito’s straight-up. Haha, something to take the edge off.
Ryan — At least three beers deep, but not five.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
Recording our music at Mystery Ton Studios with our homie Kenny Eaton. It’s an intimate space where we got to spend an extended period of time together every day as a band and hone in on what we wanted the songs and music to be. The studio is out near Frederick, MD, and is away from the distractions of Baltimore and DC, but not too far away. Kenny has an incredible ear and is also a phenomenal musician, so he was able to help us refine and hone in the sound and arrangement choices we made.
We also had our practice space at a storage facility in Northeast Washington, DC. We found it through our friend Edgar. Gibran’s old band used to practice there, and we started getting together there in February 2019. It was a special place for us where we did a lot of in-depth pre-production and writing, forming our sound, locking in together, and refining our ideas. We spent countless late nights there — it’s where all of our songs were written.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Deftones for sure. Deafheaven would be a dream, of course. Caspian would also be incredible — they put on an amazing, inspirational performance.
Holy Fawn, Grivo, SOM, Nothing, and Slow Crush are all bands we wish we could support as well. We think our sound would complement theirs really well.