Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.

Andrew Musalo- Vocals & Rhythm Guitar
Dan Burke- Vocals & Bass
Austin Barrow- Lead Guitar
Matt Mangione- Drums

For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Makeshift? How long has the band been around? 

Austin and Andrew were in a cover band called Road to Ruin, Matt was in a metalcore band called The Greater Sky, and Dan was in his high school marching band. Makeshift has been around for almost 5 years. 

What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?

We were getting ready to start playing shows and we still didn’t have a name. We sat down and threw out some names and Makeshift just kind of stuck. 

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? 

Andrew and sometimes Dan. All the songs are about inner conflicts and dealing with what life has to throw at you. As we grow and learn more about ourselves we hope our songs will mature with us.

What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?

We have really diverse interests actually. Andrew & Austin listen to a lot of Punk, like Bad Religion & Rancid. Matt listens to a lot of metalcore like Underoath and Dan’s into a bunch of newer Pop-Punk bands.

Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?

Taking Back Sunday is collectively one of our favorite bands and definitely was a huge influence when the band was getting started. 
 
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, etc …

We make sure to stretch and stay hydrated throughout the day. Andrew and Dan also do some vocal warmups before the set. 

What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?

A dream of ours has always been to play Warped Tour cause we’ve all been going to Warped Tour since early in our teenage years. We got to play our hometown date on the Ernie Ball stage at Vans Warped Tour 2015, which was definitely a dream come true for us. That same summer we got to play Today’s Mixtape Festival at one of the biggest venues on Long Island with The Movielife, which was something we never could’ve imagined happening. 

If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?

Andrew - I would love to tour with Blink-182 because they seem like a bunch of fun guys and I grew up listening to them & Alkaline Trio.

Dan - I can’t really pick just one band in particular but an overall dream tour of mine has always been to play a full Vans Warped Tour. 

Matt - Underoath is my favorite band and I would love to tour with them and Every Time I Die seems like they know how to have a blast on tour.

Austin - I would tour with the Foo Fighters, I feel like I could hang out with Dave Grohl all day long. 

Is there anything else you would like to add?

We just dropped our new single “Damage” on PureVolume last week! Be on the lookout for more singles and our upcoming EP ‘Morale’ due out in January! Also keep up with us on social media:

Facebook: /MakeshiftLI
Instagram/Twitter: @Makeshift_LI