All American Pop-Rockers Romance & Rebellion are the product of five individuals believing that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
David LaViola - Rhythm Guitar, Lead Vocals, Writer of songs
Aaron Medina - Lead Guitar, Harmony Vocals
Aleks James - Auxiliary Guitar, Background Vocals
Brandon David - Bass, Background Vocals,
Kyle Jordan Mueller a.k.a KJM a.k.a KJM productions - Drums
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Romance & Rebellion? How long has the band been around?
We've all been in a ton of bands that aren't worth mentioning before R & R. Except Kyle...Kyle was is Corn. No, not Korn with a K...Corn with a C. The first primordial stages of the band emerged in fall of 2015.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
The band name was created once. I recall a group text between founding members, David, Aaron and myself (Kyle) --a short, collective effort landed us on Romance & Rebellion. It organically came to fruition and brought a smile to my face.
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, David, write all of the chords, melody, and lyrics, which I then bring to the band to arrange and re arrange.
Love, relationships, infidelity, and all variations on the theme tend to reoccur most in my writing. Love is a universal language so it's sort of an easy target. I'm also a bit of a hopeless romantic.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
- Kyle's been drawing inspiration from his early 2000's pop punk catalog along with his shameless love for country. Aaron and Aleks are pulling from their hard rock roots, siting bands like Queen, Muse, and Breaking Benjamin for their tone and overall chops. As for myself (David), I'm always trying to keep up with what's current. More specifically I listen to a lot of pop Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, 5 Seconds of Summer, Halsey...etc.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
I think I can safely say music has been in our blood from an early age. It was just a matter of time before our paths crossed. - KJM
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
I stand in front of the mirror backstage, if they have one, and just pray I don't roll an ankle or knock out a tooth or something - Aaron
Shots...many shots ;) - Kyle
Short answer....practice the parts. Generally speaking we're on such a tight schedule that I can't get nervous because I don't have enough time between when we get to the venue and when we play.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
We're incredibly grateful to our fans and backers for helping us raise money to buy a tour van to play SXSW. We've also been honored to play the ever popular Emo Nite at The Echo in east L.A. in April....Now we're be playing The Warped tour Pomona stop. I would say that the biggest highlight has just been watching it all come together.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
I can rattle off at least 50 bands that we would sell our souls to tour with...most of all I think we're just ready to get out there and bring our music to new places that haven't heard it. We'd love to do that with bands like....Weezer, Blink 182, Muse, 5 SOS, Panic! At the disco...bands that would challenge us and teach us.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
As a young band, we often get questions about playing and touring in our fans' specific cities. If you're a Romance & Rebellion fan, the best way to get us to your city is to tell as many people about us as you can!
Also, we just want to add a very humble thank you to the overwhelming support we are constantly getting from our Rebels (that's what we call our fans).